Vauxhall has decided to kill off the Vectra nameplate for its next mid-sized family car to be released in 2008. GM Europe head-honcho Carl-Peter Forster leaked deals of the plan to BusinessCar magazine in a recent interview and claimed the main reasons for the move were to reflect the “radical departure” the new model would have from the current Vectra. In Europe, the Vectra is known for being cheap and cheerful, clearly not something GM wants to promote with its new model. The new model may be called the Insignia, after the luxury concept car shown by Vauxhall in 2003. In unclear at this stage whether the Insignia concept (pictured above) will share styling cues with the new “Vectra” but a close-to-production car will be shown at the Geneva Motor Show, reports UK’s What Car?. It’s possible that it may be a four-door coupe à la Mercedes CLS.

Vauxhall is following Toyota's move to drop the Corolla nameplate in some markets as it carries too much baggage, and we totally agree with both companies on their decisions. Is there any name you want carmakers to dump? Let us know in the comments.