Tuesday, 11 February 2020

Opel Extends South America Business: Brand launch in Colombia and Ecuador

  • Renowned import partners secured
  • Export to Colombia and Ecuador from summer of 2020
  • Market entry with four models: Opel Crossland X, Grandland X, Combo and Vivaro
  • More model launches in the near future
  • Profitable sales in new export markets key pillar of PACE! company plan





Opel is continuing its export offensive. Rüsselsheim-based carmaker is extending its business in South America and will be entering the Colombian and Ecuadorian markets as of the summer of this year. Opel has already signed agreements with renowned importers SKBerge and Nexumcorp, who will become the exclusive sales partners for the Colombian and Ecuadorian markets respectively.

Opel Grandland X SUV

Brand with the Blitz will enter the two new markets with an initial offering comprising of four models: successful Opel Crossland X and Grandland X SUVs, multifunctional Opel Combo Cargo and the highly flexible Opel Vivaro van. Opel’s perennial bestseller, the new Corsa, will follow shortly.

Opel Crossland X 

“Colombia and Ecuador are very interesting markets and will provide us with additional momentum. Obviously, being a German brand is a major advantage when entering these markets because German engineering is also synonymous with quality in South America. We can also benefit from the existing Groupe PSA infrastructure and the very positive dynamic of the group’s other brands in both countries,” said Michael Lohscheller, CEO Opel Automobile GmbH and member of the Groupe PSA Managing Board. “Like in every market, our top priority in South America is profitable growth with a high level of customer satisfaction.”

Opel Combo Cargo

Opel Vivaro van

An extensive export offensive is a key pillar of Opel/Vauxhall’s company plan PACE! that ensures sustainable profitability for the company. plan includes the clear goal of achieving 10 percent of sales in markets outside of the traditional core European markets by the mid-2020s. To this end, Opel is strengthening its presence in Asian, African and South American markets with new and renowned partners. In addition, the carmaker will enter 20 new export markets by 2022, one of these being the Russian market where the brand recently celebrated its comeback.

PACE! plan

Wednesday, 5 February 2020

Best Connections: New OpelConnect Services Now Available

  • Orderable now: OpelConnect from €300 in Germany, standard with navigation systems as well as on Opel Corsa-e and Grandland X plug-in hybrid
  • All aboard: eCall, breakdown call and vehicle status
  • High comfort: “myOpel” app with remote controls especially for electrified vehicles
  • Digitised pathfinder: LIVE Navigation, Trip and Drive Management

OpelConnect

Opel is extending “OpelConnect” with new services. Since summer 2019, buyers of new Opel cars can enjoy additional peace of mind with on-board emergency and breakdown calls. Now they can benefit from numerous other “OpelConnect” services, such as vehicle status and information as well as LIVE Navigation (if the respective car is equipped with a navigation system). Customers of the new Opel electric models Corsa-e and Grandland X as plug-in hybrids can also check the battery’s state-of-charge via “OpelConnect” or programme the air conditioning and charging times. This means that Opel electrified vehicles can be defrosted and warmed up or cooled down comfortably in the summer.

Log in, select service and immediately benefit from OpelConnect

Access to the extended range of “OpelConnect” services is extremely easy. When purchasing a new car, customers simply order the connect box for an additional charge of as little as €300 in Germany. Alternatively, they can equip their new vehicle directly with the Navi 5.0 IntelliLink, Multimedia Navi or Multimedia Navi Pro infotainment systems, in which case the “OpelConnect” box is already standard. OpelConnect box and services are available for Opel models from Corsa to Crossland X and Grandland X, Combo Life and Combo Cargo to Zafira Life and Vivaro.

As an option, Opel dealers can pre-register customers with the necessary data. The new Opel owners can then open an account in the “myOpel” customer portal and activate the services in the “OpelConnect” store. They immediately get the full overview of all available free and paid services. Particularly practical: only one registration is required in future to access and use the “myOpel” app, “myOpel” customer portal and “OpelConnect” store. All three platforms share the same login data.

Standard services: security, comfort, cleverness

Following free services are part of OpelConnect as standard:
  • eCall (1): if the airbags or seatbelt tensioners are deployed in an accident, an emergency call is made automatically to the local Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP)2. If no answer is received from the vehicle the PSAP sends details of the accident to the rescue services, including the time of incident, the position of the crashed vehicle and the direction of travel. An emergency call can also be triggered manually by pushing the red SOS button in the ceiling above the mirror for more than two seconds.
  • Breakdown call: connects with the Opel mobility service. Important information such as location and diagnosis data, the time of the breakdown, water and oil temperatures and maintenance alerts can be sent automatically, if the customer wishes.
  • Vehicle Status & Information service: in future drivers can get information about their car via the “myOpel” app. Depending on the model, the available data includes mileage, average fuel consumption, service intervals and refills, and also a reminder if a scheduled service is approaching. In addition to the owner, the selected Opel dealer is also informed about service intervals and vehicle warnings, so that an appointment can be arranged.
  • For electrified Opel models, the “OpelConnect” range also includes e-remote control functions. Customers can use their smartphones to check the battery’s state-of-charge or programme air conditioning and charging times by remote control.
  • Drivers of vehicles with navigation system, who want to know more about their own driver profile from “OpelConnect”, can consult Trip & Drive Management. Trip duration, distance and average speed of the last trip are visible here. “Last-mile” guidance via Bluetooth offers car-to-door navigation to the destination (subject to the model).
  • LIVE Navigation (3) provides (for three years following activation) online traffic information in real time, which allows delays to be detected quickly and avoided. The system suggests alternative routes and calculates the arrival time. It also gives information about roads with heavy traffic, so that drivers can choose a less busy route. Additional services provide information about fuel prices along the route, available parking spaces and costs, the weather and points of interest such as restaurants and hotels (or in the case of electrified models, the availability of charging stations).

Optional “OpelConnect” services: e-mobility made easy, advantages for fleets

“OpelConnect” and “Free2Move” offer additional, optional, country-specific paid services. These range from Charge my Car with trip planner and charging pass for e-vehicles, to special services for business customers. “Charge My Car” enables access to thousands of charging points throughout Europe via the “Free2Move” app. To make it even easier for customers to choose the right charging point, “Free2Move” makes a preselection based on the distance to the charging point, the charging speed and the charging price of the possible public charging options.

Business customers and fleet managers can benefit from special fleet service options. The scope includes various paid service packages that provide analyses of fuel consumption and driving style or transmit vehicle warnings in real-time as well as maintenance intervals. This makes planning easier and the fleet more efficient.

Coming soon: comfort functions via “myOpel” app

The offer from “OpelConnect” will be continuously expanded in the coming months. Many vehicle functions will be controllable remotely (4) using the “myOpel” app for smartphones. Opel owners can, for example, lock or unlock their car via the app and if they forget where they left the vehicle in a large parking lot, the horn and lights can be activated via the “myOpel” app – voilà, the vehicle is found.

Also coming soon: if the car is equipped with Keyless Open & Start including digital key, the vehicle can be shared with the family. Via smartphone, the owner can allow up to five people to access the car (5).

[1] Requires free contract and agreement to vehicle location at time of order. Dependent on market-availability of “OpelConnect” services.

[2] Available in EU and EFTA countries.

[3] LIVE navigation services available free-of-charge for 36 months after activation. Payment for Live navigation services required thereafter.

[4] Remote control availability expected 2020.

[5] Availability for Opel Corsa expected 2020.

Tuesday, 4 February 2020

Holzer Motorsport and Michelin New Partners for ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup

  • Holzer Motorsport is service provider for new brand cup
  • Michelin supplies tyres for world’s first brand cup for electric rally cars
  • Opel Corsa-e Rally test programme enters second phase


New Opel Corsa-e Rally 


Opel Motorsport has extended the long-standing cooperation with Holzer Motorsport. The race and rally specialists from Augsburg will provide the technical support and the on-event parts service for all teams competing in the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup. Tyres for the first electric rally brand cup in the world will be supplied by Michelin.

Development of the Opel Corsa-e Rally for the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup continues at a fast pace. Two development vehicles of the 100 kW (136 hp) electric car have been undergoing durability testing since the end of last year at the Dudenhofen Test Center. The next step will be performance tests on rally stages.

“This is good news for our teams”, says Opel Motorsport Director, Jörg Schrott. “The continuation of our 20-year-long cooperation with Holzer Motorsport further enhances the status of the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup. Günther Holzer and his crew have been skilled and reliable partners for all teams in the ADAC Opel Rally Cup since 2013. The same goes for Michelin. After the successful cooperation in the ADAC Opel Rally Cup, Michelin will now equip all the Opel Corsa-e Rally cars.”

New all-electric brand cup featuring Opel Corsa-e Rally will begin on August 21-22 with the ADAC Saarland-Pfalz Rally.