MEET THE OWNER – STEVE LLOYD AND HIS OPEL COLLECTION

Many readers who live near Milford Haven will know the Vauxhall dealer W P Lewis & Son. Their managing director Steve Lloyd is also the custodian of four very rare cars that hail from when his family’s company was an Opel franchisee.

In 1967 Opel started UK imports for the first time since 1938. It initially seemed an illogical decision for General Motors, given Vauxhall’s role in their empire. However, as The Telegraph of 13^th September 1967 reported, “The two companies are already in competition in over 100 markets, in line with the competitive philosophy of GM”.

Furthermore, Opels then bore no resemblance to their Luton and Elsmere Port counterparts. The 1963-1966 Viva HA may have been closely based on the Kadett A, but by 1967 the two marques looked entirely different. This state of affairs lasted until GM decided in 1973 that Vauxhall’s future lay in modified Opel designs.

That was also the year that GM’s compact T-car project made its bow as the Opel Kadett C. Vauxhalls Chevette version would not make its bow until 1975, and Steve’s example is a 1.2S coupe “with 52,700 miles. It was sold by my grandfather, Mr W P Lewis, in 1979 and I am the 2^nd owner”. Vauxhall did not offer a Chevette coupe, which meant the Kadett occupied a unique marketing niche - compared with the Opel, a Ford Escort 1300 Sport Mk. II was transport for a Medallion Man.

When Steve’s grandfather sold the Kadett, Vauxhall’s sole locally-designed product, the Viva HC, was about to cease production. The remainder of their line-up was clearly Opel-based, and a dealership merger took place three years later. Those of us of a certain age may recall the “Your Friendly Local Vauxhall Opel Dealer” television commercials -

Yet the Opel always seemed to be slightly upmarket of its British counterpart. Take, for example, Steve’s handsome Rekord E, compared with the Vauxhall Carlton. Both were strong rivals to the Ford Granada, but the Griffin-badged offering always seemed to convey an air of shopping at Carrefours every Friday and a visit to the Angus Steak House every other Saturday. Meanwhile, the Opel belonged to a world of regular dining at a chic trattoria.

Steve’s Rekord dates from 1982 and is a 2.0 Auto Berlina estate with 48,170 miles. “It is very rare as I have not found another”. His Opel certainly lives up to the brochure’s promise of “space with style”, for it is a rather handsome station wagon. The D was also Opel’s final Rekord, as the Omega replaced the name in 1986.

Possibly the best remembered Opel in this country is also the last of their cars to be marketed in the UK – the Manta B. UK sales ended in 1987, and Steve is the proud owner of a Dolphin Grey 2-litre three-door. It is also the highly desirable Exclusive version, with Opel promising the buyer “A winning combination of rally-bred handling and fuel-injected power”. Autocar thought it was “a real value for money package”, and the Lloyd Manta has covered just 95,200 miles. “It was also sold by us new, and I am the 2^nd owner”.

Finally, we have the grand tourer that made Ford Capri 3.0 Ghia drivers envious, and Reliant Scimitar GTE owners consider visiting their nearest Opel showroom. It is, of course, the Monza. It made its bow in 1978 and was only available in the UK in fuel-injected 3.0-litre form to differentiate it from the 2.8-litre Vauxhall Royale coupe.

Motor Sport found the Monza’s chassis behaviour excelled “to the degree that makes it outstanding even in the company of its compatriots BMW and Mercedes”. Steve’s rather stunning example is a 3.0 E automatic “with 70,825 miles - a great sports tourer of its day” In 1981, Car magazine noted, “Why do some coupe buyers pay so much more money for cars which can do so little better than a Monza?”.

Above all, the entire Lloyd collection is a reminder of a time when the Opel name denoted understatement, good taste and integrity. Plus, as one sales campaign put it, “Better by Design”.

With Thanks To: Steve Lloyd and https://www.wplewisandson.co.uk/