Sophie Opel in the year of her Wedding 1868
07 November 2018 by Opel South Africa
Humble beginnings
Four years after the death of her husband (Adam Opel ) in 1895, Sophie Opel decided to start producing cars after listening to the opinions of her sons Carl, Wilhelm and Friedrich Opel . Prior to this, the Opel family specialised in the manufacturing of bicycles. What started with a dynamic woman at the helm in a garage in 'Rüsselsheim am Main'
with a few hand-made 'Opel Patentmotorwagen', became the Opel vehicle empire we know today – a remarkable phenomenon with more than 70 million Opel vehicles built to date!
From the very beginning, Sophie Opel championed the cause of producing cars as efficiently as possible, thus offering better vehicles at more competitive prices than its direct competitors. For example, as early as 1924, Opel became the first German vehicle manufacturer to introduce the concept of 'economic assembly line production'. This production method resulted in the Opel 4/12 PS 'Laubfrosch' and all the later OPEL 4 PS variants becoming bestsellers in Europe. The Rüsselsheim-based company already produced technologically advanced vehicles for the masses with the OPEL P4 and the Kadett in the 1930s (the Kadett then already had a self-supporting body). As a result of OPEL's pioneering work, German-engineered vehicles became more affordable and accessible to anyone. Opel even stayed true to this democratising of mobility when developing its first sports car – a more affordable 'dream car' hit the roads in 1968 in the beautiful form of the Opel GT!
Since its early inception, the Opel brand has been playing a leading role in all vehicle segments – models such as the Opel Kadett, Rekord and Kapitän characterised the period of reconstruction and the period of the 'economic miracle'. Thereafter stylish sports icons such as the Opel GT, Manta and Monza followed. During the 1980s and 1990s, models such as Corsa, Astra and Zafira became bestsellers and symbols of reunification. No wonder then that, after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the opening of the plant in Eisenach, Opel became more popular than ever before. The first-generation Astra was produced 4.2 million times between 1991 and 1998 … making it the most popular Opel model ever.
Until this very day, the Rüsselsheim-based carmaker
is firmly anchored in the centre of the European society and offers technologies that are normally reserved for more expensive premium cars. Innovative solutions such as the IntelliLux LED® matrix light in the compact Opel Astra (European Car of the Year 2016 and South African Car of the year in 2017), as well as in the Insignia flagship, the AGR-certified active ergonomic seats (available in ultra-luxury carlines) or the extensive array of assistance systems for more safety and comfort, are all signature elements for Opel .
Four years after the death of her husband (Adam Opel ) in 1895, Sophie Opel decided to start producing cars after listening to the opinions of her sons Carl, Wilhelm and Friedrich Opel . Prior to this, the Opel family specialised in the manufacturing of bicycles. What started with a dynamic woman at the helm in a garage in 'Rüsselsheim am Main'
with a few hand-made 'Opel Patentmotorwagen', became the Opel vehicle empire we know today – a remarkable phenomenon with more than 70 million Opel vehicles built to date!
From the very beginning, Sophie Opel championed the cause of producing cars as efficiently as possible, thus offering better vehicles at more competitive prices than its direct competitors. For example, as early as 1924, Opel became the first German vehicle manufacturer to introduce the concept of 'economic assembly line production'. This production method resulted in the Opel 4/12 PS 'Laubfrosch' and all the later OPEL 4 PS variants becoming bestsellers in Europe. The Rüsselsheim-based company already produced technologically advanced vehicles for the masses with the OPEL P4 and the Kadett in the 1930s (the Kadett then already had a self-supporting body). As a result of OPEL's pioneering work, German-engineered vehicles became more affordable and accessible to anyone. Opel even stayed true to this democratising of mobility when developing its first sports car – a more affordable 'dream car' hit the roads in 1968 in the beautiful form of the Opel GT!
Since its early inception, the Opel brand has been playing a leading role in all vehicle segments – models such as the Opel Kadett, Rekord and Kapitän characterised the period of reconstruction and the period of the 'economic miracle'. Thereafter stylish sports icons such as the Opel GT, Manta and Monza followed. During the 1980s and 1990s, models such as Corsa, Astra and Zafira became bestsellers and symbols of reunification. No wonder then that, after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the opening of the plant in Eisenach, Opel became more popular than ever before. The first-generation Astra was produced 4.2 million times between 1991 and 1998 … making it the most popular Opel model ever.
Until this very day, the Rüsselsheim-based carmaker
is firmly anchored in the centre of the European society and offers technologies that are normally reserved for more expensive premium cars. Innovative solutions such as the IntelliLux LED® matrix light in the compact Opel Astra (European Car of the Year 2016 and South African Car of the year in 2017), as well as in the Insignia flagship, the AGR-certified active ergonomic seats (available in ultra-luxury carlines) or the extensive array of assistance systems for more safety and comfort, are all signature elements for Opel .