Opel Cascada Announced

While the world was waiting for the new Opel Astra Cabrio to pop its top for the public, Opel/Vauxhall hit us with the news of the new Cascada being launch sometime by the end of the year. It is actually the new Astra CAbrio, but it’s changed so much Opel decided to also give it a new name. The model is 4.7 metres in length – more than 70mm longer than Audi’s A5 Convertible – with a full-size fabric roof, giving the car a classy and elegant profile, seen in the two official images. The roof can be opened or closed at the touch of a button, even when the car is moving at up to 30mph. Details of the car’s engine sand specs are yet to be revealed, but not anytime soon, because the upcoming Paris Motor Show is dedicated to the new Opel Adam. The Cascada is gonna have to wait. Opel/Vauxhall press release: While Vauxhall has enjoyed considerable success in the past with open-topped models in the compact class, and has also commissioned open-topped versions of the Cavalier to be built by outside manufacturers, the Cascada is the first mid-size convertible that it has built and designed in-house since before the last war. One of the last large, convertible-bodied cars Vauxhall built was the iconic OE-type 30-98, which could be specified with the company’s own Velox body (see pic). The 30-98 was the UK’s first catalogued 100mph car, and a serious competitor for Bentley’s 3-litre models in its day. Cascada, a Spanish word meaning waterfall, is the third new name to be introduced by Vauxhall this year, following Mokka and ADAM, and each model is set to be incremental to the company’s current line-up. Vauxhall’s Chairman and Managing Director, Duncan Aldred, was enthusiastic about the lift each model offered the company: “Cascada, along with ADAM and Mokka, will bring a fresh and exciting dimension to our product line-up for customers. This year is genuinely a new chapter in Vauxhall’s long history, and I’m pleased that we’re able to enter the mid-size convertible sector with Cascada, and continue to refresh people’s perception of our great brand.” While the Cascada won’t be shown at this month’s Paris Motor Show (where ADAM will take centre-stage) more information will follow soon, ahead of the car going on sale in early 2013.