Opel is celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Opel Corsa B Edition 25, an important milestone for the automotive world and the brand's history.
Having been producing in Eisenach, a city associated with automotive production, for over 30 years, the lightning-bolt brand was among the first companies to invest in the new federal states when Germany was reunited in 1990. Since then, Opel has achieved countless successes with the "Made in Eisenach" label, and in November 1999, Opel rolled off the assembly line the one millionth vehicle produced at its plant in the state of Thuringia, the black Opel Corsa B Edition 100.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, Opel officials immediately recognized the potential offered by the traditional automotive industry in Eisenach and took action. As early as March 1990, Opel supported the economic development of the State of Thuringia by founding Automobilwerk Eisenach (AWE) and the company Opel-AWE-Planungs-GmbH. Just two days after the official reunification of Germany, on 5 October 1990, the first Opel Vectra rolled off the production line at the AWE plant.
The foundations of the new plant were laid in Eisenach in February 1991. After a construction period of just 19 months and a total investment of around one billion German marks, the new Eisenach plant began production of the Opel Astra in September 1992. This success was followed by the first Opel Corsa with the "Made in Germany" badge rolling off the assembly line on 3 June 1993.
Opel production in Eisenach expanded rapidly from that point onwards. Due to high demand, production in the first half of the 1990s was focused on the Corsa, a popular small car at the time. The Corsa was so popular that just nine years after production began at the plant and just six years after the first Corsa was built in Eisenach, the one millionth Opel rolled off the production line. In November 1999, exactly 10 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, a black Corsa “Edition” with 65 hp (48 kW) rolled off the final assembly line in Thuringia and headed for its buyer in Regensburg, Bavaria.
The new Opel Grandland, which made its world premiere at the Eisenach plant earlier this year, is now also being produced here. Significant changes and adaptations were made to the plant before production. The new Grandland is the German manufacturer’s first model based on the ultra-modern STLA Medium platform for electric vehicles, with a battery capacity of around 74 kWh, enabling an emissions-free range of 504 kilometres (WLTP) and an urban range of around 623 kilometres. Opel invested 130 million euros in the Eisenach plant to prepare it for production of electric models, creating a true “electric factory” through various developments. Significant changes were made to the production process, with modifications made to many areas from the body shop to the final assembly department. In addition, the entire conveyor system was adapted. The body shop was fully automated, and state-of-the-art camera systems were installed in various areas for detailed inspection. A new battery shop was also set up to carry out the assembly of the Grandland Electric’s battery packs. Special training was given to high-voltage specialists for this task.
