Opels look alike
Opel's marketing people had also thought about it: there had to be a 'family feeling' to let buyers stay with a brand. But within the family you had to be able to improve. And 1983 was the year of the new Opel Rekords.
Opel has already used that name 'Rekord' from 1953. There have been 8 generations of Rekords and eventually such an 10.000.000 was made. And for the new Rekord in 1983, the model had been from 1977. He was completely in keeping with the Opel family philosophy and looked like an Ascona XL.
The new Opel had to compete in its class with the Ford Ganada, the Audi 100, the VW Santana and the Peugeot 505. And the prospects for the new Opel seemed and proved good.
An Ascona XL?
Although the new Rekord at first glance seems like an Ascona from very close - so XL -, it was a completely different Opel. The Ascona was, after all, a front-wheel driver. The Rekord has the (four-cylinder) block lengthwise under the hood and that engine powered the rear wheels. Simply, as it should be. The new bodywork looked great, beautiful and modern. And with a cx value of 0,36, only the Audi 100 glided through the air in this market segment even more smoothly.
An extensive delivery package
As a GM subsidiary, Opel naturally had the moral obligation to put the newcomer firmly on the market immediately. So there was a choice of the 1.8 N, the 1.8 S, the 2.0 S, the 2.0 E and an 2,3 liter of diesel. The new Rekord was available in the flavors 'Standard', 'Luxus' and 'Berlina'. Of course Opel could also supply the new Rekord with an automatic transmission and all versions were also for sale as station cars, or as Opel called it: Caravan version.
A new engine block
The 1800 engine was the successor of the well-boring 1900 cc push rod engine. The new Opels were, partly due to the newly developed engine blocks, more efficient than their predecessors. The five gearboxes and the better streamline of course also helped.
Sober, but with options
Opel's quiet realistic approach guaranteed a sober basic version. From the Luxus line, the Rekords have an electrically adjustable exterior mirror. The Berlina has a standard door lock. But Opel did offer a lot of options, including a board computer that kept the driver digitally informed of fuel consumption, the kilometers driven and the time.
The prices now
To put it briefly through the corner: our classics are just worth what the fool gives. And once there was a trader who cheered: "An asking price can never be high enough". A neat Rekord from 1980-1984 can have an asking price of around two mille. Or an 12.600 euro can be requested for an 2.0 S. In both cases you could have a good, very usable car on it. And could something go wrong with such a legendary reliable Opel? Then the parts supply is still top, the parts are affordable and the craftsmanship to work on classic Opel cars is - if necessary - still available.
I think the Ascona was also rear-wheel drive at the time ...
Piet Verhaert, from 1981 the rear-wheel drive was B-Ascona, followed by the front-wheel drive C-Ascona, with new engines.
The Rekord did it with the older blocks, which were also in the B-Ascona, albeit modernized.
Oh well, the Rekord… old buddy Bram's KJ-15-FP was a mint green metallic 2.0S. Basic but with bronze tinted windows, which helped enormously on holiday in France. World car, unfortunately ended in a chain collision on the Van Brienenoord between two white BXs, the front one with a tow bar. Ouch!
Little thing, the 1900 had an overhead camshaft, no push rods, that was the 100 from the old Kadett ..
100 must be 1100
We had a 2.3 diesel caravan, a white one. In 1986 my brother-in-law Hans, my son Peter Paul and nephew Michel went on holiday to Valencia. The women and the rest of the children went by plane. Back, surfboards on it, we went around. The rest went by plane and would be home in Holland for about 6 hours. We thought it would be nice to be home earlier…. Every now and then we got over 21. Then the surfboards broke. It was parked at a gas station and the roof racks off. Occasionally, with false flat, 150 on the counter… .We arrived fifteen minutes after the ladies and the rest. And then it was broken, the other morning ……… head gasket out… ..Then switched to Volvo with a Diesel 170 cylinder, but it was not nearly as fast as the Opel… great car!
My father had an orange combi diesel, with the registration number 36 up 15, I drove a lot of kilometers to the North-East polder.