Opel chose a rather unique way to inform us about its new concept model that previews the next generation of the Zafira people carrier, and which is scheduled to make its world premiere at the Geneva Salon in March. The company published a short video accompanied by a photograph showing the firm's design boss Mark Adams holding an iPad through which a hologram of the concept car pops out.
The Zafira Tourer Concept will give us a pretty good idea of what the actual production model will look like (see the latest spy shots here) inside and out when it hits European showrooms within the next 12 months. The minivan's front end styling is obviously inspired by the Ampera, or Opel's version of the Chevrolet Volt, while we can also see that the new Zafira won't be getting sliding rear doors.
GM's European subsidiary describes the car as a “Lounge On Wheels” with the company claiming that the concept brings "on-board flexibility to a new level of sophistication and comfort."
“We’ve applied the lounge concept to a motor vehicle,” says Mark Adams, Vice President Opel/Vauxhall Design. “A lounge is a place you want to escape to and relax, a place where you really want to be. We wanted to offer the same feeling in a monocab and make it the lounge you want to spend time in.”
The new Zafira is based on the Astra's hardware and shares its underpinnings with the Chevrolet Orlando. It will feature seating for seven passengers in three rows of individual seats, with power train options to mirror those of the current European market Astra.
Being that that Geneva show Zafira was more of a pre-production model than a pure concept, few things appear to have changed on the outside. These include the smaller size and less snazzy alloy wheels, the larger but obviously more practical for everyday use exterior mirrors, the redesigned tail lamps and the more mundane tail pipe designs.
