"Opel Love" - Love goes through the car
Opel - hasn't the story of the car brand been told? Far from it. In his 272-page book "Opel Love - 125 Years of Automobiles", Harald Hamprecht has succeeded in uncovering a wealth of new details and exciting stories. Just in time for the anniversary of the car brand next year. The ideal Christmas present, not just for lovers of the brand with the lightning bolt.
Opel's Head of Communications Harald Hamprecht not only delved deep into the archives in Rüsselsheim, he also spoke with Opel employees from yesterday and today. He brought long-forgotten prototypes to light, such as the Opel egg: the aerodynamically shaped car, built in 1912 according to plans by Max Lochner, proved the importance of low wind resistance even back then. The car was a third faster than comparable models.
Special mention is made of the almost forgotten Opel motorcycles, high-speed machines such as the Opel Motoclub 500 from 1928 with its characteristic red tires. Although Opel had to stop building motorcycles after the takeover by General Motors, it became the largest car brand in Germany with the Opel Laubfrosch.
The Opel Regent luxury model with a 5.9-liter eight-cylinder engine is almost unknown even to brand fans: the largest and heaviest Opel of all time had to be taken off the market completely. Even all 25 units that had already been sold were bought back. General Motors feared competition with its Cadillac models.
In any case, GM's capital was mixed. With the help of the Americans, Opel was able to rise to its former greatness after the war, coming dangerously close to Mercedes with the KAD luxury class models (Kapitän, Admiral, Diplomat) and leaving BMW far behind. And wasn't the Kadett, for which Opel built its own plant in Bochum, even the better Volkswagen? But it was also the US parent company that imposed an unhealthy austerity dictate on Opel in the 80s and 90s. One reason for the problems was certainly the many bosses who took over the boardroom a little too quickly to have a lasting effect.
Since the sale in 1929, the descendants of founder Adam Opel had only the name in common with the car brand. However, for five generations now, they have been active and often successful in other areas - from equestrian sports to winegrowing, from real estate to marathon running.
The motorsport successes should not be forgotten. And not only those of Walter Röhrl, who won the Monte Carlo Rally in an Opel Ascona 400, but also those of the DTM on the race track. In addition, prominent Opel drivers from Hildegard Knef to Jürgen Klopp can be seen - and of course cars, including design icons such as the Opel GT, Manta A and Calibra. (aum/gr)
Harald Hamprecht, "Opel Love - 125 Years of the Automobile", 272 pages, 532 photos, 49.90 euros.
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IAA concept car Opel GT Experimental from 1965.
Photo: Autoren-Union Mobilität/Opel
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