Six years ago, the PSA Group acquired Opel and Vauxhall. Meanwhile they have all become members of the big Stellantis family. So an Opel hall of fame in a museum filled with a wide variety of Simcas, Peugeots and Citroëns certainly isn’t inappropriate.
Even better, it provides a great opportunity to compare the straightforward German cars with the extraordinary French classics. Okay, los geht’s!
1965 Opel Kadett A Caravan (wagon).
1971 Opel Manta A 1.6 S.
1972 Opel Rekord C Coupé 1900 L.
1981 Opel Ascona B 2.0 SR. Clearly way beyond the base model. A used Opel Ascona B, preferably with the 1.9 S or 2.0 S engine, was the first car of many young guys. In my neck of the woods, anyway.
Opel Ascona B i2000 Group 2 rally car.
1981 Opel Monza A1 3.0 E Automatic (E for Einspritzung, injection). This is the coupé version of the Opel Senator A1, a four-door sedan.
1984 Opel Kadett D 1.8 GTE (rare!). The Kadett D, introduced in 1979, was the first FWD Opel.
In August 1984, the Kadett E superseded generation D. Pictered above an Opel Kadett E 1.8i Beauty (which is in the eye of the beholder).
Opel Kadett E GSi.
1985 Opel Rekord E2 2.3 D (diesel) commercial van. Generation E2 was the last of the Rekords, it was replaced in 1986 by the new Omega-series.
1987 Opel Corsa A 1.3 S GT, post-August 1987 facelift.
And as a complement, two classic wreckers, also on display in the museum.
1972 DAF A13 DA 413 ‘Torpedo’.
1975 Volvo F88 with a more recent body and wrecker equipment. Also, an F88 with a day cab is a rarity.
So far the Visscher Classique photoreports. Visiting the museum was a joy, absolutely. The Netherlands is a small country and the town of Buren, where the museum is situated, is in the center. So it’s always a short drive once you’re here! (but check their opening hours)
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Always loved the styling of the Opel Manta; just seems so fluid. As an Opel fan loved seeing the others too. Thanks for posting. Always enjoy your posts and stories.
+1, on both counts.
The Opel Manta was one of those cars that I really wanted to own back in the day. At that point, dad was buying my cars (college degree rewards), and if it didn’t say Chevrolet, well, fuggedaboutit.
I tpp love the lines and proportions of the Manta A, a real looker. Much more common when I was growing up was the Manta B, which was also a good looking car, although not quite as much of a stunner. They were in competition with the Ford Capri and generally very well regarded.
Great pics
The Monza always looked rather posh, to me, and indeed, was given the title Vauxhall Royale Coupe when sold RHD in England. (If that seems a bit OTT, don’t forget that old Prince Albert Saxe-Coburg became a Royale with-the-lot when he was exported to the UK to shack-up with Queen Victoria, so it’s got tradition).
In about ’84, a local racing identity, Peter Brock, who also made good money from building hotted-up Holdens under his name, imported a Royale, and put his 250HP 5-litre Holden V8 in it. Sadly, it remained a one-off. Handsome thing, and plenty quick too.
I like that thing!
For many, many years, the Irmscher company was the best-known supplier of hotted-up Opels.
An example, this is how the Ascona B i2000 (see rally car) looked in standard-Irmscher-trim with 120 DIN-hp:
Ah, yes, Brock put Irmscher alloys on his cars, so maybe some connection beyond that: at minimum, possibly the idea of being a semi-factory tuner.
His Commodores were very nice machines, taking the essential goodness of the local car and putting in really well thought-out suspension mods even if slightly constrained by the local live axle. Sporty seats, fat steering wheel, slightly-dubious ’80’s bodykits (deletable, for those with some taste!), exhausts, brakes, and 5-speed Corvette boxes in many. Result was a 6.5 sec, 220kp/h+ 4-seat sedan that handled very well, quite a car in the early to mid ’80’s. IRS from the Monza would’ve really helped (and later did). They’re worth very good money now, of course.
I think kiwibryce below is right as to why the coupe never got going. Oz Commodores not only got rack and pinion steering, they did indeed have to strengthen the Opel shell when it cracked in half in outback testing.
GMH wouldnt put the 2 door in production as the shell is the Opel original not the toughened Holden version an identical Monza is for sale at the Peugeot/Citroen dealers in Hastings NZ quite a few in Opel and Vauxhall badging are in NZ
Have been a little bit surprised to read about a “1972 Opel Rekord C”. Always thought, production already ended late in 1971 …
May be a late one built in 1971 but r e g i s t e r e d in 1972 ?
First registration anno 1972, that’s for sure. ‘Model Year’ was never a big thing here.
According to German Wikipedia, the production of the Rekord C ended in January 1972 (‘Produktionszeitraum 08/1966-01/1972’).
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opel_Rekord_C
Friends of parents, who always drove upscale American vehicles, were upset when their only son, wife and three kids drove from Montana to NW Indiana in an OPEL . Dad worked for INLAND STEEL for years and quietly agreed with his best buddy that not only was it a piece of crap, but also downright un-American. Apple didn’t fall far from Dad’s tree. Still would not one of these! Guess this is just another SOB 😉 (definitely NOT a Saab) story! OLD Dog 🐕 and PROUD! 🇺🇸 🏳️🌈 😎
It’s great to see pictures of these cars that (being from North America) I’ve largely never seen in person. One exception is the Manta, which is a design I’ve always loved. There’s a Manta that I still see occasionally here in Virginia – it’s always impressive to see on the road.
The Rekord commercial van is interesting too – since it’s a bodystyle that’s almost entirely unknown here… and also it’s impressive to see any small commercial vehicle like this actually survive several decades. I notice it’s from the same Joh. van der Zand towing company as the two wreckers, so I wonder if that company did an exception job of preserving their old machinery?
Johan van der Zand sold his renowned and complete vehicle recovery business quite some time ago, but the company (name) -with the same color scheme and livery- is still very much alive.
He also owned the real estate where the museum is now, he sold that to Visscher (naturally, the two already knew each other really well). A neat place to house some of Van der Zand’s own classis vehicles!
Website vehicle recovery:
https://www.joh-vd-zand.nl/en/services/national-and-international-vehicle-recovery
Always get a bit of a tingle seeing a Kadett A. Would love to see one in the flesh again.
The early 70s Manta is beautiful. IMO. I remember being fascinated by bright yellow and green versions of that at the Buick dealer in ’71 or ’72.
I also never realized how much the Kadett D looked like the contemporary VW Golf and/or the Omni/Horizon.
Right! In chronological order: Golf, Omni/Horizon, Kadett D.
In a certain way, the contemporary Opel Astra echoes the Manta A design.
Great pics – always enjoy your museum visits.
The Opal Manta is one good looker and not a single bad line.
Most interesting is the 72 DAF Torpedo wrecker with its pre hydraulic electric motor winch mechanism.
The GTs and first generation Mantas were shipped to North America with the larger 1.9 liter engine
The 1.6 liter S engine for Europe and the 1.9 liter engine for the US-market had nearly identical power output (75 DIN-hp vs. 76 DIN-hp.) Of course, the 1.9 liter engine delivered a much better torque. The European 1.9 liter engine (“1.9 S”) set 90 ponys free – if you wanted. Not too bad for those lightweights …
Agreed, the registered curb weight of the article’s Manta is only 980 kg (2,160 lbs). In which case 75 DIN-hp is adequate to pick up some speed.
Opel’s early 70s styling seems to borrow a lot. The front 3/4 view of the Manta looks a lot like a BMW E9 and the Rekord C looks like a cross between a 67 Malibu and a rounded off Dart Swinger.
Something that would be neat to see is a real, or more likely replica of a Brixmis car. The British inspection missions in Germany used Opel Admirals and Senators with Ferguson 4×4 conversions, matte green paint and IR driving lights to sneak around what was then East Germany on intelligence missions
http://www.brixmis.co.uk/later-years.html
Yes, Manta for me too please, though the Kadett E/Astra GTE is a good call too.
The 1965 Kadett somehow has styling that could only be German – this is not a criticism – and the Ascona B just looks so much better than the first Vauxhall Cavalier. It’s all in the stance and overhang, I think.