Bob Lutz: 30K E-Flex cars in Europe in first year, 1M worldwide by 2020

Now that British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged some £90 million for the development of clean vehicles in the U.K., General Motors is seeing plenty to like about the European market for its E-Flex vehicles. The automaker has already reversed its stance on building the electric cars in America and shipping them overseas, with the Ellesmere Port plant now being considered for Opel and Vauxhall EVs. Just how many electric cars could GM sell in Europe? According to Bob Lutz, plenty. In fact, GM believes it could move as many as 30,000 units in the first year of availability, with the worldwide figure of one million by 2020.

While those sales targets are pretty ambitious, so are the goals of Gordon Brown. If the Prime Minister has things his way, all new cars sold in Britain by 2020 will be electric. Oh, and built in the U.K. (editor's note: FAT CHANCE!), which could become a small step closer to reality if GM decides to go with the Ellesmere Port factory.

Gallery: 2007 Opel Flextreme concept

Opel and Vauxhall versions of Volt to be built in U.S.

Click above for more shots of the Opel Flextreme concept

When the Volt concept was first unveiled, GM was not sure how to badge European versions of the E-Flex cars. Apparently, the decision has been made and the first Euro-bound EV's from GM will be badged as Opels, with a Vauxhall version coming shortly thereafter. All three models of the E-Flex chassis will be built in Detroit atop the next-gen Delta compact car platform which was designed to carry a large lithium ion battery pack along with a range-extending engine. Though the Europeans would likely favor a diesel powerplant, it seems that the first-generation of all three E-Flex vehicles will use a gasoline-powered engine for on-the-fly battery recharging.

It goes without saying that the Volt and its Euro-clones will be the most expensive vehicles built on the Delta platform, with U.S. pricing estimated to be at least $40 grand. Across the pond, the Opel and Vauxhall E-Flex's will be saddled with at least a 10,000 euro premium. The price of gasoline, which is significantly higher in Europe than in the States, along with any government assistance for purchasers of the EVs, will determine how quickly customers will recoup that added investment.

Euro-bound Volt clones will be built in U.S.

The internal debate over whether the upcoming Volt will be badged as a Chevrolet or an Opel across the pond has been decided. The first Euro-bound EV's from the General will be Opels, though we are not sure how much in common the vehicle will share with the Flextreme concept. Carl-Peter Forster, president of GM Europe, indicates that a Vauxhall version is also in the works (this would be nothing more than a right hand drive variant for the British market) and that all three of the vehicles will be quite similar in design. A gasoline range-extending powerplant will see shared duty in the trio as well, though we would expect a diesel option in Europe at least at some point.

For the forseeable future, all three E-Flex variants will be built at the same factory in Detroit, and Europeans should expect to see the Opel in 2012. Of course, the extended-range electric car will carry a price premium, with a €10,000 bump over a comparable gas engined vehicle currently being thrown around. We hope that the Volt and its clones will prove popular enough to see that cost premium dwindle somewhat as the cost of batteries drops and allow the General to make a few bucks in the process.

2010 Saturn Aura.

In the past, a gorgeous Opel concept would have gotten us only mildly excited. Now that Saturn has been completely Opelized, this coupe has us running around screaming nonsensical things to the sidewalk walkers outside our windows. Called the Gran Turismo concept, it has a greenhouse that is very Infiniti G35, while the rest of it is fresh and beautiful while carrying over some styling cues from the current Vectra. And just look at those exhaust outlets-they’re as big as the taillights. The car’s turbocharged, 300 horsepower V-6 must be putting out some pretty intense fumes. The interior looks great too, and only a few shiny bits are far-fetched for production.

The Gran Turismo sits on a chassis that will underpin the next-generation Vectra and Saturn Aura, and the design is meant to hint at the future of those cars. Will we get a high-powered Aura coupe when the next car hits the streets? We’ll have to wait and see.

Opel adds turbo option to the CNG Meriva

Until now, if you wanted to drive a large natural gas-powered vehicle, one option was the Opel Zafira which could haul you and your beloved ones around, albeit with only 96 HP from the 1.6-liter engine. Well, since there seems to always be a market for more power, Opel has adapted this engine to a turbo version, something that boosts power to 150 HP, (more here). This puts the Zafira in the same leage as the VW Passat Variant TSI EcoFuel. The Zafira Turbo CNG could be on sale in 2009. Opel is currently selling two CNG cars in Germany, the Meriva and the Opel Combi, at €23,640 and €17,737, respectively.

GM already working on second E-Flex vehicle for Opel (and Saturn?)

Following his speech to the Commonwealth Club a few days ago, GM CEO Rick Wagoner apparently told reporters that a second E-Flex platform vehicle was also under development at the company's Warren MI technical center alongside the Chevy Volt. This second ER-EV is destined for the Opel (and presumably Saturn) brand. Following the debut of the Volt in January 2007, GM has shown two other E-Flex concepts, the Opel/Saturn Flextreme and the Cadillac Provoq. The Provoq is expected to make the production transition in 2009 as a conventionally-powered crossover. The Flextreme, however, carries some of the design language of the new Opel Insignia that was recently revealed. The significantly more aerodynamic Flextreme also carries the hatchback/wagon type body shape that is more popular in Europe. An Opel-badged model would likely have an appearance similar to the Flextreme but with more conventional style body openings and without the pair of Segways in the back. It's unknown at this point what type of range extender would be used with the Opel although the concept used a diesel. So far we've only found one source for this report of a second E-Flex vehicle and we're still waiting to hear back from GM for any confirmation or comments on any of this. As soon as we here back we'll provide updates.