Opel Regent

Opel
Opel stand at the 21st International Motor Show in Berlin in November 1928 with the 24/110 hp "Regent" eight-cylinder car
regent
Production period:	1928-1929
Class :	Upper class
Body versions :	Limousine , touring car , roadster , Pullman limousine
Engines:	Petrol engine 6.0 liters (81 kW)
Length:	5400 mm
Width:	1830 mm
Height:	1760 mm
Wheelbase :	3700 mm
Empty weight :	2200 kg
Previous model	Opel 40/100 PS Opel 21/55 PS

The Opel 24/110 PS Regent is at the 21st  International Motor Show from 8 to 18 November 1928 in Berlin imagined upper class automobile of Adam Opel KG (AG as of December 1928). In some brochures and advertisements, the vehicle was also referred to as 23/110 hp .

history

The Regent was presented by Privy Councilor Wilhelm von Opel at the Berlin Motor Show in 1928 and, as was common at the time, was initially only available as a chassis for a price of 14,000 Reichsmarks (RM). This made the Regent significantly cheaper than the competition with, for example, the Cadillac Series 341 or the Horch 8 Type 500 . As the new flagship of the Opel model range, the Regent was positioned above the large six-cylinder models 12/50 hp and 15/60 hp .

Opel later also offered in-house bodies , namely an open seven-seater touring car for RM 18,500, a roadster for RM 19,000 and a Pullman limousine for RM 20,000. That was roughly the value of ten Opel 4 hp small cars. The prices for special bodies were open at the top.

Fritz von Opel won first prize in a beauty competition in Baden-Baden in 1928 with a Regent Coupé .

In March 1929 General Motors took over 80% of the share capital of Adam Opel AG. Since GM feared too strong competition for the top models of its own brands Cadillac and Buick , all 25 models sold up to then had to be taken back at full purchase price and scrapped - a "unique process in automotive history" ( Eckhart Bartels ). Almost all construction documents were destroyed along with the vehicles produced. Due to the scrapping of all Opel 24/110 hp, there is no museum available. Only a few pictures have survived.

Drive and technology

The Opel Regent had an eight-cylinder in - line engine with 5972 cm ³ displacement ( bore  ×  stroke : 89 × 120 mm), the 110 hp (81 kW) at 3200 min ⁻¹ and 23.6  mkp (231 Nm) at 2800 min ⁻¹ could deliver. This engine was the first (and only) Opel self-designed eight-cylinder in a production car and, according to the sales brochure, was based on a racing engine from 1921. It had pressure lubrication , "oil-guided" valves , a crankshaft with nine bearings , a double- riser carburetor and double ignition . The cylinder head was removable. The cylinder block and pistons were made of cast iron, the crankcase of silumin . The camshaft, alternator and water pump were driven by a roller chain.

The power was transmitted to the rear axle by a multi-disc dry clutch, a three-speed gearbox and a drive shaft with fabric disc joints . The maximum speed was specified as 100 km / h. With the switchable high-speed gear from Maybach , which was available for an extra charge of 1,000 marks , the car effectively had 6 forward and 2 reverse gears, increasing the top speed to 130 km / h.

The Regent had a pressed steel low frame to improve the center of gravity, worm steering , rode on wooden spoked wheels measuring 5 × 20 ″ with low-pressure balloon tires from Continental . There were servo drum brakes on all the wheels , which were operated hydraulically , and the handbrake acted on the gearbox. The front and rear suspension consisted of a rigid axle on semi-elliptical springs and oil pressure shock absorbers ; Body mounting points and the engine were rubber mounted. Because of its weight of 2.1  t - the chassis alone weighed 1550 kg already - he was also with four built-in hydraulic Heberut- jacks equipped.

With a standard body, the Regent was 5.40 m long and 1.83 m wide. The wheelbase was always 3.70 m.

Opel 1.8 liter Regent

→ Main article : Opel 1.8 liters

The name Regent was later also used for the luxury variants of the six-cylinder model Opel 1.8 liter presented in 1931.

literature

• Eckhart Bartels: No empire for the Opel Regent. in: Opel Yearbook 2009. Podszun, Brilon 2008, ISBN 978-3-86133-506-1 , p. 24 ff.
• Eckhart Bartels: The Opel Captain book. Podszun, Brilon 1999, ISBN 978-3-861-33193-3 .
• Passenger car model range 1899–1995. Adam Opel AG, June 1995, ( PDF )
• Marcus Schneider: German automobiles. Edition XXL, Fränkisch-Crumbach 2005, ISBN 3-89736-327-5 , p. 274.

Web links

Opel Regent Pullman limousine
Link to the picture

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Opel Regent Coupé
Link to the picture

(Please note copyrights )

• Info (PDF; 2.3 MB)
• Pictures and brochure excerpt
• Open touring car (illustration)
• Entry in the oldtimer lexicon on carsablanca.de

Individual evidence

1. ↑ 24 tax hp / 110 hp nominal
2. ^ Advertisement in the Straubinger Tagblatt from Tuesday, November 23, 1928
3. ↑ 20,000 RM, adjusted for inflation, corresponds to approx. 71,500 euros in today's currency. The figure was based on the template: Inflation determined, rounded to 100 EUR and applies to the past January.
4. ↑ ^{a b c} sales brochure "Opel eight-cylinder"