OPEL Ampera 2011-2015 Photos, engines & full specs

After the world started to recover from the world economic crisis, the car-manufacturers started to recover. In 2011, GM introduced the Opel Ampera in Europe, also known as the Chevrolet Volt.

The world economy was not completely recovered, but GM didn't want to wait any longer. It already showed the concept-car in 2007. It was the first plug-in hybrid on the market and it didn't want to lose that advantage over one of their competitors. To cover a bigger part of the pie, GM introduced the Chevrolet Volt as Opel Ampera in Europe, Vauxhall Ampera in the U.K., Holden Volt in Australia and New Zeeland and Buick Velite 5 in China. It was the first plug-in hybrid world car.

The exterior design featured an aerodynamic silhouette, with flushed to the bodywork elongated headlights and raked grille. The grille design was more of a look than of an opening. Since the gasoline engine was a small, 1.4-liter unit, it didn't need a big radiator. The battery pack ran through the center of the car, thus preventing a rear bench seat.

Despite being an expensive vehicle, the Ampera featured a cheap interior that affected the sales. The technology inside the car was expensive so, in order to keep the price as low as possible. The GM didn't pay too much attention to the details. But the car featured all the comfort elements for a modern car fitted as standard, including a climate control system, heated seats, and two displays for the instrument cluster and for the infotainment system. The latter was also used for power management.