The German rocket & the cookie jar 🚀🍪 | 1957 Opel Olympia Rekord | Classic Chassis

Hey Guys,
In today's video I'm presenting You a 1957 Opel Olympia Rekord, which has been driving in Hungary since new! This is quite a phenomenon, since during the Communist period cars from outside the Soviet sphere of interest were difficult to obtain. Most commonly, such 'Western cars' arrived in the country, aka Hungary, by relatives sending them as 'gifts' from abroad. Since these Western machinery qualified as unique and status symbols, only high profile individuals owned them, e.g. doctors, engineers, architects, artists, etc.
Opel had been producing the Olympia since the 1930s, and, by the 1950s, was second to the most upscale model, the Kapitän. The name Olympia and Rekord tend to divide people, as their origins are most commonly unknown. The truth is, that the term 'Rekord' was originally used on the upscale Olympias, replacing the name of the commonly used 'DeLuxe' trim option. This should come as no surprise, as during the 20th century Opel was a subsidiary of american giant, General Motors, which often turned trim options into their seperate models. Take the Chevrolet Bel Air for example. 'Bel Air' started its life as the name of the pillarless, hardtop version of coupes, but in 1953 it became its own make and was the most successful Chevy of the Fabulous Fifties! American design elements of the Olympia include the 2 dr limousine, aka tudor bodystyle, fins, and the annual redesign of the cars body.
As I previously said, this very Olympia Rekord has been driving hungarian roads since new. On the one hand, it makes the car very special and gives it a high sentimental value, on the other hand, this is what makes it diffult to 'keep alive'. It's owner, Balázs A. told us, that he's dug up so many alien parts through the years, he could put together another car from them.
He also talks about his and his family's reaction to the car, who unanimously see it as a chubby little boy, who's just layed eyes on a cokkie jar. It's registration just adds to this appeal, as 'LMR-' could be read out as 'Elemér', a name often associated with young boys with a bit of extra weight.
If You's like to find out more about this survival class vintage, a close rival of the contemporary Volkswagen Beetle, or You're just curios how Balázs and his best friend came up with the idea that this '57 Opel resembles a chubby boy, check out our video!
If You're a fan of '50s cars, check out our video of Balázs' 1957 Plymouth Savoy limousine!
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