Opel Unveils $12,000 Karl Minicar

General Motors Co.'s Opel unit has publicly rolled out the Karl, a mini-hatch priced under €10,000. The car, which is named after company founder Karl Opel, will go on sale in Europe next summer.

The little five-seater (branded the Vauxhall Viva in the U.K.) measures 12 feet long. Its 1.0-liter, 3-cylinder gasoline engine delivers 75 hp to the front wheels through a 5-speed gearbox. The engine is a naturally aspirated version of the turbocharged engine Opel uses in the similarly sized Adam small car.

The Karl will be produced in South Korea. It replaces the Opel/Vauxhall Agila, a minicar supplied by Suzuki Motor Corp. from its factory in Hungary.

Standard or optional features include a sunroof, stability control, hill start assist, lane departure warning, radar backup sensors, cornering lamps, heated steering wheel and pushbutton power steering boost for city driving. The Karl's IntelliLink infotainment system integrates with Android and Apple iOS devices.