14 Vauxhall Insignia Grand Sport 2017 under test

Vauxhall has released first pictures of the all-new Insignia, known as the Insignia Grand Sport, which will receive its world premiere at the 2017 Geneva Motor Show in March.

Following on from the previous generation, which won the European Car of the Year in 2009, and sold over 30,000 in the UK last year, the Insignia Grand Sport is based on completely new vehicle architecture.

Technology added include IntelliLux LED matrix lighting, lane keep assist, head-up display and unique AGR-certified premium seats, front and rear-seat heating and a heated windshield.

There will be more functionality in the IntelliLink systems and Vauxhall OnStar.

It is also the first Vauxhall with an active aluminium bonnet, improving pedestrian protection “considerably”.

“Vauxhall is raising its game even further with the launch of the new Insignia Grand Sport,” said Rory Harvey, Vauxhall’s chairman and managing director.

“It has all of the virtues of its successful smaller brother the Astra, and takes those to a higher level. The Insignia Grand Sport will set new standards for design, efficiency, technology and connectivity when it debuts next year at the Geneva Motor Show.”

Design

“In its proportions as well as in each detail, we wanted the new Insignia Grand Sport to deliver an upscale quality feel,” said Mark Adams, Vauxhall/Opel vice president design Europe.

“Its design combines flowing lines and subtle surfaces with crisp, precise lines to exaggerate its dramatic proportions: it looks longer, lower and wider than it actually is, and it definitely looks upscale.

“Every design feature conveys technical know-how and the utmost precision. The new Insignia Grand Sport is an excellent value proposition with the aura of a car from the premium, upper class.”

The cockpit is “fully aligned” to the driver who sits three centimetres lower than previously.

Engines

The Insignia Grand Sport will be available with a range of turbocharged engines and transmissions when it is officially launched next year.

The eight-speed automatic transmission is new to the line-up.

Driving assistance

Vauxhall’s IntelliLux LED matrix light now have 32 LED segments – twice as many as in the Astra – that are all integrated in the new slimmer headlamps of the Insignia.

The increased number of LED elements enables the various light patterns to adapt to the traffic situation even more precisely and the transitions between the modes are more seamless.

“This results in an improvement of both the quality of light distribution and light intensity,” said Vauxhall.

To improve visibility even further while driving through curves on full high beam, the engineers added a new function to the new Insignia’s IntelliLux LED matrix headlights.

The light intensity at the inner matrix segments rises according to steering angle in order to increase the illumination of the curve. In addition, a further high-beam spotlight provides additional illumination at full high-beam for up to 400 meters.

Additional driver assistance systems include:

  • Head-up-display: Information on speed, traffic signs, set speed of speed limiter or navigation direction is projected onto the windscreen and in the driver’s direct line of sight ensuring that the eyes remain on the road.
  • Adaptive cruise control (ACC), which measures the distance to vehicle in front and adapts the speed accordingly. ACC will initiate automatic emergency braking if the distance decreases abruptly.
  • Lane keep assist with lane departure warning provides gentle steering wheel movements (and LDW alerts if necessary) to help drivers avoid accidents due to unintentionally drifting out of their lane.
  • Rear cross traffic alert. The system uses radar sensors in the rear bumper to detect objects coming from up to 20 meters at 90 degrees from the left or right side behind the vehicle.

Comfort and infotainment

Vauxhall is still one of the few manufacturers to offer seats certified by Aktion Gesunder Rücken (Campaign for Healthy Backs).

The ergonomic seats in the Insignia feature side bolster settings, massage, memory and ventilation functions in addition to the standard setting possibilities.

The two outside seats in the back will be available with optional seat heating.

Keyless ‘open & start’ comes as standard on all trim levels.

The car will come with the latest Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatible IntelliLink systems.

A smartphone can be charged wirelessly without the use of a cable.

Vauxhall OnStar is also on board, offering services ranging from automatic crash response to stolen vehicle assistance.

A new concierge service will be launched together with the Insignia Grand Sport, enabling its occupants to ask OnStar advisors to select a hotel and reserve rooms.

Furthermore, up to seven devices can be connected to the Wi-Fi hotspot.