The facelifted Opel Insignia OPC has been revealed, sporting a slight redesign and several chassis revisions aimed at keeping the mid-size performance car competitive.
The redesigned Opel Insignia OPC offers up a few subtle styling tweaks over the previous car. Most obvious is a new front grille, which now features a single chrome bar instead of its predecessor’s two-bar design, as well as new headlights. The car’s rear reveals a chrome bar that now extends into redesigned tail-lights.
The Insignia OPC retains the same ‘sabre-tooth’ front-end detailing, integrated rear exhausts and the same wheel design as the old car.
Opel says styling of the facelifted model “evokes visions of high-speed laps around the Nurburgring” and “dazzles with radiance”.
Inside, the OPC presents the same, redesigned interior as the rest of the facelifted Insignia range. The all-new fascia reduces the number of buttons found in the cabin compared with the first Insignia, and the car also presents a new instrument cluster.
Optional leather-trimmed Recaro sports seats are available, and the car has a new steering wheel, which also comes with shift levers for cars equipped with the optional automatic transmission.
Opel claims greater changes can be found beneath the car’s lightly-retouched skin.
Things don’t seem all that different to start with; the car’s 239kW/435Nm, 2.8-litre turbocharged V6 hasn’t changed at all from the previous car.
However, Opel says its engineers have modified around 60 per cent of Insignia OPC’s rear axle componentry. The car’s noise and vibration levels have also been improved, and new ESP software is said to improve the car’s tendency to understeer.
OPC has also reworked the car’s damper software, to ensure the adjustable shock absorbers deliver optimum roadholding. All-wheel drive and a limited-slip differential further assist with on-road traction.
When equipped with a six-speed manual transmission, the Insignia OPC sedan can run from 0-100km/h in 6.0 seconds (Sports Tourer: 6.3sec). The car features Brembo brakes to help bring it to a stop.
Of course, we won’t be seeing the facelifted Insignia OPC on our shores following the brand’s sudden exit from the Australian market.
The updated Opel Insignia OPC will be on display at next month’s Frankfurt motor show.
