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Opel has swooshed the covers off its new Monza Concept at the 2013 IAA (Frankfurt Motor Show), revealing the brand’s future styling direction. The study continues the legacy of the 1977 Opel Monza coupe, which debuted at the same show that year with a six-cylinder engine.
The Opel Monza Concept has a sculpted body that looks more like a shooting brake than a classic coupe and is dominated by a striking design detail – the enormous (no, seriously their huge) gullwing-style doors. Other noteworthy design details are the boomerang-shaped air intakes in front of the wheel arches that complement the chrome bar in the front grille.
Designed by a team led by the head of Opel Design, Mark Adams, the study’s design philosophy is called “sculptural artistry meets German precision.” The surfaces of the 4.69 meter-long (184.6in) and 1.31 meter-high (51.6in), four-seat Monza Concept are “modeled after ocean waves lapping on the shore”, according to Opel. Due to the fact that the whole cockpit structure is around 15cm (5.9in) lower than in conventional models, the Monza boasts a surprisingly spacious interior and boot volume (500 liters/17.65 cubic feet).
The cabin is dominated by the wide dashboard that is used as a single surface for the LED projection technology. A total of 18 LED projectors create a continuous, adaptable multi-functional display, which Opel says it’s a world premiere in an automobile. Both the area displaying information and the background can be individually configured, and operation is via voice control and steering wheel controls.
The modular design of the Monza Concept allows a variety of powertrains. The Frankfurt show study features an electric drive with a CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) range extender. The all-new 3-cylinder 1.0 SIDI Turbo engine acts as range extender but uses natural gas instead of gasoline, further reducing CO2 emissions.
In its normal state, the 1.0-liter turbocharged gasoline engine develops 114hp (115PS) and 166 Nm (122 lb-ft) of torque from 1,800 to 4,700 rpm. The unit will launch on the Adam city car next year along with an all-new six-speed manual gearbox. Opel says the new engine is 20 percent more fuel efficient than the current 1.6-liter naturally aspirated unit.
By Dan Mihalascu
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