2010 Opel Astra Interior Unveiled: New Gallery with 45 High Res Photos

Opel and its sister company Vauxhall have published the first interior photos of the all-new, sixth generation Astra, which is due to make its world debut at this September's Frankfurt Motor Show and reach European showrooms by late this year. Along with the interior shots, the German automaker also issued a new set of studio photos as well as sketches of the Astra that show the evolution of the exterior and interior styling of the car.

As anticipated from the various spy shots, the 2010 Astra's cabin is a fresh reinterpretation of the Insignia's design, which isn't a bad thing at all. Highlights include the recurring wing and blade motifs, the wraparound instrument panel with deep set gauges and the ambient lighting that provides illumination from above the centre console and within the door handle recesses.

The company says that the interior also stands out due to the high quality of the materials which can be seen in areas like the grained, soft-touch surfaces, the textured panels, the chrome trim elements, and the feel of operating buttons and switches.

"Our goal was to make the perceptual quality in the interior of the next generation Astra as great as that of the Opel/Vauxhall Insignia," says Peter Hasselbach, in charge of Design Appearance Quality. "This is in line with Opel/Vauxhall's mission to bring innovations and quality to the compact class."

Opel claims that with the new Astra it has addressed one of the most common complaints on the previous model, that of limited storage areas in the cabin. The company said that it has created a raft of "clever storage solutions" like a shelled sunglass case inserted above the door opening on the driver's side, coin slots and pen holders moulded into the inside edge of the glove box lid while the glove box itself has two removable compartments.

There's also a second mini-glove box below the light switch, an under-seat drawer beneath the passenger seat which is big enough to hold a pair of shoes while the centre console can accommodate nine CD cases, as well as having a small storage area and an insert for two cup holders.

"It was important for the team not only to find places for the items to fit, but for the new Astra's interior to still look great, and maintain high quality standards throughout the cabin," says Max Kuncl, Performance Integration Manager.

For more details on the 2010 Opel / Vauxhall Astra click here.

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GM Kills Buick Vue SUV before it's (Re)Born after Negative Feedback

Only two weeks after announcing the rebirth of the Saturn Vue as a Buick that would also be offered as a plug-in hybrid, General Motors revealed that the compact SUV has been canned. The news was broken by GM's Vice Chairman Tom Stephens on Wednesday in a posting on the company's official blog. Stephens said that GM decided to cancel plans for the rebadged Vue after negative feedback about the vehicle from employees, potential customers, dealers, media and analysts at a recent preview in Michigan.

"The Buick crossover we showed received consistent feedback from large parts of all the audiences that it didn't fit the premium characteristics that customers have come to expect from Buick," said Stephens.

"We were all struck by the consistency of the criticism of the compact crossover. And what we decided to do in response is a good example of the essence of the new General Motors… acting quickly, and boldly, and listening to feedback from customers, employees, dealers, media and just about anyone else with an opinion."

Buick's version of the Saturn Vue was scheduled to be launched into the market with a 2.4-liter direct-injection four-pot and a 3.0-liter direct-injection V6 in late 2010, followed in 2011 by a plug-in hybrid model featuring a 3.6-liter flex-fuel V6 and two electric motors.

Stephens said that the "important" plug-in hybrid technology of the Vue would be applied to another vehicle "at no delay", with more details to be released in the very near future।

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