http://www.leftlanenews.com/report-g...ini-rival.html


By Drew Johnson
BMW’s MINI division has set the bar for premium small cars, but General Motors will reportedly take on the British automaker with a luxury hatch of its own.

According to Autocar, GM is currently developing a premium hatch to take on the MINI brand. Internally dubbed ‘fun and fashion’, the project is being headed by GM’s Korean division.

Although most of the ‘fun and fashion’ project is being handled by GM’s Asian division, GM DAT boss Mike Arcamone confirmed to Autocar that Opel engineers will have some input on the project, indicating the MINI rival will be sold under the Opel/Vauxhall banners. Given most Opels eventually wind up as Buicks, it’s possible the hatch could eventually be sold in the U.S.

No word on what engine might power the new model, but GM’s new 1.4L turbocharged four-cylinder is certainly a leading candidate. Look for GM’s MINI rival to hit the market sometime in 2013.

 

A Korean-engineered American answer to the German-engineered British chic car? I don't know...

 

Yep. I hope it's not just a Spark with fog lights.

With that said, let's see what they come up with. The 1.4T seems like a perfect powerplant for such a project. But Minis are cool, cheap and fun to drive, they'll need a large dose of that if they're serious.

 

I hope like hell they can pull this off. And the Buick drawing floating around the net looks promising. But I HIGHLY doubt it's going to be a successful effort. GM can't even get the design of it's bread and butter cars to be appealing. And I have news for them, if they think they're going to sell that Opel concept (or anything from Opel's current blob-design ideology) to MINI intenders, they're going to fail miserably.

People buy Mini's for heritage and good design, not fuel economy and ease of manufacture.

You know, GM HAD a brand that would've been perfect for this....

 

It will also have an American flag painted on the roof

 

Not holding my breath...

 

I hope I'm wrong about this, but I'm betting that the result is going to fail miserably in comparison to the Mini.

 

I just can't see this doing incredibly well. It also could end up cross shopped against a Volvo C30 or a VW Golf. And GM is too new to this modern and trendy segment to nail it on their first try. The Opel Corsa and Agila might be the closest thing, but that really doesn't speak to me at all.

And in the end, we know it won't even look like this. It'll be watered down by the guys worried they're being too aggressive for a Buick dealership, de-contented by the bean counters, and will lack any seriously impressive and relevant marketing campaign.

*sigh*

Old GM, still hard at work.

 

You're probably right about it ultimately being watered down - but - I see potential in it's two box design and proportions. I see little potential in it being marketed as a Buick though.

One of Chevy's new self-stated goals is to be GM's "youth brand". Well? Here you go Chevy. Don't just talk the talk, walk the walk every now and then. Aveo and the pathetic looking Spark aren't going to cut it in the youth brand segment. Maybe there's an opportunity here for something good. Something fun. Something exciting. That would require that GM not blow it though. Big if.

 

Damnit, that's EXACTLY what I was going to post to Charlie's comment Beat me to it!

 

Assuming GM actually moves forward with this, and makes an appealing enough product and calls it a Chevy...then what?

One key piece of the Mini success story is it's heritage. And BMW has used that to great advantage and effectiveness to further the Mini brand. What could Chevy tap into as far as heritage goes? Nothing, as far as I can see.

GM may call it a Mini competitor, (lots of wishful thinking - which is not a bad thing), but what it'll actually be is more of a Scion competitor, complete with the need to create a cool image for this new product.

Anyway, GM has been talking about a Mini competitor for a long time. Remember the Nomad concept? Frankly, I'm getting fatigued by GM's strategy of talking about a product which will or won't be here several years in the future.

Wouldn't that be something if Chevy showed us a cool little hatchback, with a 1.4T motor, priced at $18K, with lots of dealer accessories and marketing support at one of the big auto shows, and announced: CHEVY CORSA (or whatever), AVAILABLE AT YOUR CHEVY DEALER THIS FALL!.

 

I dunno...

Mini does sort of have a bit of brand heritage even if I think it is lame.

The other issue is sales... I guess they aren't too bad, but for 2009 Mini sold 45,225 automobiles, down 16.4 percent compared to the 54,077 cars in 2008. This year through Oct they sold 38,538 which is about 1000 less than this time last year. Is their product getting a little old, or is the Mini fad starting to go away?

I think a small cool car is certainly needed... should it be a Buick, no. Should it be Buick priced, no. They should be able to market a Chevrolet successfully... just make the product right. And get the right accessories at the right price, and a whole lot of them.

 

That is asking a lot from GM...

 

What kind of power do most mini's make? That 1.4LTurbo makes under 140hp. I thought most minis were 160's to 170's with the S models making 200something.

It doesn't seem hard to do. I'd be happy with a light car that can seat 4, has a good suspension, an engine with around 170HP and a proper manual trans. Ford did it with the SVT Focus a few years back.

 

Ha you are probably right. I don't really know why that is exactly...