General Motors do Brasil president, Ray Young, has said that the company is negotiating export of the new Brazilian-made Chevrolet Vectra to Central European countries.
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The model, uniquely made in Brazil, is based on the previous-generation Zafira minivan platform, itself a stretched previous-generation Astra base.
Young didn’t give dates or sales volumes.
GM’s Brazilian unit believes that the low-cost sedan is more suited to the purchasing power of consumers in Central Europe than the European Vectra.
The previous-generation Astra platform reduced production costs for the new Brazilian Vectra, which also has less sophisticated technology than the European car.
Nonetheless, it’s the same length (4,618mm) on the same wheelbase (2,703mm) as the current European Vectra but is 70mm narrower. The 526-litre luggage compartment is actually six litres roomier than the car produced in Germany.
In Brazil, the locally-built sedan is equipped with two-litre and 2.4-litre 24-valve flexfuel engines.
Introduced in Brazil last October to replace the second-generation European-designed Vectra, the sedan was ninth best-selling car in the first quarter of 2006 with 9,710 units sold. It was the only non-compact car in the top 10.
Until now, the new Vectra has been sold only in Brazil – GM has so far had only enough production capacity at its São Caetano do Sul plant to meet local demand but output is being boosted.
That will allow exports to Argentina and Mexico to start in the next few months.
In Mexico, where GM already sells the current European-made Vectra, the Brazilian model will be named Astra Maxx.
Rogério Louro
