Photo: Opel
It’s hard to fathom that Opel has such a long and illustrious history, but it really does. A full century ago, these awesome looking machines were at the pinnacle of racing technology. To our eyes, they might look like trash cans with thin wheels, but back in 1914 they were the stuff of legend.
The same year the First World War started, Carl Jörns, Emil Erndtmann and Franz Breckheimer raced Opels at the Grand Prix de Lyon. To celebrate the jubilee occasion, the company is sending them back to the same place in order to recreate that historic day.
Considering how crude cars were back then, the drivers were pretty brave to race them. For instance, the brakes were activated by a lever outside the car and the gearboxes were un-sincronized and had only four speeds. Riding mechanics in the ‘passenger’ seat seat, monitoring the engine and pumping fuel and oil into the system by hand.
Despite that, the speeds they were achieving are impressive even by today’s standards. The 1915 Opel Green Monster had a 12.3-liter engine making 260 horsepower. On track it would be able to achieve speeds of up to 160 km/h (99 mph), which frankly sounds scare for a car with virtually no stopping power.
Considering how crude cars were back then, the drivers were pretty brave to race them. For instance, the brakes were activated by a lever outside the car and the gearboxes were un-sincronized and had only four speeds. Riding mechanics in the ‘passenger’ seat seat, monitoring the engine and pumping fuel and oil into the system by hand.
Despite that, the speeds they were achieving are impressive even by today’s standards. The 1915 Opel Green Monster had a 12.3-liter engine making 260 horsepower. On track it would be able to achieve speeds of up to 160 km/h (99 mph), which frankly sounds scare for a car with virtually no stopping power.
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