Vauxhall Looks Back To The ’90s, Revives The Frontera

Remember the Vauxhall Frontera? It’s okay, we won’t blame you if you don’t. The last time we saw the name, it was on Vauxhall’s first ever 4×4, an extremely ’90s and, if we’re being honest, not particularly good effort that was really a rebadged Isuzu.

It seems Vauxhall remembers it a bit more fondly than the rest of us, though, today announcing that the name will make a return later this year on a new, electric SUV. Because of course.

Much like the old car, which was marketed as a sort of fun, adventurous car for youthful, outdoorsy types, it sounds like Vauxhall will position the new Frontera very much as a rugged ‘lifestyle’ SUV. They call it “a fun car with clever functional features,” and say it’ll “display a rugged new interpretation” of Vauxhall’s current design language.

All we have so far is the industry-standard shadowy side profile teaser image (although this one’s at a weirdly jaunty angle), and a close-up appearing to show Vauxhall’s now familiar ‘Vizor’ front grille signature. The teasers don’t give much away beyond the car’s boxy, upright silhouette, although what can be clearly seen is a distinct lack of ground clearance, so expect something more along the lines of a chunky-looking crossover than anything with genuine off-road chops.

Likewise, the images don’t tell us much about the new Frontera’s size, but Vauxhall says it’ll come with a “high level of space and versatility.” It will land as a pure EV from day one which, along with the arrival of a new, electric Grandland crossover this year, means all of Vauxhall’s range will have an EV option by the end of 2024. No mention is made of any hybrid or pure ICE versions at this stage.

And that’s about all we know. It’s fair to assume that the new Frontera will be underpinned by one of parent company Stellantis’ many scalable platforms, but which one, we have no idea.

The original Frontera, in two-door convertible form

Easy as it is to be cynical about Vauxhall’s choice to revive a name that most people have forgotten and that wasn’t massively loved in the first place, the OG Frontera does now seem quite cool in a sort of chunky ’90s way. If the brand’s recent efforts are anything to go by, we can bank on this new one being a decent looker too.

Expect more news and a full reveal later in the year. In the meantime, we’re starting a petition for the return of more forgotten ’90s Vauxhalls – anyone up for a new Calibra?