A sewing machine manufacturer
The transformation into a bicycle manufacturer
Further challenges – automobile production started
Years of rapid growth
Tough days and recovery
A major turning point – a chance to step
into the world market
Confronting a rival head on
Expansion and success
Opel and motor sports
Expanding for the coming 21st century

A sewing machine manufacturer

Adam OPEL, the founder of OPEL, was the first son born to a locksmith in Rüsselsheim, Germany in 1837. After traveling around Europe to observe the emerging industrial revolution, he finally made his way to Paris, a city that he had long wished to visit. It was in Paris that he saw the newly invented sewing machine, and acquired the knowledge necessary to build one. After a few years, he returned home and started producing sewing machines in a converted cow shed. In the summer of his 25th year Adam OPEL founded OPEL, and August 14, 1862 is now celebrated as the company’s birthday. Adam OPEL’s business expanded rapidly and it became the largest sewing machine manufacturer in Germany within a few years. Much of this success was due to OPEL’s business acumen as illustrated by his promotion of equipment investment, move into exporting, and introduction of a wealth of astute ideas such as installment plans as well as the technical information he accumulated. 1884 was another year of destiny for Adam OPEL and his company when he had a fateful encounter with the bicycle in his beloved Paris. The meeting determined the future of OPEL and planted the seeds for the modern Adam OPEL AG.

The transformation into a bicycle manufacturer

OPEL began to import bicycle parts from England in 1885. Their mechanics overhauled and completely inspected these parts, and they then shipped their first fully assembled bicycles the next year. The Adam OPEL bicycle business was off and running. Adam OPEL had five sons: Karl, Wilhelm, Heinrich, Friedrich, and Ludwig. They assisted their father in business and rode in bicycle races which had begun to gain popularity in Germany. Their excellent performances served to make OPEL bicycles a name known throughout Europe. Adam OPEL actively introduced new technologies, and adopted tires filled with air which had been invented by an Englishman, Dunlop, as early as 1890. The company was putting out 2,000 bicycles a year, and by the time Adam OPEL died at the age of 58 in 1895, OPEL had already established its position as a major manufacturer of sewing machines and bicycles.

Further challenges – automobile production started

Having watched OPEL’s success, other manufacturers entered the bicycle industry, and by 1897 there was a bicycle glut as a result of overproduction. OPEL’s sales in the bicycle division subsequently dropped which pushed Karl and Wilhelm to consider the need to start a new business. They decided to take on the new automobile industry. However, automobiles were not as easy to produce as sewing machines and bicycles. So the OPEL brothers decided to buy out a factory of the royal automobile maker, Lutzmann, which was owned by dukes. The first OPEL patented vehicle, the “System Lutzmann”, was introduced in 1898 with a 1545 cc single cylinder engine and a design as simple as that of a carriage. Ten years had passed since the Germans, Daimler and Benz had succeeded in the development of the automobile.

Years of rapid growth

The 15-year period from 1900 to the beginning of World War I was marked by rapid growth. OPEL began to produce its own original line of automobiles in affiliation with a French company, Darracq. The company’s 4 cylinder engines reaped particular praise and racing cars equipped with these engines came out on top in auto races. This success lead to OPEL’s being crowned as royalty among automobiles. The Doctor Wagen, model aimed more as a cheaper vehicle for the masses also established a solid reputation. OPEL also started to move into the development of engines for motor boats and airplanes, and the production of motorcycles and power cultivators. 1911 was marked by a major fire in the OPEL factory, and this disaster prompted the company to close down the sewing machine division which had become less profitable, reorganize the factory and develop fire engines. OPEL’s drive to succeed and ability to adapt became their management trademarks. Finally by 1914, just prior to World War I, OPEL became the largest automobile manufacturer in Germany with an annual production of more than 3,000 units.

Tough days and recovery

OPEL was initially forced to shutdown and lay off all its workers when the war broke out in 1914. The company was then ordered by the military to build military trucks, and it was reincarnated as the biggest truck manufacturer in Germany. OPEL continued to develop engines for new passenger cars during the war, all the while satisfying the demand by the military for trucks. By the end of the war, they had already completed a prototype for a 6 cylinder engine for use in mid to top of the line vehicles. However, most of the demand was for cheaper utilitarian vehicles as a result of the crushing inflation and heavy taxes. Wilhelm OPEL quickly picked up on this trend, and realized the need for of mass production assembly lines. He studied the system employed by Ford in the U.S. and the first OPEL mass produced model, the “Laubfrosh”, was launched at the rock bottom price of 4,400 marks. An seemingly endless stream of mass production models rolled off the OPEL assembly line, and by 1928, the company had become a giant in the auto industry producing more than 40,000 cars a year.

A major turning point – a chance to step into the world market

1929 marked a historical turning point for OPEL. It was in 1929 that OPEL, after having worked to establish itself on its own for 67 years since its inception in 1862, decided upon its own volition voluntarily to become a member of General Motors group in the United States. A number of reasons were behind this decision, first was the large volume of inexpensive U.S. vehicles which started flowing into the German market when tariff barriers were lifted, and which could seriously affect the future of OPEL as it tried to convert over to the American production system. Second, if OPEL voluntarily joined the GM group, they could utilize the advanced technologies and network of GM without having to abandon their original policies and philosophy with a potential for expansion in the future. Thus Adam OPEL AG was born on March 17, 1929, and a mere seven months later the world was plunged into financial crisis with many companies going bankrupt. OPEL’s farsighted decision to join GM meant that they were able to withstand the crisis and even continue to expand. In 1935, OPEL introduced the Olympia which had the first all-steel mono cockpit in the world. This model was extremely popular, and it was a real trendsetter.

Confronting a rival head on

With the outbreak of World War II in the 1940s, OPEL was conscripted by the Nazis to produce military trucks. At the time, GM cut all ties with OPEL, but it regain its controlling interest in OPEL in the post-war period, and tried to woo back its former OPEL passenger cars customers by putting out the Kapitän and the Olympia Rekord. However, the auto industry faced strikingly different conditions in the post-war in the period. Volkswagen, as a result of their extensive cooperating with the Nazis in their nationwide vehicle project, had become a giant company which produced more than twice as many passenger cars as OPEL. In order to meet the challenge of VW with its record setting Beetle, OPEL introduced the Kadett taking up the mantle of the its pre-war model. OPEL sold 650,000 Kadetts in the next 3 years, and it became OPEL’s best selling car. Though OPEL couldn’t top VW, it did steadily increased its share in the auto market, and launched a counterattack against VW.

Expansion and success

The automobile industry matured and consumers began to demand higher quality and more choice. OPEL had focused primarily on small utilitarian cars, but it began to concentrate more on providing consumers with greater variety, including luxurious sedans such as the Diplomat, Caravan, which is considered to be the prototype of the existing station wagon, and the legendary Rally Kadett with a 60 horsepower twin cab engine which could reach a maximum speed of 150 km/hr and really performed at rallies. OPEL continually upgraded their main models including the Kadett, Askona, Rekord, and Commodore with great success. OPEL’s Manta, introduced in the 1970s, was especially singled out beauty of form among GT patrons. And in 1973, Kadett C was presented. This model had been developed as GM car for the international market to take the place of the Kadett B. OPEL had sold 2.65 million units of this Kadett B over the previous eight years. Then at last, OPEL defeated their old rival, VW, and returned to the top in the German market.

Calibra Opel and motor sports

Except for the unhappy 40 years during which it had been in conflict with National Sports Office, OPEL has built new Afb by participation in motor sports since the OPEL brothers achieved glory in bicycle races. The following achievements were made in this field. First, in early years of the 20th century, Carl Jörns, a driver under exclusive contract to OPEL, came in first in several important car races. In fact, OPEL took more than 200 victories. During 1960’s, Rally Kadett was extremely strong and took first place in the World Rally Championship, and the Manta took fourth place in the Paris-Dakar Rally.

And now OPEL is taking part in various motor sports. For example, the company has sponsored the OPEL Lotus Challenge to support young drivers. Omegas, Vectras und Calibras fight in first row for the Deutsche Tourenwagen Trophäe (DTT) an the International Touring Car Championships (ITC). In F3, Opel has the talented and successful younger brother of Michael Schumacher, Ralf, under contract. The group N of the german long-distance trophy is dominated by an Astra Gsi 16V wich is also successful in international competitions in South-Africa, England, Switzerland and France, to name a few.

Kadett Expanding for the coming 21st century

In the 1980s, the OPEL achieved its rightful international recognition. The main features of the OPEL are its aerodynamic quality which has resulted in the lowest Cd value in its category (Calibra), and its interior roominess which was achieved through the company policy of Inside First. The Corsa evokes the image of the small European car, and the Omega was awarded “European Car of the Year”. The Vectra has also captured many international awards including one for “Good Design”. These achievements underscore the fact that superior design and performance embodied by each and every OPEL has been widely acknowledged throughout the world. During the 1990s, the Astra, the successor to Kadett, was put on the market and sold briskly. OPEL is now the top brand in the European market, and the company’s share has also been rising in Japan. OPEL was 12th among import manufacturers in Japan last year, but it jumped up to 5th this year. After the release of the Tigra the new OPEL is on the move and its future is bright.