16 May 08 11:21
General Motors is to show the first of a whole new 'family' of cars at the Paris Motor Show this autumn.
This first car off the new Delta platform - to form the basis of models including the all-new Vauxhall/Opel Astra and the next-generation Saab 9-3 - will be a small family-sized four-door Chevrolet saloon that will replace the current Lacetti (there's no decision yet as to whether it will keep the name).
The Mk2 Lacetti saloon is 'about the same size as the Volkswagen Jetta', according to a Chevrolet spokesman, and will go into production soon after the Paris show. It has been conceived as a 'world' car, hence the four-door bodystyle, as traditional saloons are preferred over hatchbacks in many regions including North America, where it will replace the current Chevy Cobalt, and Central and Eastern Europe, where Chevrolet sales are growing rapidly.
The current Lacetti hatchback and station wagon will remain on sale alongside this new saloon, which will arrive in the UK in right-hand drive form early next year: five-door hatchback versions of this new model will follow on sale by late 2009.
There will be no Mk2 Lacetti estate, however: instead, Chevrolet will offer a compact MPV, which will also replace the aged and soon-to-be-discontinued Tacuma . This Scenic-sized car will be previewed in concept car form - albeit very near to the final production model - at the Paris Show as well. Further down the line, other Lacetti variants will follow; Chevrolet is considering a coupe-cabriolet, and a compact SUV (as indicated by the T2X concept) is said also to be in the future product plan.
Chevrolet will also make an announcement in Paris over production of the Volt - another car on the Delta platform. The Volt will be seen in Paris in US production specification, with its electric powertrain and auxiliary petrol engine said to be very similar to that of the original concept. GM is planning also to offer a version with a diesel engine, as in last year's Opel Flextreme concept; this may be sold as a Vauxhall or Opel, with the petrol-electric Volt taking the Chevy badge.
Chevrolet has announced that it is to launch 11 new models in Europe by 2011 and in addition to the models already mentioned, these will include the Beat city car (to replace the /4car/rt/chevrolet/matiz/58/2Matiz next year) and the Camaro. An announcement on the reborn muscle car will be made in Paris, too: right-hand-drive sales are yet to be confirmed, but are looking likely. In the meantime, the brand will launch the Epica and Aveo at the London Motor Show in July, where it will also display the Camaro convertible and Beat concepts.
