All you need to know about Opel
Born: 1899
Nationality: German
The four sons of Europe's foremost sewing machine maker, Adam Opel, produced their first automobile in 1899. In 1901 they decided to produce their own complete cars, and their own first design, the 10/12, debuted at the Hamburg Motor Show in autumn 1902. Four years later they had rolled out 1,000 cars and were on a growth path that by 1914 saw the company become the largest German manufacturer of motor vehicles.
Part of their success was the production of the 4/8 in 1909, which was reliable and robust and half the price of other models of the day. After the first World War and through the two decades up to the next war, Opel thrived and innovated. It was the first German carmaker to incorporate the assembly line system developed by Henry Ford. A rocket-powered experimental car, the Rak (pictured) in the last years of the 1920s achieved 238 km/h with 20 solid rocket motors pushing it. In 1929, the company was bought by General Motors.
The company led the development of cars for every class, truly producing the first German "people's cars" as well as expensive models. In 1935 it became the first German car firm to produce over 100,000 vehicles a year, largely due to the success of its P4 1.1-litre model.
Also in 1935, Opel developed and patented the first "monocoque" car body, beginning the end of the pattern which required a separate chassis and body.
Just before car making ceased in the first years of the second World War, Opel produced its large Kapitan model, powered by a 2.6-litre engine and with innovations that included front independent suspension with hydraulic shock absorbers, and hot water heating.
When the war ended, the Russelsheim factory had been all but destroyed. In 1946 truck making was started, and the Olympia car model appeared again in 1947. The recovery was so fast that by 1950 the company had again achieved 100,000 vehicles a year.
In 1965 a legend in Opel was created with the GT concept car, which was so well received by the public that it went into production. In shape it was a scaled-down Chevrolet Corvette, and had sexy pop-up headlights operated by a handbrake-sized lever between the front seats.
In 1962 came the Kadett, aimed at a market then dominated by the VW Beetle. In 1990 it was replaced by the Astra. After the Kapitan's demise in 1970, Opel lacked a large car, and rectified that in 1978 with the Senator saloon and its coupé version Monza. Its three-litre engines with 180 bhp gave the performance of a Porsche at the time, a 0-100 km/h of 8.5 secs.
In the small car segment, it introduced the Corsa in 1993 and the model has metamorphosed from a small tin box to a tough and rounded high sales achiever. Opel also hitched its wagon successfully to the compact MPV trend invented by Renault with its Scenic. The Opel Zafira is the only car to equal the Renault in sales.
Best Car: The Calibra 2.5-litre.
Worst Car: For this writer, the Speedster, which makes no rational sense and could require a chiropractor for driver extraction. However, for others, such as Michael McAleer, it's their best car by far.
Weirdest Car (but also wonderful): the Combo Eau Rouge at the 2002 Paris Show, a Speedster Van? For non-contortionists.