10:19 am, July 6, 2023
Vauxhall says its new concept car is to be called the Vauxhall Experimental and will make its worldwide debut in Germany in September.
Details about the vehicle will be released ahead of it appearing at IAA Mobility in Munich.
For now though, Vauxhall MD James Taylor said: ‘As the name indicates, the Vauxhall Experimental will give a clear vision for the future design direction of the brand – and will influence our next-generation production vehicles.’
The Stellantis brand said the Experimental represented the next stage of its Bold & Pure design philosophy, which was created and first demonstrated by the GT Xperimental in 2018.
It added that the new concept car brings extra life to Vauxhall’s brand pillars – a simplified ‘detoxed’ experience, accessible technology and sustainable innovation, which it calls ‘Greenovation’.
The Experimental name dates back to 1966, when the XVR concept (Xperimental Vauxhall Research) was revealed at the Geneva Motor Show.
The XVR featured gull-wing doors forming a unique split windscreen, a clam-shell bonnet plus pop-up headlights, while design cues such as the ultra-slim rear lights were seen later in Vauxhall’s Viva HC and Firenza models.
More recently, 2018’s GT Xperimental concept was hailed at the time by Vauxhall design director Mark Adams as ‘representative of the design vision for the company’s whole portfolio’.
The GT Xperimental was the first vehicle to feature the Vauxhall Vizor as well as its Compass design principles, which have since become hallmarks of Vauxhall’s passenger cars.
