Information AboutOpel Ascona |
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| opel vehicles | |
| ascona | |
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ASCONA A In the fall of 1970 , Opel presented its completely new vehicle range in Rüsselsheim (internal project code 1.450). The Opel Manta Coupé was launched on September 9, followed by the Opel Ascona on October 28 in two and four-door Sedan forms, plus a three-door Station Wagon , called the Caravan or Voyage. These models were positioned between the existing Opel Kadett and the Opel Rekord . The Opel Ascona was developed to as a competitor to the successful Ford mid-sized car, the Taunus ). The Opel Ascona A stayed in production until 1975 . At that time, almost 692,000 vehicles of the first series were produced. The range featured petrol engines from 1.2 L to 1.9 L, with power between 60 PS (44 kW) and 90 PS (66 kW). The 1.2 L had an OHV head, while the 1.6 L and 1.9 L adopted SOHC . All used a single barrel Carburetor . Even with this simple design, the Ascona 1.9 SR had a successful career in motorsports, with Walter Rohrl winning the European Rally Championship in 1974. Tuner Steinmetz developed a special version of the Ascona SR, with two single-barrel Solex carburettors, lifting power to 125 PS (92 kW). A small number were exported as the "Opel 1900" to the United States, sold through Buick dealerships as the Buick-Opel. They were eventually replaced by versions of the smaller Opel Kadett . Range:
ASCONA B The second generation Opel Ascona B was presented in the 1975 Frankfurt Motor Show . It was available as a two or four-door sedan. There were related two and three-door coupé models in the Opel Manta range. There was no estate body. The Ascona B retained the same engine range as its predecessor, although the 1.9 L was increased to 2.0 L in 1978, and versions with higher Compression Ratio and needing 98 octane gas, dubbed S, were available alongside the 90 octane models. The 2.0 SR and model had standard Fuel Injection , and a Diesel motor was added to the Ascona B range in 1978 . In the United Kingdom , the Vauxhall Cavalier badge was used on both Saloon and coupé models, which came out of the same factory in Belgium —the first Vauxhall to be built abroad. The front ends were different, featuring Vauxhall's trademark "droop snoot", as designed by Wayne Cherry . A version of the Ascona B, featuring the front end of the Manta B, was sold in South Africa as the Chevrolet Chevair . This was in addition to a Chevrolet Ascona, identical in most respects to the Opel. Over 1.2 million Ascona B units were produced worldwide until 1982. Range:
ASCONA C The Ascona C, part of General Motors' J-car Project , was launched in 1982 and switched to Front-wheel Drive . The range added an option of a five-door hatchback bodystyle, named CC in a few markets. The cars were also available in the UK as the Vauxhall Cavalier. The old Cavalier Coupé was phased out, though the Opel Manta was retained in the UK — the last car to be badged as an Opel in the UK before it was deleted in 1987 . There were no longer sheetmetal differences between the Opel and Vauxhall models after 1982. All engines were now SOHC. The base model was the 1.3 L introduced in 1978 in the Ascona B, with 60 PS (44 kW), followed by a 1.6 L with 75 PS (55 kW). S versions with higher compression ratio had power increased by as much a 20 percent. The top of the line was the sporty GTE model, with Electronic Fuel Injection , pushing power to 130 PS (96 kW). Diesel power came from an Isuzu-developed block, with 1.6 L. Catalytic Converter s were optional in the larger petrol units starting from 1986. Once more, there was no Station Wagon version of the Ascona C. Only Vauxhall in the UK brought in the rear ends of the Holden Camira wagon and adapted them to the Cavalier. There was also no coupé version in Europe. A version sold in Brazil, known as the Chevrolet Monza, included a locally designed three-door coupé. Opel continued to use the Ascona nameplate until the Vectra was launched in 1989 , although the Cavalier name was retained by Vauxhall until 1995 . Range:
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