General Motors Can't Stop Teasing The Bolt EV To The Brits

On the one hand, you've got the Vauxhall brand and two highly productive factories in the form of Ellesmere Port and Luton. And yet, on the other, it's a market that hasn't really taken a strong liking to Cadillac or Chevrolet, with the latter being driven out of the UK not so long ago. With such a complicated relationship, it's perhaps not surprising to hear that GM's been essentially teasing the Brits with a car they won't be able to buy.

The provocative car in question is the Opel Ampera-e - the all-electric hatchback that is, for all intents and purposes, the European version of the Chevrolet Bolt EV. Even though General Motors acknowledges the United Kingdom is a prime territory for all-electric cars, it's gone on the record to say it won't ever engineer a right-hand drive version of the current car for British buyers. However, as a result of the UK market's importance to electric-only cars, GM has confirmed it'll be undertaking UK trials of the Ampera-e throughout next spring, with Vauxhall demonstrating the Opel to prospective clients.

Though we understand why General Motors has decided to conduct client demos with LHD Opels instead of engineering a RHD version, it is a bit of a shame. By all accounts so far, the Chevrolet Bolt EV is a cracking little car, and the increasing demand for electric cars in the UK could have allowed Vauxhall to at least get a substantial foothold in this sector of the market before it's swarming with other offerings. Hopefully it won't be too long before the Brits get hold of an Ampera-e that has Vauxhall's griffin crests in place of Opel's horizontal lightning bolt badges.