What’s it like to drive a vintage Opel? My test of Omega B

It’s not every day you get behind the wheel of a car from the past, let alone a car that even had a famous deity on the owners list. Our colleagues at Motor1.com Germany have tried one Opel Omega B (plate HH-MS-2900) which belonged to world boxing champion Max Schmeling (1905-2005), a huge Opel fan all his life.

The Opel Omega B that Schmeling gave himself in the mid-nineties is full optional and has an a gasoline V6 da 3.0 liters. At that time, there was nothing better in Rüsselsheim. A super Omega with a 5.7-liter V8 was planned, but the project was stopped shortly before market launch due to unsolvable transmission problems.

So let’s take a step back in time and go back to the year in which the Omega A as heir to the Rekord E, which had achieved great success (around 1.4 million units produced), and the Commodore C, which had already been discontinued four years earlier.

The Omega “A”

Initially available only as a “notchback”, the “Car of the Year 1987” (later followed by an “estate” version called Caravan) has a newly developed chassis with semi-driven rear axle and disc brakes on all four wheels. wheels.

The bodywork has a low aerodynamic drag coefficientequal to 0.28, which, together with the relatively low weight (this Opel weighs only 1,150-1,370 kg), translates into excellent driving performance with low fuel consumption. The A is also available with six-cylinder engines. However, those who want even more until 1993 can, in the good old KAD tradition, opt for the Senator B, which runs in parallel.

In May 1993production of the Senator B ends after six years and only 69,943 units produced. The Omega A was withdrawn in the summer of the same year and in Rüsselsheim they opted for a new model: the Opel Omega B.

Old school meets modern look

Il April 29, 1994 the new edition of Omega is launched. The even more rounded shapes of the car are strongly reminiscent of the concept car Aurora introduced by Cadillac in 1990 (without realizing that the Omega B would later also be available as the Cadillac Catera).

And so, even after 30 years, the model still looks pretty modern. This is due not only to the wedge-shaped silhouette, but also to the white turn signals at the front and the colored, red rear lights.

The rear lights with colored lenses

The front with headlight cleaning system

Wedge-shaped silhouette with classic cutout on the back

Compared to the Omega A, the B has grown above all in length: 4.90 meters instead of 4.74 metres. The width has increased by two centimetres, to 1.78 metres, while the height has grown by approximately one centimetre. Alone the pace remains constant at 2.73 metres. And when the steps don’t change, many technical characteristics are identical.

For example, during the generation change the chassis is strengthened and an airbag system is introduced as standard, however otherwise the B is an old-style Opel and the manufacturer’s latest model with rear-wheel drive.

The basic engine continues to be the a 2.0-liter four-cylinder with 116 HP. There is also a 16-valve version with 136 HP. However, the previous inline six-cylinder petrol engines will be replaced by newly developed V6 engines.

Initially, the 2.5-liter engine with 170 hp and the drive is planned 3.0 liter with 211 HP in Max’s top-of-the-range MV6. A curiosity: initially a 2.5-liter turbodiesel of the M51-D25 type with 131 hp, purchased from BMW, is used. The six-cylinder engine was only supplemented by other compression-ignition engines starting in 1997.

The Motor1 test

Once on board we notice that some components are reminiscent of a Corsa B or an Astra F. However, the Omega has a significantly greater amount of leather, briar wood and an army of buttons on the dashboard and center console typical of the time.

Opulent interior with leather and briar

The highlights of the equipment are: the dual-zone automatic climate control with digital display, the provision for telephone vehicle, the roller blind for the rear window, the heated seats, the split rear bench, the electrically adjustable seats with memory function and the on-board computer.

The latter, however, cannot display much more than the date, time and fuel consumption or range.

We sink into the soft leather seats and immediately find a sporty and comfortable position. Him too external rear-view mirrors they are fast and electrically locked, but then the first obstacle… the steering wheel. It cannot be adjusted in height or depth. Hard to imagine nowadays.

Once you turn the ignition key the V6 with light alloy heads and four valves per cylinder comes to life with a sonorous and extremely pleasant purr. We push the selector lever of the 4-speed automatic transmission to “D” and a shock passes through the entire vehicle. This is how the top-of-the-range Omega signals unequivocally that it is ready to go.

The centerpiece: the 211-hp 3.0-liter V6

So let’s go. Let’s do some laps on the roads of the plant Opel, some of which are very bad, and we realize with amazement that in Rüsselsheim they were able to build rather good and comfortable chassis. By the way, the power steering is smooth.

After the city traffic we arrive on the highway and press the sports button on the exchange. The automatic switches to second gear, the engine becomes noisy (but not unpleasantly so) and the 211 hp and 270 Nm impressively demonstrate, after two more very comfortable gear changes, that they are capable of exceeding 200 km/h.

Opel Omega B, the road test by Motor1.com

The end of Omega

And here we are at the end, when production of Omega B ends in June 2003. In nine years, 797,011 units were produced. There A signoffered from February 2003 to July 2008, is intended to replace the Omega, but due to its platform size and estate-like silhouette, among other things, it is perceived as a new type of vehicle.

The Omega B Caravan is replaced by Vectra C Caravan which, like the Signum, has a wheelbase 13 centimeters longer than that of the Vectra sedan. However, KBA classifies both vehicles only in the middle class.

In 2003 it appears the name Insigniabut only in November 2008 was it used for the successor to the Vectra, also close in size to the Omega, while remaining a mid-range model.

And here we ask ourselves: Which Opel would Max Schmeling drive today? Until 2022, perhaps he would have chosen an Insignia B Grand Sport in the 2.0 Turbo 4×4 GSi version with 230 HP. Now perhaps he would opt for a Grandland, fully electric and with 213 HP. Maybe…

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