----

It looks good so far, but the back is very similar to the new Altima it seems.

Man, I would hate to have been the bastard that had to put every one of those squigly stickers on there.

Passat + Altima

Passat + Altima

And for some reason I see "BMW 5 + Oldsmobile Aurora"

I see Grand Prix too.

Is that a Bangle butt?! I see a lot of Altima.

Altima??? That's cladding, not a bangle butt.

Altima??? That's cladding, not a bangle butt.

Dear gods I hope so.

Altima??? That's cladding, not a bangle butt.

I was referring to the stretched out taillights and greenhouse mainly...

It looks like it'll be beautiful it looks like a short Bonneville. I can't wait.

Edited May 17, 200718 yr by jay

I'm falling for this car, but I want a diesel engine and a Opel badge! maybe I can bring one back from Europe.

This looks impressive so far; much better than the Accord based on spy shots.

Eh, it's ok. I'll give it the benefit of the doubt with the camo.

Its looking like a very nice car. The rear has a strong Altima flavour, but the general proportions look more appealing.

so this Aura will only be around for 4 years? Holy short life cycle Batman

Picture me sceptical, but I believe it's too soon to call this car an Aura.

Looks too asian...

It really has become a sad day in the auto industry. Every sedan looks the same and because the asians are supposedly "the standard" the sedans all look like $h!. No originality or anything, it even has that ugly cropped rear that the new puke-tacular Altima has.... Maybe it'll have the horrible cut lines as well or the same 'fat arm' syndrome that the front of the Altima (front fenders) suffers from.

Looks too asian...

It really has become a sad day in the auto industry. Every sedan looks the same and because the asians are supposedly "the standard" the sedans all look like $h!. No originality or anything, it even has that ugly cropped rear that the new puke-tacular Altima has.... Maybe it'll have the horrible cut lines as well or the same 'fat arm' syndrome that the front of the Altima (front fenders) suffers from.

I have never been a fan of Asian cars for MANY reasons. Their design is one of those reasons. They have no soul............kind of like their citizens (ouch!). Anyway, I would rather GM get their own inspiration (like they did in the day). I would not mind if they got a couple of design ideas from the Germans either (their quality is getting very shady, but their designs are still cool).

Edited May 17, 200718 yr by Clownzilla

I have never been a fan of Asian cars for MANY reasons. Their design is one of those reasons. They have no soul............kind of like their citizens (ouch!). Anyway, I would rather GM get their own inspiration (like they did in the day). I would not mind if they got a couple of design ideas from the Germans either (their quality is getting very shady, but their designs are still cool).

Yes, the whole industry has gone too much into just copying whatever general style Toyota and Honda put out.

The only really GOOD looking sedans of the last 10 years that I can think of off the top of my head are the late-model Bonnevilles, the 2nd gen CTS, and the G8.

It looks ok but I really hope they retain the nice chrome touches of todays car and not feed us another slab sided plain looking car.

I was referring to the stretched out taillights and greenhouse mainly...

I don't understand why the magazines have gone ga-ga over the styling of this car. That side profile shows front and rear overhangs that would make a W-body blush....

I hope that is fake trunk. I've yet to see a Bangle butt that looks good. The Altima's toned down one is the best one so far, but still not attractive.

Mark

Its looking like a very nice car. The rear has a strong Altima flavour, but the general proportions look more appealing.

Yeh, i thought altima too, but without the oddly large greenhouse effect. this car looks nicely styled.

are we sure this is the sized car we'll see as AURA? I know the stylign is supposed to be identical. but shouldn't we be getting a longer wheelbase version?

if that bangled trunk is just camo, then its a great job, cause thats one high 3rd brake light. and the body lines kinda look like they flow into the higher bangle trunk

if that bangled trunk is just camo, then its a great job, cause thats one high 3rd brake light. and the body lines kinda look like they flow into the higher bangle trunk

maybe it's a cute little duck-tail spoiler. like the one on the Astra 4-door concept over on gminsidenews...

They're just hiding the spoiler. Looks dang nice.

Looking at this car makes me notice how ugly and bricklike the current Aura's styling is! It is still the best that the 2002-2007 cycle had to offer, but with this new Altima and the 'Bu on the way, it is very hideous!

And what's up with the Bangle-bashing? As long as it's rounded out to look good, this design is more appropriate than the Camry's , Altima's RL's or 7's rears. It increases vertical space, so there's less overhang, and more luggage!

Another good sign... NO FENDER VENTS! Yeah! So happy that won't come to Saturn...

Also, funny how there are complaints this is "too Japanese"... The Japanese take the German's styling, and Saturn is basically German now, so... no

I like the current one just fine.

if that bangled trunk is just camo, then its a great job, cause thats one high 3rd brake light. and the body lines kinda look like they flow into the higher bangle trunk

The lights are not production, just cobbled-together for functionality. What you can see at the rear is a box sitting on top of the rear deck lid to hid the real shape. You can't make any judgments as to what it really looks like just yet.

It is probably something like the GTC Coupe Concept, if anything with an even more pronounced taper.

o lala!

They have no soul............kind of like their citizens (ouch!).

Hey man, they've got Seoul in South Korea...all ya need is love.

:AH-HA_wink:

Wiseass moment over.

this car is still three years out. is there reason for speculation/favor/criticism? we're looking at a design that won't reach our shores until 2010 MY, at the earliest.

Passat + Altima

Good eye and good call! I can do without the fussiness in the rear lamps.

Alright, now correct me if I'm wrong but I came to believe that the new Aura is going to be on an extended Epsilon II platform while the Vectra(Insignia) will be based off the shorter one that and shared with the new Saab 9-3. I'm beginning to wonder if there was any truth to that factoid because this does look to be a decent sized vehicle that they could build here as-is under the Saturn brand. Something that's larger might be too big for the Aura.

Alright, now correct me if I'm wrong but I came to believe that the new Aura is going to be on an extended Epsilon II platform while the Vectra(Insignia) will be based off the shorter one that and shared with the new Saab 9-3. I'm beginning to wonder if there was any truth to that factoid because this does look to be a decent sized vehicle that they could build here as-is under the Saturn brand. Something that's larger might be too big for the Aura.

Nope, Saturn=Opel.

Eh... It looks alright, I suppose. Without camo it should look better.

Looks too asian...

It really has become a sad day in the auto industry. Every sedan looks the same and because the asians are supposedly "the standard" the sedans all look like $h!. No originality or anything, it even has that ugly cropped rear that the new puke-tacular Altima has.... Maybe it'll have the horrible cut lines as well or the same 'fat arm' syndrome that the front of the Altima (front fenders) suffers from.

That is the funniest thing I have read in the last week! How true!

Very promising pics. I think the production version will be a real stunner.

i love the bangle butt too. i think it will look great.

Just for comparisons sake... take a look at the Open GTC Concept and how closely related the two cars really are.

1) Look at the dip in both headlights

2) The creases on both the middle of the hood and ones riding up the hood from the grill line

3) The over-all shape of the grill and the air inlet below the grill

Hell even the side-mirrors resemble the concepts.

Edited May 23, 200718 yr by Autoholic217

When's the Buick version coming,its awesome!

this car is still three years out. is there reason for speculation/favor/criticism? we're looking at a design that won't reach our shores until 2010 MY, at the earliest.

It starts production in Europe in a bit over a year, and starts production here in a bit over two years.

I like the current Aura sheet metal as an Aura. This doesn't say it to me. Nice looking car though as a flagship. Are the dementions the same (similar) to the current model ? To me this car looks to be bigger than the Aura, I think this will hold the top spot above Aura.

Edited May 25, 200718 yr by prototype66

I like the current Aura sheet metal as an Aura. This doesn't say it to me. Nice looking car though as a flagship. Are the dementions the same (similar) to the current model ? To me this car looks to be bigger than the Aura, I think this will hold the top spot above Aura.

It will probably be smaller actually; the Ep2 Aura is on the short wheelbase version of the architecture.

Mirrors need to go.