So how did this rusty and beat up Opel Admiral end up in the US? These were certainly never imported, and by 1973, it would have been a chore to federalize it. But I have a theory: this was one of several brought over by Cadillac when they were considering using it as the basis of their new 1975 Seville. And after taking a good look at it and driving the snot out of it, they dumped it in a back storage lot. And someone finally got their hands on it. Hey, it’s as good as any other theory, and there is basis to it. And even if not, it’s time for someone to buy this Admiral and turn it into what the gen1 Seville should have been.
The new large Opels— Kapitän, Admiral (above) and Diplomat (“KAD”)—were first shown in March 1969 at the Geneva Auto Show. It was a dramatic design, inasmuch as it was clearly less blatantly “American” than its Chevelle-like predecessor, yet it still had American influence, in the best way possible. Slimmer and trimmer than its predecessor, it not only was handsome, but it was also a harbinger of US GM cars to come; but not for several years.
And who was responsible for this fine design (V8 Diplomat version above)? Well, there’s no attribution to be found on the web.
But we do know that in 1967, two years earlier, Chuck Jordan (left) became design director for Adam Opel, AG. Probably the new KAD cars were already in an early stage of development, but undoubtedly Jordan was involved with them to one degree or another, as he was an intense, hands-on designer, even when he was in management. Jordan was Bill Mitchell’s protege, and heir apparent. It was a huge shock when Jordan was passed over to be Mitchell’s successor, but he eventually did become VP of GM design in 1986, and considers the 1992 Seville his greatest success.
The story has been told before here, but when Cadillac finally decided they needed a smaller car to compete with Mercedes and other imports, the Opel Diplomat was given very serious consideration. It was the right size, had a heavy duty Chevrolet 5.4 L V8 under the hood and a deDion rear suspension as well as four wheel disc brakes. It was widely praised by the German press as being a very refined and capable high speed road car, a legitimate Mercedes competitor. Even Mercedes engineers were impressed, and said so.
So why not just use the KAD tooling and add a few American-style luxury touches, to make a very legitimate Mercedes fighter? After bringing one or more over to Detroit and carefully inspecting it, it was deemed that none of GM’s North American plants could build it to the close tolerances it was tooled for. That’s pathetic, but a reflection of the realities of the times, when body gaps were big enough to stick a finger into them.
So a Plan B had to be created. That involved a Chevy Nova, adding three inches to the wheelbase, and modifying it in other ways to do the job, including the addition of a lot of sound deadener, which made it very heavy. I’ve decried that solution ever since, but not too many agreed with me when I called it a Deadly Sin. Underachieving, when so much is on the line, is a sin.
Well, the Opel KAD cars didn’t become what could have been GM’s American Mercedes fighter, but there’s no question that its styling did influence the Seville. The Seville was the first to use this clean “sheer look” design, one that GM would over-use for decades. And the fact that its origins are from a car that Chuck Jordan oversaw several years earlier, makes this all the more…sad. Now if Chuck Jordan had been responsible for adapting the Opel for the first Seville, and given the job for its successors, the whole Seville story might have turned out very different.
A lot more like the alter-Seville history I wrote about last year. That one imagined using the previous generation Diplomat as the basis for a 1965 Seville. What could have been…
Meanwhile, back to the (painful) reality at hand. This Admiral’s provenance may be a mystery, but its condition isn’t. From this view, it’s not too bad.
But anyone locked in the trunk won’t have a very hard time escaping; just kick a bit where the daylight is coming through.
This is the mid-level Admiral, which only came in six-cylinder form. The lower-tier Kapitän was actually dropped after the second year of this generation, as a Bel-Air trim level for what was inherently an expensive car for Europeans no longer made any sense. The top-tier Diplomat had a different front end, with the vertical headlights, came with the 327 V8, and was very luxuriously equipped. So this Admiral is somewhat analogous to an Impala, but not nearly as affordable to Europeans.
Looks a bit like a Chevy six,except for the bulge in the front of the valve cover. This is a 2.8 L version of Opel’s CIH (cam in head) family, built in four and six cylinder variations of the theme. The cam resided in the cylinder head, but in a lower position than usual.
The result was that it looked a lot like a Chevy six (this is a four cylinder version), with the familiar stud-mounted rocker arms, but these arms were activated directly by a hydraulic cam lifter, eliminating the push rod.
The one in this Admiral is a the basic single-carb version, rated at 130 PS (130 hp). The optional twin-carb engine upped that to 145 PS. And optional fuel injection raised further to 165 PS. Those outputs correspond almost exactly to the the Mercedes 280 engines in the S-Class.
From what little we can see of it, the interior on this Admiral does look a bit American.
Here’s what it would have looked like in its prime. Not overwhelming, but quite decent, and the ergonomics were good. The Diplomat upped that significantly, with higher quality materials, a full console, and more wood.
The seller doesn’t explain how he came to have this Admiral. What he does have to say is this: 73 Opel – Great opportunity to own and restore a very unique vehicle. Car runs, is movable, and stops. Front windshield is cracked. Needs body work on driver side floor, fender support, driver side rear door, driver side rear lower quarter panel, rear body panel. Gas tank needs to be replaced. Need exhaust. Seat needs new upholstery. In other words, it’s a bit of a project.
What this really wants is to be turned into the alternate-reality Seville, with a fuel injected V8 and other updates to show the world what the Seville could have been. In my alter-reality, I’d buy it and do just that.
Ebay ad forwarded to me by Barry Koch
More:
Automotive Alter-History: The 1965 Cadillac Seville
1976-1979 Cadillac seville: GM’s Deadly Sin #11 – The Sin Of Underachieving
About the time these hit showrooms in Europe Ford was finishing work on it’s new top rung car in Europe, the Granada. The Granada never had a (factory installed) V8, but I’d much rather have one than one of these sedans.
The next generation of top rung Opel is a much better looking car, these look a bit stodgy to me.
The Ford Granada Mk1 was more an Opel Rekord D / Commodore B competitor. All of them were about the same size. The Rekord had the 4-cylinders, the Commodore the 6-cylinders.
The KAD-Opels (only available as sedans) went beyond the Rekord and Commodore. Bigger, and with more luxury. The Opel Diplomat, certainly the top model with a Chevy V8, was a Mercedes-Benz W116 competitor. Ford Europe never had a car like that.
Below an Opel Commodore B with a 6-cylinder injection engine.
1972-1977 Ford Granada Mk1 sedan. An attractive car, I certainly agree.
In the seventies more mainstream Euro-automakers started to offer top models with a 6-cylinder. Like the Peugeot 604 and Renault 30.
Thats the Ghia trim. Didnt even feature power windows ! 😉
My dad had a 1972 Granda 3.0 GXL. Back at the time it was considered uncool and embarassing.
When he replaced it with a Mk II Granada 2.8i Ghia S in 1982, he sold the MkI for 500 DM to a young guy who totalled it some 4 weeks later.
By the way Johannes…are you on Facebook ?
Sorry, not on Facebook.
The first generation Granada Perana had 302 Windsor V8 motor for South African market.
This wasn’t Ford’s only European-American hybrid project done in South Africa. A decade later, Ford South Africa did the same thing and marketed it as Sierra XR8.
Also a Perana Capri V8, there was a parallel universe of American, Australian and British cars there. Even a DeSoto version of the Valiant
My friend there told me South Africa didn’t have any governing body regulating the vehicular safety and emission requirements back then, making it easier to sell the ‘parallel universe’ vehicles.
An observation … from the American perspective, these “unobtanium” big Opels were very appealing, whether judged on their own merits or compared with the Seville or even mainstream GM compacts or intermediates. But when GM finally imported one and badged it Catera, it was derided by enthusiasts and shunned by buyers. Same, in fact with he Holden Monaro aka Pontiac GTO (at least the shunned by buyer part). So I’d be curious to hear what the European CC’ers think of these cars.
You know there was someone in Europe who restored a ex police Rover SD1, that car was in far worse condition than the car depicted above. Every panel had to be cut out and welded back together, the floor rotted away, the a,b,c pillars cut out and welded in from a rover. the car is now solid however drive train, interior and wiring has to be done. needless to say he bought back a supposed to be dead car back. Heck i did it for a worthless car when 1989 chevy celebrity 2.5, did the wiring in the whole car. It’s a labor of love you know? Someone will take on the challenge, question is will they finish it?
I remember the Cadillac Catera. Although it didn’t sell well, it probably wasn’t very well built, at least not by Cadillac standards, but it was still what I considered attractive.
When the Catera (Opel Omega) was introduced, Opel didn’t have a real top model anymore.The last one was the 1987-1993 Opel Senator B, see below. It was only available with inline-6 engines, it never had a V6.
The Senator A (first gen) and B (second gen) were the last real “Big Opels”.
We have them here in Vauxhall and Opel flavours and of course the Buick powered Holden versions are still quite common though dieing out gradually. We even have some Singaporean Holdens Aussie built but with Opel/Vauxhall straight six engines.
There was also this bad-ass 272 hp Irmscher Senator. With a 4.0 liter 24v inline-6 engine.
Its engine.
BUT Holden has put inside THIS chassis a 5 Litre V8. VP Senator 5000i.
>>>
That’s an interesting beast. It looks like an Opel Omega A – Opel Senator B cross-breed.
The Omega A, below, was the successor of the Opel Rekord E.
That what spawned the twin turbo Lotus Carlton the fastest car on the planet bar one Ferrari
Quite right. Although that one looks more like a short Opel Senator B with tuning-house parts.
Lotus Carlton (Omega) with ITS IL6 could beat the V8 Monaro (Vauxhall). Few years ago I have seen it on the “Top Gear”…
I am almost always an advocate of preserving the past but this particular car is just too far gone to be saved.
It’s a car that no one has heard of, with unobtainable parts.
It has no collector value; it’s not particularly snazzy or distinctive in styling or power.
That rust/body damage looks VERY expensive to fix and it needs a whole new interior.
You’d be looking at well into the five figures to bring it back to life, not even a great restoration.
Nice looking car. I’ve heard of the KAD, the Kapitan, the Admiral, and the Diplomat, and I’ve seen black and white pics of the cars, but for some reason Opel never officially exported them here to the USA, so I’ve never seen any of them here. It’s an unforgivable shame that’s the case. I used to know someone who had an Opel GT, the “German Corvette.” But I would think that’s based on the Opel Kadett, am I correct?
Yes, you’re right. The Opel GT was a Kadett B based vehicle.
I see a ton of 1966 Chevy styling in it, so unless GM planned to give it unique sheetmetal I don’t think it would have avoided D/S status regardless. The Catara looked like a Chevy from a styling cycle prior as well.
Looks a lot like my Vauxhall Cresta PC, I’m sure it was the same shade of blue
The Diplomat version shown has an obvious “1967 Chevy II” nose, perhaps a quickie Chuck Jordan fix to differentiate it from its cheaper siblings; and the 1967 Chevy II was a quickie fix to update the hoary, “since 1962” Chevy II for a year until the new body, coming the following year. It was also said at the time to have been inspired by the 1963 Buick Riviera.
To me the Diplomat front end is a clear knockoff of the 1965 Riviera, the one that moved the headlights from the grille into very similar vertical pods.
That poor Opel is a mess. Whatever happened to the left rear door mustn’t have been good…somebody tried to get creative and save that panel.
I’d take a late 70s Seville, make mine a vinyl-top-delete in a dark color with base model wheel covers and an Astroroof. Black or dark gray with whorehouse red leather would be just about perfect.
Vauxhall were also working on a similar size Cresta/Viscount replacement for 1969 release which was to have been sold as a Pontiac in Canada. Looks are very similar save for the front end, undivided side windows and the smoother transition between side and cabin.
Front 3/4 http://files.uk2sitebuilder.com/uk2group53061/image/39.vauxhallpdviscountfullsizestylingmodelno305.05.67d-76962gmarchive.jpg
Rear 3/4 http://files.uk2sitebuilder.com/uk2group53061/image/36.vauxhallpdviscountfullsizestylingmodelno305.05.67d-76959gmarchive.jpg
Vauxhall’s late ’60s financial and strike problems led to its cancellation.
Vauxhall’s chance to build it’s own Pontiac Bonneville….dashed on the rocks of financial collapse.
Catera wasn’t a huge success, but it was an “interesting” attempt. Unfortunately, assembly problems went a long way to sinking that attempt.
Fascinating – never seen that before. I guess it fell foul of the whole British big-saloon sales collapse of the latter 1960s.
I reckon so. It wouldn’t just have been Vauxhall’s internal problems – if the market was there, who wouldn’t want to make some big profits on a big saloon?
But after the Rover P6 and Triumph 2000 were introduced in 1963 (inadvertently providing BMW and Audi with a template that serves them well to this day), the market for big, non-limo saloons in the UK collapsed. Rootes canned the entire Humber range, save for a chromed-up Arrow. Austin dropped its Westminsters (and let’s not even talk about the 3-Litre). Ford learnt that bigger didn’t equal better with the Mk 4 Zephyr/Zodiac/Executive, and right-sized the Granada.
So I reckon Vauxhall looked at the prospects of a Cresta replacement, and decided… no.
And that was the end of big Vauxhalls. The Opel Royale was imported for a few years about a decade later, and it was a good car, but by then the badge mattered at least as much as the inherent virtues of the vehicle, so that didn’t last on the UK market for very long.
Perhaps, but Rootes/Chrysler had been looking at a new large Humber and even tooled up (but never produced) a new V6 for it and imported Australian-built Valiants as a brief interim measure. The car itself did eventually appear in somewhat downmarket form as the Chrysler 180/2 litre and quickly slipped into obscurity. BMC no longer had the need once it became BLMC since Rover, Triumph and Jaguar became their in-house ‘big car’ brands, just as well given how lack-lustre the 3-litre was. In the UK Ford replaced the Zephyr/Zodiac as part of the new pan-European range, rather than as a downsize, but probably hit the right formula (just in time for the energy crisis in ’73) by luck as much as judgement.
There’s also the whole matter of size creep – the last Victor (FE series) rode on the same size (105″) wheelbase as the PA Cresta, was 2″ longer and close to the same external width. Vauxhall’s real problem in the early ’70s wasn’t the lack of a large car, but of a proper mid-sizer which the Cavalier eventually filled.
Vauxhall also toyed with a V8 powered FD Victor in the late 60s one was built as an experiment, hundreds were home built in NZ dropping a Chevy V8 into a Victor was a national pastime, GM NZ put Cresta motors into Victor sedans creating 3300 and 3300SL models, very very fast cars.
A few Humber Hawks were built with 273 & 318 Mopar V8s, a last gasp exercise before the Valiant was imported. Not many UK drivers would have fancied an old fashioned ( compared to Ford & Vauxhall) big car with a V8 back then
its got an oldsmobile-y truncated holden premier look to it. (the vauxhall proposal)
Pontiac dealers in Canada sold Vauxhalls from the 1950s to the early 1970s (as well as in the U.S. for a shorter period in the late ’50s and early ’60s), but they were never badged as Pontiacs. They were all badged as Vauxhalls except for the early ’70s Firenza, which was just a “Firenza”.
It’s interesting that GM ever considered selling this car anywhere in North America, even in Canada where Vauxhall had been more successful. A car of this size with a “big car” image and price would seem to just not compute for North American carbuyers of this era, especially from a brand that North Americans associated with small economy cars. And in the unlikely event that it did succeed, it would presumably represent unwelcome competition for the domestic Pontiacs and Buicks sold at the same dealerships.
“… when GM finally imported [Opel] and badged it Catera, it was derided by enthusiasts and shunned by buyers.”
Same thing would have happened with the 70’s versions. Would have been expensive to certify for EPA, and having to import parts, etc. The exchange rate caused Opel’s MSRP’s to skyrocket, and led to them being cancelled. Dealers would have has a hard time selling and fixing these expensive machines.
And just because the K body Seville’s roots were X body, so what? Sure, GM should have put a bit more into it, but then it was better than the Versailles.
What really hurt Caddy was bad motors in their big cars, from Olds Diesels to 4100’s. Seville was fine, but then had to make it so over the top in 1980, and didn’t recover until ’92.
I think the design inspiration came more from Rolls-Royce than the Opel Admiral. The Seville doesn’t look anything like an Opel to me.
I’m afraid this car is too far gone to be worth saving. But maybe someone will step up and give it a go. I always have and still like the 1st generation Seville. Really look’s nice in black with wire wheels. But it really was way overpriced when new.
I think at most that the Opel could have donated its chassis to the Seville, the body is simply too much an awkwardly proportioned (especially at the C pillar) 1960’s car.
Cadillac pretty much nailed it with the 1976 Seville body style. It was the typical way to showcase something new in Detroit – in this case the “sheer look” came to GM via a luxury car, and spread heavily throughout the GM line in 1977 and 1978 with the revised B, C/D, A cars respectively .
So, if you are down to the chassis, what’s wrong with the one the Seville got? The K chassis was derived from the related X and F chassis, both of which were considered good handling cars, and had a lot of the right stuff for a “more international American car,” not “European car.”
The Seville as introduced was generally well accepted, and as the Car & Driver Seville upgrade project Seville showed, it had the roots to be even more international in flavor.
The arguable mistakes with the Gen I Seville would have been:
* Roof not initially developed properly to offer it without a standard vinyl top covering. This was eventually corrected.
*The flavor of the packaging was maybe a bit too “Brougham” and not enough international. Maybe it should have been pushed more with styled wheels and some handling / performance versions.
*Contenting and base price should have allowed it to come in as the entry level Cadillac, especially as the big Cadillacs were about to undergo some serious athletic training.
Of course Gen II Seville, while I liked it, threw away the direction Cadillac seem to be headed with its 1976 (K), 1977(C/D limo) and 1979(E) product introductions, instead of building on what the ’76 Seville seemed to be starting. The 1980 C/D car refresh also seemed to double down on the “Brougham” motif. Somewhere in the mid / late ’70s the Cadillac product planners veered more toward 1970 than 1980, and that didn’t work out so well.
Never thought I’d say this, but I prefer the real Seville. This Admiral is badly proportioned, with a compact middle and big-car ends. Seville is all compact.
The engine is interesting. You get the added complexity of rocker arms, PLUS the added complexity of a long timing chain.
A long timing chain instead of twelve pushrods oh yes I can see how that looks complex NOT, Holden engineers created the worst 4 cylinder engine ever trying to make a locally produced replacement for the CIH engine in the imported Torana/Sunbird oops sorry Australian designed Opel, anyway which ever way you spin it their engine was rubbish compared to the CIH engine it replaced and it had pushrods.
+1 on the Holden four. Scrap metal reciprocating.
I owned two of those, great cars to drive.
But, restoring this one is madness, I am pretty sure you can have a good Admiral for less money straight out of Europe, if you really want one.
This one is a pile of junk, and with all the visible rust, the complete underside will be a mess and beyond reasonable repair.
This would be a very good Lemons race car. They appreciate crazy European rustbuckets. The only problem is the price of $3,500. Knock a zero off that and we’re talking…
It seems that the blue Opel Admiral from the article (with the vinyl top) is also for sale now…
https://home.mobile.de/MOTORS722#des_213343049
A Cadillac-ized Opel wouldn’t have been the worst thing to come out of the 70s …
Coming up on today’s episode of “Pimp My Opel!”
Back to the question of where this came from … Were these ever brought into Canada? Or is it here as the result of a returning serviceman’s love of his euro-chevy and some empty space he found on a us-bound transport? Or, was this car brought to us by a German Embassy employee who thought he’d still be able to get parts for his beloved GM-family car here? That story-line perhaps makes the most sense — who else would make enough for such a beast, yet then have to watch the trimmings so as not to appear too svelte?
Personally, I just can’t get behind this car’s looks from the front, side or behind, tho’ the pictured Riviera-style headlights of the Diplomat above work a bit better than this front end. It seems more like a Soviet attempt to try to ape mid-60s US design, without finding or needing any way to successfully meld its multiple design themes into a whole car. It needs a Brooks Stevens-style clean-up. And why isn’t the rear axle positioned further to the rear? That’s a surprising amount of rear overhang!
“Were these ever brought into Canada?”
I’m pretty sure these were never sold in Canada. Who knows how this car found its way to the U.S., but it almost certainly came directly from Europe.
Opel as a brand actually wasn’t sold on a consistent basis in Canada. When GM launched Opel and Vauxhall in North America in the ’50s, they assigned sales of Opel to Buick and Vauxhall to Pontiac. But Pontiac and Buick shared a dealer network in Canada, and GM Canada didn’t see any point in selling both Opels and Vauxhalls through the same dealers. They decided to go with Vauxhall only, due to Canada’s then cultural preference for, and favorable tariff treatment of, British products. In the U.S., meanwhile, Opel proved to be the better seller of the two, and Vauxhall was dropped from the U.S. market around 1962. This created an odd situation where for many years Vauxhalls were sold in Canada, but not Opels, and Opels were sold in the U.S., but not Vauxhalls.
From what I’ve seen, the Opel GT was sold in Canada, and there may have a brief attempt to sell a broader Opel lineup in Canada for a couple of years in the ’70s in the wake of the first energy crisis. That was it for Opel in Canada. By contrast, Opels were sold almost continuously in the U.S. from the late ’50s until about 1980, although the last few years of U.S. sales were actually badge-engineered Isuzus.
Easily saved that car has not got very much serious rust all those sections are easy enough to make, it would make a good DIY project, Ive fixed worse my self,it would be in the US at least a unique car a far better proposition than yet another Mustang or faked GTO.
A guy near my grandma has a 1984 Opel senator, said to be the only one in the U.S.
I rather like the conservative (‘stodgy’) lines it has and the i6 with four speed manual box screams to me ‘ economical FUN ! ‘ .
Sadly , for all but a total die hard it’s B.E.R. , where would you get the plastic bits like lenses and so on ? .
-Nate
I find it so pathetic that GM didn’t have the capability to manufacture this car in America. Apparently they also didn’t have the ability to build this car’s successor, the impressive ’78 Senator, which was very cutting edge for its time. Was it just the tolerances for the senior Opels that were a problem? After all, GM did build a variant of the global T-car in the U.S. (not that the Chevette won any prizes for body tolerances). Also, didn’t Holden manage to manufacture a variant of the ’78 Commodore in Australia? Was GMAD really that inept in the U.S.?
I agree. I’ve always liked German cars because they’re made for Autobahn driving, with no speed limit. I also like Australian cars, because they’re made durable for Australian outback driving. If both were incorporated into our American cars, then they would make for great cars. 🙂
Northern Territory speed limit is a very recent idea a few years ago there was none outside built up areas, You could take your Aussie car up there and wind it up to its maximum velocity without penalties.
I do have a 1978 Senator 3.0E which I love to bits.
Back in the late 70s it wasnt perceived as “cutting edge” but as a master of refinement. Germans didnt like it because it was a tarted up Opel Rekord (its lesser sibling it was being derived from.)
In the US the Senator would have been a joke as its cabin was really small. Too small for American taste, I would say.
I just wonder…
Average US cars were of course much bigger. That is, long hoods and long trunks. But did they really offer more interior space than an Opel Senator or Peugeot 604 ?
I thought about that too and you are right.
Back in the 70s there were still lots of US cars who had seat benches in the front and column shifters and thus offered a lot of width for the front passengers. They probably only appeared to be roomier.
Holden made their version of the last Senator body wider to create the Holden Commodore VN which have been a solution to that problem.
There are way more room inside a US-fullsize sedan than a Peugeot 604 or a Opel Senator. Buick Electra VS Opel Senator?
Yeah! But perhaps the Rekord-Senator BASED Opel Monza IL6 could be a bigger succes THAN the Opel Kadett-E/Daewoo Racer/LEMANS GTE IL4 in the North-Americas as Pontiac Le_Mans. Daewoo Motor has already manufactured the Senator as Royale Prince with a Pontiac-Daewoo alike grille and big bumpers. Just attach the Royal Prince front end on an Opel Senator/Monza AND You’ll have a “perfect” Opel based powerful Pontiac Le_Mans 4 door Saloon and 3 door Aerocoupé OF the late ’80’s / early ’90’s. Sure IT could be a better option and it would have not harm the Le_Mans legacy…
Just imagine…Opel Monza AS Pontiac Le_Mans Aerocoupé…
When the Opel Senator/Monza has been discontinued the Omega-B became the successor. Quite later Holden created from THIS the new Monaro…which was finally transformed into a “late Le_Mans”…GTO V8!
To paraphrase Dorothy Parker’s saying about Englishwomen’s shoes,this looks like it was designed by someone who had heard a lot about American cars but had never actually seen any.
The Opel Diplomat 5.4 was my first car crush as a 4 year old toddler in the early 70s.
Saw a shiny one in silver paint with black vinyl roof standing in a neighbors driveway.
My dad always had to drive slower when we passed by, so that I could take a real good look.
Those cars had a real shady reputation in Germany as they were still seen as pseudo US barges for the “nouveau riches”.
My first ride as a kid in a luxurious car was in an Opel Admiral B. Brown, with a vinyl top. I was in Mercedes W115 and W123 diesels before, but those were entirely different experiences, compared with the Opel’s purring inline-6 with an automatic.
Thinking back, any car was often called a “luxe wagen” back then. Going to the relatives with the luxe wagen…
The Opel enthusiast friends of mine used to identify the 5.4 Litre V8 Diplomat as the epitome of GM’s most americanized european car. That’s why Diplomat-Admiral-Kapitän owners have entrance to some U.S. car owners happenings 🙂
“…a heavy duty Chevrolet 5.4 L V8 under the hood ”
I’m guessing that these engines must have been built by Opel based on a Chevrolet design, not supplied by Chevrolet, as Chevrolet dropped the 327 in favor of the larger-displacement 350 right around the time Opel starting using it in these cars. The last model year for the 327 in North American Chevrolets was 1969.
I think Opel obtained the 5.4 engines straight from the US but adjusted it in order to prepare it for some serious Autobahn storming 😉
Read this, regarding the Chevy 327 in the Opel Diplomat:
http://www.autosavant.com/2007/04/24/the-opel-diplomat-54-coupe/
The “endurance racing version”, that about wraps it up for Autobahn-driving.
There’s a fair bit of misinformation in that article. There never was such a thing as a “Corvette engine”; the Corvette used a wide range of Chevy V8 engines, the same ones that were available in many other Chevy cars, from large to small.
The top-performance Chevy 327 woas the 365/375 hp version, which had all HD internal parts (forged crank, etc) and was raced extensively. The parts in this engine were also the ones (or similar) as used in the legendary Z28 302, designed for Trans Am racing.
Chevrolet did sell many racing-oriented parts for their V8s, but I’m not familiar with any basic internal parts that would have been stronger than the ones in these production engines. Possibly some minor further changes. But the implication is that Chevy’s strongest production small block V8 was not up to this job is not really accurate.
Chevy V8s were successful in all manor of endurance racing, right back to 1957, and I’m not aware of them using basic internal parts different than the highest-output versions offered on the Corvette and other Chevy cars.
Yes, these 327s were built in the US and shipped to Opel. And according to Bob Lutz, they were especially built with Chevy’s most sever-duty internals, as used on the top Corvette 365/375 hp 327s, for sustained high-speed use, although they were tuned for lower power output, stated as 230 PS, which would equate to about 235 net hp. It’s impossible to extrapolate exactly, but that sounds like about 300 gross hp. I’m guessing that it head the hydraulic cam and cylinder heads as used int he 300 hp 327, but the hd internal components from the 365/375 hp version (forged crank, etc.).
Even though the 327 was no longer offered in the US, it certainly would have been no problem to continue building it for Opel. Mostly the same engine as the 350, except for the stroke.
GM V8 policy world wide was to use US sourced engines GMH built two of their own in defiance of Detroit but continued to import the 350 untill the end of the HQ series after that they went with the local 308 & 253 cube motors, but they changed all the engine colours to Chevy orange in the late 60s.
The article is very interesting. In addition here is a pic from the 2012th annual Veteran Blitz/Lightning Club calendar. These lads are making photo sessions each year in order to create demanding publications of (old) Opel cars. One of the authors is actually appearing on the attached photo… More to see on: http://lightning.fw.hu/
Holden’s WB Statesman DeVille correlates with Cadillac by ITS nameplate and with Opel Diplomat-Admiral-Kapitän by ITS design.
Lots of neat Opels on that website !
The “garage” shots are the exact places where most of these cars has been resurrected…
Neat car, got excited when I saw it listed about a week ago until the side pic popped up. Bummer. The V8 version would be a blast.
“And who was responsible for this fine design (V8 Diplomat version above)? Well, there’s no attribution to be found on the web.”: I would recommend the following link to find further info about design attribution of the Diplomat http://vauxpedianet.uk2sitebuilder.com/vauxhall-pd—cresta-viscount-programme
These were the Vauxhal PD Cresta and Viscount projects… Just take a better look… On the left there IS a Diplomat. In front the PD Viscount. I don’t know why the DB is on the right side 🙂
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Great website. I’ve come across its’ Viva story before. It was Leo Pruneau who did the last minute save on the Viva, maybe he was involved with these as well.
I would think he probably was as the 1968MY FD Victor was largely his styling too, though it’s interesting how ill-suited that was to being stretched. Note the mock-up above has two different sides – it was the RH (uppermost) side that was developed into a full see-through model.
Of course Leo’s Viva had another line of development in Australia as the Torana where it became quite a ‘pocket rocket’ (though the production V8 version didn’t come until the second generation all-Australian model).
The KAD Opels would had not sold much in the states. They where to noisy, to uncomfortable and not very much equipment.
I’ve seen a few of these and it looks like a modified ’66-67 Chevrolet Nova/Chevy II. The headlight openings on the Admiral are identical to the Nova but with Euro headlights. If you look at the proportions such as wheelbase, wheel opening to fender height, rear deck height, doors with modified rear door glass, windshield angle then you can see it’s either influenced by the Nova or a modified Nova for European standards. Even some of the body creases are nearly identical. The influence of the Nova is certainly there and it’s smaller than the Chevelle to boot. Maybe just a few parts were borrowed from the Nova to cut costs, either way they were both GM cars of the same era. Cadillac used the newest and cheapest platform available for the Seville, the Diplomat/Admiral platform was old by that time. I believe Cadillac didn’t do enough to improve on the Nova chassis with the Seville’s rear leaf springs and cheap underpinnings.