Return of Frontera? Name change rumoured for next Opel Crossland

A model that has faded into obscurity since undergoing a mid-life facelift and name update in 2020, the second generation Opel Crossland is reportedly set to revive a past moniker when it debuts next year.

Old name for a new model

Still only in its first generation after bowing in 2017 as a crossover-type MPV replacement for the Meriva, the Spanish-built Crossland formerly dropped the X suffix three years ago as part of the Blitz’s rebranding of its SUVs range, which saw the Grandland X become the Grandland.

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According to a newly uncovered report from the United Kingdom and France though, the all-new Crossland will eschew the existing nameplate for the Frontera designation last used in 2004.

A joint venture model based on the Isuzu MU – known in South Africa as the Frontier – that lasted over two generations from 1991 to 2004 in Europe as the Opel Frontera, the Vauxhall Frontera in the United Kingdom and from 1995 to 2004 as the Holden Frontera in Australasia, the three or five-door body-on-frame SUV sported a choice of petrol or diesel engines, as well as a low range gearbox in addition to a soft-top roof on the former which carried Frontera Sport designation.

Don’t expect an off-road revival

Eventually replaced by the Opel Antara, whose seven-seat twin, the Chevrolet Captiva, was sold in South Africa until the departure of General Motors in 2017, Auto Express and L’ Automobile report that unlike the original Frontera, the incoming generation will differ completely both aesthetically and underneath its skin.

Pictured by the former publication undergoing testing, the still heavily disguised prototype dispenses with the Crossland’s Mervia-inspired design for a more slab-sided boxy look that has nothing in common with the original Frontera.

Set to wear Opel’s now trademark Vizor and Compass grille as part of its Bold and Pure styling language, the depiction provides a glimpse of the LED headlights that appear similar to that of the Astra and Mokka.

At the rear, the taillights now sport a stacked design seemingly derived from the Citroën C3 that entered the South African market earlier this year, while the bootlid is flatter than of the Crossland and the window designed around the wraparound principle.

Inside, the Opel Pure Panel from the Mokka is expected to feature, although at present, nothing else is known given that no images have emerged.

Up front, and in-line with Opel and its UK sister brand Vauxhall becoming a fully electric marque in 2028, expectations are that the Frontera will ride on the CMP platform and initially offer a choice of petrol, hybrid and electric powerunits before ultimately switching to the latter by said year as evident from the lighting bolt decal worn by the prototype.

Back to life

While still not confirmed outright as to whether it will be called Frontera, Opel CEO, Uwe Hochgeschurtz, let slip that of the past monikers Rüsselsheim intends on reviving within the next few years, identifying the one most likely for the newcomer would be a surprise if not predicted correctly.

In addition to the Manta that will return as an electric crossover in 2025, other names set for a revival include Calibra, Ascona, Rekord, Monza, Senator and most ominously, Frontera.

“You are like my kids when they ask about their Christmas presents. I don’t tell them and they ask if it is big or small, black or white. You are smarter than my kids …” Hochgeschurtz said when asked by Auto Express for more details.

Besides the Manta, the Monza name re-entered the spotlight three years ago following reports of it transitioning from the gullwing concept shown at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2013, to an electric crossover positioned below the next generation Insignia by the end of 2024.

“We want to transfer the subject of sportiness into the future. Regardless of what it is then called. One thing is clear: Mobility has to be fun, it has to appeal to the heart and not just the brain. This is especially true for electro-mobility,” former Opel boss Michael Lohscheller told Germany’s Auto Motor und Sport at the time about the Monza’s apparent revival.

More expected info in due course

As it stands, more details surrounding the Monza remains a mystery, although expect clearer information about the Frontera to emerge over the coming months.

Additional information from l’automobile.fr.

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