If Opel had built it ...
11/15/2014
In March 1975 , Opel presented a sports car study called Opel Genève at the Geneva Motor Show, which was named after the city where the show was held.
The Automobil Revue devoted a few lines to the elegant coupé from the Opel Design Center:
"At General Motors, we find a silver-grey style study called "Genève" on the Opel stand. The light-footed, elegant coupé rotates on an elevated position on a windshield, serving as an eye-catcher for visitors to the show.
And indeed: the "Genève" style study does not have to shy away from critical glances when it comes to purity of form. The front and rear are tapered with integrated bumpers. All window surfaces, including the side ones, are strongly curved. This did not pose any particular problems as the windows are made of Plexiglas. Other details also point to the maquette character of the coupé. The interior, for example, was only hinted at but not actually executed. The front has no air intake; the gills running under the bumper are only a dummy. And finally, door handles are also missing. So a lot of work would still be necessary to transform this pure style study into a drivable car."
The Opel stylists did not have to start from scratch when designing the concept car, as their colleagues in America had been working on a successor to the Chevrolet Corvette for some time. Similarities between the Opel and the various Chevrolet designs were therefore hardly coincidental.
There were also technical parallels, as a Wankel engine was "intended" as the mid-engine, just as Chevrolet had planned. Whether they wanted to test public interest or were simply looking for a stand-out model is unclear, but the plastic coupé certainly caused a stir.
And would Opel's future have looked any different if this study had been used as the basis for a successor to the GT?
