Opel Ampera: European Chevy Volt Scooped Undisguised!

Carscoop's spy photographers have done it again, this time by capturing the Opel Ampera study totally undisguised at one of the firm's German centers. Due to be revealed for the first time in public at next month's Geneva Motor Show, the Ampera is nothing more, nothing less, than a Chevy Volt with a new fascia and a subtly redesigned rear-end. Opel's version of GM's extended-range electric vehicle is scheduled to go on sale in Europe during the second half of 2011, or about a year after the Volt hits Chevy's North American outlets.

The most visible styling changes on the Ampera concern the EV's front-end design which is inspired from Opel's latest concept cars like the GTC. It features a set of Civic-like headlamps with vertical air ducts, a thinner grille and a new bumper.

At the rear-end, aside from the new bumper, Opel's design team restyled the tail lamps and added a horizontal chrome bar while they also painted the lower part of the fifth door in the same color as the rest of the car -as opposed to the Volt's blacked out panel.

We don't have any pictures of the Ampera's interior, but judging from exterior, we're guessing that changes will most likely be minimal.

According to General Motors, for trips up to 60 km or around 40 miles, the Ampera will run solely on lithium-ion battery power charged through a standard 230v outlet while for longer distances, the car will continue to drive on electricity that is generated by a small internal combustion engine.

Opel Ampera EV Sketches, and yes, it's a rebadged Chevy Volt

General Motors may have wanted to keep the Opel Ampera EV concept under wraps until the opening of the Geneva Motor Show in early March, but that isn't going to happen as official sketches of the electric car that were filed with the European Union trademark office have found their way into the web. To the surprise of few, the sketches reveal that the Ampera is nothing more than a rebadged Chevy Volt.

The only visible cosmetic differences between the two cars seem to concern the Ampera's restyled front and rear bumper along with the new set of alloy wheels - and that's about it.

If all goes well, the Ampera will be launched across the European continent as an Opel and Vauxhall about a year after its U.S. introduction in late 2010. The Ampera will utilize the same electric propulsion technology as the Volt which allows the car to run exclusively on lithium-ion battery power charged via a standard 230v outlet for up to 60 km (37 miles). For longer distances, the five-door hatch will drive on electricity that is generated by a small internal combustion engine.

Via: es.Autoblog.com

Opel Ampera EV: European Chevy Volt to be Unveiled in Geneva Motor Show

As many anticipated, General Motors announced that it will take the wraps off an extended-range electric concept car at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show (March 5-15). The five-door, four-seat Opel Ampera will feature GM's electric propulsion technology, called Voltec, that allows the car to run exclusively on lithium-ion battery power charged via a standard 230v outlet for up to 60 km (37 miles). For longer distances, the car will continue to drive on electricity that is generated by a small internal combustion engine.

"With the Ampera, Opel will be the first European automobile manufacturer to provide customers several hundred kilometers of non-stop electric driving," said Alain Visser, GM Europe Chief Marketing Officer.

While Opel did not make any references to the Chevy Volt, judging by the mechanical and styling similarities between the two cars as seen in this teaser sketch, and taking into consideration a previous statement from GM Europe's president, Carl Peter Forster, who openly admitted that Opel will reveal an electric vehicle derived directly from the Volt, we think that it wouldn't be too farfetched to support that the two cars are if not entirely, heavily related.