Opel Blitz: The "lost" van is resurrected thanks to these photos...

Opel is one of the oldest car manufacturers in the entire automotive sector. Its vital history dates back to before the XNUMXth century began and hence its history is profuse in successes and failures. The reason that to his credit he has endless models that, in one way or another, may be more or less known to the public. However, also he treasures behind him an endless number of secrets that little by little are seeing the light...

One of the models that nobody knew was the Opel Blitz. This is normal, since it had been missing since the 1930s of the last century. This is a van I was looking for offer maximum space without having to offer a large body. Hence, the brand's engineers thought of locating the engine below the cabin following the idea COE “Cab over engine”. Now, she rises from the dead...

The Opel Blitz van was developed in the 1930s and was certainly not released because of World War II...

Vans are all the rage today, but at the time the Opel Blitz was born they weren't that popular. So, in order to draw the attention of potential clients, they endowed their aesthetics with their own elements. They highlight the wheel arches with black protections or the horizontal band that ran through the bodywork. For its part, the cargo area had a wooden floor and the roof was equipped with its own compartmentalized structure.

Under his skin, there were also important innovations. The most unknown fact is that she rode the 1.5-litre petrol engine from the Opel Olympia and the axles came from the Blitz trucks. As a curiosity, in one of the photos you can read the inscription "1.5-23 COE" which refers to the 1.488 cc displacement, the wheelbase of about 2,4 meters and the concept of the cabin on the engine. But this would not be the only version that could have been born.

Opel Zafira Life, the passenger van in sizes S, M and L

Apparently, there is an advertising brochure from 1937 that refers to other commercial versions. One would be a 1,5-ton derivative with dual rear wheels and a 6-cylinder engine. A platform version and another minibus version were also studied, which would eventually have 15 seats but which, like the original, never reached the market. The reason is unknown, but everything points to World War II crossed his path.

In any case, Opel can be satisfied with its legacy Well, you found these photos in your files. They are proof that once upon a time it was a powerful firm that was at the forefront, although later circumstances did not accompany it. And the most important, was a pioneer in the segment of industrial vehiclesthere is nothing...

Source - Opel