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WE HAVE SEEN GM'S FUTURE, AND IT LOOKS PRETTY COOL

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Alex Law

WARREN, MI: Concept vehicles are sometimes flights of fancy and sometimes trial balloons and sometimes harbingers of things to come and it is important to decide which of these lenses to use when you look at a particular vehicle, or even nine of them.

Nine concept vehicles is exactly what General Motors showed off to the media recently at its design centre here in suburban Detroit, and it seemed clear that we were looking at several vehicles that will turn up in showrooms soon, either exactly as shown or very close.

They will first turn up at auto shows around the world, however, as GM uses big ticket displays in Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago and Geneva to promote these vehicles. There was no mention of any Canadian venues, by the way, and little chance that any of them will be added.

The one vehicle we certainly won't see in North America is the diesel-powered, all-wheel-drive Opel CVC, which may or may not see duty in Europe in the next century. It's a pity we won't see it, because this six-spot sport-van has a lot of high-tech charm.

We are considerably more likely to see a Saturnized sibling of the Opel called the CV1, which is the first ever concept vehicle from GM's no-haggle, low-hassle division.

The CV1 had lots to make it stand out, not the least of which were the bi-fold doors that slide fore and aft to reveal its flexible interior and allow easy loading of big items from the side.This interior has regular seating for five and a pair of fold-down jumpseats for the kids, with the rear 3-spot bench sliding and folding to leave a flat cargo floor.

Alex Law
Alex Law
Automotive expert