Opel Concept M
by Sam Livingstone

The Concept M preludes a production car later this year that should differ very little from this concept car, just as the Agila production car differed little from the Concept A concept car of Geneva 2000. But this car is a class size larger than the Agila with dimensions that its proportions belie; it is half a metre longer than the Mercedes A-class that has created market acceptance for this type of car.

The production Opel will be the first European Micro MPV, and shall possibly become the benchmark that other brands emulate, just as they have done with the Zafira in the Mini MPV sector. The only comparable product on the market today is the Toyota Yaris Verso, but its Kangooesque two box utility MPV identity means that it shall not be seen as a 'true MPV' in the same way that the monobox Opel shall be.

The Concept M also gives a clear indication of Opel's intention to present a very consistent corporate face across their wide range of vehicles, a monolithic design strategy more typical of premium brands such as Mercedes Benz. This strategy extends to the interior of the car that has an architecture all but identical to the new Vectra.

The integrated PDA (personal digital assistant) in the dashboard is the first example from a European car company, of the integration of customers' personal technology products with their car. It will function as a normal PDA when removed from the car and acts as secondary control and information interface when docked in the car.

The Concept M is an important car because it demonstrates how serious Opel is in managing its design identity, and how it is recognising the need to advance on visible, user centric technology elements.

But it is most significant as the first blueprint for the European market's newest niche and future class sector; the Micro MPV.

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