Opel Ascona: Тарихы мен жетістіктері

The Opel Ascona is a large family car (D segment in Europe) that was produced by the German automaker Opel from 1970 to 1988. It was produced in three separate generations, beginning with rear wheel drive and ending up as a front wheel drive J car derivative. The Ascona took its name from the lakeside resort of that name in Ticino, Switzerland, and already in the 1950s a special edition of the Opel Rekord P1 was sold as an Opel Ascona in Switzerland, where the name was again used in 1968 for a locally adapted version of the Opel Kadett B into which the manufacturers had persuaded a 1.7 litre engine borrowed from the larger Rekord model of the time. The Opel Ascona A launched in 1970 and sold across Europe was, however, the first mainstream Opel model to carry the name departing from Opel's long standing convention of using German naval rank designations for its models
The Ascona was introduced in September 1970, lasting for 18 years and 3 generations and ended production in August 1988, to be replaced by the Opel Vectra A. The second and third generations of the Ascona were developed as global platforms by Opel's then parent General Motors, with various derivative versions manufactured by other GM divisions around the world. In motorsport, Walter Röhrl won the 1982 World Rally Championship drivers' title with an Ascona 400.

From 1971 to 1975, the 1.9 liter Ascona was exported to the United States as the "Opel 1900" and sold through Buick Opel dealerships. All three body styles were offered at first, but the four door sedan was dropped after 1973. In 1974, heavy rubber clad impact bumpers were added in response to federal regulations. All Opels sold in the US in 1975 were equipped with Bosch L Jetronic fuel injection, which was not available on the European versions. The fuel injection was added because of the stricter emissions requirements that were in force that year. The compression ratio was dropped to 7.6:1, enabling the car to run on 91 octane unleaded gasoline but also lowering maximum power to at 4800 rpm. Due to the unfavorable Deutsche Mark to US dollar exchange rate, all Opels in Buick showrooms were replaced by Japanese built Isuzu Geminis wearing Opel badges after 1975.

First shown at Frankfurt in September 1979, the Ascona 400 was a homologation special sold only to make it eligible for rallying's Group 4 category. The Ascona 400s were built at General Motors' plant in Antwerp. The 1980 world champion Walter Röhrl took the rally car to victory and won the World Rally Championship drivers' title in the 1982 season. The car was developed by Opel alongside the Manta B 400 model which consisted of the same changes. Irmscher and Cosworth were hired as partners for the project, Cosworth to deliver a 16 valve double cam crossflow head for the engine, and Irmscher for the exterior and interior styling. Cosworth delivered the heads to Opel and Opel soon discovered a major mistake. The plan was to use the 2.0 litre engine block but this did not produce enough power. Time was running out and Opel badly needed to do something. Opel took the 2.0E block, installed forged pistons, different connecting rods, and forged crankshaft with 85mm stroke. The result was a 2.4 litre engine. The 2.4 litre engine gave rise to some massive power outputs using the 16 valve head. The street versions of the 400 therefore came with engines, using the Bosch fuel injection of the Manta GSi and GT/E series. However, in race trim they were delivered putting out , which could be improved further to , while still using normally aspirated engine components. Irmscher delivered the rally trim for the exterior. Large and widened wings, light weight hood, front wings, rear boot lid and doors were also installed. By 1984, the Audi Quattro appeared more powerful than ever and the Ascona 400 was rendered obsolete. But the Ascona 400 still has some remarkable records. The Ascona 400 was the last rear wheel drive rally car to win the drivers' world championship, ensuring its place in motorsports history.

In Brazil, the Ascona C was sold from May 1982 until August 1996 as the Chevrolet Monza. Chevrolet did not use the Ascona brand because the Spanish and Portuguese word "asco" means "disgust, repugnance". Instead, it was named after the famous Italian circuit. It was originally only available as a three door hatchback, a body style unique to Latin America. However, two and four door sedans appeared in March 1983. GM do Brasil also considered offering the Monza as a station wagon, and produced two full size clay models, one with five doors and one with three doors, with a similar rear to the Holden Camira in Australia, which was also used as the basis of the Vauxhall Cavalier in the UK, but it never entered into production. However, Envemo began converting the four door Monza sedan into a station wagon called the Camping, although it retained the rear doors and taillights of the sedan. Envemo also converted the two door Monza sedan into a convertible. In 1989 the slow selling liftback was discontinued, leaving only the two and four door three box sedans. Originally it was available with either a 1.6 or a 1.8 engine with These were changed to more powerful 1.8 and 2.0s in 1986. In Venezuela it was assembled and sold from 1985 to 1990. Originally it was equipped with a carbureted 1.8 litre engine, but this was later replaced with a fuel injected 2 litre unit.