Watch 1,250 HP Opel Kadett Hit 196 MPH as Torque Steering Fights It

That's because the two-liter four-cylinder 16-valve naturally aspirated engine that powered the car had a maximum output of 156 hp. It may not sound like a lot now (though it's still perfectly respectable for a hatchback this size) but was enough to make the Kadett GSi the most powerful model in its segment in the mid-80s.

In fact, Opel had quite a reputation for building great little engines back then, mixing power with reliability and, later on when it became more relevant, reasonable fuel consumption like no other. These days, Opel is just a generic German manufacturer that's part of the French PSA Group (Peugeot and Citroen), but back then it was one of the biggest names in the business.

This particular Opel Kadett you see here, though, has very little in common with the original, despite its nearly stock appearance. A keen eye will spot the covered top part of the grille and the obvious intercooler lurking down below. The Ecotec cover and the engine underneath it are still in place, yet the rest of the engine bay looks anything but stock. There are more thick hoses there than snakes on Medusa's head.

And then the guy prepping the car closes the hood, and we get to see that the engine was being cooled using ice. There's a guy there holding a bottle of beer that comes to see whether enough of the cold stuff fell on the ground to chill his beverage, but quickly realizes how ridiculous he would look and falls back in line.

It's about this time you realize just how weirdly rudimentary the engine/exhaust sound is. That's probably because it doesn't have much of an exhaust system. Well, it definitely has no muffler, and if it did, that little cutout in the rear bumper would have been way too small to accommodate it. Keep an eye out for the wheels, too. It's got alloys, but there's a weird shine about them that gets even weirder when you notice that even the gaps between the spokes reflect the light. And then you realize it's got Perspex wheel caps for better aerodynamics and, if there was any doubt left, you realize you're looking at a very serious rig.

That suspicion is confirmed the second the Kadett starts accelerating. Slowly at first because that's how you have to treat 1,250 hp on a car with front-wheel-drive (assuming the guys at WKT, the tuning company behind the project, didn't do something about that), but once wheelspin becomes manageable, the tuned Opel is able to put all of its might where it counts: on the pavement.

Zero to 62 mph (0-100 kph) comes in just under five seconds, but 62 to 124 mph (100 to 200 kph) is even quicker at 4.61 seconds. That means that 0-124 mph (200 kph) takes less than ten seconds, while 0-155 mph (0-250 kph) is dispatched in 12.2 seconds. As for the 0-186 mph (0-300 kph) sprint, that took a mere 15.72 seconds. If you're up for a giggle, just keep an eye on the needle of that analog speedometer that stops at 155 mph (250 kph). It's almost as funny as watching the whole car dart around the track as the driver tries to contain what must have been some truly monstrous torque steering.