Opel Speedster

Opel
Opel Speedster 2.2 (2001-2004)
Speedster
Production period:	2001-2005
Class :	Sports car
Body versions :	Roadster
Engines:	Petrol engines : 2.0–2.2 liters (108–147 kW)
Length:	3786 mm
Width:	1708 mm
Height:	1117 mm
Wheelbase :	2330 mm
Empty weight :	870-930 kg
successor	Opel GT

The Opel Speedster is a roadster from Opel , which was offered from March 2001 to July 2005.

The Speedster is based on the Lotus Elise , was manufactured in the Lotus factory in Hethel , England , and is called the Lotus Type 116 in-house . The British Opel sister company Vauxhall sold it as the Vauxhall VX 220 .

In March 1999 the car was presented at the Geneva Motor Show . The first Speedster left the Hethel factory in March 2001 as a silver model with the 2.2 liter naturally aspirated engine. In the film comedy Viktor Vogel , also from 2001, the subject of the plot was the Speedster, which Opel used for marketing in its in-house magazine Start (01/2001 issue).

A quota of 10,000 vehicles was originally planned for series production. Since demand did not meet expectations, production was discontinued on July 22, 2005 after 7207 copies.

The last vehicle produced was a black Vauxhall VX 220 Turbo with the chassis number 7998. The last Opel Speedster was a silver-colored turbo model with the chassis number 7970. The 789 unused chassis numbers are due to the fact that after the appearance of the 2.0-liter turbo almost no vehicles with the 2.2-liter naturally aspirated engine were sold.

Speedster 2.2

Rear view

Subfloor

Characteristic of the Speedster are its spartan interior, the low height of 111.7 cm, the acceleration (0-100 km / h in 5.9 seconds) and the sporty driving characteristics. The top speed is 217 km / h, the curb weight only 870 kg, the maximum payload 205 kg.

The inline four-cylinder Ecotec engine (Z22SE) with 2198 cm³ (2.2 l) displacement of the Speedster has an output of 108 kW (147  hp ) and a maximum torque of 203 Nm. He was also in the Zafira A , Vectra B and C and the Astra G used. The engine is installed transversely in front of the rear axle, so 63% of the weight is on the driven rear wheels. The wheels are individually suspended from double wishbones , and the four disc brakes are internally ventilated.

The chassis is made of aluminum, but largely not welded, but screwed / riveted and glued, which gives the vehicle a high level of rigidity. The sub-floor is completely covered. The non-self-supporting body is made of glass fiber reinforced plastic . A fabric roof in black, red, blue or green was standard, and a hardtop made of GRP was also available at an additional cost . An alarm system and an adjustable lumbar support in the bucket seats, which could be ordered either with black fabric or with leather in red, black, beige, blue or green, were also standard.

The Opel Speedster has no spare wheel (not even a spare wheel), but a puncture spray to seal tire damage.

The occupants are protected by an integrated roll bar . In addition, a driver airbag is integrated into the 32 cm Momo steering wheel, there is no front passenger airbag.

The only electronic means is ABS , on traction control and power steering will be omitted. The throttle valve is electronically controlled, the gearbox is shifted manually via cables and the steering is a rack and pinion steering .

The Opel Speedster was available in black, calypso red, british racing green and colmar blue. A two-layer brilliant paintwork in yellow, a two-layer metallic paintwork in silver and two-layer mineral effect paintwork in mandarin, European blue, rabid red, cap bar red and Le Mans green were also available for a surcharge.

The base price in 2000 was 63,500 DM (32,500 €). The trunk, accessible through a small opening, holds 206 liters of luggage.

In order to make the vehicle, which tends to oversteer over the rear in the limit area , easier to drive for a wider audience, the front of the Speedster was only delivered with 175 tires on 5.5 × 17 rims. In normal operation, this tends to lead to understeer , i.e. the car pushes over the front wheels. Precisely because of this, however, the Speedster is difficult to control during rapid load changes, since it suddenly changes from understeer to oversteer. Many Opel Speedsters were therefore equipped with different tires.

Speedster 2.0 Turbo

Opel Speedster 2.0 Turbo (2003-2005)

Rear view

From September 2003 there was a 2.0-l turbo variant (Z20LET, 1998 cm³ displacement, compression 8.8: 1, bore and stroke 86 mm each) with 147 kW (200 hp) and 250 Nm maximum torque. At the end of its construction period, the Speedster was offered exclusively with this engine, which was also available in the OPC models of the Zafira- A and Astra G (sedan and caravan ) as well as in the Astra-G coupé and convertible. The weight of the car increased to 930 kg, partly because of the heavier engine. It accelerates the vehicle from 0 to 100 km / h in 4.9 seconds and the top speed is 243 km / h.

The turbo variant had a more neutral chassis, different wheels, a water-oil heat exchanger , a front grill without a bar and side panels with exposed air inlets and a rear spoiler to reduce lift. There are also differences in the front headlights, rear lights (black inside instead of silver) and the hardtop. Because of the turbocharger on the mid-engine , the trunk in the rear was slightly smaller.

The interior has been upgraded: In conjunction with leather seats available at an additional cost, the gearshift console and the inner door panel of the Speedster Turbo were also covered with leather. The turbo instrument cluster had a shift lamp, an LCD bar display instead of the digital display for the tank content and a slightly modified design. The new price for the base model of the Turbo was 36,500, later 36,865 euros.

Vauxhall derivatives VX 220 / VX 220 Turbo / VXR 220

In the United Kingdom, the Speedster was sold under the name Vauxhall VX 220 (2.2 liter displacement) and VX 220 Turbo (2.0 liter displacement) with almost the same appearance. The obvious differences were limited to the different logos and type designations on the vehicle. Initially, the same engines were used as in the Opel Speedster, followed by the sportiest series version at the end of 2003, the Vauxhall VXR 220 (162 kW / 220 PS and 210 lb ft / 285 Nm) with a more powerful version of the turbo engine, Lotus sports seats, Speedline -Alurädern (front axle 16 or 17 inches -Rädern on the rear axle), semi- Slick tires of Yokohama , matched ABS , and optionally a Öhlins - Gewindefahrwerk . The VXR models were consecutively numbered and limited to 65 pieces (whereby a number 00 was also made for the Vauxhall Museum), 61 or 62 pieces were delivered in the color Calypso red and one vehicle each in the colors Moonland Gray , Brilliant Yellow , Chagall blue and sapphire black .

In 2004, a Speedster relabelled Daewoo was exhibited at Seoul Airport , but this model was never sold in Korea.

Technical specifications

	2.2 Ecotec	2.0 turbo
Construction period:	03 / 2001-09 / 2004	09/2003–07/2005
Motor type:	Gasoline engine
Engine type:	In-line engine
Engine code:	Z22SE (L61)	Z20LET (L70)
Engine charging :	-	turbocharger
Cylinders / valves:	4/16
Displacement:	2198 cc	1998 cc
Max. Power at speed:	108 kW (147 hp) 5800 rpm	147 kW (200 hp) 5500 rpm
Max. Torque at speed:	203 Nm 4000 rpm	250 Nm 1950-5300 rpm
Drive type:	Rear wheel drive
Gear type:	5-speed manual transmission
Empty weight:	945 kg	1005 kg
maximum payload:	205 kg	145 kg
Acceleration 0-100 km / h:	5.9 s	4.9 s
Top speed:	217 km / h	243 km / h
Fuel consumption over 100 km, combined:	8.6 l super	8.5 l super
CO 2 emissions, combined:	206 g / km	202 g / km
Emissions standard according to EU classification:	Euro 3

Special models / studies

Opel Speedster "Scorpions"

Opel Speedster "Scorpions" (guitar is shown on the price tag)

There was a special version of the Speedster Turbo limited to 60 “ Scorpions ”, named after the Hanoverian band of the same name . This variant differed only visually from the normal Speedster (black painted wheels, black instead of silver window frames, "Speedster Scorpions" instead of "Speedster Turbo" lettering on the rear and "Scorpions" lettering instead of the engraved four-digit limit number on the dashboard). The Scorpions version, only painted in silver metallic, was delivered with a Gibson Flying V electric guitar , which the band had signed, as well as almost complete equipment (floor mats, footrest, black leather interior, hard top, central locking and CD radio). Adjusted for equipment, the price advantage was 3765 euros compared to a normal turbo. The list price for the special version was 39,995 euros.

This collaboration between the Scorpions and Opel came about on the occasion of a concert in May 2003 in Rüsselsheim . Quote of the guitarist Rudolf Schenker : "The next day we met with some of the superiors at a dinner and it was suggested to us that Opel a special model of the Speedster . Would do with our name on it" Schenker introduced then contact with Gibson ago and so every buyer got "a Flying V signed by all band members packed in the back seat (sic!)". Schenker cited the reason that he was a guitar fanatic .

Eco Speedster

Eco Speedster at the IAA 2003

In addition to the production version of the Opel Speedster was at the 2002 Paris Motor Show also, from a 1.3-liter common rail - diesel engine introduced driven study. The so-called Eco Speedster had a top speed of 250 km / h and consumed 2.5 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers. In a 24-hour test drive in July 2003, the Eco Speedster set 17 international records. There was a dramatic finale 55 minutes before the end when the vehicle drove into the pits with electronics problems and the engine did not start again. The driver team, which had set 16 of the 17 international records by then, decided to push the Eco Speedster the last lap. The final driver finally drove the record vehicle across the finish line using starter power.

Related models

Lotus Europa S

The engine of the Speedster Turbo is also used in the Lotus Europa S presented in 2006 . Many other components are the same as those of the Opel or have been further developed. The Europa S is designed less Spartan and is marketed as Gran Turismo by Lotus.

Opel GT

From a marketing point of view, the Opel GT introduced in early 2007 is considered the successor to the Speedster. However, it is based on the Kappa platform of the GM parent company (like Saturn Sky , Pontiac Solstice and Daewoo G2X ) and has a conventional sheet steel body with a front engine and, with an empty weight of 1406 kg, is significantly heavier than the Opel Speedster.

present

According to the KBA , 1090 Speedster 2.2 (key number 419) and 350 Speedster Turbo (key number 493) were still registered in Germany on January 1, 2013 .

Web links

Commons : Opel Speedster  - Collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

1. ^ Opel: Vehicle Chronicle Volume 3: 1991–2012, pp. 51–52
2. ↑ PDF brochure Opel Speedster special model "Scorpions". (PDF) Opel, accessed on October 8, 2018 . 
3. ↑ Passenger car inventory on January 1, 2013 by manufacturer, trade name and selected features. (PDF) In: Statistische Mitteilungen des Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt FZ 2, January 1, 2013. Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt, July 2013, p. 94 , accessed on May 13, 2015 .