Next Buick Regal to inherit styling cues from Opel Monza concept

Mon, 06 Oct 2014

Ever look at a concept car from a foreign auto marque like Opel and wonder what relevance it will have to you as an American consumer? Well, we'll tell you: at least as far as the Opel Monza concept goes, it could mean a lot.

Speaking with Automotive News at the Paris Motor Show, Opel chief Karl-Thomas Neumann said, "You will see the Monza when you see the next Insignia." And the Insignia, we needn't point out, is essentially ported over to American showrooms as the Buick Regal.

The relationship between the Regal and Insignia only stands to grow closer as Opel design chief Mark Adams has also been charged with tightening the bonds between the two automakers positioned on opposite shores of the Atlantic. Adams also intends to imbue the next Insignia with more "premium brand values" in order to "add polish to the brand." Which in turn means that the Regal will be designed to look more upscale, too.

The Monza concept, pictured above, was revealed last year at the Frankfurt Motor Show with a sleek fastback form and a name borrowed from a coupe which Opel produced in the 1970s and 80s – which itself was named for a famous Italian racetrack. The new Regal is expected to launch Stateside sometime in 2017.

By Noah Joseph