Opel · 1957–1962

Opel (Olympia) Rekord P1

The Opel Rekord P1 (branded for its first two years as the Opel Olympia Rekord P) was a large family car introduced in August 1957, in time for the Frankfurt Motor Show, by Opel as a replacement for the previous year's Opel Olympia Rekord. It was larger than its predecessor and featured an eye-catching US-style wrap-around windscreen and rear window, reminiscent of its General Motors Luton-built cousin, the Vauxhall Victor F, which had appeared in England a few months earlier. The Opel Rekord P1 sold very well, consistently achieving second place in the West German sales charts, beaten to the top slot only by the smaller and cheaper Volkswagen Beetle. The manufacturer departed from the habit established with the predecessor model of facelifting the front grille and other trim details every year, but the P1 nevertheless experienced a relatively short production run. The P1 was replaced in mid-1960 by the Opel Rekord P2, although the body of the Rekord P1 continued to be offered on the Opel 1200, itself a reduced specification version of the Rekord P1, until 1962. Unlike the modern bodywork, the 1,488 cc OHV four-cylinder water-cooled engine was very little changed since it had first been offered in the Opel Olympia back in 1937. Claimed power output at launch was unchanged from the previous model's 45 PS (33 kW) at 3900 rpm. However, from July 1959 the compression ratio was increased, so that the 1,488 cc engine offered a claimed 50 PS (37 kW) of maximum power. Customers could also specify a larger 1,680 cc engine for which the published maximum power output was 55 PS (40 kW) at 4,000 rpm.

Text from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0).

Predecessor: Opel Olympia Rekord · Successor: Opel Rekord P2

All Opel Rekord P1 data: UK builds, safety, recalls, model years →

Public launch

On 13 August 1957 the Opel Chairman Edward W. Zdunek presented the Opel Olympia Rekord P in the local town hall at Rüsselsheim. The "P" in the name stood for "Panorama", a reference to the view out of the wrap-around windscreen. However, in 1960 the successor model appeared, branded as the Opel Rekord P2, and at this point the car launched in 1957 became known retrospectively as the Opel Rekord P1. At a time when mid-range incomes were expanding fast on the back of West Germany's so called post-war "Wirtschaftswunder" (economic miracle) the Olympia Rekord targeted the family car market, which was also a strength of the mother company in the United States.

Showroom appeal

The panoramic front and rear windows were believed to be copied from recent North American designs such as the latest Special and Roadmaster. Quickly the car was dubbed in the motoring press as the „Bauern-Buick“ (Peasant's Buick), although chief designer Hans Mersheimer was thought to have taken particular inspiration from the 1955 version of the Chevrolet Bel Air. Other unusual features redolent of the new optimism of the age were the two tone paint-work, complemented by two tone interior trim.

Name changes

The 1957–60 Opel (Olympia) Rekord P1 came with different names, depending on date and type. At the 1957 launch it was called the "Opel Olympia Rekord", or, sometimes, the "Opel Olympia Rekord P". The next year a reduced specification 1,196 cc powered version was introduced called simply the "Opel Olympia". In July 1959 the standard model, at the same time as receiving more power, became simply the "Opel Rekord". The cut-price "Opel Olympia" was now stripped even of its former name, being branded from 1959 simply as the "Opel 1200". This stripped down, cut-price version continued to be produced with the Rekord P1 body for over two years after the mainstream model had migrated to the Rekord P2 body. The Opel 1200 was only available with two-door sedan bodywork. It was also offered as the Opel 1500 with a 1.5 litre engine.

Mechanical

The new car received a newly developed front axle with negative camber and a new steering system incorporating paired control arms of uneven lengths. The transmission was a three speed manual system controlled using a column mounted lever. That was a similar arrangement to that on the previous model which had received an all-synchromesh gear box for its final year: for the new model synchromesh was included for all three forward ratios from the beginning. The 1488cc engine had also been uprated for the final year's production on the previous model's production run, and now provided a claimed 45 hp maximum power output at 3900 rpm. Although the P1 changed very little outwardly during its year production run, the three-year period would be characterized by several important changes to the engines and to other mechanical elements.

Body

The car was launched as a two-door saloon in 1957. In 1958 a four-door version became available: a three-door estate and panel van versions were also introduced in 1958. The panel van used the same body as the estate but with the rear side windows replaced with metal windows. Applying the English language statement "It is a car and a van" Opel branded this version as the CarAVan, a name which would continue to be applied to Opel estates, albeit in later years without the eccentric use of upper case letters, for several decades. For this version, the standard three-leaf rear leaf springs were replaced with more robust four-leaf equivalents. The CarAVan was particularly popular with self-employed tradesman, combining most of the driving characteristics of a car with the load-carrying potential of a small commercial vehicle. A small number of cabriolet and coupé versions were also produced by the Darmstadt body builders Autenreith. These are extremely rare. It is thought 25 cabriolets were produced of which 4 survive: 2 of the 3 recorded coupés are also believed still to exist.

Expanding the range downmarket

A year after the introduction of the Opel Olympia Rekord P1, Opel introduced a more basic version of the same car, featuring a reduced bore version of the otherwise familiar engine, to provide an engine capacity of 1205cc. This car had a higher compression ratio of 7.5:1, but the maximum power was nevertheless only 40 hp (29 kW) at 4,400 rpm and torque was also reduced. On introduction this car was branded as the "Opel Olympia", although in 1959 it was rebadged as the Opel 1200. Apart from the reduced name and engine size, this version also made do without most of the chrome adornment which was a feature of the standard Olympia Rekord, and the interior was also simplified.

Sections adapted from Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0); text is shortened. Read the full article for the complete history and citations.

Specifications

name: Opel Olympia Rekord (1957–1959) , Opel Rekord (1959–1960) , Opel Rekord P1 (in retrospect)
Manufacturer: Opel (General Motors)
Production: August 1957 – July 1960 (until 1962 for Opel 1200)
Assembly: Germany: Rüsselsheim, South Africa: Port Elizabeth (GMSA)
Predecessor: Opel Olympia Rekord
Engine: 1,205 cc I4 (Opel 1200), 1,488 cc I4, 1,680 cc I4
Transmission: 3-speed manual
Successor: Opel Rekord P2
Class: Large family car (D)
Body style: 2/4-door saloon, 3-door estate, 3-door van, 2-door pickup (South Africa)