Opel Flexstreme concept

By Tim Pollard

Motor Shows

11 September 2007 03:13

Opel Flextreme: the lowdown

Vauxhall’s European sister brand Opel showed off its surprise at Frankfurt today – the new Flextreme concept car. Under that voluminous monocab body lies GM’s E-Flex plug-in hybrid system. It’s the latest trend in hybrids, allowing up to 30 miles of zero-emissions electric operation, after which the diesel engine kicks in to recharge the battery. As is the flavour of this year’s Frankfurt show, it’s impressively green, GM claiming CO2 emissions of less than 40g/km.

Yep. If you arrive home at home at night and the battery charge is low, you charge it up using a standard European 220-volt plug. A full recharge takes around three hours and GM claims that the majority of commuters could use its 30-mile range to travel to work and back daily emitting no emissions from the exhaust. The Flextreme’s hybrid system uses a lithium ion battery and electric motor, mated to GM’s small 1.3-litre diesel. The combustion engine isn’t actually attached to the wheels; it only ever charges the battery.

By Tim Pollard