BERLIN -- Opel/Vauxhall's decision to use a crossover design for its new Crossland X will help the automaker to win more women buyers, executives said.
Opel's market research shows the Crossland X strongly appeals to women, CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann said at the car's official launch in Berlin on Wednesday.
The subcompact SUV will go sale in summer to replace the similar-sized Meriva minivan. It will be sold alongside the more aggressively styled Mokka subcompact SUV.
The Crossland X is "specifically liked by women," Neumann told guests at the launch.
Opel's head of marketing, Tina Mueller, said: "Women love it because we like the high seating position and the OnStar 24-hour concierge service, which lets you book a hotel when you're driving."
The design of the Crossland X shares some design features with the Opel Adam, which is aimed as a chic rival to the Fiat 500.
Neumann said the Crossland X has "by far" the largest trunk in its class at 410 liters, as well as technology such as LED headlamps, head-up driver information display and a panoramic rear-view camera.
The Crossland X shares its platform with the next Peugeot 2008 and Citroen C3 Picasso as part of an industrial partnership between General Motors and the PSA Group. Peugeot and Citroen will launch their versions not long after Opel, Neumann told journalists last year. Opel will build the Crossland X and PSA's versions in Zaragoza, Spain.
The car makes its public debut at the Geneva auto show in March.
The Crossland X is the first of seven new models Opel will launch in 2017, Neumann said. They include the hatchback and station-wagon versions of the new Insignia midsize model family that will debut at the Geneva show. A raised Country Tourer version of the Insignia station wagon will also arrive this year.
Opel's Grandland X compact model, also developed with PSA, will be shown toward the end of the year. It will be sold alongside the Zafira minivan. The brand is also launching sales of the full-electric Ampera-e, a sister model to the Chevrolet Bolt, in May/June.
