Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo 159 Front Bonnet Grille Emblem Logo

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Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A.
Private Società per azioni
Industry Automotive
Predecessor Società Anonima Italiana Darracq (SAID)
Founded 24 June 1910; 108 years ago(as A.L.F.A.)
Milan, Lombardy, Italy
Founders
Headquarters Turin, PiedmontItaly
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
John Elkann (President)
Timothy Kuniskis (CEO)
Products Luxury vehicles
Production output
Increase 66,155 vehicles (2016)
Owner Fiat Chrysler Automobiles
Parent FCA Italy
Website alfaromeo.com

FNM Brazilian Alfa Romeo Special

Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. (Italian: [ˈalfa roˈmɛːo]) is a luxury car manufacturer, founded by Frenchman Alexandre Darracq as A.L.F.A. (“[Società] Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili“, “Anonymous LombardAutomobile Factory [Company]”) on 24 June 1910, in Milan. The brand is known for sporty vehicles and has been involved in car racing since 1911.

ALFA ROMEO camione 1948 1954

The company was owned by Italian state holding company Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale between 1932 and 1986, when it became a part of the Fiat group. In February 2007, the Alfa Romeo brand became Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A., a subsidiary of Fiat Group Automobiles, now Fiat Chrysler Automobiles Italy.

The company that became Alfa Romeo was founded as Società Anonima Italiana Darracq (SAID) in 1906 by the French automobile firm of Alexandre Darracq, with Italian investors. In late 1909, the Italian Darracq cars were selling slowly and the Italian partners of the company hired Giuseppe Merosi to design new cars. On 24 June 1910, a new company was founded named A.L.F.A., initially still in partnership with Darracq. The first non-Darracq car produced by the company was the 1910 24 HP, designed by Merosi. A.L.F.A. ventured into motor racing, with drivers Franchini and Ronzoni competing in the 1911 Targa Florio with two 24-hp models. In August 1915, the company came under the direction of Neapolitan entrepreneur Nicola Romeo, who converted the factory to produce military hardware for the Italian and Allied war efforts. In 1920, the name of the company was changed to Alfa Romeo with the Torpedo 20–30 HP the first car to be so badged.

Sign Alfa Romeo Emblem Wall Plaque Decor Auto Sign

In 1921, the Banca Italiana di Sconto, which backed the Ing. Nicola Romeo & Co, went broke and the government needed to support the industrial companies involved, among which was Alfa Romeo, through the “Consorzio per Sovvenzioni sui Valori Industriali”. In 1925, the railway activities were separated from the Romeo company, and in 1928, Nicola Romeo left. In 1933, the state ownership was reorganized under the banner of the Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI) by Benito Mussolini‘s government, which then had effective control. The company struggled to return to profitability after the Second World War, and turned to mass-producing small vehicles rather than hand-building luxury models. In 1954, it developed the Alfa Romeo Twin Cam engine, which would remain in production until 1994. During the 1960s and 1970s, Alfa Romeo produced a number of sporty cars, but struggled to make a profit, so Istituto per la Reconstruzione (IRI), the state conglomerate that controls Finmeccanica sold the marque to the Fiat Group in 1986.

fnm logo silver

Alfa Romeo has competed successfully in Grand Prix motor racingFormula Onesportscar racingtouring car racing, and rallies. It has competed both as a constructor and an engine supplier, via works entries (usually under the name Alfa Corse or Autodelta), and private entries. The first racing car was made in 1913, three years after the foundation of the company, and Alfa Romeo won the inaugural world championship for Grand Prix cars in 1925. The race victories gave a sporty image to the marque, and Enzo Ferrari founded the Scuderia Ferrari racing team in 1929 as an Alfa Romeo racing team, before becoming independent in 1939. It has had the most wins of any marque in the world.

History

Name

The company’s name is a combination of the original name, “A.L.F.A.” (“Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili”), and the last name of entrepreneur Nicola Romeo, who took control of the company in 1915.

Foundation and early years

1906 Alfa romeo De 8-10 HP van Alfa's voorganger SAIDA 1908 Darracq 8/10 HP assembled by Alfa Romeo’s predecessor, Darracq Italiana.

1910 Alfa 24 HP De allereerste Alfa RomeoThe A.L.F.A 24 hp (this is with Castagna torpedo body) was the first car made by Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili (A.L.F.A) in 1910.

The company that became Alfa Romeo was founded as Società Anonima Italiana Darracq (SAID) in 1906 by the French automobile firm of Alexandre Darracq, with some Italian investors. One of them, Cavaliere Ugo Stella, an aristocratfrom Milan, became chairman of the SAID in 1909. The firm’s initial location was in Naples, but even before the construction of the planned factory had started, Darracq decided late in 1906 that Milan would be more suitable and accordingly a tract of land was acquired in the Milan suburb of Portello, where a new factory of 6,700 square metres (8,000 sq yd) was erected. Late 1909, the Italian Darracq cars were selling slowly and Stella, with the other Italian co-investors, founded a new company named A.L.F.A. (Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili), initially still in partnership with Darracq. The first non-Darracq car produced by the company was the 1910 24 HP, designed by Giuseppe Merosi, hired in 1909 for designing new cars more suited to the Italian market. Merosi would go on to design a series of new A.L.F.A. cars, with more powerful engines (40–60 HP). A.L.F.A. ventured into motor racing, with drivers Franchini and Ronzoni competing in the 1911 Targa Florio with two 24-hp models. In 1914, an advanced Grand Prix car was designed and built, the GP1914, with a four-cylinder engine, double overhead camshafts, four valves per cylinder, and twin ignition. However, the onset of the First World War halted automobile production at A.L.F.A. for three years.

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In August 1915, the company came under the direction of Neapolitan entrepreneur Nicola Romeo, who converted the factory to produce military hardware for the Italian and Allied war efforts. Munitions, aircraft engines and other components, compressors, and generators based on the company’s existing car engines were produced in a vastly enlarged factory during the war. After the war, Romeo invested his war profits in acquiring locomotive and railway carriage plants in Saronno (Costruzioni Meccaniche di Saronno), Rome (Officine Meccaniche di Roma), and Naples (Officine Ferroviarie Meridionali), which were added to his A.L.F.A. ownership.

Alfa Romeo production between 1934 and 1939
Year Cars Industrial
vehicles
1934 699 0
1935 91 211
1936 20 671
1937 270 851
1938 542 729
1939 372 562

1937 Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B a8C 2900B Touring Spider (1937)

Car production had not been considered at first, but resumed in 1919 since parts for the completion of 105 cars had remained at the A.L.F.A. factory since 1915. In 1920, the name of the company was changed to Alfa Romeo with the Torpedo 20–30 HP the first car to be so badged. Their first success came in 1920 when Giuseppe Campari won at Mugello and continued with second place in the Targa Florio driven by Enzo Ferrari. Giuseppe Merosi continued as head designer, and the company continued to produce solid road cars as well as successful race cars (including the 40–60 HP and the RL Targa Florio).

Alfa-Romeo-logo-emblem-2

In 1923 Vittorio Jano was lured from Fiat, partly thanks to the persuasion of a young Alfa racing driver named Enzo Ferrari, to replace Merosi as chief designer at Alfa Romeo. The first Alfa Romeo under Jano was the P2 Grand Prix car, which won Alfa Romeo the inaugural world championship for Grand Prix cars in 1925. For road cars Jano developed a series of small-to-medium-displacement 4-, 6-, and 8-cylinder inline engines based on the P2 unit that established the architecture of the company’s engines, with light alloy construction, hemispherical combustion chambers, centrally located plugs, two rows of overhead valves per cylinder bank and dual overhead cams. Jano’s designs proved both reliable and powerful.

Alfa-Romeo-emblem-2

Enzo Ferrari proved a better team manager than driver, and when the factory team was privatised, it became Scuderia Ferrari. When Ferrari left Alfa Romeo, he went on to build his own cars. Tazio Nuvolarioften drove for Alfa, winning many races before the Second World War.

Alfa Romeo 2900-Scuderia-Ferrari-maroon-fa-lrAlfa Romeo 8C 2900 Scuderia Ferrari

In 1928 Nicola Romeo left, and in 1933 Alfa Romeo was rescued by the government, which then had effective control. Alfa Romeo became an instrument of Mussolini’s Italy, a national emblem. During this period it built bespoke vehicles for the wealthy, with bodies normally by Touring of Milan or Pinin Farina. This era peaked with the Alfa Romeo 2900B Type 35 racers.

Bertone Logo

The Alfa factory (converted during wartime to the production of Macchi C.202 Folgore engines: the Daimler-Benz 600 series built under license) was bombed during the Second World War, and struggled to return to profitability after the war. The luxury vehicles were out. Smaller, mass-produced vehicles began to be produced beginning with the 1954 model year, with the introduction of the Giulietta series of berline (saloons/sedans), coupes and open two-seaters. All three varieties shared what would become the Alfa Romeo overhead Twin Cam four-cylinder engine, initially 1300 cc. This engine would eventually be enlarged to 2000 cc and would remain in production until 1995.

When I see an Alfa Romeo go by, I tip my hat.

— Henry Ford talking with Ugo Gobbato in 1939

Post war

Once motor sports resumed after the Second World War, Alfa Romeo proved to be the car to beat in Grand Prix events. The introduction of the new formula (Formula One) for single-seat racing cars provided an ideal setting for Alfa Romeo’s Tipo 158 Alfetta, adapted from a pre-war voiturette, and Giuseppe Farina won the first Formula One World Championship in 1950 in the 158. Juan Manuel Fangio secured Alfa’s second consecutive championship in 1951.

Alfa Romeo production between 1998 and 2017
Year Cars
1998 197,680
1999 208,336
2000 206,836
2001 213,638
2002 187,437
2003 182,469
2004 162,179
2005 130,815
2006 157,794
2007 151,898
2008 103,097
2009 103,687
2010 119,451
2011 130,535
2012 101,000
2013 74,000
2014 58,948
2015 56,688
2016 71,700
2017 118,000

In 1952, Alfa Romeo experimented with its first front-wheel drive compact car, “Project 13–61”. It had the same transverse-mounted, forward-motor layout as the modern front-wheel drive automobile. Alfa Romeo made a second attempt toward the late 1950s based on Project 13–61. It was to be called Tipo 103 and resembled the smaller version of its popular Alfa Romeo Giulia. However, due to the financial difficulties in post-war Italy, the Tipo 103 never saw production. Had Alfa Romeo produced it, it would have preceded the Mini as the first “modern” front-wheel drive compact car. In the mid-fifties, Alfa Romeo entered into an agreement with Brazil‘s Matarazzo Group to create a company called Fabral (Fábrica Brasileira de Automóveis Alfa, “the Brazilian Alfa automobile factory”) to buildAlfa Romeo 2000 Spider Touringthe Alfa Romeo 2000 there.

After having received government approval, Matarazzo pulled out and under pressure from Brazil’s President Juscelino Kubitschek the state-owned FNM company instead commenced building the car as the “FNM 2000” there in 1960.

During the 1960s, Alfa Romeo concentrated on competition using production-based cars, including the GTA (standing for Gran Turismo Allegerita), an aluminium-bodied version of the Bertone-designed coupe with a powerful twin-plug engine. Among other victories, the GTA won the inaugural Sports Car Club of America‘s Trans-Am championship in 1966. In the 1970s, Alfa Romeo concentrated on prototype sports car racing with the Tipo 33, with early victories in 1971. Eventually the Tipo 33TT12 gained the World Championship for Makes for Alfa Romeo in 1975 and the Tipo 33SC12 won the World Championship for Sports Cars in 1977.

Alfa Romeo Logo old

By the 1970s, Alfa Romeo was again in financial trouble and creative measures were attempted to shore it up, including an ultimately unsuccessful joint venture with Nissan endorsed by Ettore Massacesi of Alfa Romeo’s parent company, the Italian-government owned Istituto per la Ricostruzione Industriale (IRI) and Prime Minister Francesco Cossiga. By 1986, IRI was suffering heavy losses, and IRI president Romano Prodi put Alfa Romeo up for sale. Finmeccanica, the mechanical holdings arm of IRI and its predecessors owned Alfa Romeo since 1932. Prodi first approached fellow Italian manufacturer Fiat, which offered to start a joint venture with Alfa. Prodi was initially unsupportive, citing the strained industrial relations between Northern and Southern Italy, with Fiat being based in Turin and Alfa being based in Milan.

Fiat withdrew its plan for a joint venture when Ford put in an offer to acquire part of Alfa Romeo and restructure the company, while increasing its stake over time. However, Fiat put in a bid to acquire the entirety of Alfa Romeo and offer job guarantees to Italian workers, an offer that Ford was unwilling to match.

Alfa 1870 logo-badges to 2015

It also did not hurt any of the parties involved that an acquisition by Fiat would keep Alfa Romeo in Italian hands. In 1986, the deal was concluded with Alfa Romeo merged with traditional rival Lancia into Fiat’s Alfa Lancia Industriale S.p.A.

Models produced from the 1990s combined Alfa’s traditional virtues of avant-garde styling and sporting panache with the economic benefits of product rationalisation, and include a “GTA” version of the 147hatchback, the Giugiaro-designed Brera, and a high-performance exotic called the 8C Competizione (named after one of Alfa’s most successful prewar sports and racing cars, the 8C of the 1930s).

In 2005 Maserati was bought back from Ferrari and under Fiat’s full control. The Fiat Group plans to create a sports and luxury division from Maserati and Alfa Romeo. There is a planned strategic relationship between these two; engines, platforms and possibly dealers will be shared in some markets.

In the beginning of 2007, Fiat Auto S.p.A. was reorganized and four new automobile companies were created; Fiat Automobiles S.p.A., Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A., Lancia Automobiles S.p.A. and Fiat Light Commercial Vehicles S.p.A. These companies are fully owned by Fiat Group Automobiles S.p.A (from 2007 FCA Italy S.p.A.).

Carabinieri and Italian government

In the 1960s Alfa Romeo became famous for its small cars and models specifically designed for the Italian police and Carabinieri; among them the “Giulia Super” and the 2600 Sprint GT. The colours of the Alfa Romeos used by the Polizia were/are green/blue with white stripes and writing, known as “Pantera” (Panther), enhancing the aggressive look of the Alfa (particularly the Giulia series), while the Carabinieri Alfas are dark blue with white roofs and red stripes, known as the “Gazzella” (Gazelle) denoting the speed and agility of these “Pattuglie” (patrol cars). However, the term “Pantera” became used interchangeably and the image helped create a no-nonsense, determined and respected perception by the general public of the men that drove these cars, true to their history.

Italian police alfa giulia 2Italian State Police Flying Squad“Panther” 1971 Alfa Giulia Super

Since then, Alfas remain the chosen mount of the Carabinieri (arm of the Italian armed forces seconded only partly for civilian policing purposes), Polizia Autostradale (highway police), Guardia di Finanza (fiscal law enforcement) and the conventional police service (Polizia). Successively, the following Alfa Romeo Berlinas have found favour for Italian police and government employment1952 Alfa Romeo AR 51 Matta 1900 M• Alfa Romeo AR51Alfa Romeo Giulia (Type 105)• Alfa Romeo Giulia1978 Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV (7254572400)1978 Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV (7254572400)  • Alfa Romeo Alfetta1984 Alfa Romeo Giulietta1984 Alfa Romeo Giulietta   • Alfa Romeo Giulietta1987 Alfa Romeo 33 Polizia Squadra Volante1987 Alfa Romeo 33 Polizia Squadra Volante  • Alfa Romeo 33 (Polizia di Stato only)OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA1988 Alfa Romeo MIlano (America) Alfa 75   • Alfa Romeo 75OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA1989 Alfa Romeo 164 – 2.0 Twin Spark Alfa Romeo 164 presidential limousine (Italy)Alfa Romeo 164 presidential limousine (Italy)   • Alfa Romeo 164 (official vehicles)Alfa Romeo 155 1.7 8V Wide Body• Alfa Romeo 155Alfa Romeo 156 grey• Alfa Romeo 1562004 Alfa Romeo 166 012004 Alfa Romeo 166  • Alfa Romeo 166 (official vehicles)2010 Alfa Romeo 159 2.0 JTDm ECO Elegante2010 Alfa Romeo 159 2.0 JTDm ECO Elegante   • Alfa Romeo 1592016 Alfa Romeo Giulia QV Carabinieri2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia QV Carabinieri   • Alfa Romeo Giulia (Carabinieri only)

Since the 1960s, the Italian Prime Minister has used Alfa Romeos (and lately the new Maserati Quattroporte) as preferred government limousines. The 164 and 166 have found particular employment in the last two decades.Alfa Romeo at speed past Alfa Sulpture at Goodwood House100 years Alfa Romeo

On 24 June 2010, Alfa Romeo celebrated 100 years from its foundation.

Recent developments

Alfa Romeo has been suffering from falling sales. Some analysts concluded that the automaker suffered large operating losses in the mid-2000s – estimated to be about 15 percent to 20 percent of annual revenues, or about 300 million to 500 million euros a year. For the year of 2010, it sold a total of about 112,000 units which was significantly lower than Fiat CEO Marchionne’s global sales target of 300,000. Alfa then wanted to achieve 170,000 sales in 2011, including 100,000 Giulietta and 60,000 MiTo, but it actually sold 130,000 units that year. Its medium-term target was 500,000 units by 2014 including 85,000 from N. American market. In 2017 Alfa Romeo increased production by 62 percent, it build a total of 150,722 vehicles at the company’s three factories.

Return to North America

Alfa Romeo Giulietta SpiderGiulietta Spider

Alfa Romeo was imported to the United States by Max Hoffman from the mid-1950s. The Giulietta Spider was born by request of Max Hoffman, who proposed an open version of the Giulietta. In 1961 Alfa Romeo started importing cars to the United States.

In 1995, Alfa Romeo ceased exporting cars to the United States, the last model sold in that market being the 164 sedans.

Alfa-Romeo-symbol.jpg

Since that time, rumours of a return culminated with a website announcement stating “The long-awaited return of Alfa Romeo to the United States market should take place by 2007, with a range of new models.” In fact, Alfa Romeo’s return to United States was officially confirmed on 5 May 2006 by Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne. North American sales resumed in October 2008, with the launch of the low production 8C Competizione coupe. Also in 2008, Alfa Romeo and Chrysler were reported to be in discussions over the possibility of producing Alfa Romeo cars in some Chrysler manufacturing plants that had shutdown due to the company group’s restructure and cost cutting. Instead, as reported by The Wall Street Journal reported in November 2009, Chrysler discontinued several Dodge and Jeep models while phasing in Alfa Romeo ones and the new Fiat 500.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

The next significant milestones in Alfa Romeo’s North American return occurred in 2014, with the launch of the more affordable two-seater 4C coupe. That year, Fiat Group Automobiles S.p.A. confirmed that its original agreement with Mazda Motor Corporation, for the speculated manufacturing of a new Alfa Romeo Spider based on the Mazda Miata, had been terminated mutually in December 2014 (with this joint-venture’s Miata-based car, becoming the new 2015 Fiat 124 convertible). In 2015, Alfa Romeo’s return to this market was further bolstered by the automaker’s display of the new Giulia at the Los Angeles Auto Show. In February 2017, Chrysler featured its Alfa Romeo brand exclusively in three ads during Super Bowl LI.

Alfa Romeo’s US importer, FCA US LLC, imports the 4C, Giulia and Stelvio.

Design and technology

Alfa Romeo badgeBadge on Alfa Romeo 4C

Technological development

Alfa Romeo has introduced many technological innovations over the years, and the company has often been among the first users of new technologies. Its trademark double overhead cam engine was used for the first time in the 1914 Grand Prix car, the first road car with such an engine, the 6C 1500 Sport, appeared in 1928.

Alfa Romeo tested one of the very first electric injection systems (Caproni-Fuscaldo) in the Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 with “Ala spessa” body in 1940 Mille Miglia. The engine had six electrically operated injectors, fed by a semi-high pressure circulating fuel pump system.

Mechanical variable valve timing was introduced in the Alfa Romeo Spider, sold in the U.S. in 1980. All Alfa Romeo Spider models from 1983 onward used electronic VVT.

Alfa Romeo RVS Logo

The 105 series Giulia was quite an advanced car, using such technologies as all-wheel disc brakes, and a plastic radiator header tank. It had also the lowest drag coefficient (Cd) in its class The same trend continued with the Alfetta 2000 and GTV, which had such things as 50:50 weight distribution, standard fit alloy wheels and transaxle.

Newer innovations include complete CAD design process used in Alfa Romeo 164, robotised/paddle control transmission Selespeed used in the 156; the 156 was also the world’s first passenger car to use Common rail diesel engine. The Multiair -an electro-hydraulic variable valve actuation technology used in MiTo was introduced in 2009. In 2016 Alfa Romeo Giulia came with electrical brakes.

Body design

Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS. Designed by Pinin Farina for Giuseppe FarinaAlfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS (1939, serial number 913.008) by Technical museum of Vadim Zadorogny

Many famous automotive design houses in Italy have accepted commissions to produce concepts and production vehicle shapes for Alfa Romeo. These include:

Bertone

Giorgetto Giugiaro / Italdesign

Pininfarina

Zagato

Centro Stile Alfa Romeo

Alfa Romeo Emblem Metal Sign, Banner Style

The last mentioned, the Centro Stile, has rapidly gained international credibility with its work. The 8C Competizione super-coupé, and the MiTo hatchback are the results.

Construction techniques used by Alfa Romeo have become imitated by other car makers, and in this way Alfa Romeo body design has often been very influential. The following is a list of innovations, and where appropriate, examples of imitation by other car manufacturers:Alfa 6C 2500SAlfa 6C 2500 S

1950s: Monocoque body design in the Giulia: While not an imitation per se, this construction technique became extremely widespread, and remains so to the present day.

1960s: Aerodynamics: The 116-series Giulia had a very low Cd. Toyota in particular sought to produce a similarly shaped series of vehicles at this time.

1970s: Fairing of bumpers: In order to meet American crash standards, Alfa formulated design styling techniques to incorporate bumpers into the overall bodywork design of vehicles so as to not ruin their lines. The culmination of this design technique was the 1980s Alfa Romeo 75. The process was widely copied, particularly in Germany and Japan.

Alfa Romeo logo on yellow

1980s: The Alfa 164: The design process and influence of this car is almost completely out of all proportion to previous Alfas. The 164 introduced complete CAD/CAM in the manufacturing cycle, with very little directly made by hand in the vehicle. In addition, the 164’s styling influence continues into the present day line of modern Alfas. Most manufacturers incorporated design ideas first expressed in the 164 into their own designs, including greater reliance on on-board computers.

1990s: The pseudo-coupé: The Alfa 156 and 147, while four-door vehicles, represented themselves as two-doors with prominent front door handles, and less visible rear door-handle flaps. Honda has used this design style in the latest Civic hatchback, and a somewhat similar idea is also seen in the most recent Mazda RX-8 four-seat coupé.Alfa Romeo Spider JTS V6 (Type 939)Alfa Spider (Type 939)

2000s: The Brera and 159: These vehicles’ design, by Giorgetto Giugiaro, have proven influential in sedan and coupé styling, demonstrating that concept vehicles are often immediately translatable into road car form, providing that initial design takes place using CAD systems.

Alfa Romeo has made a number of concept cars:

1950s – The B.A.T. cars

The Berlina Aerodinamica Tecnica prototype cars were designed by Bertone as an exercise in determining whether streamlining and wind-tunnel driven designs would result in high performance on a standard chassis, and whether the resulting vehicles would be palatable to public. Alfa 1900 Sprint were the basis of the B.A.T. 5, 7 and 9. The later B.A.T. 11 was based on the 8C Competizione.

1960s and 1970s – Descendants of the Tipo 33

Alfa Romeo Logo Emblem

The Tipo 33 racing car, with its high-revving 2000 cc V8 engine became the basis for a number of different concept cars during the 1960s and 1970s, two of which ultimately resulted in production vehicles. Most made their appearances at the Auto Salon Genève. Here is a brief list:

Gandini/Bertone Carabo (1968) – Marcello Gandini expressed ideas that would come to fruition in the Lamborghini Countach.

Tipo 33.2 (1969)- Designed by Pininfarina to the design already known from Ferrari concept car.

Gandini/Bertone Montreal Concept (1967) – making its appearance at the 1967 Montreal Expo, this Giulia-based concept resulted in the production Alfa Romeo Montreal road car with a variant of the Tipo 33 V8 engine.

Bertone/Giugiaro Navajo (1976)- A fully fibreglassed vehicle, and in some ways the epitome of Giugiaro’s ‘Origami’ style of flat planes.

1980s-today – Modern ideas

In general, concept cars for Alfa Romeo have generally become production vehicles, after some modification to make them suitable for manufacture, and to provide driver and passenger safety. The Zagato SZ, GTV and Spider, Brera and 159 are all good examples of Alfa Romeo’s stylistic commitment in this direction.

Symbols

1925 Alfa_Romeo_RL_SS_-_1925_-_003_(cropped)Laurel-wreathed 1925–1945 badges on a 1925 Alfa Romeo RL SS

Alfa Romeo’s logo incorporates two heraldic devices traditionally associated with its birthplace, the city of Milan: a red cross, from the emblem of Milan, and the biscione, a crowned viper swallowing a Moor—emblem of the House of Visconti, rulers of the city in the 14th century.

The logo was originally designed in 1910 by a young Italian draughtsman from the A.L.F.A technical office, Romano Cattaneo.

Origin

In June 1910 the Società Anonima Darracq became Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili, and was readying its first model, the 24 HP. The board asked chief engineer Giuseppe Merosi to devise a badge for the radiator shell of the new car; Merosi turned to his collaborators. One of them, Cattaneo, was inspired by the coat of arms he had seen on the gates of Castello Sforzesco to include the biscione in the logo. Merosi liked the idea, and together with Cattaneo came up with a sketch, then approved by managing director Ugo Stella; Cattaneo was entrusted with doing the final design.

The original badge was round, of enamelled brass, measuring 65 mm (2.6 in) in diameter, and carried already all the present day accoutrements: the red cross on a white field of Milan on the left, a green biscione on a light blue field on the left, all surrounded by a blue ring inscribed with the words “ALFA” at the top and “MILANO” at the bottom. In honour of the King of Italy, the two words were separated by two figure-eight knots—named Savoy knots in Italian, and symbols of the then-reigning House of Savoy. Originally solid brass, the lettering was changed to white enamel in 1913. In 1918, after the company had been bought by Nicola Romeo, the wording “ALFA” was replaced with “ALFA-ROMEO”. In 1925, to commemorate the victory of the Alfa Romeo P2 in the inaugural World Manufacturers’ Championship of 1925, a silver metal laurel wreath was added around the badge, used (in varying form) until 1982. The addition of the wreath had enlarged the badge to 75 mm (3.0 in) diameter; in 1930 it was reduced back to 60 mm (2.4 in).

Post war evolution

In 1946, after the abolition of the monarchy and proclamation of the Italian Republic, the figure-eight knots of the Savoy were replaced with two curvy lines. Concurrently the badge was completely redesigned, and further reduced in size to 54 mm (2.1 in), a diameter unchanged ever since. Made of stamped steel, the new badge bore the traditional elements—the scripts, the cross, a newly stylized biscione and a thin laurel wreath—embossed in antique silver, over a uniform Alfa Red background, which had replaced the blue, white and light blue fields. This red-and-metal badge was used until 1950, when the company switched back to a traditionally enamelled and coloured one; in 1960 the badge was changed from brass to plastic, without substantial differences in design.

ALFA ROMEO Embleem Logo Badge auto kado

At the beginning of the 1970s the all-new Alfa Romeo Pomigliano d’Arco plant (near Naples) was completed. When in 1972 the Alfasud produced there became the first Alfa Romeo passenger car manufactured outside Milan, the word “Milano”, the curved lines and the hyphen between “Alfa” and “Romeo” were eliminated from the badge on all Alfa Romeos. At the same time it was redesigned, most notably acquiring a modernised biscione and type face. After a mild restyling in 1982, which deleted the wreath and changed lettering and all chrome details to gold, this iteration of the badge remained in use until 2015.

2015 redesign

On 24 June 2015, 105th anniversary of the company, a new logo was unveiled at a press event at the Alfa Romeo Museum; together with the Alfa Romeo Giulia as part of the brand’s relaunch plan. The redesign was carried out by Robilant Associati, who had previously reworked several other Fiat Group logos—including Fiat Automobiles‘ and Lancia‘s.

The logo colors have been reduced from four to three: the green of the biscione, the red of the cross, and the dark blue of the surrounding ring. Other changes are a new serif type face, and the absence of the split white and light blue fields, replaced by a single silver textured background.

Quadrifoglio

Since 1923, the quadrifoglio logo (also called the ‘cloverleaf’) has been the symbol of Alfa Romeo racing cars and since WWII, it has also been used to designate the higher trim models of the range. The quadrifoglio is usually placed on the side panels of the car, above or behind the front wheels—on the front wings in the case of modern vehicles. The logo consists of a green cloverleaf with four leaves, contained with a white triangle.

History of the emblem

Alfa-Romeo-P1-GP-byMerosi

Ugo Sivocci at the wheel of 1923 Alfa Romeo P1

The quadrifoglio has been used on Alfa Romeo cars since the death of Ugo Sivocci in 1923. As a friend of Enzo Ferrari, Sivocci was hired by Alfa Romeo in 1920 to drive in the four-man works team—Alfa Corse—with Antonio Ascari, Giuseppe Campari, and Enzo Ferrari. Sivocci was thought to have enormous experience, but often hampered by bad luck and considered the eternal second-placer. To banish his bad luck, when the Targa Florio came around, the driver painted a white square with a green four-leaf clover (the quadrifoglio) in the centre of the grille of his car. Sivocci had immediate success, crossing the finish line first. The quadrifoglio subsequently became the symbol of the racing Alfa Romeos with the victory at the Targa Florio. Almost as if to prove the magic effects of this symbol, Sivocci was killed while testing Merosi‘s new P1 at Monza, a few months after winning the Targa Florio. The Salerno driver’s P1, which went off the track on a bend, did not have the quadrifoglio. Since this period in 1923, the bodies of Alfa Romeo racing cars have been adorned with the quadrifoglio as a lucky charm. The white square was replaced with a triangle in memory of Ugo Sivocci.

Alfetta 159 steering wheelQuadrifoglio badge on the Alfetta 159

Modern usage

The first road car to bear the quadrifoglio was the 1963 Alfa Romeo Giulia TI Super, a variant of the Giulia saloon car devised for competition but put regularly on sale; it had green four-leaf clovers on its front wings, without the triangle. In the 1970s “Quadrifoglio Verde” or “Green Cloverleaf” became the trim level for each model’s sportiest variant, equipped with the most powerful engine. The AlfasudSprint3375164 and 145 all had Quadrifoglio Verde versions. Also in the 1970s and through the 1980s golden four-leaf clover badges were used to denote the most luxurious and well-equipped variants of Alfa Romeo cars, named “Quadrifoglio Oro” or “Gold Cloverleaf”. The AlfasudAlfettaAlfa 690 and 33 had Quadrifoglio Oro versions. In recent times the quadrifoglio was revived on the 2007 Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione and Spider eight-cylinder sports cars. With the current Alfa Romeo MiTo and Giuliettathe Quadrifoglio Verde was reinstated as the sportiest trim level in the range, and green four-leaf clovers on the front wings are once again the hallmark of high-performance Alfa Romeos. Alfa Romeo’s 2016 sport sedan, the all-new Giulia, will be launched first in Quadrifoglio trim before the release of the base models. Starting with the high-end model wearing that historic signature emblem, Alfa Romeo strives to reconquer the North American market after decades of absence.

Motorsport

Alfa Romeo has been involved with motor racing since 1911, when it entered two 24 HP models on Targa Florio competition. In the 1920s and 30s it scored wins at many races and motoring events such as Targa FlorioMille Migliaand Le Mans. Great success continued with Formula OnePrototypes, Touring and Fast Touring. Private drivers also entered some rally competitions, with fine results. Alfa Romeo has competed both as a constructor and an engine supplier, via works entries Alfa CorseAutodelta and private entries. Alfa Romeo’s factory racing team was outsourced to Enzo Ferrari’s Scuderia Ferrari between 1933 and 1938. Drivers included Tazio Nuvolari, who won the 1935 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring.

Production

SAMSUNGAlfa Romeo plant in Arese

 

According to the late Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, in order to reap economies of scale, all new Alfa Romeo models will be made from the same basic platform. Even Maserati will share components with some Alfas.

During the 1990s, Alfa Romeo moved car production to other districts in Italy. The Pomigliano d’Arco plant produced the 155, followed by the 145 and the 146, while the Arese plant manufactured the 164 and new Spider and GTV. The 156 was launched in 1997, and became quite successful for Alfa Romeo; in 1998 it was voted “Car of the Year”. The same year a new flagship, the 166 (assembled in Rivalta, near Turin) was launched. At the beginning of the third millennium, the 147 was released, which won the prestigious title of “Car of the Year 2001”. In 2003 the Arese factory was closed.

The Arese factory today hosts almost nothing and is nearly abandoned. What remains are some offices and the Alfa Romeo Historical Museum, a must-see for Alfa Romeo fans.

Alfa Romeo images

In the 1960s, the main Alfa Romeo seat was moved from inside Milan to a very large and nearby area extending over the municipalities of AreseLainate and Garbagnate Milanese. However, since then the Alfa seat is known to be in Arese, since the offices and the main entrance of the area are there.

In the late 1960s, a number of European automobile manufacturers established facilities in South Africa to assemble right hand drive vehicles. Fiat and other Italian manufacturers established factories along with these other manufacturers, Alfa-Romeos were assembled in Brits, outside Pretoria in the Transvaal Province of South Africa. With the imposition of sanctions by western powers in the 1970s and 1980s, South Africa became self-sufficient, and in car production came to rely more and more on the products from local factories. This led to a remarkable set of circumstances where between 1972 and 1989, South Africa had the greatest number of Alfa Romeos on the road outside of Italy. Even stranger, Alfa Romeos Brits plant was used from March 1983 until 1985 to build Daihatsu Charades for local consumption, but also for export to Italy in order to skirt Italian limits on Japanese imports.

In late 1985, with the impending Fiat takeover and an international boycott of the South African Apartheid government, Alfa Romeo withdrew from the market and closed the plant. Tons of valuable parts were then bulldozed into the ground to escape paying import duties.

Assembly plants by model
Plant Owner Location Model(s)
Cassino – Piedimonte S. Germano FCA Italy S.p.A. Piedimonte San Germano GiuliettaGiuliaStelvio
Modena Maserati S.p.A. Modena 4C

Automobiles

showAlfa Romeos

Current models

2010 Alfa Romeo Giulietta front
Alfa Romeo Giulietta

The Giulietta is a five-door, small family car officially revealed at the 2010 Geneva Motor Show. It replaced the 147. It is current top Alfa sales with about 40,000 cars per year.Alfa Romeo 4C sport coupeAlfa Romeo 4C

The 4C is a small, lightweight rear wheel drive two seater coupé sports car. The car was revealed as concept car at the 81st Geneva Motor Show in 2011. The production version was launched to the European market at the 83rd Geneva Motor show in 2013 and was launched to the American market at the Los Angeles Motor show at the end of November 2013.2015 Alfa Romeo 4C Spider2015 Alfa Romeo 4C Spider2015 Alfa Romeo Giulia2015 Alfa Romeo Giulia

The new generation Giulia was unveiled to the press at the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo in Arese, on 24 June 2015. This coincided with the company’s 105th anniversary and saw the introduction of a revised logo.2016 Alfa Romeo Stelvio2016 Alfa Romeo Stelvio

The Stelvio was unveiled at the 2016 Los Angeles Auto Show. The Stelvio is Alfa Romeo’s first production SUV that competes in the same category as the Porsche MacanJaguar F-PaceAudi Q5 and BMW X3.

Historic models

1931 MHV Alfa-Romeo 6C Gran Sport6C Gran Sport (1931)

1932 Alfa Romeo - Spider 8C 23008C 2300 (1931)

Alfa Romeo 2600 Touring Spider2600 Touring Spider (1961)

1965 Alfa Romeo Junior GTGT Junior (1965)

1970 Alfa Romeo MontrealMontreal (1970)

1980 MHV Alfa-Romeo GTVGTV6 (1980)1980 Alfa Romeo GTV 6 2,5 brochure1980 Alfa Romeo GTV 6 2,5 brochure

1992 Alfa romeo spider serie 4Spider (1992)

1997 Alfa Romeo 156 Selespeed1997 Alfa Romeo 156 Selespeed   156 (1997)

2008 Alfa Romeo 8C-Competizione2008 Alfa Romeo 8C-Competizione   8C Competizione (2008)

Alfa Romeo Autotutto F12Autotutto F12 ambulance

Road cars Racing cars
1910 1910–1920 24 HP
1910–1911 12 HP
1911–1920 15 HP
1913–1922 40–60 HP
1911 15 HP Corsa
1913 40–60 HP Corsa
1914 Grand Prix
1920 1921–1922 20–30 HP
1920–1921 G1
1921-1921 G2
1922–1927 RL
1923–1925 RM
1927–1929 6C 1500
1929–1933 6C 1750
1922 RL Super Sport
1923 RL Targa Florio
1923 P1
1924 P2
1928 6C 1500 MMS
1929 6C 1750 Super Sport
1930 1931–1934 8C 2300
1933-1933 6C 1900
1934–1937 6C 2300
1935–1939 8C 2900
1939–1950 6C 2500
1931 Tipo A
1931 8C 2300 Monza
1932 Tipo B (P3)
1935 Bimotore
1935 8C 35
1935 8C 2900A
1936 12C 36
1937 12C 37
1937 6C 2300B Mille Miglia
1937 8C 2900B Mille Miglia
1938 308
1938 312
1938 316
1938 158
1939 6C 2500 Super Sport Corsa
1940 1948 6C 2500 Competizione
1950 1950–1958 1900
1951–1953 Matta
1954–1962 Giulietta
1958–1962 2000
1959–1964 Dauphine
1951 159
1952 6C 3000 CM
1960 1962–1968 2600
1962–1976 Giulia Saloon
1963–1967 Giulia TZ
1963–1977 Giulia Sprint
1963–1966 Giulia Sprint Speciale
1965–1967 Gran Sport Quattroruote
1965–1971 GTA
1963–1965 Giulia Spider
1966–1993 Spider
1967–1969 33 Stradale
1967–1977 1750/2000 Berlina
1960 Giulietta SZ
1963 Giulia TZ
1965 GTA
1965 Tipo 33
1968 33/2
1969 33/3
1970 1970–1977 Montreal
1972–1983 Alfasud
1972–1984 Alfetta saloon
1974–1987 Alfetta GT/GTV
1976–1989 Alfasud Sprint
1977–1985 Nuova Giulietta
1979–1986 Alfa 6
1972 33/4
1973 33TT12
1976 33SC12
1979 177
1979 179
1980 1983–1994 33
1984–1987 Arna
1984–1987 90
1985–1992 75
1987–1998 164
1989–1993 SZ/RZ
1982 182
1983 183
1984 184
1985 185
1990 1992–1998 155
1994–2000 145
1994–2000 146
1995–2006 GTV/Spider
1997–2005 156
1998–2007 166
1992 155 GTA
1993 155 V6 TI
1998 156 D2
1999 GTV Cup
2002 156 GTA Super 2000
2003 156 Super 2000
2000 2000–2010 147
2007–2009 8C Competizione
2008–2010 8C Spider
2003–2010 GT
2005–2010 Brera
2005–2011 159
2006–2010 Spider
2003 147 GTA Cup
2008-2018 MiTo

Trucks and light commercial vehicles

Alfa Romeo 2 LKWRomeo2 LCV

 

In 1930 Alfa Romeo presented a light truck in addition to heavy LCVs based on Büssing constructions. In the Second World War Alfa Romeo also built trucks for the Italian army (“35 tons anywhere”) and later also for the German Wehrmacht. After the war, commercial motor vehicle production was resumed.

In co-operation with FIAT and Saviem starting from the 1960s different light truck models were developed.

The production of heavy LCVs in Italy was terminated in 1967. Heavy trucks continued to be built for a few years in Brazil by Alfa Romeo subsidiary Fábrica Nacional de Motores under the name FNM. The last Alfa Romeo vans were the Alfa Romeo AR6 and AR8, rebadged versions of Iveco Daily and Fiat Ducato. The company also produced trolleybuses for many systems in Italy, Latin America, Sweden, Greece, Germany, Turkey and South Africa. Later, Alfa Romeo concentrated only on passenger car manufacturing.

LCVs

Alfa Romeo 430Alfa Romeo 4301954-1983 Alfa Romeo Romeo 2 Furgone

Alfa Romeo Romeo (1954–1958)Alfa Romeo Romeo 2 passenger vanAlfa Romeo Romeo 2 (until 1966)Alfa Romeo Romeo 2 Lorry - LKW 1Alfa Romeo Romeo 3 (1966)Alfa Romeo Autotutto F12Alfa Romeo A11/F11 (1954–1983)Alfa Romeo Romeo F12 A12 FadisaAlfa Romeo A12/F12

AR8 (based on first generation Iveco Daily)1988 Alfa Romeo 14 AR 6 Ambulance (Alessio3373)Alfa Romeo 6 14AR6 (based on first generation Fiat Ducato)Alfa Romeo F20 bAlfa Romeo F20 aAlfa Romeo F20 (Saviem license)

Trucks

Alfa Romeo 50 Biscione 80Alfa Romeo 50 Biscione 80   Alfa Romeo 50 “Biscione” (Büssing-NAG 50)/ 80 (1931–1934)1934-1938 Alfa Romeo 85Alfa Romeo 85 / 110 (1934 – n/a)1935-1937 Alfa Romeo 350 13650Alfa Romeo 350 i0591611946 Alfa Romeo 350 in DesiderioAlfa Romeo 350 (1935 – n/a)

Alfa Romeo 430 (1942–1950)

Alfa Romeo Camion’s

Alfa Romeo 450/455 (1947–1959)1939 Alfa Romeo 500 - Alfa Romeo 500 military version during a parade in Turin, August 8, 19391939 Alfa Romeo 500 – Alfa Romeo 500 military version during a parade in Turin, August 8, 1939Alfa Romeo 500 1

Alfa Romeo 500 (1937 – 1945)Alfa Romeo 800

Alfa Romeo 800 (1940–1943)

Alfa Romeo 900 (1947–1954)

Alfa Romeo 950 (1954–1958)

 

Alfa Romeo Mille (Alfa Romeo 1000) (1958–1964)

Alfa Romeo A15 (Saviem license)

Alfa Romeo A19 (Saviem license)

Alfa Romeo Saviem A38 APS energia Padova

Alfa Romeo A38 (Saviem license)

1961 Alfa Romeo 1000F trolleybus No. 8010 of the Naples trolleybus system in Torre del GrecoA 1961 Alfa Romeo 1000 (Mille) Aerfer FI 711.2 OCREN trolleybus on the Naples ANM trolleybus system

1962 CTP Alfa Romeo trolleybus 18 in 1985A 1962 Alfa Romeo Mille AF trolleybus for CTP Napoli, with the iconic Alfa Romeo badge in the centreAlfa Romeo-Aerfer-OCREN trolleybus of CTP NapoliAlfa Romeo-Aerfer-OCREN logo’s on 1961 trolleybus of CTP Napoli

Buses

Alfa Romeo 40AAlfa Romeo 40AGli Alfa Romeo 40, 85, 80, 110Gli Alfa Romeo 40, 85, 80, 110   Alfa Romeo 80A1933 Alfa Romeo 85-A in piazza Venezia1933 Alfa Romeo 85-A in piazza Venezia  Alfa Romeo 85AAlfa Romeo 110A di RomaAlfa Romeo 110A di Roma   Alfa Romeo 110AAlfa Romeo 140A di RomaAlfa Romeo 140A di Roma   Alfa Romeo 140A (1950–1958)1959 Alfa Romeo 150 A Macchi1959 Alfa Romeo 150 A Macchi   Alfa Romeo 150A (1958)

Alfa Romeo 430A (1949–1953)

Alfa Romeo 500A (1945–1948)

1951 Alfa Romeo 800A GT Ambrosini

Alfa Romeo 800A

Alfa Romeo 900A (1953–1956)

Alfa Romeo 902A (1957–1959)

There is no one to be found. Please help me!

Alfa Romeo 950A

Alfa Romeo Mille (bus) (Alfa Romeo 1000) (1960–1964)

Trolleybuses

 

Alfa Romeo 110AF (1938)

Alfa Romeo 140AF (1949)

1944 Alfa Romeo 800 AF Garavini '1944

Alfa Romeo 800AF (1950–1954)

Alfa Romeo 900AF (1955–1957)

Alfa Romeo Mille AF (Alfa Romeo 1000) (1959–1964)

Concepts

Design has always played a large role in the history of Alfa Romeo. There have been many Alfa Romeo concept cars, often made by famous design houses and designers. The BAT series of concepts from the 1950s was a collaboration with the Italian design house Bertone. Other famous Italian coachbuilders and design houses like PininfarinaBertoneZagato and ItalDesign-Giugiaro have also played a great role in Alfa Romeo’s history, and even today some of models are designed and constructed by them.

Other production

Although Alfa Romeo is best known as automobile manufacturer it has also produced commercial vehicles of various size, railway locomotives, tractors, buses, trams, compressors, generators, an electric cooker, marine and aircraft engines.

Aircraft engines

1931 Alfa Romeo D2C 30D2 aircraft engine

 

An Alfa engine was first used on an aircraft in 1910 on the Santoni-Franchini biplane. In 1932 Alfa Romeo built its first real aircraft engine, the D2 (240 bhp), fitted to Caproni 101 D2. In the 1930s when Alfa Romeo engines were used for aircraft on a larger scale; the Savoia Marchetti SM.74Savoia-Marchetti SM.75Savoia-Marchetti SM.79Savoia Marchetti SM.81 and Cant Z506B Airone all used Alfa Romeo manufactured engines. In 1931, a competition was arranged where Tazio Nuvolari drove his Alfa Romeo 8C 3000 Monza against a Caproni Ca.100 airplane. Alfa Romeo built various aircraft engines during the Second World War; the best known was the RA.1000 RC 41-I Monsone, a licensed version of the Daimler-Benz DB 601. This engine made it possible to build efficient fighter aircraft like the Macchi C.202 Folgore for the Italian army. After the Second World War Alfa Romeo produced engines for Fiat, Aerfer and Ambrosini. In the 1960s Alfa Romeo mainly focused upgrading and maintaining Curtiss-WrightPratt & WhitneyRolls-Royce and General Electric aircraft engines. Alfa Romeo also built Italy’s first turbine engine, installed to the Beechcraft King Air. Alfa Romeo’s Avio division was sold to Aeritalia in 1988, from 1996 it was part of Fiat Avio. Alfa Avio was also part of developing team to the new T700-T6E1 engine to the NHI NH90 helicopter.

Locomotiva E333-006 ad Acqui TermeLocomotive FS E.333 built by Ing. Nicola Romeo e Co. in Saronno

Marine engines

Alfa Romeo also produced marine engines. The first marine engine was produced in 1929. Later, for three consecutive years: 1937-1938-1939 with remarkable affirmations, Alfa Romeo demonstrated its constructive efficiency by contributing to the development of marine engines.

(1938) 12 cyl (4.500) 121,710 km/h

Aero-engines

Alfa Romeo D2

Alfa Romeo 110

Alfa Romeo 115

Alfa Romeo 121

Alfa Romeo 125

Alfa Romeo 126

Alfa Romeo 128

Alfa Romeo 135

Alfa Romeo Lynx

Alfa Romeo Mercurius

Alfa Romeo RA.1000

Alfa Romeo RA-1050

Alfa Romeo R.C.10

Alfa Romeo R.C.34

Alfa Romeo R.C.35

Alfa Romeo AR.318

Marketing and sponsorship

Alfa Romeo bicycles are made by Italian bicycle manufacturer Compagnia Ducale.

2017 Alfa Romeo DealersAlfa Romeo official dealers worldwide map.

Alfa-Romeo-2-First-SailAlfa Romeo II on its first sail in 2005

 

During the years Alfa Romeo has been marketed with different slogans like: “The family car that wins races” used in the 1950s in Alfa Romeo 1900 marketing campaign, “racing since 1911” used on most 1960s Alfa advertisements, In the 1970s the Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV was marketed as “if this kind of handling is good enough for our racing cars, it’s good enough for you.” The Giulia Sprint GTA was marketed as “The car you drive to work is a champion”. More recent slogans used are “Mediocrity is a sin”, “Driven by Passion”, “Cuore Sportivo”, “Beauty is not enough” and present day “Without heart we would be mere machines”. Also other more recent ones are: “It’s not a car, it’s an Alfa Romeo.”, one of them after a couple argue in Italian.

As part of its marketing policy, Alfa Romeo sponsors a number of sporting events, such as the Mille Miglia rally. It has sponsored the SBK Superbike World Championship and Ducati Corse since 2007, and the Goodwood Festival of Speed for many years, and was one of the featured brands in 2010 when Alfa Romeo celebrated its 100th anniversary. The Alfa Romeo Giulietta has been used since Monza 2010 race as the safety car in Superbike World Championship events. Alfa Romeo has been also shirt sponsor of Eintracht Frankfurt football club in period between 2013 and 2016.

ALFA ROMEO geborduurd badge

In 2002, Alfa Romeo I, the first Alfa Romeo super maxi yacht was launched. It finished first in at least 74 races including the 2002 Sydney—Hobart Race. Alfa Romeo II, commissioned in 2005, measures 30 metres (98 ft) LOA. It set a new elapsed-time record for monohulls in the 2009 Transpac race, of 5 days, 14 hours, 36 minutes, 20 seconds It finished first in at least 140 races. In mid-2008 Alfa Romeo III was launched for competitive fleet racing under the IRC rule. Alfa Romeo III measures 21.4 metres (70 ft) LOA and features interior design styled after the Alfa Romeo 8C Competizione.

The BBC motoring show Top Gear repeatedly argued the significance of owning an Alfa Romeo car as a car enthusiast, stating that “You can’t be a true petrolhead if you have never owned/or wanted to own an Alfa Romeo”. Presenters Jeremy ClarksonRichard Hammond and James May continuously praised Alfas for their beauty and driving characteristics even though Italian cars had a long-term bad reputation for unreliability. They argued that you (the owner) build a personal relationship with the car despite all of its mechanical faults. Both Clarkson and May have previously owned Alfas (a GTV6 for Clarkson and an Alfa 164 for May) and both have stated that they regretted selling their Alfas the most.

During Super Bowl LI, Alfa Romeo ran three commercials throughout the game; the brand was the sole marque advertised by FCA during the game, after exclusively focusing on its Jeep brand at Super Bowl 50.

Now will follow the pictures from my collection, some cars are not ALFA ROMEO’s but that are automobiles from FNM or pictures of cars made with help from Bertone, Pininfarina, etc:

There are coming several pictures I found on the site from Alfa Romeo Italy and Ukaïne:

This was all the info I can give you. Do you have info that you could not find here please offer it to me and I will make this Blog more complete.

Greetings, your host Jeroen

See also

Alfa Romeo Arese Plant

Alfa Romeo Pomigliano d’Arco Plant

Alfa Romeo Portello Plant

Alfa Romeo Museum

Circuito di Balocco

Alfa Romeo in motorsport

Category: Alfa Romeo engines

Category: Alfa Romeo people

References

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  • Fusi, Luigi (1978). Alfa Romeo—Tutte le vetture dal 1910—All cars from 1910 (3rd ed.). Milan: Emmeti Grafica editrice.

Further reading

  • Borgeson, Griffith (1990). The Alfa Romeo Tradition. Haynes (Foulis) Publishing Group. Somerset, UK. ISBN 0-85429-875-4.
  • Braden, Pat (1994). Alfa Romeo Owner’s Bible Cambridge: Bentley Publishers. ISBN 0-8376-0707-8.
  • Stefano d’ Amico and Maurizio Tabuchi (2004). Alfa Romeo Production Cars. Giorgio NADA Editore. ISBN 88-7911-322-4.
  • Hull and Slater (1982). Alfa Romeo: a History. Transport Bookman Publications. ISBN 0-85184-041-8.
  • Venables, David (2000). First among Champions. Osceola: Motorbooks International. ISBN 1-85960-631-8.
  • Owen, David. Great Marques, Alfa Romeo. London: Octopus Books, 1985. ISBN 0-7064-2219-8
  • Owen, David. Alfa Romeo: Always with Passion. Haynes Publications, 1999. ISBN 1-85960-628-8
  • Moore, Simon (1987). Immortal 2.9. Parkside Pubns. ISBN 978-0-9617266-0-7.
  • Mcdonough, E., & Collins, P. (2005). Alfa Romeo Tipo 33. Veloce Publishing. ISBN 1-904788-71-8
  • Tipler, JohnAlfa Romeo Spider, The complete history. Crowood Press (UK), 1998. ISBN 1-86126-122-5
  • Tipler, John. Alfa Romeo Giulia Coupe Gt & Gta. Veloce Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-903706-47-5
  • Styles, David G. “Alfa Romeo – The Legend Revived”, Dalton Watson 1989. ISBN 978-0-901564-75-7
  • Styles, David G. “Alfa Romeo – Spider, Alfasud & Alfetta GT”, Crowood Press 1992. ISBN 1-85223-636-1
  • Styles, David G. “Alfa Romeo – The Spirit of Milan”, Sutton Publishing 1999. ISBN 0-7509-1924-8

External links

 Alfa Romeo.

Alfa Romeo International

OPEL Automobiles and Commercial vehicles Rüsselheim, Hesse, Germany 1862 – present Part II

OPEL

Automobiles and Commercial Vehicles

Rüsselheim, Hesse, Germany 1862-present Part II

Opellogo

Only Pictures:

1862 Old Adam Opel logo1868 Adam und Sophie Opel

1886 Victoria Blitz 1899–1902 Opel Lutzmann 1901 Opel Experience History Heritage 9 hp Motor Car 1901 Opel Nähmaschinen 1901 Opel_Experience_History_Heritage_1901_Advertisement_for_pel_Darracq_304x171_25038 1902 03-Opel-Darracq monocylindre 8HP 1902 OPEL Darracq (2) 1902 Opel Darracq 1903 Opel Darracq Rennwagen 1904 opel darracq99 1905 opel darracq by tricoloreone77 1905 Opel Darracq monocylindre c 1909 Opel Logo.svg

1909 Opel 1910 Opel 4-8 PS Doktorwagen 1910 Opel 6-14-HP Touring 1910 Opel Logo 1910 the blue eye Opel 4 20 1929-1931 1911 Opel Hetzer 1912 Opel 5-12 PS 1 1913 Opel Ei 1914 Opel 12,3L Rennwagen 1921-22 Opel-Bahnrennmaschine 1924 Opel 10-35 PS 1 1928 Opel Motorrad 1929 Neumann-neander 1931 Opel 1.8B 2 1931 Opel Elite 500 Fahrzeugmuseum Chemnitz 1

1931-34 Opel 1,2 Liter 1935 Opel 00 1935-37 Hood ornament of the Opel Olympia 1935-37 Opel Olympia

Scherl: Die neue Lastwagenfabrik, Wek Brandenburg, der Adam Opel A.G. Am Ende der großen Fertig-Montagbandes: bei einer Produktion von 50 Wagen in einer Schicht wird alle 10Minuten ein Wagen fertig. 15469-36
Scherl:
Die neue Lastwagenfabrik, Wek Brandenburg, der Adam Opel A.G.
Am Ende der großen Fertig-Montagbandes: bei einer Produktion von 50 Wagen in einer Schicht wird alle 10Minuten ein Wagen fertig.
15469-36

1936 Opel kadett 1936 Opel Olympia (2) 1937 1950 Opel Logo Handel.svg 1937 Hood ornament flying through the ring 1937 Opel Gläser Cabriolet (only 2 built) 1937 Opel Kadett 1937 Opel P4 1937-39 1945-47 Opel Olympia OL38 1937-39 Opel Admiral convertible 1938 Logo on spare wheel cover of a 1938 Kapitän 1938 Opel Admiral (2) 1938 Opel Admiral 11 1938 Opel Admiral 1938 Opel kapitan 1938 Opel Olympia Cabrio-Limousine

1938 Opel Super6 Cabrio 1938-40 opel Kapitän 1939 Opel Blitz-LF15 1939 Opel folder-0k 1939 Opel Kadet folder-8k 1939 Opel Kadet folder-10ak 1939 Opel Kadet 1939 opel kapitän bw 1939 Opel Kapitän works Cabriolet folder-5k 1939 opel kaptein 2500cc 6 cyl noorwegen 1939 Opel Olympia Coach folder-13k 1939 Opel Olympia folder-14k 1939 Opel Olympia OL38 1939 opel super 6 a 1939 opel super 6 interior 1939 opel super 6 1939 Opel-0k 1940's Opel-Fridgidaire 1942 Opel Blitz by Ludewig Bros. Eastern Front Italien, Soldaten auf LKW Opel-Blitz 1948 opel olympia 1949 Opel kaptein -chassis01 1950 opel kapitän advert 1950 Opel Kapitan Painting 1950 OPEL KAPITAN pic6

1950 opel kapitän press 1950 opel kaptein folderzij 1950 Opel olympia cabriolet coach 1950 opel olympia 1950's Opel Admiral (1) 1950s Opel Blitz with words in horizontal lightning 1950's Opel Diplomat B V8 1950's Opel kapitan 2 1951 Logo on the rear of a 1951 Kapitän 1951 Opel Kadett A 1951 opel kapitän 1951 opel kaptein-a 1951 opel olympia cabrio coach 1951 Opel Olympia Cabrio 1951 opel olympia-a 1952 Opel Olympia Berline (saloon-sedan) 1952 Opel Olympia 1953 opel olympia cabriolet 1953 opel olympia record 1953 Opel Rekord Skodaman 1953-54 Opel Olympia Rekord sharkmouth ca 1954 1953–57 Opel Olympia Rekord, Bj. 1955 (retusch) 1954 opel blitz-panoramabus-02 1954 opel kapitän-a 1954-64 Opel.svg

1955 Opel Kapitan R 1955 Opel Kapitein 1955 opel olympia-a 1955 Opel Rekord Cabriocoach 1955 Opel rekord 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air 4 Door Sedan (Rekord P1) 1956 Opel Kapitän (2) 1956 Opel Kapitän 1956 opel kapitän-pr 1956 Opel Olympia Rekord 2-Door Sedan 1956 Opel Olympia Rekord Lieferwagen Modell 1956 opel olympia 1956 opel olyympia record 1956 Opel, ein Kapitän 1957 opel kapitän-a 1957 opel kapitein c 1957 opel kapitein l 1957 Opel Olympia Rekord

Wohnungsbau: Frankfurt/Main, Albert Schweitzer-Siedlung 17. - 20. Juli 1961
Wohnungsbau: Frankfurt/Main, Albert Schweitzer-Siedlung
17. – 20. Juli 1961

1957 Opel Olympia Rekord BW 1 1957 opel record olympia 1957 Opel Rekord Reclame 1957-60 Opel Rekord 1700 P1 1957-60 Opel Rekord Olympia Caravan 1958 opel kapitän-a

1958 opel kapitän-b 1958 opel kapitän-c 1958 opel olympia rekord p1-a 1958 Opel Rekord caravan 2 1958 Opel Rekord caravan 5 1958 Opel Rekord P1 Welsch Lijkwagen 1959 Opel Kapitän 1959 Opel Rekord Caravan 1960 opel kapitän-a 1960 opel kapitein L 1960 Opel Olympia Rekord P1 1500 Caravan, 1488 cc, 4 cylinder, 45 hp, original condition. 1960 Opel Rekord 1200 1960 Opel Rekord 1500 met aanhanger 1960 Opel Rekord P1 2 door 1960 Opel Rekord P1 Cabrio 1960 opel rekord p2-a 1960-63 Opel Rekord P2 Coupe 01 1960–1963 Opel Rekord P2 17 R2

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

1961 Opel Rekord Coupé 1962 Opel 17R4 pic4 1962 opel kadet a-a 1962 Opel Kapitän Hydramatic 1962 Opel Rekord Olympia 1962 Opel Rekord P2 Caravan

1962 Opel Rekord P2(cockpit) 1964 opel diplomat v8 coupe 1964 Opel Blitz Feuerwehr 1964 Opel Blitz Brandweer 1964 Opel Admiral sedan, powered by a 2.8 litre engine 1963–65 Opel Rekord A Caravan 2 1963 Opel Rekord 1963 Opel Rekord Aa 1963 opel rekord a=ac 1963 opel rekord a 1963 Opel Rekord A rear 1963 Opel Rekord A front 1963 Opel Rekord A Caravan 2 1963 Opel Logo.svg 1963 Opel Kadett nog ouder 1963 opel kadett a 1963 Opel Kadett A (2) 1963 opel kadet a-jr 1963 opel kadet a-b 1963 Opel Caravan 1000 Ad 1963 opel blitz ww 1963 Opel blitz 3 sst 1962-65 Opel Kadett-A-10 1962-65 Opel Kadett Coupé 1962-65 Opel Kadett A, Bj. 1964

1964 Opel Kadett GZ-66-01 1964 Opel Logo.svg 1964 Opel Rekord A6 f 1964 Opel Rekord 1964-65 Opel kadett a h rear 1964-65 Opel Kadett L 1965 Opel Admiral 1965 opel kadet b-b 1965 Opel Kadett 1.0 Caravan FJ-79-18 1965 Opel Kadett 1.0 EH-44-47 1965 Opel Kadett EV-53-24 1965 Opel Kadett FV-74-02 1965 Opel Kadett(2) 1965 Opel Kadett 1965 opel rekord b 1965 Opel Rekord 1965–66 Opel REKORD-B-1 1965–66 Opel Rekord-B-1900 1965-70 Opel Rallye Kadett B Gills-coupé (Kiemencoupé) 1965-73 Kadett-varia 1965-73 Opel Kadett 1700 4d B4 Front 1965-73 Opel Kadett B 2-door Limousine 1965-73 Opel Kadett B Kombi rear 1966 opel kadet b caravan 5 door 1966 opel kadet b-2door 1966 opel kadet b-4door 1966 opel kadet b-a 1966 Opel Record B Coupé 1966 Opel Rekord 4 Door 1966 Opel Rekord 98-22-JE

1966 Opel Rekord B 2-Door Sedan 1970 Opel Commodore 1970 Opel Commodore GSE 1969-77 Opel diplomat-b-v8 1969 Opel Kapitän 1969 Opel GT 1969 Opel Diplomat V8 1968 Opel-Olympia 1968 Opel Rekord-C-Coupe 1968 Opel Rekord Schwarze Witwe 1968 Opel Rekord C 1.7 S 4-door saloon, two colour version 1968 Opel Olympia 1968 Opel Olympia (2) 1968 Opel GT 1968 Opel Commodore GS Cabrio von Deutsch

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

1967-73 Opel Kadett B Coupé F 1967–71 Opel Rekord C 1967-71 MHV Opel Commodore A Coupé 01 1967-70 Opel kadett b 5 1967 Opel Rekord Taxi 1967 Opel Rekord Coupé Ad 1967 Opel Rekord C1 1967 Opel Commodore 1967 Opel Commodore 2500 6 Sedan 1967 Opel Commodore 3 1966-72 Opel Rekord C 1966 Opel Rekord C2 Kombi 5T 1966 Opel Rekord C 1966 Opel Rekord B Car A Van

 1972 Opel GT (2) 1972 Opel GT super 1972 Opel GT 1972 Opel Kadett 1972 Opel Manta Luxus 1972 Opel Manta 1972 Opel Rekord, powered by a 2100cc diesel and sharing the same body as the Commodore sedan 1972 Saxony Classic Rallye 2010-Intermeccanica Indra 1972–77 Opel Commodore B GS 1972–77 Opel Commodore B GSE Coupe 1972–77 Opel Commodore vr orange B TCE 1972–77 Opel Rekord D 1975 1972–77 Opel Rekord Da 1973 Opel Diplomat 1973 Opel Ascona Wagon 1973 Opel GT 02 1973 opel kadet c-a 1973 Opel Kadett 1,2 C Coupe rear 1973 Opel Kadett Coupé GTE 1973 Opel Kadett Rallye 1973 Opel kadett-B sport rally 1973-75 Opel Ascona A Kombi Caravan 1973-77 Opel KADETT AERO 1973-77 Opel Kadett C City rear 1973-77 Opel Kadett C Kombi Lahti2 1973-77 Opel Kadett Coupé 1973-87 Opel Bedford blitz 1974 Opel Ascona A rear 1974 Opel Ascona A 1974 Opel Kadett 1.2 60-AG-10

1974 Opel Manta A rear 1977–86 Opel Rekord E2 Berlina 1977–86 Opel Rekord E1 rear 1977–86 Opel Rekord E 1.9 1977–86 Opel rekord 4d E 1977–82 Opel Commodore C Vauxhall Viceroy 2490 cc 1977–82 Opel Commodore C red 1977 Opel Rekord-e 1977 Tweedeursuitvoering 1977 Opel Kadett C front 1977 Opel Kadett C 4 door post face-lift 1976 Opel Rekord Sprint Coupé (Rekord D) 1975–81 Opel Manta B CC 1975–81 Opel Ascona B 1,6 N SR 1975–81 Opel Ascona B 1,6 N SR rear 1975 Opel Rekord D Kombi Caravan 1975 Opel Rekord D Break 1975 Opel Rekord D 2d Coupé Green 1975 Opel Manta TE2800, Belgian 1975 Opel Manta SR GTE 1975 Opel manta Irmscher i240 Dakar rear 1975 Opel Manta CC Berlinetta 1975 Opel Manta Black Magic 1975 Opel Manta B Coupé 1975 Opel Manta A Black Magic 1975 Opel manta 400 R Brookes 1975 Opel Kadett GTE 1975 Opel Kadett Coupe. 1975 Opel Ascona 2 Door Luxus 1974-75 Opel Manta A GTE 1974 Opel Manta A

 1977–1982 Opel Commodore C voyage 1977–1982 OPEL-VAUX-COMMODORE C 1978 Opel Ascona 1,9 1978 Opel Ascona B 2,0 irmscher 2 1978 Opel Ascona Diesel Taxi 1978 Opel Manta 1978-82 Opel Monza a 1978–86 Opel Monza 30E 1978-86 Opel Senator A1 CD rear (1978–1986) 1979 Opel Senator A1 3,0 CD 1979-84 Opel kadett d 2 Caravan 1979-84 Opel kadett d rear 1979-84 Opel kadett d 1980 Opel Senator A1 CD 1981 Opel Commodore 1981 Opel Monza 1981 Opel Rekord 1981-84 Opel Ascona 2d Algarve 1981–1988 Opel Ascona C rear 1981–1988 Opel Ascona C 1982 Opel Ascona taxi Brochure 1982 Opel Ascona 1982 Opel Commodore C 1982 Opel Commodore Deluxe 1982 Opel Kadett Berlina 1982 Opel Manta GTE 1982 Opel Rekord DeLuxe 4-Door 1982 Opel Rekord Diesel + Hot met taxipech over de Waalbrug in Nijmegen 1982 Opel Senator

SAMSUNG DIGIMAX 360
SAMSUNG DIGIMAX 360

1982-86 Opel Rekord E2 1982-86 Opel Senator A2 front 1982-86 Opel senator A2 rear 1982-86 OPEL-VAUX-MONZA-A-FACELIFT (1) 1982-87 Opel Corsa A 2-door 1983 Opel Ascona 400 Rallye Rothmans 1983 Opel Kadett 1.3 GL Luxus 3-door 1983-86 Opel Monza GSE vl white TCE 1984 Opel Rekord E 2-3Diesel 1984–1989 Opel Kadett E Kombi rear 1984–1989 Opel Kadett E Kombi 1985 Stamps of Germany (Berlin)Opel Rennrad 1925 1985-87 Opel Corsa 4d 1987 1985-89 OPEL-VAUX-KADETT-E sedan 1985-90 Opel Corsa 5door hatchback 1986 Opel Monza Convertible Keinath C5 1986-93 Opel Omega A 1987 Opel kadett 1,3N E Hatchback 1987 Opel kadett taxi 1987 Opel Logo.svg 1987 Opel Manta GSI 1987–93 Opel Senator B 1988 Vauxhall Opel Senator Cambridge 1989 Bedford Astra Van 1989-91 Opel Kadett E 3d 1989-91 Opel Kadett E sedan 1989-91 Opel Kadett E side 5d 1989–97 Opel Calibra 1991–present Opel Astra F rear

1991–present Opel Astra F 1992 Opel Campo TDS 4x4 Sportscab U 1992–1995 Opel Vectra A sedan rear 1992–1995 Opel Vectra A sedan 1993 Opel Astra F GSi 16V (C20XE) 1993-98 Opel Astra F rear 1994 Opel Calibra 4x4 Turbo 1994-00 Opel Astra F Cabrio rear 1994-97 Opel Calibra rear 1994-97 Opel Calibra 1994-98 Opel Astra F Caravan rear 1995-02 Opel Vectra B Kombi rear 1995–02 Opel Vectra B 1995-02 Opel Vectra B-1998 1995-99 Opel Vectra B rear 1995-99 Opel Vectra rear 1997 Opel Calibra 2.0 16V Last Edition 1997 Opel Omega Sedan 1998 Opel Astra G Van 1998 Opel Astra G 1998-02 Opel Astra Caravan 1.6 16V Selection (G)rear 1998-02 Opel astra G 3T opc 1998-02 Opel Astra G Cabriolet 1998-02 Opel Astra G Classic rear 1998–09 Opel Astra G 1999-02 Opel Vectra B 2.0 TDI EcoTec 16V 1999-05 Opel Zafira A OPC 1999–05 Opel Zafira A 1999–05 Opel Zafira rear 2000 Opel Corsa B 1.2 16V Edition 2000 5-Türer Facelift

2000-01 Cadillac Catera 2000-02 Saturn L-Series sedan 2000-07 Opel Agila(1) 2000-15 Opel Agila B

DSC00093
DSC00093

2001 Opel Astra OPC X-Treme Concept 2001 Opel Signum 2 Concept 2001-06 Opel Vivaro 2900 2001-opel-corsa-van 2002 Opel Logo.svg 2002 Opel Vectra 2002–05 Opel Vectra C Hatchback 2002-08 Opel Vectra C Caravan Facelift front 2002–09 Opel Vectra C 2003 Opel Astra V8 Coupe (OPC Team Phoenix, DTM 2003) 2003 Opel Insignia Concept Car 2003 Opel Insignia concept rear 2003 Opel Insignia Concept with rear sliding doors 2003 Opel Insignia Concept 2003-05 Opel Signum 1.9 CDTI rear 2003-05 Opel Signum 2003-08 Opel Signum Facelift 2003–10 Opel Meriva A 2003-2005 Opel Signum 1.9 CDTI 2004–14 Opel Astra H Facelift 2005 Opel Antara GTC Concep, Gran Turismo Crossover 2005-08 Opel Signum 1.9 CDTI Edition Facelift Starsilber 2005–11 Opel Zafira B rear 2005–11 Opel Zafira B 2006 Opel Vectra C 2006 Opel Vectra model 2006-09 Opel Meriva A 1.8 Cosmo 2006-09 Opel Meriva OPC Facelift

 2006–09 Opel Vectra C (facelift) Caravan 2006-14 Opel Corsa D 2006-14 Opel Vivaro rear 2006-14 Opel Vivaro 2006–present Opel Antara 2.0 CDTI 2007 Opel Astra IV 2007 Opel Calibra front 2007 Opel Corsa OPC 2007 Opel Logo.svg 2007 Opel Movano A (pre-facelift), low roof, short-wheelbase minibus 2007 Opel Vectra A 2007-09 Opel Astra H (Facelift)rear MJ 2007-10 Opel Astra H Caravan 1.9 CDTI 2007-10 Opel Astra H GTC Facelift rear 2007-10 Opel Astra TwinTop (H, Facelift) 2008- ..Opel Insignia 2008 Opel Astra H OPC Nürburgring Edition 2008 Opel Frontera 2008 Opel Insignia 2.0 BiTurbo CDTI Sport OPC Line-Paket 2008 Opel Omega Kombi front 2008 Opel Vectra front 2008 Opel Vectra I front 2008 Saturn Astra XE 5d, front right 2008-10 Opel Astra H Stufenheck 1.6 Ecotec Edition Starsilber rear 2008-13 Opel Insignia hatchback 2008-13 Opel Insignia Sports Tourer 2.0 CDTI 2008–present Opel insignia 5d 17 2009- ..Opel Astra (J) 2009 Opel Astra OPC Race Camp 2009 OPEL Eisenach Gesamtansicht 2009 Opel Insignia 4T OPC 2009 Opel logo 2009 Opel Meriva Facelift 2009 Opel Signum front 2009 Opel Vivaro E Concept 2009-..Opel Logo Slogan-Vector.svg

2010- ..Opel Meriva B 1.4 ECOTEC Innovation 2010 Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt hatchback (concept) 01 2010 Opel Antara 2.0 CDTI 2010 Opel Astra J front 2010 Opel Meriva B 1.3 CDTI Edition 2010 Opel Meriva B S 400 2010 Opel Movano B medium roof, long wheelbase panel van 2010 Opel Movano Mk2 Passenger Van 2010 Opel Omega II 2.2i Facelift 2011 Buick Regal CXL 1 2011 Opel Agila 1.2 ecoFLEX Edition (B) 2011 Opel Ampera (2) 2011 Opel Ampera Chevrolet Volt NRMA 2011 Opel Ampera patrol car. 2011 Opel Ampera rear 2011 Opel Ampera 2011 Opel Antara 2.4 4x4 Design Edition (Facelift) 2011 Opel Astra Sports Tourer 1.4 Turbo ECOTEC (J) 2011 Opel Astra TwinTop 2011 Opel Corsa 1.2 ecoFLEX Satellite (D, Facelift) 2011 Opel Corsa OPC Nürburgring Edition rear 2011 Opel Corsa OPC Nürburgring Edition 2011 Opel Insignia OPC Sports Tourer 2011 Opel logo 2011 Opel Zafira Tourer Concept 2011–present Opel Zafira Tourer C CNG 2012 Opel Ampera ePionier Edition 2012 Opel Ampera 2012 Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt 2012 Opel Astra (AS) 1.4 Turbo 5-door hatchback 2012 Opel Astra (AS) Sport 5-door hatchback, photographed at the 2012 Australian International Motor Show, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2012 Opel Astra (AS) Sport 5-door hatchback01 2012 Opel Astra GTC 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Edition (J) 2012 Opel Astra J (AS) OPC 3-door hatchback rear 2012 Opel Astra J (AS) OPC 3-door hatchback

 2012 Opel Combo (2) 2012 Opel Combo 1.6 CDTI Edition (D) 2012 Opel Combo a 2012 Opel Combo C Tour 1.7 DTI 2012 Opel Combo C Tour 2012 Opel Combo Royal Mail Van 2012 Opel Combo 2012 Opel Corsa 1.4 ecoFLEX Satellite (D, Facelift) 2012 Opel Mokka 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Innovation 2012 Opel Zafira Tourer 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Edition (C) 2012-present Opel Adam 1.2 Jam 2012–present Opel Mokka ecoFLEX Edition rear 2012–present Opel Mokka ecoFLEX Edition 2013 Buick Encore in China 2013 Buick Encore 2013 Opel Adam Geneva Motor Show 2013 Opel Adam Rocks 2013 Opel Astra J BiTurbo 2013 Opel Corsa D OPC Nurburgring Editon 2013 2013 Opel Insignia Country Tourer 2013 Opel Insignia OPC facelift 2013 Opel Monza Concept 2013 Opel Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTI Innovation (C) 2013-present Opel Adam 1.4 Glam 2013–present Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation rear 2013–present Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation 2013–present Opel Cascada Cockpit 2013–present Opel Cascada 2014 Buick LaCrosse 2014 Opel Adam 1.4 Slam 2014 Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation (2) 2014 Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation 2014 Opel Combo Kastenwagen 1.6 CDTI (D) 2014 Opel Corsa E 2014 Opel Insignia facelift

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2015 Holden Insignia (GA MY15.5) VXR sedan2015 Opel Adam S2015 Opel Adam 1.4 Glam rear2015 Opel Adam 1.4 Glam2015 Opel Adam Rocks2015 Opel Antara GTC rear concept2015 Opel Astra 1.4 EDIT ecoFLEX Innovation (K)2015 Opel Astra 1.6 CDTI ecoFLEX Edition (K)2015 Opel KARL (2)2015 Opel Karl 1.0 ecoFLEX Exklusiv2015 Opel Vivaro Combi vervoert acht personen2016 Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt NAIAS second generationAdam OPEL Eisenach Gesamtansicht 2009AflAspern (Wien) Opel-Werk, Verwaltungsgebäude (2)CEO Opel Karl-Thomas Neumann 2010Chevrolet ChevetteGM building geograph.org.uk

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Opel blitz pritsche 1 sst opel blitz uefakdo Opel Blitz z opel blitz-15t-krankenwagen-01 opel blitz-15t-krankenwagen-09 opel blitz-15t-krankenwagen-10 opel blitz-leichenwagen-01 opel blitz-leichenwagen-03 opel blitz-leichenwagen-09 opel blitz-leichenwagen-10 opel blitz-lf-05 opel blitz-panoramabus-04 opel blitz-panoramabus-05 Opel C Kadett Coupe GT-E Opel Calibra (2) Opel Calibra (3) Opel Calibra Opel Calibra-Aston-Martin-DB9-1 opel campo-06 Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation Opel CD, ein Showcar auf Diplomat-Basis Opel combi3 Opel Combo 1.6 CDTI Edition (D) Opel Combo C Tour 1.7 DTI Opel Combo Opel Commodore 2,5E voyage Opel Commodore A Coupé 01 Opel Commodore A Opel Commodore B Coupé Opel Commodore C vl red Opel Corsa 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Color Edition(E) Opel Corsa A Opel Corsa B caravan Opel Corsa B rear Opel Corsa B2 Opel Corsa C1.2 Elegance

 Opel Corsa caravan Opel Corsa Combo B Opel Corsa D OPC Opel Corsa D Opel Corsa D1.4 rear Opel Corsa E Opel Corsa front Opel Corsa Satellite (D, Facelift) opel corsa-14s-gl-sedan-04 Opel Corsavan second generation Opel Corsavan third generation opel darracq 2 Opel Darracq 16-18PS 21 OPEL DARRACQ History-01 Opel Darracq Oldtimer Bilder 9 01 opel darracq1 opel darracq-9-ps-01 opel darracq-9-ps-02

Opel Motorwagen 9PS System Darracq
Opel Motorwagen 9PS System Darracq

opel darracq-9-ps-12 (1) opel darracq-9-ps-12 opel darracq-12-14-ps-01 opel darracq-12-14-ps-03 opel darracq-12-14-ps-05 opel darracq-12-14-ps-06 opel darracq-12-14-ps-08 opel darracq-12-14-ps-09 Opel DarracqCC Opel Diplomaat Opel Diplomat A Coupe Opel Diplomat B (2) Opel Diplomat b Opel Diplomat Cabrio Opel Diplomat opel doktorwagen-09

OPEL DREAM CAR ASTRA opel kadett-14-club-07 opel kadett-14-club-05 Opel Kadett Limousine opel kadett kombischuifd Opel Kadett Kombi Opel Kadett Combo Opel Kadett Combo 1.7D Opel Kadett C City Opel Kadett bestel schweden PTT Opel Kadett B Opel Kadett Aero opel kadett aero polizei Opel Kadett ad opel kadet c-coupe opel kadet c-caravan opel kadet b-tota opel kadet b-tot opel kadet b-coupé Opel K logo opel insignia-20-02 Opel insignia17 Opel Insignia Opel Insignia OPC facelift Opel Insignia Cosmo V6 4x4 Karbongrau Opel insignia 17 opel gt-koenigseder-tuning-07

4.0M DigitalCAM
4.0M DigitalCAM

opel gt2-03 Opel GT Roadster

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Opel Gliwice Poland Opel Frontera B vl blue short opel flextreme-concept-03

Opel Flextreme. : OpelÅ·±¦Flextreme·ÉÁé¸ÅÄî³µ : OpelÅ·±¦Flextreme·ÉÁé¸ÅÄî³µ (China)
Opel Flextreme. : OpelÅ·±¦Flextreme·ÉÁé¸ÅÄî³µ : OpelÅ·±¦Flextreme·ÉÁé¸ÅÄî³µ (China)

Opel Eiopel kadett-post-02Opel Kapitan (2)Opel Kapitan aOpel Kapitän AOpel Kapitän B 55-06-JPOpel Kapitän Cabrioopel kapitän epljvnOpel Kapitän folder-1kOpel kapitän folder-3kOpel Kapitän P 2,6Opel Kapitanopel kapitan-03opel kapitan-05opel kapitan-ambulans-03opel kapitan-ambulans-04opel kapitan-ambulans-05opel kapitan-cabriolet-05opel kapitan-cabriolet-07Opel Kapitän-taxi-oldtimerOpel Kapitein LOpel KARL (1)Opel laubfroschOpel Lieferwagen 4Opel Logo-2011-Slogan-Vector.svgOpel LutzmannOpel Manta 01bOpel Manta A GTEOpel Manta AOpel Manta AdOpel Manta BOpel Manta GTE 2000Opel manta gteOpel MantaOpel Meriva 1.4 Style (B, Facelift)Opel Meriva B 1.4 ECOTEC InnovationOpel Meriva B Facelift Front

Opel Meriva Facelift Opel Monza Oldtimer opel monza-28s-11

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Opel Movano 4x4 Opel Movano A (facelift), medium-roof, long-wheelbase minibus Opel Movano B Opel Movano Exterior View Bus Opel Movano MTF opel movano-55 opel olimpico-09 opel olimpico-10 Opel Olympia (2) Opel Olympia .. Opel Olympia 1 (2) Opel Olympia 4 Opel Olympia 6 Opel Olympia A 02 Opel Olympia Cabrio Opel Olympia Caravan Opel Olympia Coach Opel Olympia Lieferwagen 1 opel olympia p1 opel olympia p2 lieferwagen Opel Olympia Rekord mit großem Faldach opel olympia rekord p1-b Opel Olympia Rekord Opel Olympia opel olympia-01 Opel olympia1 Opel olympia2 opel olympia-03 Opel olympia3

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Opel olympia5 opel olympia-07

opel olympia-08 opel olympia-10 opel olympia-11 opel olympia-12 opel olympia-13 opel olympiayq3 Opel Omega A L Opel Omega A Opel Omega B Caravan Opel Omega EVO500 Opel Omega II 2.2i Facelift opel omega-10 opel omega-30-mv6-04 opel omega-v8-star-02 opel omega-v8-star-04

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opel osv-40-03 opel osv-40-04 opel osv-40-06 Opel P4 Opel RAK2 Opel Record en Alfa bus Opel Record Olympia Opel Record sweden1 Opel Record zwart Opel Record Opel Regent Opel Rekord 1.9N-D Taxi Opel Rekord 4 deurs Opel Rekord 1700 P1 Opel Rekord A 2600 Coupé L6 opel rekord a lieferwagen Opel Rekord A Opel Rekord als taxi Opel Rekord B Funeral Coach Pollmann Karosserie Opel Rekord C 1700 Deutsch Cabriolet Opel Rekord C Cabrio oldtimer Opel rekord c caravan h sst

Opel Rekord C Taxi (Langversion) Opel Rekord C Opel rekord cabriocoach opel rekord car a van p2car Opel Rekord caravan 60 3 Opel Rekord caravan getekend opel rekord caravan p1car opel rekord c-coupe Opel Rekord D Caravan Opel Rekord D rear opel rekord d Opel Rekord delivery back 4 Opel Rekord Diesel Ouder Taxi Opel Rekord E Hearse Opel Rekord E1 2,0S Opel Rekord f Opel Rekord Johanniter Opel Rekord p Opel Rekord P1 (2) Opel Rekord P1 2 door in Belgium Opel Rekord P1 Cabrio opel rekord p1 caravan Opel rekord p1 opel rekord p1-b opel rekord p2 caravan Opel Rekord P2 Coupe 01 Opel Rekord reka2 Opel Rekord Taxi wrakken Opel Rekord v Opel Rekord Yellow Cab Opel Rekord Zwart Opel Rekord Opel rekord2 opel rekord-ambulance-01 opel rekord-ambulance-04 opel rekord-ambulance-05 Opel REKORD-B-1700 L 2 opel rekord-bestattungswagen-01 opel rekord-bestattungswagen-02 opel rekord-bestattungswagen-03 opel rekord-bestattungswagen-06 Opel Rekord-C-Coupe opel rekord-delivery-van-03 opel rekord-delivery-van-09 opel rekord-delivery-van-12 opel rekord-kabrio-limousine-02 opel rekord-kabrio-limousine-06 Opel rekord-taxi-P2-oldtimer opel rekord-varevogn-01 Opel Safety bicycle 5 OPEL SATURN-PONTIAC-GT-SKY-SOLTICE Opel ScreenShot084 Opel Senator 3.0i Opel Senator A1 CD Opel Senator B Opel Signum Opel signum-green-night-shoot Opel Sintra opel skapvagn-01 opel skapvagn-08 opel skapvagn-09 Opel Speedster 22 opel super 6 coach Opel super opel super-6-cabriolet-02 opel super-6-cabriolet-04 opel super-6-cabriolet-05 opel super-6-cabriolet-07 opel super-6-cabriolet-09 Opel tekening Opel Testgelände Rodgau-Dudenhofen Aerial fg140 Opel Tigra A 02 Opel Tigra A rear Opel Tigra A Opel tigra team-edition Opel Tigra Twin Top 1.8 Sport front Opel Tigra Twin Top rear Opel Tigra Twin Top opel tigra-twin-top-04 opel uef blitz opel unknown-05 OPEL VAUX-ARENA-A OPEL VAUX-CAMPO-A-FACELIFT OPEL VAUX-SINTRA-A Pontiac Grand Montana OPEL VAUX-TIGRA-B Opel Vectra b Opel Vectra Kombi rear 2008 Opel Vectra Opel Vivaro B Opel Vivaro Bus Opel Vivaro Panel Van Opel Vivaro opel waaijer kaasboer Opel Werk In Rüsselsheim From Train Opel XK-04-87 Opel Zafira A Facelift Opel Zafira A OPC Opel Zafira B Facelift Opel Zafira front opel zafira snowtracker Opel Zafira Tourer opel zafira-tourer-08 Opel Zapira Leopel 1 Opellogo OPEL-VAUX-MONZA-A-FACELIFT photo RüsselsheimMainMarktstrOpelHauptportalAdamOpel Saturn LWagon 300 Vauxhall Cavalier first iteration Brecon MkI Vauxhall Chevette 2d Vauxhall Chevette 4-door saloon (pre-facelift, without headlamp covers). Vauxhall's, Ellesmere Port geograph.org.uk

 That’s it

OPEL Automobiles and Commercial vehicles Rüsselheim, Hesse, Germany 1862 – present Part I

1909 Opel_Logo_1909.svg

Opel

Adam Opel AG
Aktiengesellschaft
Industry Automotive
Founded January 21, 1862
Founder Adam Opel
Headquarters Rüsselsheim, HesseGermany
Number of locations
11 manufacturing facilities in seven countries
Area served
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Europe (except United Kingdom)
  • South America
Key people
Products Automobiles
Commercial vehicles
Production output
Decrease 1,057,000 vehicles (2013)
Services
  • Vehicle financing
  • Vehicle insurance
Revenue
  • Increase$ 14.886 billion (2011)
  • $ 14.884 billion (2010)
Number of employees
35,428 (2013)
Parent General Motors
Divisions Opel Performance Center
Subsidiaries
Slogan “Wir Leben Autos” (“We live cars” or “We live for cars”)
Website opel.com
Footnotes / references

RüsselsheimMainMarktstrOpelHauptportalAdamOpel

Adam Opel statue in Rüsselsheim

Adam Opel AG is a German automobile manufacturer headquartered in Rüsselsheim, Hesse, Germany, and a subsidiary of General Motors Company. The company designs, engineers, manufactures and distributes Opel-branded passenger vehicles, light commercial vehicles and vehicle parts for distribution in Africa, Asia, Europe and South America. Opel designed and manufactured vehicles are also sold under the Buick brand in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and China, the Holden brand in Australia and New Zealand and the Vauxhall brand in Great Britain.

Opel traces its roots to a sewing machine manufacturer founded by Adam Opel in 1862. The company began manufacturing bicycles in 1886 and produced its first automobile in 1899.

Opel became a share-limited company (German: Aktiengesellschaft) in 1929; United States-based General Motors took a majority stake in Opel that same year. General Motors assumed full control in 1931 and today Adam Opel AG is a wholly owned subsidiary of General Motors Company. Although Adam Opel AG continues to be a share-limited company, shares of the company are not publicly listed. Adam Opel AG is the parent company of General Motors UK Limited, better known as Vauxhall, and various other General Motors subsidiaries.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Opel and Vauxhall ranges were rationalised into one consistent range across Europe.

History

1901 Opel Nähmaschinen

 Advertisement for Opel Perfecta sewing machines (1901)

1862–1920

The company was founded in Rüsselsheim, Hessen, Germany, on January 21, 1862, by Adam Opel. At the beginning, Opel just produced sewing machines in a cowshed in Rüsselsheim. Above all, his success was based on his perfectly customized sewing machines. Because of the quick growth of his business, in 1888 the production was relocated from the cowshed to a more spacious building in Rüsselsheim. Encouraged by success, Adam Opel launched a new product in 1886: He began to sell high-wheel bicycles, also known as penny-farthings. Besides, Opel’s two sons participated in high-wheel bicycle races and thus promoted this means of transportation. Therefore, the production of high-wheel bicycles soon exceeded the production of sewing machines. At the time of Opel’s death in 1895, he was the leader in both markets.

The first cars were produced in 1899 after Opel’s sons entered into a partnership with Friedrich Lutzmann, a locksmith at the court in Dessau in Saxony-Anhalt, who had been working on automobile designs for some time. These cars were not very successful and so the partnership was dissolved after two years, following which Opel’s sons signed a licensing agreement in 1901 with the French Automobiles Darracq S.A. to manufacture vehicles under the brand name “Opel Darracq”. These cars were made up of Opel bodies mounted on a Darracq chassis, powered by a two-cylinder engine.

The company first showed cars of its own design at the 1902 HamburgMotor Show, and started manufacturing them in 1906, with Opel Darracq production being discontinued in 1907.

In 1909, the Opel 4/8 PS model, known as the “Doktorwagen” “Doctor’s Car” was produced. Its reliability and robustness were greatly appreciated by physicians, who drove a lot to see their patients, back when hard-surfaced roads were still rare. The “Doktorwagen” sold for only 3,950 marks, about half as much as the luxury models of its day.

In 1911, the company’s factory was virtually destroyed by fire and a new one was built with more up-to-date machinery. By 1914, Opel had become the largest German manufacturer of motor vehicles.

1920–39

1937-39 Opel Admiral convertible

Opel Admiral convertible (1937–1939)

1939 Opel Kapitän

Opel Kapitän (1938-1940)

In the early 1920s, Opel became the first German car manufacturer to incorporate a mass production assembly line in the building of their automobiles. In 1924, they used their assembly line to produce a new open two-seater called the “Laubfrosch” (Tree frog). The Laubfrosch was finished exclusively in green lacquer. The car sold for an expensive 4,500 marks (expensive considering the less expensive manufacturing process) but by the 1930s this type of vehicle would cost a mere 1,990 marks – due in part to the assembly line, but also due to the skyrocketing demand for cars. Adam Opel led the way for motorized transportation to become not just a means for the rich, but a reliable way for people of all classes to travel.

Opel had a 37.5% market share in Germany and was also the country’s largest automobile exporter in 1928. The “Regent” – Opel’s first eight-cylinder car – was offered. The RAK 1 and RAK 2 rocket-propelled cars made sensational record-breaking runs.

In March 1929, General Motors (GM), impressed by Opel’s modern production facilities, bought 80% of the company, increasing this to 100% in 1931. The Opel family gained $33.3 million from the transaction. Subsequently, during 1935, a second factory was built at Brandenburg for the production of “Blitz” light trucks.

1935 was the year in which Opel became the first German car manufacturer to produce over 100,000 vehicles a year. This was based on the popular Opel “P4” model. The selling price was a mere 1,650 marks and the car had a 23 hp (17 kW) 1.1 L four-cylinder engine and a top speed of 85 km/h (53 mph).

Opel also produced the first mass-production vehicle with a self-supporting (“unibody”) all steel body. They called the car, launched in 1935, the Olympia. With its small weight and aerodynamics came an improvement in both performance and fuel consumption. Opel receives a patent which is considered one of the most important innovations in automotive history.

The 1930s was a decade of growth, and by 1937, with 130,267 cars produced, Opel’s Rüsselsheim plant was Europe’s top car plant in terms of output, while ranking seventh worldwide.

1939 saw the presentation of the highly successful Kapitän. With a 2.5 L six-cylinder engine, all-steel body, front independent suspension, hydraulic shock absorbers, hot-water heating (with electric blower), and central speedometer. 25,374 Kapitäns left the factory before intensification of World War II brought automotive manufacturing to a temporary stop in the Autumn of 1940, by order of the government.

World War II

 

Scherl: Die neue Lastwagenfabrik, Wek Brandenburg, der Adam Opel A.G. Am Ende der großen Fertig-Montagbandes: bei einer Produktion von 50 Wagen in einer Schicht wird alle 10Minuten ein Wagen fertig. 15469-36
Scherl:
Die neue Lastwagenfabrik, Wek Brandenburg, der Adam Opel A.G.
Am Ende der großen Fertig-Montagbandes: bei einer Produktion von 50 Wagen in einer Schicht wird alle 10Minuten ein Wagen fertig.
15469-36
 Assembly of the Opel Blitz at Opelwerk Brandenburg (1936)

Italien, Soldaten auf LKW Opel-Blitz

 Military truck Opel Blitz in Italy (1944)

World War II brought to Rüsselsheim the only year in the entire history of Opel – 1945 – in which it produced few vehicles, since that first Lutzmann-authored Opel was made in 1899. Before the conflict broke out, the Adam Opel AG had established itself as the largest motor vehicle manufacturer in Europe. The combination of Opel know-how with GM resources had produced outstanding results. In spite of stifling red tape, the economic atmosphere in Germany in the 1930s had powerfully fertilized the growth of this and other auto companies. But in the case of Opel, at least, it was clear that the expansion of this industrial machine was not directed in any way toward military objectives.

Even after June 1940, official connections between Opel and America were not broken and monetary gain continued throughout the war which was controlled by the J.P Morgan firm, the Rüsselsheim plant was never given a major role in Germany’s war preparations. Neither was Ford’s plant in Cologne considered trustworthy enough for a big assignment, such as tank manufacture, in view of their earlier foreign associations. Initially, of course, it had appeared that the war would be a short one settled in Germany’s favour. Auto plants were shut down, to conserve resources, but not converted to other jobs.

When in 1942 it became clearer that the fighting would go on for a while, car and truck factories were switched to war work in a modest way, Opel taking up the production of aircraft parts and tanks. Only at the Brandenburg plant did truck manufacture roar ahead at full speed. From the end of 1938 onward to big Opel Blitz trucks had been powered by the same basic 3.6 L engine used in the Opel Admiral. To meet the growing demands of wartime, 3 short tons (2.7 t) trucks of Opel design were built under license by Daimler-Benz at the former Benz factory at Mannheim.

One of the most versatile small German military vehicles, the Kettenkrad, a blend of tractor and motorcycle, was powered with a 1.4 L Olympia four-cylinder engine. Produced by NSU, it had motorcycle-type front-wheel steering for gentle turns and negotiated tight corners with brakes on the propelling caterpillar tracks. The Kettenkrad towed antitank guns and transported troops and signal gear in several theaters of war. NSU continued to make it after the war for use in mines and forests. It was one of the few vehicles that could do jobs formerly performed by horses for which, owing to the shortage of oats, there was even less fuel available than for motor vehicles.

As the war progressed, military authorities placed greater stress on the development of air-cooled engines, which they felt had more immunity to damage from weather, shellfire and misuse. To meet this demand, Opel engineers developed an unusual variation on normal cooling for the 3.6 L truck engine. It was called “air-oil cooling,” and used engine oil to take heat away from the jackets around the cylinder barrels. The heads were directly cooled by air, there being three separate aluminum finned heads, each serving two cylinders. Of this interesting engine, which developed 72 hp (54 kW; 73 PS) at 3,000 rpm on 74-octane fuel, only three examples were built.

Other special jobs were undertaken at the Rüsselsheim factory. One that was too exotic to be typical was the construction of an intercooler for the supercharger of the famous Junkers Jumo aircraft engine. Special methods had to be developed to fabricate this vital assembly from very thin sheets of aluminum. With work like this going on, Germany’s enemies naturally took note of the various Opel plants and, starting in August 1944, began attacking them by air. Destruction was heavy at both Rüsselsheim and Brandenburg from the attacks by Allied bombers. Never was the outlook more bleak at Adam Opel AG than in the first months of 1945.

Opel had been transformed and rebuilt before. Beyond the efforts of the company’s staff, there was very little functioning in the factories and plants. Many of the tools with which they once had worked were gone. The Brandenburg truck plant fell into the Russian Zone of a divided post-war Germany. It did not stay there long. All the machinery and equipment – right down to the window frames and bathroom fixtures – was dismantled and shipped to a site near the Ural mountains.

Cars as well as truck production lines were lost by Opel. As reparations for war destruction, under plans of the Allied Forces, the Soviet Union asked the Allied Military Government for the tools, jigs, dies, fixtures, and drawings for the Kadett. This, they said, they would use to begin auto production at an Opel subsidiary in Russian-occupied Leipzig. The equipment was duly delivered to the Soviets in June 1946, and that was the last Opel was to see of it – but not of the Kadett.

Just a year later a new Soviet car, the Moskvitch 400, rolled off a Moscow assembly line. It seemed to be the Opel Kadett in every detail, with only the name changed (various sources provide contradictory information; see the respective article). By late 1950, the Russians were exporting these Kremlin Kadetts to Belgium, stressing in their promotion that spare parts could easily be obtained from Germany. Not until 1959 was a Moskvitch model introduced that bore no trace of Opel engineering. And by that time, Opel was just about ready to introduce a new Kadett of its own.

Only the strong resistance of the American government within whose zone of occupation Rüsselsheim was located, prevented the total dismantling of the entire Opel plant as reparations in Russia. GM had no say in these discussions and was not sure just what posture to take toward its subsidiary. GM’s Alfred Sloan recalled:

“(Opel) had been seized by the German government soon after the war began. In 1942 our entire investment in Opel amounted to about $35 million, and under a ruling which the Treasury Department had made concerning assets in enemy hands, we were allowed to write off the investment against current taxable income. But this ruling did not end our interest in, or responsibility for, the Opel property. As the end of the war drew near, we were given to understand that we were still considered the owners of the Opel stock; and we were also given to understand that as the owners, we might be obliged to assume responsibility for the property.” It was a responsibility that Sloan and his associates weren’t at all sure was worth the risk in the chaos of postwar Europe.

One resource that did not appear on the books of General Motors or on the rolls of the occupying authorities was most responsible for the recovery of Opel in 1945: the collaborative nature of its workers. They were not itinerant hires who had looked on their work at Rüsselsheim as just another job. They were men and women who had, for the most part, come from that immediate area, many from the country, and had literally grown up with the Adam Opel AG. The fate of Opel was important to its workers, for its collapse would mean the loss of the most important employer for the people of Rüsselsheim, who were finding their way home from the chaos of war.

Just at war’s end a small skeleton crew began clearing the rubble from the plant. By May 1945, this work had advanced enough to allow the beginning of production of desperately needed Opel parts. Getting the materials for them was more dependent on barter and black markets than it was on normal sources of supply, which had all but ceased to exist.

1945–70

Opel Werk In Rüsselsheim From Train

 One of the administration buildings in Rüsselsheim.

1940's Opel-Fridgidaire

 Opel product of the 1940s:
Frigidaire” refrigerator

1957-60 Opel Rekord 1700 P1

Opel Rekord P1 (1957–1960)

After the end of the war, with the Brandenburg plant dismantled and transported to Russia, and 47% of the buildings in Rüsselsheim destroyed, former Opel employees began to rebuild the Rüsselsheim plant.

In response to the pressing need for new trucks in a Germany struggling to rebuild, the American authorities governing Rüsselsheim granted permission to the plant to produce a 1.5 short tons (1.4 t) truck powered by the 2.5 L Kapitän engine. It was a minor miracle that even this was possible. By January 1946, the plant itself was ready to build trucks but many of the almost 12,000 parts needed to make each one were lacking. Before the big firms could begin, the small ones had to get started too. And illness and poor nutrition so crippled the staff of 6,000 workers that it was normal for 500 to be too sick to come to work and more than 400 to report sick during the day.

Overcoming these and other obstacles, Opel finally celebrated the completion of the first postwar Opel Blitz truck on 15 July 1946 in the presence of U.S. Army General Geoffrey Keyes and other local leaders and press reporters. Priced at 6600RM, the truck was designed to run either on gasoline or on wood gas, for which a gas generator could be supplied. With a ceremonial bouquet of flowers flying from its rear-view mirror, this historic Opel Blitz left the factory gate bound for a buyer in Wiesbaden on 26 July. Further production followed at a rate of 150 a month, and by the end of 1946 the production total was 839. Frigidaire refrigerators were also being made at Rüsselsheim, as were Olympia engines for the NSU Kettenkrad.

The next step for Opel was the resumption of passenger car production. It might have seemed easiest to bring back the Kapitän first, since its engine was already in production for the truck. But occupation regulations restricted German civilians to cars of 1.5 L or less, which made the Olympia the obvious candidate. Under Dr. Ing e.h. Karl Stief, who had been chief engineer at Opel since 1934, useful changes were made to this tough little car. The Dubonnet front suspension was replaced by a conventional coil-and-wishbone layout and the steering was correspondingly rearranged.

Announced in November 1947, production of the post-war Olympia, with austere painted hubcaps, began in December 1948 and allowed a modest return to export sales in that year. In October 1948, the Kapitän came back to the Opel lineup, unchanged except for such details as the shape of the headlights and improvements in the leaf springs and dampers. Prices in 1948 were 9950 DM for the Kapitan and 6,785 DM for the Olympia (the Deutschmark having replaced the Reichsmark on 20 June 1948).

Other events which would powerfully affect Opel’s future were taking place in 1948. In February and March, a GM study group came to Germany to investigate every aspect of Europe’s economic situation and Opel’s special problems. On their return they submitted a report, on March 26, recommending that General Motors resume control of Opel. On April 5, however, GM’s financial policy committee concluded that “in view of the many uncertainties surrounding the operation of this property, the Corporation is not justified in resuming the responsibility for its operation at this time…” GM, it seemed, didn’t want Opel.

Such executives as Alfred P. Sloan Jr., and Charles Wilson, GM’s President, then were considering the options. Later in April, Sloan sought to resolve the differences of opinion with a position paper that he hoped would set up conditions for resuming control of Opel that would put at rest the doubts of GM’s more conservative financial minds.

Sloan suggested that GM take the helm of Opel again for a two-year “probationary” period to see whether the economic conditions, then called “close to stagnation” in Germany, would improve. Sloan set other important goals: “General Motors should risk no additional capital in Opel. Credit facilities should be available. We should have complete freedom in personnel policies and administration. The products produced by Adam Opel AG should be solely within the jurisdiction of management, and if prices had to be approved by government authority, a reasonable return on the capital should be allowed.”

With these guidelines in mind, the Opel question was put again on 3 May to the GM financial policy committee, which then withdrew its objections to a return to Rüsselsheim. Many details still had to be worked out, both within GM and in the U.S. occupied zone of Germany, before this could actually occur. At last, the official word was released on 1 November 1948: GM resumed management control of Adam Opel AG. Edward W. Zdunek, formerly regional manager for Europe of General Motors Overseas Operations Division, was named managing director.

The appointment of Zdunek to this post was a move of special significance. An experienced motor industry executive, he reportedly was most respected by those, who worked for him. Ed Zdunek was regarded as the perfect choice to guide Opel through this difficult environment of postwar Germany. He continued in that critical position until 1961.

Changes in the Opel cars under GM’s management didn’t appear until January 1950, when a face-lifted Olympia was introduced. Front and rear fenders were elongated and a heavy horizontal chrome grille was added. A retrograde step was the replacement of the four-speed gearbox with a three-speed unit, with a column shift lever. Engine tuning emphasized high torque at low engine speeds so the extra ratio wasn’t too sorely missed. The cabrio-coach model was returned to the Olympia range and a kombi was also offered, built by Karosserie Miesen. In February 1951, in preparation for the first postwar automobile show in Germany, the Olympia was dressed up further with a trunk compartment that enclosed the spare tire and 15-inch (38 cm) wheels instead of 16-inch (41 cm) wheels and tires. With minor further changes, this model lasted to March 1953.

Detail improvements, such as a new dashboard and a steering column shift, embellished the Kapitän line in May 1950. Bigger changes were saved for March 1951, to anticipate the opening of the doors of the Frankfurt show on April 19 for an 11-day run. Its earlier fast-back style was modified to a mild notch-back contour, and a new horizontal grille – not the prettiest in Opel history – dominated the frontal view. With a higher compression ratio (still only 6.25:1), engine power was 58 bhp (43 kW; 59 PS) at 3,700 rpm and top speed was 80 mph (130 km/h). Output increased to 60 bhp (45 kW; 61 PS) during the further life of this model, which ended in July 1953.

More or less by ‘fait accompli’, in the absence of the tools to build the Kadett, Opel found itself in the middle-priced bracket in Germany’s postwar auto market, sandwiched between VW and Mercedes-Benz. This was a position that was familiar to both GM and Opel, and one in which it did amazingly well. In 1953, output rose above 100,000 units for the first time since the war, and in 1954, when the sprawling plant by the Main River was considered completely rebuilt, 24,270 were employed at Adam Opel AG and 167,650 vehicles were built—an all-time high. Opel actually fully recovered from the consequences of the postwar era.

1970–present

By the 1970s, Opel had emerged as the stronger of GM’s two European brands; Vauxhall was the third best selling brand in the United Kingdom after the British Motor Corporation (later British Leyland) and Ford, but made only a modest impact elsewhere. The two companies were direct competitors outside of each other’s respective home markets, but mirroring Ford’s decision to merge its British and German subsidiaries in the late 1960s, GM would follow the same precedent. Opel and Vauxhall had loosely collaborated before, but serious efforts to merge the two companies’ operations and product families into one did not start until the 1970s – which saw Vauxhall’s complete product line replaced by vehicles built on Opel-based platforms – the only exception to the rule being the Bedford CF panel van, the only solely Vauxhall design which was marketed as an Opel on the Continent. By the turn of the 1980s, the two brands were in effect, one and the same.

Opel’s first turbocharged car was the Opel Rekord 2.3 TD, first shown at Geneva in March 1984.

Following the 2008 global financial crisis, on 10 September 2009, GM agreed to sell a 55% stake in Opel to the Magna group with the approval of the German government. The deal was later called off.

With ongoing restructuring plans Opel announced the closure of its Antwerp plant in Belgium.

In 2010 Opel announced that it will invest around 11 billion in the next five years. One billion of that is designated solely for the development of innovative and fuel-saving engines and transmissions.

On 29 February 2012 Opel formally announced the creation of a major alliance with PSA, as part of which GM became PSA’s second-largest shareholder, after the Peugeot family, with a holding of 7%. The alliance is intended to enable $2 billion per year of cost savings through platform sharing, common purchasing and other economies of scale.

Company

2009 OPEL Eisenach Gesamtansicht

 Assembly plant in Eisenach

2002-08 Opel Vectra C Caravan Facelift front

 The Opel Vectra C, in production from 2002 to 2008

Opel operates 11 vehicle, powertrain, and component plants and four development and test centers in seven countries, and employs around 35,000 people in Europe. The brand sells vehicles in more than 50 markets worldwide. Other plants are in Eisenach and Kaiserslautern, Germany; Vienna/Aspern, Austria; Szentgotthárd, Hungary; Zaragoza, Spain; Gliwice, and Tychy, Poland; Saint Petersburg, Russia; Ellesmere Port, and Luton, UK. The Dudenhofen Test Center is located near the companys’ headquarters and is responsible for all technical testing and vehicle validations.

Around 6,250 people are responsible for the engineering and design of Opel/Vauxhall vehicles at the International Technical Development Center (ITDC) and European Design Center in Rüsselsheim. All in all, Opel plays an important role in the global GM corporate group. The company was responsible for primary engineering of the Epsilon (I) platform, Epsilon II platform, Delta (I) platform, Delta (II) platform, Gamma platform and played an important role in the development of especially the higher-end, more-refined version of the Gamma II platform. General Motors new global platform D2xx is being mainly engineered by Opel as well.

Opel is in most cases fully responsible for all the car architectures and technologies up to the Opel Insignia/Buick Regal. In particular, all the future-oriented, modern, full-efficient GM architectures for compact vehicles are developed by Opel.

Even the idea and concept behind the Ampera was rooted in Opel with Frank Weber, the former “Global Vehicle Line Executive and Global Chief Engineer electric vehicle development,” being originally an Opel employee who was moved to the USA in order to advance the development of this concept in GM’s home country instead of the German outpost that is Opel. In 2009 Weber returned during the reorganization of the Opel leadership to Adam Opel GmbH as “Vice President Planning and Commercial Vehicle Operations” for the company. In 2011, Frank Weber left Opel for BMW.

Opel established Opel Performance Center (OPC) in 1997, which is responsible for the development of high-performance cars such as the Astra OPC, Corsa OPC and Insignia OPC. The OPC name is also used in some motorsport activities.

Opel Special Vehicles (OSV) is a wholly owned subsidiary that offers public authority and special-purpose vehicles. OSV developed in cooperation with the International Technical Development Center (ITDC) the Opel Zafira B 1.6 CNG (Compressed Natural Gas).

Opel Group GmbH is responsible for the operation of General Motors businesses in Europe.

Leadership

 Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann
CEO of the Opel Group since July 2014
Chairman/CEO of Adam Opel AG/GmbH since 1948
Name From To
Edward W. Zdunek November 1948 February 1961
Nelson J. Stork February 1961 March 1966
L. Ralph Mason March 1966 1970
Alexander Cunningham 1970 January 1974
John P. McCormack February 1974 February 1976
James F. Waters March 1976 August 1980
Robert C. Stempel September 1980 February 1982
Ferdinand Beickler February 1982 February 1986
Horst W. Herke February 1986 March 1989
Louis Hughes April 1989 June 1992
David Herman July 1992 June 1998
Gary Cowger June 1998 October 1998
Robert Hendry October 1998 March 2001
Carl-Peter Forster April 2001 June 2004
Hans Demant June 2004 January 2010
Nick Reilly January 2010 March 2011
Karl-Friedrich Stracke April 2011 July 2012
Thomas Sedran (interim Chairman) July 2012 February 2013
Dr. Karl-Thomas Neumann since March 2013

Facilities

Production site Image Production since Products Comments Employees
Rüsselsheim, Germany 1898
  • International Technical Development Center (ITDC)
  • headquarters of Adam Opel AG
  • headquarters of Opel Group GmbH
  • Dudenhofen Test Center
12,990
Kaiserslautern, Germany 1966 2,150
Opel Eisenach GmbH
Eisenach, Germany
OPEL Eisenach Gesamtansicht 2009.jpg 1990 1,420
Zaragoza, Spain 1982 5,120
Gliwice, Poland Opel Gliwice.JPG 1998
  • Opel Astra H Classic (saloon/sedan)
  • Opel/Vauxhall Astra J (5-door, GTC (3-door hatchback), saloon/sedan)
  • Opel/Vauxhall Cascada
2,920
GM Powertrain Poland
Tychy, Poland
Katowicka Specjalna Strefa Ekonomiczna (Podstrefa Tyska) - Isuzu Motors Polska 2.jpg 1996
  • diesel engines
480
Opel Wien GmbH
Aspern, Austria
Aspern (Wien) - Opel-Werk, Verwaltungsgebäude (2).JPG 1982 1,480
St. Gotthard, Hungary 1990
  • engines
  • transmissions
810
Vauxhall Ellesmere Port
Ellesmere Port, United Kingdom
Vauxhall's, Ellesmere Port - geograph.org.uk - 218503.jpg 1962 1,630
IBC Vehicles Ltd
Luton, United Kingdom
GM building - geograph.org.uk - 560801.jpg 1907 1,140
GM Auto LLC
Saint Petersburg, Russia
2008 880

Marketing

1862 Old Adam Opel logo

 1862: Adam Opel’s initials

The first Opel logo contained the letters “A” and “O” – the initials of the company’s founder, Adam Opel. The A was in bronze, the O kept in red.

In 1866, they expanded and started to produce bicycles. Around 1890, the logo was completely redesigned. The new logo also contained the words “Victoria Blitz” (referring to Lady Victory; they were certain of the triumph of their bicycles). The word “Blitz” (English: lightning) first appeared back then, but without a depiction.

1910 the blue eye Opel 4 20 1929-1931

 1910: the blue eye

Another redesign was commissioned in 1909. The new logo was much more spirited and contained only the company name Opel itself. It was placed on the motorcycles that they had started to produce in 1902, and on the first cars which were produced in 1909.

In 1910, the logo was the shape of an eye, and it was surrounded by laurels, with the text “Opel” in the center.

From the mid-1930s to the 1960s, passenger cars carried a ring which was crossed by some kind of a flying thing pointing to the left, which in some form could be interpreted as a zeppelin, the same flying object being used also as a forward pointing hood ornament. In some versions it looked like an arrow, in others like an aeroplane or a bird.

Besides the hood ornament flying through the ring, Opel also used a coat of arms in various forms, which mostly had a combination of white and yellow colors in it, a shade of yellow which is typical for Opel until today. One was oval, half white and half yellow. The Opel writing was black and in the middle of the oval symbol.

The origin of the lightning in the current (2012) Opel logo lies in the truck Opel Blitz (German “Blitz” = English “lightning”), which had been a commercial success, widely used also within the Wehrmacht, Nazi Germany’s military. Originally the logo for this truck consisted of two stripes arranged loosely like a lightning symbol with the words “Opel” and “Blitz” in them, in later, 1950s models simplified to the horizontal form of a lightning which appears in the current Opel logo. The jag in the lightning always follows the original from the “Opel Blitz” text stripes, in the form of a horizontally stretched letter “Z”.

By the end of the 1960s, the two forms merged, and the horizontal lightning replaced the flying thing in the ring, giving way to the basic design which is used since then with variations. Through all its variations, this logo is simple and unique, and both easily recognizable and reproducible with just two strokes of a pen.

In the 1964 version, the lightning with a ring was used in a yellow rectangle, with the Opel writing below. The whole logo was again delimited by a black rectangle. The basic form and proportions of the logo have remained unchanged since the 1973 version, which made the lightning tails shorter so that the logo could fit proportionately within a yellow square, allowing it to be displayed alongside both the Vauxhall “Griffin” logo (which in turn appeared within a red square) and the blue square of the General Motors logo – as Opel and Vauxhall were organised into the unified GM Europe.

Clubs

The SC Opel Rüsselsheim is a soccer club with over 450 members. RV 1888 Opel Rüsselsheim is a cycling club.

Slogans

Opel’s corporate tagline is Wir leben Autos, meaning “We live cars” or “We live for cars”. (The similarity in English between live and love also exists in German between leben and lieben, making the tagline sound almost like “We love cars”.) This German tagline is used in many countries around the world.

Sponsorships

Opel sponsors many football clubs such as Bundesliga club Borussia DortmundEredivisie club Feyenoord, Liga I club Petrolul Ploiești, and Süper Lig club Galatasaray. Opel also sponsored Australian Rugby League club the Sydney Roosters who play in theNRL and Australian rules football team the Melbourne Demons in the AFL.

World presence

Opel is the main brand of General Motors in Europe. As of 2014, the Opel brand was present in the most of Europe, in parts of North Africa, in South Africa, the Middle East, in Chile and in Singapore. Their models have been rebadged and sold in other countries and continents, such as Vauxhall in the United Kingdom, Chevrolet in Latin America, Holden in Australia and New Zealand and, previously, Saturn in the United States and Canada. Following the demise of General Motors Corporation‘s Saturn division in North America, Opel cars are currently rebadged and sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and China under the Buick name with models such as the Opel Insignia/Buick Regal, Opel Astra sedan/Buick Verano(both which share underpinnings with the Chevrolet Cruze), and Opel Mokka/Buick Encore.

GM confirmed plans of a “hybrid global brand” which includes Opel/Vauxhall and Buick to use more synergies between the brands.

North America

United States

Opel cars appeared under their own name in the U.S. from 1958 to 1975, when they were sold through Buick dealers as captive imports. The best-selling Opel models in the U.S. were the 1964 to 1972 Opel Kadett, the 1971 to 1975 Opel Manta, and the now-classic 1968 to 1973 Opel GT. (The name “Opel” was also applied from 1976 to 1980 on vehicles manufactured by Isuzu (similar to the “Isuzu I-mark”), but mechanically those were entirely different cars).

Historically, Opel vehicles have also been sold at various times in the North American market as either heavily modified, or “badge engineered” models under the Chevrolet, Buick, Pontiac, Saturn, and Cadillac brands – for instance the J-body platform, which was largely developed by Opel – was the basis of North American models such as the Chevrolet Cavalier and Cadillac Cimarron. Below is a list of current, or recent Opel models which are sold under GM’s North American brands.

Buick Regal (5th generation, since 2009)

The Buick Regal is a rebadged Opel Insignia. The main differences are the modified radiator grill and the altered color of the passenger compartment illumination (blue instead of red). The Regal GS is comparable to the Insignia OPC. It was first assembled alongside the Insignia at the Opel plant in Rüsselsheim, Germany. Since the first quarter of 2011, it is now being built on the flexible assembly line at the GM plant in Oshawa, Canada.

Buick LaCrosse

Unlike the vehicles listed above, the Buick LaCrosse is not a rebadged version of an Opel model. However, it is based on a long wheelbase version of the Opel-developed Epsilon II-platform and therefore shares many key components with the Opel Insignia and thereby the Buick Regal.

Saturn Astra (2008–2009)

The Astra H was sold in the U.S. as the Saturn Astra for model years 2008 and 2009.

Saturn L-Series (2000-2005)

The Saturn L-Series was a modified version of the Opel Vectra B. Though the Saturn had different exterior styling and had plastic door panels, it shared the same body shape as the Opel. Both cars rode on the GM2900 platform. The Saturn also had a different interior, yet shared some interior parts, such as the inside of the doors.

Cadillac Catera (1997–2001)

The Opel Omega B was sold in the U.S. as the Cadillac Catera.

Africa

Opel exports a variety of models to Algeria, Egypt, Mauritius, Morocco and South Africa.

South Africa

Opel is distributed by General Motors South Africa. The current (2015) Opel range in South Africa comprises the Opel Adam, Opel Astra, Opel Corsa, Opel Meriva, Opel Mokka and Opel Vivaro. No diesel versions are offered.

From 1986 to 2003, Opel models were produced by Delta Motor Corporation, a company created through a management buyout following of GM’s divestment from apartheid South Africa. Delta assembled the Opel Kadett, with the sedan version called the Opel Monza. This was replaced by the Opel Astra, although the Kadett name was retained for the hatchback and considered a separate model. A version of the Rekord Series E remained in production after the model had been replaced by the Omega in Europe, as was a Commodore model unique to South Africa, combining the bodyshell of the Rekord with the front end of the revised Senator. The Opel Corsa was introduced in 1996, with kits of the Brazilian-designed sedan and pick-up (known in South African English as a “bakkie”) being locally assembled.

Although GM’s passenger vehicle line-up in South Africa consisted of Opel-based models by the late 1970s, these were sold under the Chevrolet brand name, with only the Kadett being marketed as an Opel when it was released in 1980. In 1982, the Chevrolet brand name was dropped, with the Ascona, Rekord, Commodore and Senator being rebadged as Opels.

Oceania

Many Opel models or models based on Opel architectures have been sold in Australia and New Zealand under the Holden marque such as the Holden Barina (1994-2005) were rebadged versions of the Opel Corsa, the Holden Astra a version of the Opel Astra, and the Captiva 5 a version of the Opel Antara. In New Zealand, the Opel Kadett and Ascona were sold as niche models by General Motors New Zealand in the 1980s, while the Opel brand was used on the Opel Vectra until 1994.

For the first time ever, the Opel brand was introduced to Australia on 1 September 2012, including the Corsa, Astra, Astra GTC and Insignia models. On 2 August 2013 Opel announced it was ending exports to Australia due to poor sales, with only 1,530 vehicles sold in the first ten months.

Now, after the Opel Australia closure, Holden will import newer Opel models again such as the Astra GTC, Astra VXR (Astra OPC), Cascada and Insignia VXR (Insignia OPC).

Asia

China

Opel’s presence in China re-commenced started in 2012 with the Antara, and added the Insignia estate in 2013. Opel derived models are also sold as Buick. On 28 March 2014 Opel has announced that it will leave China in 2015.

Japan

See also:

Opel was long General Motors’ strongest marque in Japan, with sales peaking at 38,000 in 1996. However, the brand was withdrawn from the Japanese market in 2006 with just 1,800 sales there in 2005.

Singapore

A wide range of Opel models are exported to Singapore

Malaysia

Opel was marketed in Malaysia beginning from 1970s, and early models exported were Kadett, Gemini and Manta. Opel had get moderate sales in 1980s and 1990s until early 2000s, when Malaysian car buyers are more favour to Japanese and Korean brand car like Toyota, Honda, Hyundai and Kia,which offers more competitive price tags. Sales of Opel cars in Malaysia was dropped at this time, as Opel’s price tag was slightly higher than the same segment Japanese, Korean and local Proton cars, hard to maintain, having a bad aftersales services and spare parts were not readily available.

Opel was withdrawn from Malaysian market in 2003,and the last model sold was Zafira, Astra, Vectra and Frontera, later replaced by Chevrolet.

South America

Chile

Opel exports a wide range of products to Chile since 2011.

Europe

United Kingdom

Starting with the Vauxhall Viva of 1963, General Motors began a 15-year development of launching Vauxhall-badged cars which were based on Opel designs, but continued to sell Vauxhall and Opel badged cars alongside each other, with Vauxhall remaining one of the most popular brands of car in Britain and comprehensively outselling the Opel brand. Nevertheless, by the early 1980s General Motors had taken the decision to phase out the Opel brand in the British market, finally withdrawing it in 1988 on the demise of the Opel Manta.

Republic of Ireland

There were two Opel franchised assembly plants in the Republic of Ireland in the 1960s. One in Ringsend, Dublin was operated by Reg Armstrong Motors, who also assembled NSU cars and motorcycles. Arrmstrong was an International competitor in motorcycle racing.

The second assembly plant was based in Cork and operated by O’Shea’s who also assembled Skoda cars and Zetor tractors.

The models assembled were the Kadett and the Rekord. From 1966 the Admiral was imported as a fully built unit and became a popular seller.

European Car of the Year

Opel have produced four winners of the European Car of the Year competition:

Shortlisted models

Several models have been shortlisted, including the:

Nomenclature

From the late 1930s to the 1980s terms from the German Navy (Kapitän, Admiral, Kadett) and from other official sectors (Diplomat, Senator) were often used as model names. Since the late 1980s the model names of Opel passenger cars end with an ‘A’. As Opels were no longer being sold in the UK, there was no need to have separate model names for essentially identical Vauxhall and Opel cars (although there have been some exceptions to suit the UK market). The last series to be renamed across the two companies was the Opel Kadett, being the only Opel to take the name of its Vauxhall counterpart, as Opel Astra. Although there had only been two generations of Astra prior to the 1991 model, the new car was referred to across Europe as the Astra F, referring to its Kadett lineage. Until 1993, the Opel Corsa was known as the Vauxhall Nova in the UK, as Vauxhall had initially felt that Corsa sounded too much like, ‘coarse,’ and wouldn’t catch on.

Exceptions to the nomenclature of ending names with an ‘A’ include the under-licence built Monterey, the Speedster (also known as the Vauxhall VX220 in the UK), GT (which wasn’t sold at all as a Vauxhall, despite the VX Lightning concept), the Signum, Karl and the Adam. The Adam was initially supposed to be called, “Junior,” as was its developmental codename and because the name ‘Adam’ had no history/importance to the Vauxhall marque.

Similar to the passenger cars, the model names of commercial vehicles end with an ‘O’ (Combo, Vivaro, Movano), except the Corsavan and Astravan for obvious reasons.

Another unique aspect to Opel nomenclature is its use of the “Caravan” (originally styled as ‘Car-A-Van’) name to denote its station wagon body configuration, (similar to Volkswagen‘s Variant or Audi‘s Avant designations) a practice the company observed for many decades, which finally ceased with the 2008 Insignia, and 2009 Astra where the name “Sports Tourer” is now used for the estate/station wagon versions.

Current model range

Main article: List of Opel vehicles

List of Opel vehicles

https://en.wiki2.org/wiki/Opel_(Olympia)_Rekord_P1

The following is a list of Opel vehicles, including past and present production models, as well as concept vehicles.

Model history

City car

2000-07 Opel_Agila_front_20071204 (1)

2000-15 Opel_Agila_B_front

2000-2015 Opel Agila A

2013---Opel Adam 1.4 Glam

2013 Opel Adam

2015 Opel_KARL_(1)

2015 Opel Karl

Supermini

Chevrolet Chevette

Chevrolet Chevette

Vauxhall Chevette 2d Vauxhall Chevette 4-door saloon (pre-facelift, without headlamp covers).

1980-1982 Vauxhall Chevette

1982-87 Opel_Corsa_A_2-door_notchback_prefacelift_at_Schaffen-Diest_Fly-drive_2013 1985-87 Opel_Corsa 4d_1987 1985-90 Opel_Corsa_5_door_hatchback Opel_Corsa_A_front_20080131

1982-1993 Corsa A

Corsa_B2 Opel Corsa_B caravan Opel_Corsa B_rear_20080417 Opel_Corsa_B_1.2_16V_Edition_2000_5-Türer_Facelift_rear

1993-2000 Corsa B

Opel_Tigra A_02 Opel_Tigra A_rear_20071212

1994-2000 Tigra A

Opel Corsa C 1.2 Elegance

2000-2006 Corsa C

Opel Tigra_Twin_Top_20090510_front Opel Tigra_Twin_Top_20090510_rear

2004-2009 Tigra TwinTop B

Opel Corsa D

Opel Corsa D1.4 rear

Opel Corsa D OPC

Opel Corsa D OPC Nurburgring Editon 2013

2006-2014 Opel Corsa D

Opel Corsa E

since 2014 Opel Corsa E

Small family car

1951 Opel Olympia Cabrio 1952 Opel Olympia

1947-1953 Opel Olympia

1962-65 Opel Kadett A, Bj. 1964 1962-65 Opel Kadett Coupé 1962-65 Opel Kadett-A-10 1964-65 Opel kadett a h rear 1964-65 Opel Kadett L

1962-1965 Kadett A

1965-70 Opel Rallye Kadett B Gills-coupé (Kiemencoupé) 1965-73 Kadett B Kombi rear 1965-73 Kadett-varia 1965-73 Opel Kadett 1700 4d B4 Front 1965-73 Opel Kadett B 2-door Limousine 1967-70 Opel kadett b 5 1967-73 Opel Kadett B Coupé F 1968 Opel Olympia

1965-1973 Opel Kadett B

1973 Opel Kadett 1,2 C Coupe rear 1973 Opel Kadett Coupé GTE 1973-77 Opel KADETT AERO 1973-77 Opel Kadett C City rear 1973-77 Opel Kadett C Kombi Lahti2 1973-77 Opel Kadett Coupé 1977 Opel Kadett C 4 door post face-lift 1977 Opel Kadett C front

1973-1979 Opel Kadett C

1979-84 Opel kadett d 2 Caravan 1979-84 Opel kadett d rear 1979-84 Opel kadett d 1983 Opel Kadett 1.3 GL Luxus 3-door

1979-1984 Opel Kadett D

1984–1989 Opel Kadett E Kombi rear 1984–1989 Opel Kadett E Kombi 1985-89 OPEL-VAUX-KADETT-E sedan 1987 Opel kadett 1,3N E Hatchback 1989-91 Opel Kadett E 3d 1989-91 Opel Kadett E sedan 1989-91 Opel Kadett E side 5d

1984-1991 Opel Kadett E

1991–02 Opel Astra F rear 1991-98 Opel Astra F 1993 Opel Astra F GSi 16V (C20XE) 1993-98 Opel Astra rear 1994-00 Opel Astra Cabrio rear 1994-98 Opel Astra Caravan rear

1991-1998 Opel Astra F

1998 Opel Astra G Van

1998-02 Opel Astra Caravan 1.6 16V Selection (G) 1998-02 Opel astra G 3T opc 1998-02 Opel Astra G Cabriolet 1998-02 Opel Astra G Classic Sedan 1998–09 Opel Astra G

DSC00093
DSC00093

1998-2004 Opel Astra G

2004–14 Opel Astra H Facelift 2007 Opel Astra IV 2007-10 Opel Astra H GTC Facelift rear 2007-10 Opel Astra TwinTop (H, Facelift) 2008 Opel Astra H OPC Nürburgring Edition

2004-2009 Opel Astra H

2010 Opel Astra J front 2011 Opel Astra Sports Tourer 1.4 Turbo ECOTEC (J) 2012 Opel Astra (AS) OPC 3-door hatchback 2012 Opel Astra (AS) Sport 5-door hatchback, photographed at the 2012 Australian International Motor Show, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia 2012 Opel Astra GTC 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Edition (J) 2013 Opel Astra J BiTurbo

2009-2015 Opel Astra J

2015 Opel Astra 1.6 CDTI ecoFLEX Edition (K)

since 2015 Opel Astra K

2011 Hesse State Police Opel Ampera patrol car 2011 Opel Ampera rear 2011 Opel Ampera 2012 Opel Ampera

since 2011 Opel Ampera

Large family car

1968 Opel-Olympia

1967-1970 Opel Olympia A

1972 Opel Ascona 2 d Interlaken 1973 Opel Ascona Wagon 1973-75 Opel Ascona A Kombi Caravan 1974 Opel Ascona A rear 1974 Opel Ascona A

1970-1975 Opel Ascona A

1970 Opel Manta belgian 1970 Opel Manta SR 1970-75 Opel Manta A Garmisch 1971 Opel 1900 1972 Opel Manta Luxus 1972 Opel Manta 1974 Opel Manta A rear 1974 Opel Manta A 1974-75 Opel Manta A GTE 1975 Opel Manta A Black Magic 1975 Opel Manta Black Magic 1975 Opel Manta TE2800, Belgian

1970-1975 Opel Manta A

1975 Opel Ascona 2 Door Luxus 1975–81 Opel Ascona B 1,6 N SR rear 1975–81 Opel Ascona B 1,6 N SR 1978 Opel Ascona 1,9 1978 Opel Ascona B 2,0 irmscher 2 1978 Opel Ascona Diesel Taxi 1983 Opel Ascona 400 Rallye Rothmans

1975-1981 Opel Ascona B

1975 Opel manta 400 R Brookes 1975 Opel Manta B Coupé 1975 Opel Manta CC Berlinetta 1975 Opel manta Irmscher i240 Dakar rear 1975 Opel Manta SR GTE 1975–81 Opel Manta B CC 1978 Opel Manta 1982 Opel Manta GTE 1987 Opel Manta GSI

1975-1988 Opel Manta B

1981-84 Opel Ascona 2d Algarve 1981–1988 Opel Ascona C rear 1981–1988 Opel Ascona C 1982 Opel Ascona taxi Brochure 1982 Opel Ascona

1981-1988 Opel Ascona C

1992–1995 Opel Vectra A sedan rear 1992–1995 Opel Vectra A sedan

1988-1995 Opel Vectra A

2007 Opel Vectra A

1988-1995 Opel

1989–97 Opel Calibra 1994 Opel Calibra 4x4 Turbo 1994-97 Opel Calibra rear 1994-97 Opel Calibra 1997 Opel Calibra 2.0 16V Last Edition

1990-1997 Opel Calibra

1995-02 Opel Vectra B Kombi rear 1995–02 Opel Vectra B 1995-02 Opel Vectra B-1998 1995-99 Opel Vectra B rear 1995-99 Opel Vectra rear 1999-02 Opel Vectra B 2.0 TDI EcoTec 16V

1995-2002 Opel Vectra B

2002-08 Opel Vectra C Caravan Facelift front 2002–09 Opel Vectra C 2006 Opel Vectra C 2 2006 Opel Vectra model 2006–09 Opel Vectra C (facelift) Caravan

2002-2008 Opel Vectra C

2001 Opel Signum 2 Concept 2003-05 Opel Signum 1.9 CDTI rear 2003-05 Opel Signum 2003-08 Opel Signum Facelift 2003-2005 Opel Signum 1.9 CDTI 2005-08 Opel Signum 1.9 CDTI Edition Facelift Starsilber

2003-2008 Opel Signum

2003 Opel Insignia Concept Car 2003 Opel Insignia concept rear 2003 Opel Insignia Concept with rear sliding doors 2003 Opel Insignia Concept 2008- ..Opel Insignia 2008 Opel Insignia 2.0 BiTurbo CDTI Sport OPC Line-Paket 2008-13 Opel Insignia hatchback 2008-13 Opel Insignia Sports Tourer 2.0 CDTI 2008–present Opel insignia 5d 17 2011 Opel Insignia OPC Sports Tourer 2013 Opel Insignia Country Tourer 2014 Opel Insignia facelift

since 2008 Opel Insignia

2013–present Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation rear 2013–present Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation 2013–present Opel Cascada Cockpit 2013–present Opel Cascada 2014 Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation (2) 2014 Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation

since 2013 Opel Cascada

Convertible based on the Astra J

Full-size car

1953 opel olympia cabriolet 1953 opel olympia record 1953-54 Opel Olympia Rekord sharkmouth ca 1954 1953–57 Opel Olympia Rekord, Bj. 1955 (retusch) 1955 Olympia Rekord Cabriolimousine 1955 opel olympia-a 1956 Opel Olympia Rekord 2-Door Sedan 1956 Opel Olympia Rekord Lieferwagen Modell 1956 opel olyympia record 1957 Opel Olympia Rekord 1957 Opel Olympia Rekord BW 1 1957 opel record olympia

1953–1957 Opel Olympia Rekord

1957-60 Opel Rekord 1700 P1 1957-60 Opel Rekord Olympia Caravan 1958 opel olympia rekord p1-a 1958 Opel Rekord caravan 2 1958 Opel Rekord caravan 5 1958 Opel Rekord P1 Welsch Lijkwagen 1960 Opel Olympia Rekord P1 1500cc 4 zyl, 45PS Kombi 1960 Opel Rekord 1200, Bj. 60 1960 Opel Rekord 1500 met aanhanger 1960 Opel Rekord P1 Cabrio

1957–1960 Opel Rekord P1

1960 opel rekord p2-a 1960-63 Opel Rekord P2 Coupe 01 1960–1963 Opel Rekord P2 17 R2

1961 Opel Rekord Coupé 1962 Opel Rekord P2 Caravan 1962 Opel Rekord P2(cockpit)

1960-1963 Opel Rekord P2

1963 Opel Rekord A Caravan 2 1963 Opel Rekord A front 1963 Opel Rekord A rear 1963 opel rekord a 1963 opel rekord a=ac 1963 Opel Rekord Aa 1963–65 Opel Rekord A Caravan 2

1963-1965 Opel Rekord A

1965 opel rekord b 1965 Opel Rekord 1965–66 Opel REKORD-B-1 1965–66 Opel Rekord-B-1900 1966 Opel Record B Coupé 1966 Opel Rekord 98-22-JE 1966 Opel Rekord B 2-Door Sedan 1966 Opel Rekord B Car A Van

1965-1966 Opel Rekord B

1966 Opel Rekord 4 Door 1966 Opel Rekord C 1966 Opel Rekord C2 Kombi 5T 1966-72 Opel Rekord C 1967 Opel Commodore 1967 Opel Rekord C1 1967 Opel Rekord Coupé Ad 1967 Opel Rekord Taxi 1967–71 Opel Rekord C 1968 Opel Rekord C 1.7 S 4-door saloon, two colour version 1968 Opel Rekord Schwarze Witwe 1968 Opel Rekord-C-Coupe 1970 Opel Rekord C 3-door Kombi (estate-station wagon) 1970 Opel Rekord C 1700 Deutsch Cabriolet 1971 Opel Rekord 1900 L 2 1971 Opel Rekord C 2-door Sedan-saloon-Berline 1971 opel rekord c-a

1966-1972 Opel Rekord C

1967 Opel Commodore 3 1967 Opel Commodore 2500 6 Sedan 1967 Opel Commodore 1967-71 MHV Opel Commodore A Coupé 01 1968 Opel Commodore GS Cabrio von Deutsch 1970 Opel Commodore GSE 1970 Opel Commodore

1967-1971 Opel Commodore A

1971 opel rekord d-b 1972 Opel Rekord, powered by a 2100cc diesel and sharing the same body as the Commodore sedan 1972–77 Opel Rekord D 1975 1972–77 Opel Rekord Da 1975 Opel Rekord D 2d Coupé Green 1975 Opel Rekord D Break 1975 Opel Rekord D Kombi Caravan 1976 Opel Rekord Sprint Coupé (Rekord D)

1971-1977 Opel Rekord D

1972–77 Opel Commodore B GS 1972–77 Opel Commodore B GSE Coupe 1972–77 Opel Commodore vr orange B TCE

1972-1977 Opel Commodore B

1977–82 Opel Commodore C red 1977–82 Opel Commodore C Vauxhall Viceroy 2490 cc 1977–1982 Opel Commodore C voyage 1977–1982 OPEL-VAUX-COMMODORE C

1977–1982 Opel Commodore C

1977 Opel Rekord-e 1977 Tweedeursuitvoering 1977–86 Opel rekord 4d E 1977–86 Opel Rekord E 1.9 1977–86 Opel Rekord E1 rear

1977-1982 Opel Rekord E1

1977–86 Opel Rekord E2 Berlina 1981 Opel Rekord 1982-86 Opel Rekord E2 1984 Opel Rekord E 2-3Diesel 1988-89 Opel Rekord Diesel + Hot met taxipech over de waalbrug in Nijmegen

1982-1986 Opel Rekord E2

1978-86 Opel Senator A1 CD rear (1978–1986) 1979 Opel Senator A1 3,0 CD 1980 Opel Senator A1 CD 1982 Opel Senator 1982-86 Opel Senator A2 front 1982-86 Opel senator A2 rear 1987–93 Opel Senator B 1988 Vauxhall Opel Senator Cambridge

1978-1986 Opel Senator A1+A2+B

1978-82 Opel Monza a 1978–86 Opel Monza 30E 1981 Opel Monza

SAMSUNG DIGIMAX 360
SAMSUNG DIGIMAX 360

1982-86 OPEL-VAUX-MONZA-A-FACELIFT (1) 1983-86 Opel Monza GSE vl white TCE 1986 Opel Monza Convertible Keinath C5 2013 Opel Monza Concept

1978-1986 Opel Monza

The following tables list current and announced Opel production vehicles as of 2015:

2014 Opel Adam 1.4 Slam2015 Opel Adam S2015 Opel Adam 1.4 Glam rear2015 Opel Adam 1.4 Glam2015 Opel Adam Rocks

Opel Adam City car Hatchback

2010 Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt hatchback (concept) 012011 Hesse State Police Opel Ampera patrol car2011 Opel Ampera (2)2011 Opel Ampera Chevrolet Volt NRMA2011 Opel Ampera rear2011 Opel Ampera2012 Opel Ampera ePionier Edition2012 Opel Ampera2012 Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt2016 Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt NAIAS second generation

Opel Ampera-Chevrolet Volt Plug-in hybrid Hatchback

2006–present Opel Antara 2.0 CDTI2011 Opel Antara 2.4 4x4 Design Edition (Facelift)2015 Opel Antara GTC rear concept

Opel Antara Compact crossover SUV

1991–present Opel Astra F rear1991–present Opel Astra F1993-98 Opel Astra F rear1994-00 Opel Astra Cabrio rear1994-98 Opel Astra F Caravan rear1998 Opel Astra G Van1998 Opel Astra G1998-02 Opel Astra Caravan 1.6 16V Selection (G)rear1998-02 Opel astra G 3T opc1998-02 Opel Astra G Cabriolet1998-02 Opel Astra G Classic rear

DSC00093
DSC00093

2001 Opel Astra OPC X-Treme Concept2003 Opel Astra V8 Coupe (OPC Team Phoenix, DTM 2003)2004–14 Opel Astra H Facelift2007-09 Opel Astra H (Facelift)rear MJ2007-10 Opel Astra H Caravan 1.9 CDTI2007-10 Opel Astra H GTC Facelift rear a2007-10 Opel Astra TwinTop (H, Facelift)2008 Opel Astra H OPC Nürburgring Edition2008 Saturn Astra XE 5d, front right2008-10 Opel Astra H Stufenheck 1.6 Ecotec Edition Starsilber rear2009- ..Opel Astra (J)2009 Opel Astra OPC Race Camp2011 Opel Astra Sports Tourer 1.4 Turbo ECOTEC (J)2011 Opel Astra TwinTop2012 Opel Astra (AS) OPC 3-door hatchback2012 Opel Astra (AS) Sport 5-door hatchback, photographed at the 2012 Australian International Motor Show, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia2012 Opel Astra (AS) Sport 5-door hatchback012012 Opel Astra GTC 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Edition (J)

Opel Astra Small family car Hatchback, GTC, Sedan, Sports+Caravan

2014 Opel Cascada 1.6 EDIT Innovation

Opel Cascada Mid-size-car Convirtible

1989 Bedford Astra Van1998 Opel Astra G Van2012 Opel Combo (2)2012 Opel Combo (3)2012 Opel Combo 1.6 CDTI Edition (D)2012 Opel Combo Kastenwagen 1.6 CDTI (D)2012 Opel ComboOpel Combo 1.6 CDTI Edition (D)Opel Combo C Tour 1.7 DTIOpel Combo C TourOpel Combo Royal Mail Van

Opel Combo Tour Leisure activity vehicle Van

2011 Opel Corsa 1.2 ecoFLEX Satellite (D, Facelift)

Opel Corsa Supermini Hatchback

2015 Holden Insignia (GA MY15.5) VXR sedan

Opel Insignia Large family car Saloon, Hatchback, Sports Tourer, Crosover + Caravan

2015 Opel KARL (1)

Opel Karl City car Hatchback

2003–10 Opel Meriva A2006-09 Opel Meriva A 1.8 Cosmo2006-09 Opel Meriva OPC Facelift

2010- ..Opel Meriva B 1.4 ECOTEC Innovation2010 Opel Meriva B 1.3 CDTI Edition2010 Opel Meriva B S 400

Opel Meriva Compact MPV

2012 Opel Mokka 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Innovation

2012–present Opel Mokka ecoFLEX Edition rear2012–present Opel Mokka ecoFLEX Edition2013 Buick Encore in China2013 Buick Encore

Opel Mokka + Buick Encore Subcompact crossover SUV

1999-05 Opel Zafira A OPC1999–05 Opel Zafira A1999–05 Opel Zafira rear2005–11 Opel Zafira B rear2005–11 Opel Zafira B2011 Opel Zafira Tourer Concept2011–present Opel Zafira Tourer C CNG2012 Opel Zafira Tourer 1.4 Turbo ecoFLEX Edition (C)2013 Opel Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTI Innovation (C)

Opel Zafira Tourer Large MPV

Light commercial vehicles

Opel Corsa Combo BOpel Corsavan second generationOpel Corsavan third generation

Opel Corsavan Car-derived van

1989 Bedford Astra Van

Opel Kadett Combo 1.7D

Opel Combo Royal Mail Van

2012 Opel Combo (3)

2012 Opel Combo (2)

1994–present Opel Combo Panel van

opel arena-prodajem-ili-mijenjam-osobno-slika

Opel Arena passenger side

OPEL-VAUX-ARENA-A

2001-06 Opel Vivaro 2900

2006-14 Opel Vivaro rear

2006-14 Opel Vivaro

2009 Opel Vivaro E Concept

2015 Opel Vivaro Combi vervoert acht personen

Opel (Arena) Vivaro Light commercial vehicle

2010 Opel Movano B medium roof, long wheelbase panel van2010 Opel Movano Mk2 Passenger Van

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Opel Movano 4x4Opel Movano A (facelift), medium-roof, long-wheelbase minibusOpel Movano Exterior View BusOpel Movano MTF

Opel Movano Light commercial vehicle- Chassis cab- Crew cab

OPC models

Main article: Opel Performance Center

pel produces high-performance derivatives of their cars developed by OPC.

2012 Opel Astra J (AS) OPC 3-door hatchback rear2012 Opel Astra J (AS) OPC 3-door hatchback

Opel Astra OPC Compact sports car Hatchback

2011 Opel Corsa OPC Nürburgring Edition rear2011 Opel Corsa OPC Nürburgring Edition

Opel Corsa OPC Supermini hatchback

2009 Opel Insignia 4T OPC

2011 Opel Insignia OPC Sports Tourer

2013 Opel Insignia OPC facelift

Opel Insignia OPC Large family car Sedan, Hatchback + Sports Tourer Caravan

Discontinued models

1899–1902 Opel Lutzmann

1899 – 1902 Opel System Lutzmann

1902 03-Opel-Darracq monocylindre 8HP 1902 DSCN81101902 OPEL Darracq 19021902 Opel Darracq1903 Opel Darracq Rennwagen1904 opel darracq991905 opel darracq by tricoloreone771905 Opel Darracq monocylindre copel darracq 2Opel Darracq 16-18PS 21OPEL DARRACQ History-01Opel Darracq Oldtimer Bilder 9 01opel darracq1opel darracq-9-ps-01opel darracq-9-ps-02

Opel Motorwagen 9PS System Darracq
Opel Motorwagen 9PS System Darracq

opel darracq-9-ps-11opel darracq-9-ps-12 (1)opel darracq-9-ps-12opel darracq-12-14-ps-01opel darracq-12-14-ps-03opel darracq-12-14-ps-05opel darracq-12-14-ps-08opel darracq-12-14-ps-09Opel DarracqCC

1902 – 1907 Opel Darracq

1910 Opel 4-8 PS Doktorwagen

1909 – 1910 Opel Doktorwagen

Opel laubfrosch

1924 – 1931 Opel Laubfrosch

1935-37 Opel Olympia

1935 – 1970 Opel Olympia

1936 Opel kadett

1937 – 1940+1962 – 1991 Opel Kadett

1938-40 opel Kapitän

1939 – 1970 Opel Kapitän

1953-54 Opel Olympia Rekord sharkmouth ca 1954

1953 – 1957 Opel Olympia Rekord

1953–57 Opel Olympia Rekord, Bj. 1955 (retusch)

1953 Opel Rekord Skodaman

1953 – 1986 Opel Rekord

1967-71 MHV Opel Commodore A Coupé 01

1967 – 1982 Opel Commodore

1969 Opel GT

1968 – 1973 Opel GT

1975–81 Opel Ascona B 1,6 N SR

1970 – 1988 Opel Ascona

1974 Opel Manta A

1970 – 1988 Opel Manta

2008 Opel Omega Kombi front

1986 – 2003 Opel Omega

1995–02 Opel Vectra B

1988 – 2009 Opel Vectra

2007 Opel Calibra front

1989 – 1997 Opel Calibra

2009 Opel Signum front

2003 – 2008 Opel Signum

Motorsports

2013 Opel Adam R2 -03-05_Geneva_Motor_Show_8022

 Opel Adam R2 Rallye at the 2013Geneva Motor Show

Opel took part in World Rally Championship in early 1980s with the Opel Ascona 400 and the Opel Manta 400, developed in conjunction with Irmscher and Cosworth. Walter Röhrl won the 1982 World Rally Championshipdrivers’ title, and the 1983 Safari Rally was won by Ari Vatanen.

In the late 1990s Opel took part in the International Touring Car Championship, and won the 1996 Championship with the Calibra. Opel took part in the German DTM race series between 2000 and 2005 with the Astra and despite winning several races, it never won the DTM championship.

Opel returned to motorsport competition with the Adam in 2013.

In 2014, Opel presented a road-legal sport version of the Adam R2 Rally Car – Opel Adam S – powerd by a 1.4 turbocharged engine which generates 150 HP. The car makes 0–100 km/h in just 8.5 seconds.

That was what I can show you about OPEL

Buses, Cycles, Motorcycles, Cars, Aeroplanes, Airships, CLÉMENT-BAYARD France

Cycles, Motorcycles, Cars, Buses, Aeroplanes, Airships, CLÉMENT-BAYARD France

001

Clément Bayard

020

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adolphe_Cl%C3%A9ment-Bayard

http://bonjourdeputeaux.free.fr/voyage5/02.htm

Normaly when I make a blog it is about buses, but it would be a very small chapter when I leave it by Adolphe Clément Bayard by buses. His live was very interesting and buses were only a part of the lots of ways of transportation he made.

Adolphe Clément begon eerst met de Gladiator, opgericht door Alexandre Darracq, en gaf zijn eerste voertuig de naam van Clement-Gladiator. Hij was ook de directeur van Panhard & Levassor.

002

1895 Gladiator catalogue

003

Cycles Gladiator Clément Bayard

 004

Cycles Gladiator Clément Bayard

 005

Cycles Gladiator Clément-Bayard

 006

1895 Gladiator catalogue

 007

1895 Gladiator catalogue

 008

1895 Gladiator catalogue

 009

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011Adolphe Clement was van oorsprong fietsenmaker en maakte daar fortuin mee

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Clement 1902 114HP 1 125cc

 016

Clément Bayard fietsen

 017

Clément Bayard Type B 142 cc 1903

018

Clément Model D 1904 motorblok

 019

Clément V4 1500 cm3

 020

Clément Bayard

 021

Clément Bayard

022

Ad

 023

1903 Gladiator light Car Clement Bayard

024

Clément Bayard Tonneau

025 Darracq

Darracq-Vanderbilt-Clément-Bayard 1905

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@

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 1904 Vanderbilt cup – Albert Clément (Clément-Bayard 80hp)

028

1906 Diatto Clément-Bayard

029

1907 Clément Bayard 2VT Tourer

030

1910 Clément Bayard Torpedo

031

1911 CLÉMENT BAYARD AC4B

032

1911 Clement Gabriel circuit de Dieppe 1911 Clément Bayard

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1912 CLÉMENT BAYARD

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1913 Clément Bayard 10-12 HP

036

1914 CLÉMENT-BAYARD CB2 TOURER

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Clément – Bayard de 1913

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Clément Bayard Bleu 1913

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Clément Bayard met De Dion motor

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Clément-Bayard Open Tourer

041

Darracq-1904-Aertnijs NL

042

Clément Bayard-1904-Stokvis Arnhem NL

043

Clément Bayard Melbourne Australia

44

cartes-postales-photos-Usine/Factory/Fabriek-Clément-Bayard-LEVALLOIS-PERRET

020

045

Albert Clément driving a Clément-Bayard at the French Grand Prix 1906

046

Clément-Bayard Automobielen-1905-03-NAM Den Haag NL

047

Clément-Bayard-1913-Stokvis Arnhem NL

048

Clément-Bayard-Partly-Armored-MG-Car-1914

049

Clément-Bayard-1919-Spoormaker Rotterdam Holland

050

Diatto-1923 Rotterdam NL

051

Clément-Bayard-badge

052

Bussen Clement Bayard Omnibus 12-18HP 4cyl

053

Bussen Clement Bayard Omnibus 20HP

054

Clément-Bayard DD bus dirigible circa 1908

055

1912 Clément-Bayard monoplane

056

1913 Clément Bayard Aeroplane

057

a 4-cyl, 45-h.p. Clément Bayard motor

058

Clement-Bayard Biplane

059

Clément-Bayard Biplane

060

The Clément-Bayard tractor biplane

061

Clément-Bayard dubbeldekker

062

Clément-Bayard monoplane

063

Clément-Bayard

064

The Clément Bayard stand

065

The Clément-Bayard Aeroplane

066

The Clément-Bayard stand at the Paris Salon

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The tail of the new Clément-Bayard monoplane

068

This 100 hp Clément Bayard powered machine

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Clément-Bayard hangar

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Clement-Bayard Zeppelin

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Balloon Clement Bayard Accident Seine river Photo 1909

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Clément-Bayard accident

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Clément-Bayard dirigible, France

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Clement Bayard Puteaux

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Clement-Bayard Puteaux

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Clément-Bayard

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Clément-Bayard

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JH

094 CB end

Fine

Filed Under: AEROPLANESAirshipsBusbuilderBUSESCarrossierCarsClement-BayardCyclesDarracqDiattoFRANCELevassorMotorcyclesPanhardZeppelin