Opel is one of the oldest, most famous and reputed car brands in the world. It has always stood for innovative technologies, environmental friendliness and appealing design. Its tagline "Wir leben Autos" means "We live cars" and expresses the company's passion for engineering and commitment to creating vehicles that become an essential part of every day life. The company was established by Adam Opel in 1863 but it was in 1899 that the first Opel car was produced. With a series of very successful models, including the 1909 Doctor's car, Opel gradually turned into the largest German manufacturer of motor vehicles by 1914. Continuing its innovations on all levels, during the 1920s Opel became the first German car manufacturer to incorporate a mass production car assembly line and launched the upmarket Laubfrosch, with which Opel moved upmarket. By 1928 it became the largest automobile exporter of Germany. At that time the RAK 1 and 2 models, were its most famous models. It attracted the attention of General Motors, which in 1931 acquired 100% of Opel. In 1935, Opel became the first German car manufacturer to produce over 100 000 vehicles a year based on the popular P4 model. Opel also produced the first mass-production vehicle with a self-supporting all steel body - the Olympia. It received a patent for this model, whose improvement in fuel consumption and performance are considered as some of the most important innovations in automotive history. In 1939 the company launched another hit - Kapitan. At that point, just before WWII broke out, Adam Opel AG was the largest motor vehicle manufacturer in Europe. After the war the company resurrected the Olympia and Kapitan with several facelifts, but by 1953 it discontinued both models. In the following decades Opel continued investing in infrastructure and innovation making a number of industry-wide important discoveries and patents. Some of its noteworthy models are the first concept car of a European manufacturer - the 1965 Opel Experimental GT, the most streamlined car in its class - the 1984 the Kadett GSi, the first ready-to-drive 3l/100km car in the world – the 1995 Corsa Eco3. The present car portfolio of Opel includes the Agila (city cars), Ampera (mid-size cars), Antara (compact SUVs), Astra (hatchbacks and estates), Corsa (hatchbacks), Insignia (hatchbacks, sedans, station wagons), Meriva (mini MPVs), Zafira (compact MPVs), Combo and Movano (panel vans), Vivaro (minibuses and vans). Detailed technical specifications for particular Opel models may be viewed by clicking on the model names from the catalog below.
