By Stewart Smith on 2016-12-07 - Stewart was the former motoring editor of the Coventry Telegraph and is now a freelance contributor to Eurekar. He is based in Scotland and specialises in First Drive reviews.
Vauxhall ups game
with new Insignia
THIS is Vauxhall's all-new Insignia Grand Sport which will be getting its world reveal at the Geneva Motor Show in March.
As well as having completely new sleeker styling the latest Insignia will be offered with an eight-speed automatic transmission, all-wheel-drive, will be lighter and will be packed with the latest driving aids and safety equipment.
Vauxhall sold more than 30,000 Insignias in the UK last year and the new Grand Sport will offer a more spacious interior, giving the car a more athletic appearance and an improved road stance, including class-leading aerodynamics and Cd figure of just 0.26.
The Insignia Grand Sport will be available with a range of turbocharged engines and transmission options when it is launched later in 2017 and the highly efficient eight-speed automatic transmission is new to the line-up.
The new auto-box will initially only be available in combination with all-wheel drive.
Vauxhall says one of the highlights is the next generation of Vauxhall'sIntelliLux LED matrix lights. It now has 32 LED segments - twice as many as in the Astra - that are all integrated in the new slimmer headlamps of the Insignia which, on full beam, will light up the road ahead for up to 400 metres.
Other improvements on the outgoing Insignia include a head-up display projected on to the windscreen which gives information on speed, traffic signs, set speed of speed limiter or navigation direction.
It also comes with adaptive cruise control which measures the distance to vehicle in front and adapts the speed accordingly. The system will also activate automatic emergency braking if the distance decreases abruptly.
Lane keep assist with lane departure warning provides gentle steering wheel movements to help drivers avoid accidents due to drifting out of their lane.
There's also a rear cross-traffic alert feature which 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.
Entertainment and connectivity are provided by the latest Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatible IntelliLink systems. While the smartphone is integrated into the vehicle's infotainment it can also be charged wirelessly without the use of a cable.
The new Insignia comes with Vauxhall's OnStar service assistant which offers services ranging from automatic crash response to stolen vehicle assistance.
A new concierge service will be launched with the Insignia Grand Sport, allowing occupants to ask OnStar advisors to select a hotel and proceed to room reservation.
On the connectivity front Vuaxhall says that up to seven devices can be connected to the Grand Sport's Wi-Fi Hotspot.
Prices of the new model are expected to be announced early next year.
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