Opel Kapitän
Every Opel Kapitän generation in the Burbles catalogue — complete specs, rarity tiers, interactive 3D cards, and the collectors who have spotted them on the street.
- Lineage Span
- 1938–1970 8 generations · 15 published trims
- Power Evolution
- 54 → 99 hp Base lead-trim output across eras
- Catalogue Rarity
- 8 Legendary 8 Legendary
All 8 Opel Kapitän Generations
Each generation deals in its rarity tier’s alloy with its engine disc, lead specs, and first spotter record. Click into any generation for full trims and market figures.
Opel's last Kapitän flopped hard — only 4,976 were built in 15 months, as buyers of big cars kept choosing the pricier Admiral and Diplomat for more prestige instead.
Opel's staid German flagship had an unlikely heart option: a small run of Kapitän A sedans could be ordered with a Chevrolet-sourced 4.6-litre V8.
Opel built 145,618 of this Kapitän in just over four years — more than any Kapitän before or since, making the P2 the best-selling generation the nameplate ever had.
The Kapitän P1's showy wraparound glass and American-style roofline looked like a dream car, but it cost the driver visibility and left the rear doors oddly narrow.
This Kapitän outsold almost everything else in 1950s Germany — only the Beetle and Opel’s own Rekord beat it.
A bold claim that still holds up: the 1951 Kapitän was the most modern large mass-produced car in Europe during the immediate pre- and postwar years.
Opel's six-cylinder engine for the postwar Kapitän was ready a year before the car actually launched — Allied occupation rules banned civilian sales of any car over 1.5 litres until October 1948.
This Kapitän’s unibody construction was advanced enough that Soviet engineers studied it — and its influence shows up in the GAZ-M20 Pobeda.
Collectors Who Spotted the Opel Kapitän
No member has published a public street spot of the Opel Kapitän yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Opel Kapitän Generation-by-Generation Comparison
Lead figures across every published generation, newest to oldest. Select any generation to inspect all trims and engine options.
| Generation | Years | Tier & Rarity | Engine | Power & Torque | 0–60 mph | Weight | Trims | First Spotter |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kapitän B (1969–1970) | 1969–1970 | Legendary | 2.8L I6 | — | — | — | 1 trim → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän A (1964–1968) | 1964–1968 | Legendary | 2.6L I6 | 99 hp · 134 lb-ft | — | — | 5 trims → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän P2 (1959–1963) | 1959–1963 | Legendary | 2.6L I6 | 89 hp · 139 lb-ft | — | 2,954 lb | 1 trim → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän P1 (1958–1959) | 1958–1959 | Legendary | 2.5L I6 | 79 hp · 128 lb-ft | — | 2,888 lb | 1 trim → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän (1953–1958) | 1953–1958 | Legendary | 2.5L I6 | 67 hp · 122 lb-ft | — | — | 3 trims → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän (1951–1953) | 1951–1953 | Legendary | 2.5L I6 | 57 hp · 106 lb-ft | — | 2,734 lb | 2 trims → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän (1948–1951) | 1948–1951 | Legendary | 2.5L I6 | 54 hp · 105 lb-ft | — | 2,712 lb | 1 trim → | Unclaimed |
| Kapitän (1938–1940) | 1938–1940 | Legendary | 2.5L I6 | 54 hp | — | — | 1 trim → | Unclaimed |
See a Opel Kapitän on the street, point Burbles at it, and that generation’s card goes in your binder with your own photo and serial number. Own one? Add it to your garage in the app.