Opel Kapitän (Kapitän P1, 1958 to 1959)

The Kapitän P1 was the 1958 generation of the Opel Kapitän, introduced in June 1958 and built for only one year. It was both wider and lower than its predecessor and featured panoramic windows, with American-inspired dream-car styling that won some plaudits. Critics pointed out that the extent of the wrap-around front and rear windows, along with the slope of the rear roof-line, restricted the driver's view and made the rear doors very narrow, so that back seat passengers could have headroom problems. Vauxhall offered a similarly styled car in the Velox and Cresta PA. The 2,473 cc six-cylinder engine had its maximum output raised to 80 PS at 4,100 rpm, and from June 1958 to June 1959, 34,282 were produced.