Opel Insignia Grand Sport 2017 Review

In Europe, Opel finds itself in the position of being a German brand craving the halo (once?) enjoyed by Volkswagen, but conscious of having to remain price competitive in line with other mainstream car makers. Its designs have become increasingly upmarket while it continues to democratise technology and safety systems within its segment.

Whereas its predecessor came in three body styles that featured an estate and almost imperceptibly different hatchbacks and saloons, this time around Insignia and the Holden Commodore it will spawn comes just as a hatchback (Grand Sport) and wagon. Boot capacity in both models has increased, with the Grand Sport swallowing 490 litres and up to 1450 litres should you drop the 40:20:40 split folding rear seats.

Given the rejigged dimensions of the new car, the Insignia looks far more athletic than the outgoing model. In fact, for its overall size at just under 4.9 metres, it looks remarkably elegant and sleek, with GM claiming it to be one of the most aerodynamic cars in its class. For fans of numbers, it has a drag coefficient value of just 0.26, making it more slippery than the new Bugatti Chiron.

You’ll struggle to find a bad angle on the new Insignia Grand Sport. The low, broad nose with a grille that features Opel’s latest winged logo motif includes new headlights that not only give it a more purposeful face, but they also introduce the latest version of the company’s Matrix LED technology.

The adaptive lighting units consist of 16 LED elements in each headlight that can open and close ‘tunnels’ of light around other vehicles to enable greater illumination of the road ahead. A new high beam can also project up to 400m.

Under that lower bonnet will be a new range of engines including the 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder diesel driven here. European markets will also get a 1.5-litre turbocharged petrol option, which will not make it to Australia, but an all-aluminium 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol unit will. Locally, will offer a 3.6-litre V6. As has been much publicised, the new Front/all-wheel drive platform design doesn’t leave enough room for a twin-turbo V6, let alone V8.

The new Insignia’s longer wheelbase (compared to its predecessor, not Commodore) and 30mm decrease in height, has had a noticeable effect on handling characteristics. Through faster bends that longer wheelbase brings some additional stability. The car’s torsional rigidity has also been improved via increased use of lighter, but higher strength, materials.

The cabin design has also taken a sizeable step forward and looks more upmarket. We’ve already seen many of the features in the current Astra, such as the latest eight-inch touchscreen infotainment system that incorporates both Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

Gone is the much maligned haptic feedback touchpad of the previous model, freeing up more space on the centre console. The quality of the materials has also improved slightly, though some surfaces away from the main touch points don’t have the same finish you would find in a Mazda6 or Volkswagen Passat.

Even though you sit lower than before, your field of vision is good, helped by a relatively low dashboard and slimmer A-pillars. Rearward visibility, however, isn’t so great, mainly due to that more coupe-like sloping roofline.

And if you squeeze in three rear passengers you can forget about rearward vision altogether.

Space in the back is good for the two outer occupants, with an 8mm increase in headroom feeling more generous than the tape measure would suggest. But whoever draws the short straw to sit in the middle will have to fight for legroom either side of what is a wide transmission tunnel, as well as feeling like they're perched on top of that centre seat.

Diesel grunt arrives
Our test car’s 125kW 2.0-litre diesel, though not exactly bristling with performance, does provide goo low-down grunt thanks to its 400Nm torque peak.

At higher speeds, the roll-on performance is less punchy, with overtakes sometimes requiring you to drop down a gear. The engine is better insulated than previous Opel diesels thanks to improved sound deadening materials and what Opel calls its ‘Whisper Diesel’ technology.

When you stick to the lower reaches of the rev range, it is one of the more pleasant diesel engines on offer in today’s market. According to Opel’s official figures, this engine with its start-stop system will return a combined ECE number of 5.2L/100km. Add to this the car’s generous 62-litre fuel tank and visits to the pump shouldn’t be too frequent.

Our test car was again atypical to local [Australian] specification being a manual. GM will use a new nine-speed in the Aussie version.

Euro refinement – almost
On the move, the standard suspension is compliant, doing a solid job in absorbing the bigger lumps and bumps without feeling too soft. The damping feels just about right for a car of this size, but isn’t quite at the same level of refinement as the likes of the Volkswagen Passat or indeed more premium cars like the Audi A4 or BMW 3 Series.

With the car’s centre of gravity now lower, when you do pitch it into a corner there is less body roll than you would expect. Along with that, the steering feels well-weighted and not devoid of all feel in the way that many of Audi’s latest offerings are, for example.

The front tyres do provide plenty of grip and there’s enough feedback to sense what the front axle is doing so you’ll rarely have to make adjustments mid-corner. Aussie Commodores will feature local suspension and steering tuning – the important thing is the donor car is well-mannered.

For even greater levels of traction Opel offers its torque vectoring all-wheel-drive transmission, but thus far this is only available with the 2.0-litre petrol engine.

Unlike some systems that use braking on an inside wheel to help a car trim its line mid-corner, GM's uses two electronically controlled multi-plate clutches in place of a traditional rear axle differential. This system allows power to be distributed to each wheel, sending more torque to the outer wheel (ie: torque vectoring) when cornering to increase rotation and help the car turn more quickly.

Adding another layer to the ride quality is Opel’s FlexRide adaptive chassis system. The driver has the option to choose from ‘Tour’ or ‘Sport’ driving modes, which alter not only the suspension, but the steering and throttle response, too.

Choosing Tour softens everything off, giving the Insignia a ride quality that allows it to float along on good roads, but when the surface gets more challenging it soon becomes almost bouncy and will soon have you switching back to the default mode.

As expected, the Sport setting stiffens things up, though not in a way that will leave you feeling like you’re ready to tackle Bathurst in it. When selected, the damping becomes stiffer, but GM’s suspension boffins haven’t gotten the damping rates quite right in this mode, resulting in a ride that at times felt choppy even on the well-surfaced German roads we tested it on.

Not quite a Beemer
Regardless of whether you’ve chosen the Sport mode or not, the Opel Insignia falls short of delivering an involving experience for the driver in the way that, say, a BMW 3 Series would.

Even with the more driver-focused cabin layout and seating position, it never really encourages you to take the long way home from work to enjoy the drive in the way some others might. Will the suspension changes to the local car significantly change this character? Time will tell…

We can’t help but feeling, however, with its new flagship saloon Opel hasn’t quite done enough to make it feel premium. Indeed, with ever-improving rivals, the new Insignia Grand Sport runs the risk of feeling old before its time.

2017 Opel Insignia Grand Tourer 2.0 Diesel pricing and specifications:
Price: TBC
On sale: March 2018
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged diesel
Output: 125kW/400Nm
Transmission: Six-speed manual
Fuel: 5.2L/100km (Combined)
CO2: 136g/km
Safety rating: Not tested