Misplaced Pages

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67-403: It counts the stator multiplication at 3.50:1 as a first gear, and when road speed and the two coupling halves’ speed match, it counts the same gear with fluid now passing straight through the stator as 2nd gear at 2.93 to one. Second gear (or third range) has a ratio of 1.56, and because the fluid coupling is drained for this gear ratio, making the front clutch apply makes this a rare automatic that

134-413: A 2.5-litre engine at the time. Power later increased to 60 PS (44 kW; 59 hp), as better petrol quality allowed manufacturers to increase compression ratios. From March 1951 up to July 1953, Opel built 48,562 cars of this series. In November 1953, Opel launched a completely new Kapitän that was longer and wider than its predecessor. The new generation featured a revised rear live axle ,

201-609: A brief period without a full-sized Opel, the range was replaced by the Senator in 1978. Only 4,976 Kapitän B models were built in 15 months. Fluid coupling A fluid coupling or hydraulic coupling is a hydrodynamic or 'hydrokinetic' device used to transmit rotating mechanical power. It has been used in automobile transmissions as an alternative to a mechanical clutch . It also has widespread application in marine and industrial machine drives, where variable speed operation and controlled start-up without shock loading of

268-409: A change in transmission performance and so where unwanted performance/efficiency change has to be kept to a minimum, a motor oil or automatic transmission fluid with a high viscosity index should be used. Fluid couplings can also act as hydrodynamic brakes , dissipating rotational energy as heat through frictional forces (both viscous and fluid/container). When a fluid coupling is used for braking it

335-465: A flatter roof made the car some 6 centimetres (2.4 in) lower. The P1 was built only for one year. From June 1958 to June 1959, 34,282 were produced, which was fewer cars than the annualized output of either its direct predecessor or of its direct successor. The P2 Kapitän came to market in August 1959 and while it still had the panoramic windscreen, it gained a new grille and a revised body with

402-417: A given fluid coupling is strongly related to pump speed, a characteristic that generally works well with applications where the applied load does not fluctuate to a great degree. The torque transmitting capacity of any hydrodynamic coupling can be described by the expression r N 2 D 5 {\displaystyle r\,N^{2}D^{5}} , where r {\displaystyle r}

469-486: A high production level. The large Opels were never dominating players in their market segment on the same scale as the smaller Rekord and Kadett models, possibly due to the strength of Mercedes-Benz in the big car sector. Nevertheless, the highpoint for the big Opels was 1960 when together the Kapitän and Admiral were Europe's top-selling six-cylinder saloons, with nearly 48,000 sold. In 1964, Opel introduced

536-427: A holding tank outside the coupling. The oil may be pumped back into the coupling when needed, or some designs use a gravity feed - the scoop's action is enough to lift fluid into this holding tank, powered by the coupling's rotation. Scoop control can be used for easily managed and stepless control of the transmission of very large torques. The Fell diesel locomotive , a British experimental diesel railway locomotive of

603-706: A more angular roof and a new rear. It was driven by a stronger new, oversquare 2.6-liter-inline six (bore x stroke: 85 x 76.5 instead of 80 x 82 mm), still of OHV and pushrod design. Carried over were the 3-speed and 4-speed overdrive transmission; the latter was replaced from December 1960 by GM ´s 3-speed Roto-Hydra-Matic automatic. The P2 climbed to a top speed of 150 km/h (93.2 mph), reached 100 km/h (62 mph) in 16 seconds and consumed 12 L/100 km (24 mpg ‑imp ; 20 mpg ‑US ). From August 1959 to December 1963, Opel built 145,618 units of this Kapitän series. No other Opel Kapitän model, before or subsequently, achieved such

670-438: A rear stabilizing bar and slightly enlarged drum brakes. Carried over was the six-cylinder engine, though its compression ratio was raised to 7.0:1, giving 68 PS (50 kW; 67 hp) initially. For 1955, output rose to 71 PS (52 kW; 70 hp) and it was further enhanced to 75 PS (55 kW; 74 hp) for 1956. Like the smaller Olympia Rekord , which somewhat resembled 1953 US Plymouth models (such as

737-470: A total production volume for the version launched in 1939 of 25,374. In addition, 2 were assembled in 1946, and one in 1947, but these were not officially recorded in the statistics. Included in the production total were 248 of the two-seater cabriolets built for Opel by independent coach builders Gläser of Dresden and Hebmüller of Wülfrath in Wuppertal . There would, however, be no resurrection for

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804-537: A two-barrel version of the same, coupled either with a 4-speed manual or Opel's 3-speed automatic transmission. The modernized body was marginally shorter and narrower, by about 5 centimetres (2 in) in both dimensions, but still proved too large and American-looking for European buyers. Production ended in May 1970, as buyers of large cars preferred more equipment and prestige. The more up-market Admiral and Diplomat lived on until July 1976 and July 1977, respectively. After

871-464: Is 3rd range. In the earlier four-speed Hydra-Matic, the "S" or "Super" quadrant (only used by Oldsmobile and floor shift Pontiacs and all 1964 Pontiacs) was actually third gear, allowing 1-2-3 shifts. This nomenclature was also used by Mercedes-Benz with the introduction of the four-speed type-3 automatic transmission. As with the Hydra-Matic, the "L" position was actually 1st and 2nd gears, holding

938-408: Is also known as a retarder . Correct operation of a fluid coupling depends on it being correctly filled with fluid. An under-filled coupling will be unable to transmit the full torque, and the limited fluid volume is also likely to overheat, often with damage to the seals. If a coupling is deliberately designed to operate safely when under-filled, usually by providing an ample fluid reservoir which

1005-565: Is available only at O'Reilly Auto Parts. There were two models of the Roto Hydramatic: the lightweight Model 5 , which weighed 145 lb (66 kg) and had ratios of 3.03, 1.58, and 1.00, and the larger Model 10 , which weighed 154 lb (70 kg) and had ratios of 3.50, 2.93, 1.56, and 1.00. In 1961-62, the "Model 5" was used on the Opel Kapitan , Vauxhall Velox , Vauxhall Cresta and EK Holden . The Roto Hydramatic

1072-481: Is believed Pontiac was made to take Roto in the short wheelbase models ( Catalina, Ventura, Grand Prix) by the Corporation. The reason behind that was Oldsmobile's sales volume alone was not profitable enough to use Roto all by itself, therefore Pontiac was used because at that time Pontiac was having tremendous sales and in fact from 1961 to the end of the decade was number three in sales behind Chevy and Ford. In

1139-527: Is commonplace in virtually all modern 4+speed, overdrive automatic transmissions. The smaller model 5 Roto Hydramatic uses the same principles of operation as the model 10. It is 9 lb (4.1 kg) lighter and much shorter in length — a necessary design parameter considering its placement in compact cars. The model 5 is not related to the "Dual Path Dynaflow " transmission used in the Buick Special and Skylark models of 1961-1963. Buick's Dual Path

1206-474: Is considered by HydraMatic Division as a three speed four range automatic and that is why the shift quadrant is the same between the 4 speed Super HydraMatic and the Four range Roto HydraMatic. The Roto-Hydramatic did not have a conventional fluid coupling or torque converter but had an internal fluid coupling with a torque multiplier (an integral, internal torque converter, as opposed to an external unit). There

1273-506: Is in FULL mechanical lock-up (coupling drained) in second gear. Fourth range the coupling fills, releasing the front clutch makes a ratio of 1 to 1. This transmission, like single and dual range and dual coupling hydramatics, also has the feature of split torque in the transmission, whereby in fourth (or high) gear only 40% to 50% depending on transmission—40% in Roto's case—but because of the design

1340-429: Is not engaged with the impeller, then controlling its fill level may be used to control the torque which it can transmit, and in some cases to also control the speed of a load. Controlling the fill level is done with a 'scoop', a non-rotating pipe which enters the rotating coupling through a central, fixed hub. By moving this scoop, either rotating it or extending it, it scoops up fluid from the coupling and returns it to

1407-453: Is the mass density of the fluid (kg/m ), N {\displaystyle N} is the impeller speed ( rpm ), and D {\displaystyle D} is the impeller diameter ( m ). In the case of automotive applications, where loading can vary to considerable extremes, r N 2 D 5 {\displaystyle r\,N^{2}D^{5}} is only an approximation. Stop-and-go driving will tend to operate

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1474-546: Is transferred from the engine to the input shaft by the motion of the fluid, propelling the vehicle. In this regard, the behaviour of the fluid coupling strongly resembles that of a mechanical clutch driving a manual transmission . Fluid flywheels, as distinct from torque converters, are best known for their use in Daimler cars in conjunction with a Wilson pre-selector gearbox . Daimler used these throughout their range of luxury cars, until switching to automatic gearboxes with

1541-465: The CIH six with an output of 112 PS (82 kW; 110 hp) in 1966 and 1967. Like its more expensive brethren, the Kapitän was reworked in late 1967 and received rub strips, a new ZF steering and a collapsible steering column . At the same time, a new HL (Hochleistung = high-performance) version of the 2.8-liter six became available that put out 140 PS (103 kW; 138 hp). The new KAD

1608-637: The Cranbrook ), the Kapitän used a similar design language. Model year 1956 saw a mild facelift with a more up-to-date grille, bezeled headlamps, larger front indicator lights and revised side trim. The 1956 reached a top speed of 140 km/h (87.0 mph) and consumed 13 L/100 km (22 mpg ‑imp ; 18 mpg ‑US ). From May 1957, a semi-automatic three-speed overdrive transmission with an additional fourth gear became available on request. From November 1953 to February 1958, 154,098 Kapitäns were built. In its time, this generation

1675-490: The Reynolds number . As a fluid coupling operates kinetically, low- viscosity fluids are preferred. Generally speaking, multi-grade motor oils or automatic transmission fluids are used. Increasing density of the fluid increases the amount of torque that can be transmitted at a given input speed. However, hydraulic fluids, much like other fluids, are subject to changes in viscosity with temperature change. This leads to

1742-646: The Rover Group and be renamed the 3500 V-8. The smaller 61-05 as fitted to the Vauxhall Cresta was dubbed the "smoothamatic from Luton " in Cars Illustrated in Feb 1961 being quite taken with the overall refinement with the test car, also noting that full throttle starts could be made on slushy roads, perhaps giving away the rather tall 1st gear and minimal torque conversion. They also stated that

1809-477: The Wright turbo-compound reciprocating engine, in which three power recovery turbines extracted approximately 20 percent of the energy or about 500 horsepower (370 kW) from the engine's exhaust gases and then, using three fluid couplings and gearing, converted low-torque high-speed turbine rotation to low-speed, high-torque output to drive the propeller . Generally speaking, the power transmitting capability of

1876-415: The 1930s. A fluid coupling consists of three components, plus the hydraulic fluid : The driving turbine, known as the 'pump', (or driving torus ) is rotated by the prime mover , which is typically an internal combustion engine or electric motor . The impeller's motion imparts both outwards linear and rotational motion to the fluid. The hydraulic fluid is directed by the 'pump' whose shape forces

1943-420: The 1950s, used four engines and four couplings, each with independent scoop control, to engage each engine in turn. It is commonly used to provide variable speed drives . Fluid couplings are used in many industrial application involving rotational power, especially in machine drives that involve high-inertia starts or constant cyclic loading. Fluid couplings are found in some Diesel locomotives as part of

2010-466: The 1958 Majestic . Daimler and Alvis were both also known for their military vehicles and armoured cars, some of which also used the combination of pre-selector gearbox and fluid flywheel. The most prominent use of fluid couplings in aeronautical applications was in the DB 601 , DB 603 and DB 605 engines where it was used as a barometrically controlled hydraulic clutch for the centrifugal compressor and

2077-435: The 4 speed dual coupling called Super HydraMatic until the end of the 1964 model run. By historical context of comparison, the '50 Packard Ultramatic which was a torque converter applied two speed lock-up design with high and low range for four forward speeds and the '50 Studebaker/Detroit Gear featured a lock-up torque converter with three forward speeds. The lock-up feature of Packard's Ultramatic and Studebaker's DG 250

GM Roto Hydramatic transmission - Misplaced Pages Continue

2144-522: The 61-05 model was discontinued in favour of the Powerglide in 1965. The Roto Hydramatic was a 3-speed, four range transmission, and both the 5 and 10 models worked in a similar way. Opel Kapitan The Opel Kapitän is a luxury car made in several different generations by the German car manufacturer Opel from 1938 until 1970. The Kapitän was the last new Opel model to appear before

2211-555: The Hydramatic design which had a shift quadrant sequence of Park-Neutral-Drive-Second-Low-Reverse (P-N-D-S-L-R) due to the placement of reverse adjacent to a forward gear as opposed to the more common P-R-N-D-S-L sequence found in most other automatic transmissions at the time that placed "reverse" between "park" and "neutral", which was also incorporated in the new Turbo Hydramatic design introduced on Buicks and Cadillacs in 1964, and then other GM divisions in 1965. The Roto Hydramatic

2278-468: The Super Turbines and Turbo Hydramatics that followed it. The shift from 1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3rd range was long and drawn-out, ending with a harsh shift. The reason for this was that three things were happening. Not only was the transmission shifting to a very much higher range ( 2.93 to 1.56, but it was also simultaneously emptying the fluid coupling and making a mechanical lock-up. The wide gap in

2345-718: The Vulcan-Werke collaborated with English engineer Harold Sinclair of Hydraulic Coupling Patents Limited to adapt the Föttinger coupling to vehicle transmission in an attempt to mitigate the lurching Sinclair had experienced while riding on London buses during the 1920s Following Sinclair's discussions with the London General Omnibus Company begun in October 1926, and trials on an Associated Daimler bus chassis, Percy Martin of Daimler decided to apply

2412-505: The cabriolet Kapitäns in 1948 when the saloon version was reintroduced. In October 1948, the Kapitän was reintroduced as Germany's first post- war six-cylinder automobile. It would have made sense to start building the Kapitän a year earlier, as the engine was also used in the Opel Blitz trucks at the time, but the occupation regulations prohibited civilian sales of passenger cars of over 1.5 litres displacement. Initial production

2479-529: The completely new KAD (Kapitän, Admiral , Diplomat ) models; the Kapitän served as the base model of this three-tier model range. It was powered by the same engines as the contemporary Opel Admiral , namely a 2.6- or a 2.8-litre inline-six; a small number of Kapitäns even received the Chevrolet -sourced 4.6-liter V8. For the Austrian market, 580 Kapitän and Admiral models received the 2.5-liter version of

2546-429: The coupling because the coupling drains (four-tenths of a second) to engage or apply the front clutch and so the trans goes to full mechanical connection. The other disadvantage of Roto HydraMatic was the extreme oil pressures in the small 8" fluid coupling, which caused transmission leaks. All HydraMatic transmissions suffer some shift quality with today's ATF fluid. The original "Type A" fluid that these transmissions take

2613-482: The coupling in its least efficient range, causing an adverse effect on fuel economy . Fluid couplings are relatively simple components to produce. For example, the turbines can be aluminium castings or steel stampings and the housing can also be a casting or made from stamped or forged steel. Manufacturers of industrial fluid couplings include Voith , Transfluid, TwinDisc, Siemens , Parag, Fluidomat, Reuland Electric and TRI Transmission and Bearing Corp. This

2680-417: The coupling is only required to carry 40% of the engine torque. The remaining 60% is in full mechanical connection, which made these Hydramatics the most efficient automatic until lock-up torque converter came into widespread use. Roto's disadvantage was the 2-3 range or 1-2 gear change because it is not only a huge ratio jump from 2-3 range or 1-2 shift from 2.93 to 1.56, but also there is no fluid slippage in

2747-545: The dashboard was redesigned and the shifter was relocated from the floor to the steering column. With 55 PS (40 kW; 54 hp), the first post-war Kapitän could reach a top speed of 126 km/h (78.3 mph), needed 29 seconds to reach 100 km/h (62 mph), and consumed 13 litres per 100 kilometres (22 mpg ‑imp ; 18 mpg ‑US ) in the process. Up to February 1951, 30,431 Kapitäns were built. The 1951 Kapitän, introduced in March 1951,

GM Roto Hydramatic transmission - Misplaced Pages Continue

2814-425: The familiar Oldsmobile and Pontiac shift quadrant, P-R-N-D-S-L or P-N-D-S-L-R, the "S" quadrant was for "Super" and not second. This shift arrangement with the "S" only applies to floor shift Pontiacs and all Pontiacs in 1964. In previous Pontiacs including 1963 models with column shift the shift quadrant read 'DR' which refers back to the old Dual Range nomenclature which means drive left is fourth range and drive right

2881-405: The flow in the direction of the 'output turbine' (or driven torus ). Here, any difference in the angular velocities of 'input stage' and 'output stage' result in a net force on the 'output turbine' causing a torque; thus causing it to rotate in the same direction as the pump. The motion of the fluid is effectively toroidal - travelling in one direction on paths that can be visualised as being on

2948-678: The fluid coupling (used for first gear) and the front clutch (used for second gear), which are both applied to provide third gear, effectively locking the planetary gearsets and forcing them to spin at engine speed. The design is unique in that it provides third gear by applying first and second gears at the same time. It can be said that Pontiac Division was probably made to use Roto so as to make Roto worth its money because Oldsmobile division didn't make enough units to justify its existence. Pontiac only used Roto from 1961-1964 in Catalina, Ventura, and Grand Prix. Bonneville and StarChief continued to use

3015-410: The fluid coupling in automotive applications. In automotive applications, the pump typically is connected to the flywheel of the engine —in fact, the coupling's enclosure may be part of the flywheel proper, and thus is turned by the engine's crankshaft . The turbine is connected to the input shaft of the transmission . While the transmission is in gear, as engine speed increases, torque

3082-496: The front. This was the most modern large mass-produced car in Europe during the immediate pre-and postwar years. Competitive Mercedes models with flat, upright, one piece windscreen and external headlamps seemed from another age in spite of their greater prestige value. The result was that this solidly built and comfortable car lost rapidly in value and maintenance effort, with few second-hand buyers being able to afford to tax and insure

3149-461: The gearshifts were so smooth as to be practically imperceptible. The magazine The Motor , Dec 1960, also praised the high standard of smoothness with very lively performance. The performance was claimed to be almost as fast as with synchromesh gears and the 2-3 shift could be so gradual in gentle driving that the driver did not always realise it has happened. Certainly, the examples the author drove were equal to this and it seemed disappointing when

3216-574: The outbreak of the Second World War , developed during 1938 and launched in the spring of 1939 at the Geneva motor show . Production began in November 1938. The first Kapitän was available in many different body styles, the most popular one being the 4-door saloon . 2-door coupé cabriolets were also built. The pre- war Kapitän featured a unitary body, an innovative feature for its time; it

3283-652: The output shaft begins to rotate, the oil is thrown out of the reservoir by centrifugal force, and returns to the main body of the coupling, so that normal power transmission is restored. A fluid coupling cannot develop output torque when the input and output angular velocities are identical. Hence, a fluid coupling cannot achieve 100 percent power transmission efficiency. Due to slippage that will occur in any fluid coupling under load, some power will always be lost in fluid friction and turbulence, and dissipated as heat. Like other fluid dynamical devices, its efficiency tends to increase gradually with increasing scale, as measured by

3350-534: The power transmission system is essential. Hydrokinetic drives, such as this, should be distinguished from hydrostatic drives , such as hydraulic pump and motor combinations. The fluid coupling originates from the work of Hermann Föttinger , who was the chief designer at the AG Vulcan Works in Stettin . His patents from 1905 covered both fluid couplings and torque converters . Dr Gustav Bauer of

3417-436: The power transmission system. Self-Changing Gears made semi-automatic transmissions for British Rail, and Voith manufacture turbo-transmissions for diesel multiple units which contain various combinations of fluid couplings and torque converters. Fluid couplings were used in a variety of early semi-automatic transmissions and automatic transmissions . Since the late 1940s, the hydrodynamic torque converter has replaced

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3484-507: The principle to the Daimler group's private cars. During 1930 The Daimler Company of Coventry, England began to introduce a transmission system using a fluid coupling and Wilson self-changing gearbox for buses and their flagship cars . By 1933 the system was used in all new Daimler, Lanchester and BSA vehicles produced by the group from heavy commercial vehicles to small cars. It was soon extended to Daimler's military vehicles and in 1934

3551-407: The reduction ratio between first and second gears combined with the direct mechanical connection to the engine to create a shift that could be firm enough to lug the engine. Because of the mechanical lock-up, there was sometimes a shudder felt as the transmission shifted into third gear (fourth range) by refilling the fluid coupling. Direct drive (1:1 ratio) is achieved by splitting engine power between

3618-510: The simple fluid coupling is the step-circuit coupling which was formerly manufactured as the "STC coupling" by the Fluidrive Engineering Company. The STC coupling contains a reservoir to which some, but not all, of the oil gravitates when the output shaft is stalled. This reduces the "drag" on the input shaft, resulting in reduced fuel consumption when idling and a reduction in the vehicle's tendency to "creep". When

3685-427: The slope of the rear roof-line, restricted the driver's view out unnecessarily and made the rear doors very narrow: many back seat passengers, once they had negotiated their way onto the back seat had headroom issues. This time, the 2,473 cc six cylinder engine had its maximum output raised to 80 PS (59 kW; 79 hp) at 4,100 rpm. Wheelbase, track widths, length and width were all slightly increased, while

3752-421: The surface of a torus : An important characteristic of a fluid coupling is its stall speed. The stall speed is defined as the highest speed at which the pump can turn when the output turbine is locked and full input torque (at the stall speed) is applied. Under stall conditions all of the engine's power at that speed would be dissipated in the fluid coupling as heat, possibly leading to damage. A modification to

3819-513: The transmissions from shifting above 2nd gear. In Roto the L position meant 3.50 as first range, changing due to 2.93. Roto engineers consider this two driving ranges. On Pontiacs with the exception 1964 model and all floor shift automatics, the shift indicator reads the same for Roto or the Super HydraMatic (dual coupling) and that is; 'DR' drive left and drive right or fourth range left and drive right 3rd range. Remember Roto HydraMatic

3886-400: Was a stylistically slightly modernized version of the old model; technically it was much the same. The engine's compression ratio rose from 6.0:1 to 6.25 to 1, its output from 55 PS (40 kW; 54 hp) to 58 PS (43 kW; 57 hp). From the outside the car was readily distinguished from the first post-war Kapitäns, thanks to an abundance of chrome and a US style grill at

3953-657: Was an air-cooled 2-speed unit with a planetary gearset inside the flywheel-mounted torque converter. The first Pontiac Tempests used a modified version of the Powerglide transaxle shared with the Chevrolet Corvair . But unlike the Corvairs, the TempesTorque was connected via a flexible drive shaft to an unconventional slant-4 (half of a 389 V-8) or an aluminum 215 c.i. V-8, which would be later sold to

4020-447: Was cheaper than the previous Hydramatic, but its slower, softer shifts sacrificed performance for refinement. Owners discovered that it was also less durable than Hydramatic, and was prone to various mechanical problems. The Roto Hydramatic was phased out after the 1964 model year in favor of the two-speed Super Turbine 300 and three-speed Turbo-Hydramatic . As with previous Hydramatic transmissions, auto safety experts criticized GM for

4087-449: Was considerably larger than the predecessor, which proved a hindrance in the marketplace. Sales of the Kapitän A fell sharply off; up to its discontinuation in November 1968 a total of 24,249 cars left the factory. The costlier Admiral and Diplomat models actually sold better. The Kapitän B was introduced in March 1969 and was the last car bearing the Kapitän name. Engine options included a single-barrel carburetted 2.8-liter inline-six or

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4154-496: Was featured in the Singer Eleven branded as Fluidrive. These couplings are described as constructed under Vulcan-Sinclair and Daimler patents. In 1939 General Motors Corporation introduced Hydramatic drive , the first fully automatic automotive transmission system installed in a mass-produced automobile. The Hydramatic employed a fluid coupling. The first diesel locomotives using fluid couplings were also produced in

4221-533: Was no real bell housing ; instead, the Roto-Hydramatic had a kind of flange connecting the transmission to the engine. The power flow from the engine crankshaft to the transmission input shaft was connected via a flywheel containing a set of springs to absorb torsional vibrations at the flexplate . The shifting sequence was very different and much rougher than the Hydra-Matics that preceded it, or

4288-446: Was reserved for the occupying powers , but sales to private customers started in 1949. There was no sign of the wide range of coupé and cabriolet bodies that had broadened the model's appeal in the 1930s: the 1948 Kapitän was offered only as a saloon/sedan, based on the 1939 version. The main differences from the pre-war model were round headlights as opposed to hexagonal ones, as well as improved leaf springs and dampers. From May 1950

4355-588: Was studied by the Soviet engineers and heavily influenced the design of the GAZ-M20 Pobeda . The Kapitän inherited its 2.5-litre engine from its predecessor : in this application a maximum speed of 118 km/h (73 mph) was reported. Civilian automobile production by Opel ceased in the Fall / Autumn of 1940, by which time 25,371 Kapitäns had been produced: a further three were assembled during 1943, giving

4422-545: Was the third-most popular car in Germany behind Volkswagen ´s Beetle and Opel's own Rekord (Oswald, p. 73). The 1958 Kapitän (series P1), introduced in June 1958, was both wider and lower than its predecessor, and featured panoramic windows. It won some plaudits for its American-inspired "dream-car" styling, but there were also critics who pointed out that the extent of the wrap-around front and rear windows, along with

4489-630: Was used in all full-sized Oldsmobile models including the Dynamic 88, Super 88 , Ninety-Eight and Starfire from 1961-1964 as well as the compact Oldsmobile F-85 from 1961-1963. Pontiac used the Roto Hydramatic from 1961-1964 on its shorter-wheelbase full-sized cars including the Catalina , Ventura and Grand Prix , but continued with the older four-speed Super Hydramatic design in the longer-wheelbase Star Chief and Bonneville models. It

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