Have you ever had a vision that you were — in a very spirited manner –driving your car, a car you were about to buy, or a car you simply had the hots for — only to wake up and realize it was all a dream? Because that’s exactly what happened to the fella in this ad who fell asleep next to a brochure of the Opel Astra GTC:
The ad finishes with the words “Man’s New Baby” — which obviously refers to the spot in a man’s heart that a car like the GTC will undoubtedly occupy. But Man’s New Baby also happens to be the theme of a series of comical webisodes about the three-door hatch coupe hatch.
Now, how about a three-door variant of the Chevy Cruze?
Hat tip to USCA45.
Comments
Who tells GM that Americans don’t want hatches, coupes, diesels or rear wheel drive?
I don’t like the unavailability of hatches in the U.S. as much as the next guy, but considering that the Cruze — in its singlular sedan body style and limited engine choices — consistently outsells VW’s Golf AND Jetta (and GTI/GLI/Wagon/Hatch, diesel variants), the decision makes sense on at least a certain level… that said, I personally wonder how many more Cruzen GM can sell if it were to offer the Cruze in various body styles.
I guess it also leads to the point of how come GM use the Delta platform to have a CMax fighter
They have a C-MAX fighter — the Orlando. It’s simply not available in the States 🙁
true but it’s not in a hybrid form or anything
Alex, isn’t the Golf produced by VW in Europe and imported to the U.S.? Isn’t the Golf TDI rather expensive within its class? And it comes with VW’s reputation for awful reliability and high maintenance/repair costs. That’s why a Golf TDI is not in my garage, though some people swear by them. I have similar issues with MINI despite it being a nearly perfect match with my interests.
An imported car that I’m not even considering might go to the top of the list if made domestically by a company that I trust. I believe there are many Americans who think likewise, especially in these trying times for American employment. It’s why I purchased four Saturns over the years. Kind of throws a wrinkle into any over-simplified analysis based solely on sales of body styles.
The Astra GTC would make a nice Verano hatch given the right power train. And please Buick, don’t eliminate our access to the European rack accessories when you finally do decide to build it.
Yes, it’s imported, and yes, it’s more expensive compared to its classmates. Ultimately, it’s VW’s competitive disadvantage. But so is making its vehicles in Mexico — which is where the next-gen Golf will be made, unless major changes take place in VW’s strategy. Why is Mexican production a problem? The answer is the New Jetta/NCS.
To date, I know 6 people who have purchased a 2011 or a 2012 Jetta, my fiance being one of them (2012 Jetta TDI with nav — the range-topper). All of these Jettas have been back to the dealer due to one of these issues: cabin squeaks/rattles, mechanical problems (shifter moves out of alignment, bad suspension), loose pieces left inside the cars (like bolts, clips, wires) from the factory. Of course, this is my personal experience and is not an objective “study” by any stretch; rather, it’s my experience with new cars of friends/family; since they’re new cars, these kinds of things shouldn’t happen — and they ultimately muddy the automaker’s image in a market in which it needs to grow the most to reach its goal to become the largest volume brand globally.
Now, VW is capable of fixing these issues by improving processes… but as we stand right now — VW can either produce quality products in Germany/Europe and price itself out of the market (when it comes to compact vehicles, at least), or assemble them in Mexico, resulting in competitive pricing, but poor quality. Which is the lesser of two evils?
As far as the GTC goes, I personally don’t think it fits Buick… as we discussed before, the products that need to be made available here are 1) Cruze 5-door hatch, 2) Cruze 3-door hatch (GTC-like), 3) Cruze coupe. These need to be mainstream vehicles. Just because an Opel exists doesn’t mean it should automatically become a Buick, especially given that luxury wagons/hatches don’t sell in the U.S. for whatever reason.
don’t know why it wouldn’t fit buick, nice looking car, very economical,looks like a lot of small cars out there now, just better, plus wasn’t opel dirived from buick ( old guy), and isn’t ford selling similar cars today, is it to small for buick? even the rear emblem in video looks a lot like buick.
No doubt the GTC has to come to NA in some guise. The question is Chevy or Buick? Some say go against the Audi a3 as a Buick, which seems to make sense at first. But, there are more cars of that type selling at lower price points. The mazda3 and golf are the first that come to mind. Way more sales there for GM as a Chevy competing with those. But please GM, put the 1.6L turbo in it and bring it over.
Totally agree Bronc. What we have now is nothing. A hatch with the 1.6T would be a great start. I’d be happy with either Chevy or Buick if it is done well, but I haven’t seen enough evidence that GM wants to compete at the high-end within the category, hence my push for Buick. I think they don’t trust the hatch market, hence the effort might not be there, and it becomes a catch-22. There are a lot of hatches out there but the only one in my mind without some significant flaws is the Mazda 3, and even that forces one to give up on some interior quality.
Why can’t someone produce a hatch with the drive train of a Mazda 3, Golf TDI, or Chevy Volt … with the interior flexibility of a Honda Fit, the interior materials of a Ford Focus, the roof rack options of a Subaru Impreza, and the build quality of a Cruze. I believe that car would be on the expensive side, but it would sell very well, especially if made in the USA.
@VeranoHatchForUS Just curious: what do you find wrong with the Golf/GTI?
Nothing wrong with the GTI if you’re a driving enthusiast, and nothing wrong with the TDI if you’re more interested in efficiency, except for the huge fact that they are foreign — and German foreign, with their extreme markups on replacement parts. So all that money leaves the country up front, and then continues for years down the road.
Paying those high prices for repairs would not bother me half as much if I knew those parts were being made in the USA. But in this case, the money goes to Germany, and then on to Greece to support the Southern European brand of socialism. Of course, I’d much rather that money go into the quality of the car up front rather than have a potential failure on the road. Assembly in Mexico only worsens the issue.
I understand that cars today are “global,” but that doesn’t mean we can’t make most of the parts here and assemble them here. Hard for me to believe that we can’t compete with Germans.
Got ya. The irony for me is that VW doesn’t reach out to 3rd party suppliers for most of its parts, and instead designs and engineers them in-house — thereby avoiding profit-taking on most of the parts for its cars. I really like them, personally — but the quality of manufacturing in Mexico is dubious, at best — something I wouldn’t expect from a global automaker.
How are the cars from Chattanooga working out? Better quality than Mexico. Labor cost lower than Germany?