Javi Martin
Before talking about Opel Tigra, let's make some reflections. We have traveled more than 20 years of the XNUMXst century, and the utopian future that we were promised does not appear anywhere. We have not set foot on the Moon for more than 50 years, cancer is still the deadliest disease humans have ever faced and cars don't fly. It is true that great progress has been made in countless things, but it is very striking that there are many things that remain the same as 30 years ago.
What has changed in all this time? The mobile phones are like computers small - we could define them as portable multifunction devices -, televisions are getting bigger every day, but thinner and social media has made people a little more idiotic. Inexplicably, vehicles are still driven under the influence of alcohol and drugs or without fastening their seat belts. It seems that in some sections we are regressing...
HAVE THE CARS CHANGED?
If we look at cars, in this invention that stars so many dreams and moves so much money annually, things are not very different. What has changed in 30 years? Basically, the cars are the same: they burn fossil fuel through an internal combustion engine, which also remains basically the same - pistons, connecting rods, crankshaft, spark ignition, made of metals. They tread the ground with rubber wheels filled with air, spring suspensions, friction brakes, control by pedals and a steering wheel.
Has evolved in the use of fuel, although it is still very low - 40 or 41% -, the design and manufacturing of components has evolved and the quality of materials has improved. In addition, countless screens have been added to the cabin, throwing away all types of ergonomics and creating a whole festival of lights that bother driving when night falls.
Many will think about hybrids, electric cars or autonomous driving, but that does not change the fact that, in reality, the automobile has only evolved in terms of quality of materials, design and production processes, and, above all, in technological content. And if there is anyone who doubts all that, here is a piece of information: The Opel Tigra has turned 30 years old, 30 years!
YOU CAN LEGALLY RECEIVE HISTORICAL REGISTRATION
What differentiates the small Opel Tigra from any modern vehicle? It is not very complicated to answer: technology and everything related to design and production. The design could even be valid with a few small tweaks such as LED lighting, slightly larger wheels or a couple of screens in the cabin. Any of the 1.2 PureTech versions that Opel now uses after integrating into Stellantis, They could put Tigra in the spotlight.
The Tigra is, legally, a classic car, or, rather, it can already be registered as historic, although at first glance, for many, it is just an “old car”. And that “old car” feeling is due precisely to what was said at the beginning: today's cars are basically the same as those of 30 years ago. The Opel Tigra still looks modern, but it is actually a classic car, if we accept that classic cars will never be the same again. They should almost be treated as “new classics”.
OPEL TIGRA: SMALL COUPÉ WITH SPANISH BLOOD
The first time we were able to see the Opel Tigra was on the occasion of the Frankfurt Motor Show of 1993. The brand presented it as concept car, which actually hid the car that would reach production with hardly any changes. Next to it, the Opel Tigra Roadster, a type version speedster tremendously interesting that was never manufactured. Without a doubt, the Roadster was a car to attract attention.
One year after its presentation, Production of the Tigra started in Figueruelas, in Zaragoza, where all the units that were manufactured of the charming German coupe came from. Specifically, they assembled 256.392 cars between 1994 and 2001. In 2004 the Tigra name would be used again for a convertible with a metal roof, the Opel Tigra TwinTop, but it had nothing to do with the original model.
For the development of this small coupe, at Opel they followed a method well known in the Rüsselsheim house. Just as they did in other cases such as Opel Manta -based on Ascona– or with the Opel Calibra -based on the Vectra-, the Tigra also took as its starting point a model already in production: the Opel Corsa B. It was the second generation of the utility vehicle that had begun marketing in 1993. In fact, the relationship with the Corsa B is one of the reasons why its manufacturing took place in Figueruelas, since the utility vehicle was also assembled there.
However, to say that there was kinship between the two models was an understatement. The Opel Tigra It used the same rolling frame as the Corsa -platform, engines, suspensions, brakes- and a large part of the cabin, such as the front seats, including the dashboard, steering wheel, door panels, seats, pedal bracket and gear selector. It was almost a Corsa B with a different body, work of Hideo Kodama and his team. He ended up at General Motors in 1966, working with Erhard Schnell and Chris Bangle. Hideo also designed the Corsa B, the Opel Corsa C and the Opel Agila, before leaving General Motors in 2004.
COMPLETELY DIFFERENT
Even if the Tigra was a Corsa with another “suit”, it was almost impossible to detect a relationship between the two, beyond, obviously, the brand that signed them. They did not share a single body panel, although the front turn signals and the door handles were identical, and the latter were common in almost the entire Opel range. A look at the technical sheet revealed some similarities, such as the wheelbase of 2,44 meters or the width of 1,60 meters. However, the Tigra was longer - 3,91 meters versus 3,73 meters - and lower - 1,34 meters versus 1,42 meters.
When the door was opened and the cabin was accessed, the kinship with the Corsa B was total, basically, because all the elements were the same, as previously mentioned. If you put a person in the Tigra, and then put them in the Corsa, always without seeing the outside, they would not even know that they would have changed cars.
However, An analysis of the rear seats would demonstrate a radical change. To say that the Tigra had rear seats would be being kind to the car, since, in reality, you had some areas with a light upholstery, placed directly on the carpet, with a backrest that repeated the same recipe. In this case, it was attached to the plastic piece that separated the trunk from the passenger compartment. Maybe it should be defined more as a 2+2.
ALMOST WITHOUT RIVALS
When we talk about the Opel Tigra, everyone inevitably thinks of its rival, the Ford Puma. Not in vain, both cars represent the same car concept: a coupe based on a utility vehicle, with simple engines, relatively complete equipment and a price within the reach of many users.
They even had a certain air if you looked at them from the side, although the Tigra was a little more bland compared to the Puma. This one sported aOne of the best interpretations of the “New Edge” design that Ford trained with the Ka and characterized all North American firm models during the end of the 90s and the first stages of the XNUMXst century.
In the category of these small coupes there was a Japanese model, which had also arrived on the market before those mentioned here: the Toyota Paseo. The Japanese coupe had been launched on the market in 1991, but arrived in Europe in 1996, after the success of the Opel Tigra and the Ford Puma, although it was somewhat larger than these two. The Paseo had a length of 4,16 meters and, in addition, The design was very different, closer to a classic coupe, a two-door sedan. The Japanese man's features were also less youthful and sporty, although he was not lacking in charm.
Although the Tigra and the Puma showed that the concept had a place in the market, no other manufacturer ventured with a similar model. If we except the aforementioned Toyota Paseo or the Renault Megane Coupe, which many place it in the same category - due to length it would be an option, but it is built on the platform of a compact car, not a utility vehicle- They were alone in a segment that they themselves had created -in Europe, of course-.
OPEL TIGRA ENGINES
The fact that it had hardly any rivals and its economical and simple approach made it the mechanical offer was very limited, both in options and features. Evidently, the engines were also borrowed from the Opel Corsa B, and did not stand out for their figures, although they did stand out for a good overall result.
The entry engine was the 1.4 naturally aspirated block - had not yet reached the trend of turbocharging everything - which produced 90 HP and 125 Nm of torque. As the maximum exponent, the 1.6 engine from the Corsa GSi, which reached 106 HP and 148 Nm of torque. The transmission was manual, but there was a four-speed automatic as an option in some markets - has anyone ever seen an automatic Tigra? With the most powerful engine, The Tigra boasted a speed of 203 km/h, which was not bad at all for its size and aspirations.
However, although it was a quite interesting coupe by design, at heart it was an Opel Corsa, with everything that entailed. So, The tests of the time criticized an improvable suspension which allowed a lot of body movement, which diminished poise and a sense of security. Starting in 1997, the Opel Tigra -and the Corsa- mounted suspensions revised by Lotus, gaining dynamism and poise in curves. However, the 106 hp engine was removed from the catalog in 1998, so the improvements were not fully exploited.
There is no doubt that It was a nice car and not very expensive., since its base price was 2.045.000 pesetas -12.291 euros, which plus inflation would be equivalent today to approximately 25.319 euros-, but, as we have already said, only Ford with the Puma seemed interested in the proposal.
OPEL TIGRA V6, A CRAZY PROJECT THAT NEVER CAME TO PRODUCTION
Opel had been under the protection of General Motors for decades and as we saw with the Opel Kadett and his many lives, The Tigra also ventured into other markets stamped with other logos. For example, it was sold as Chevrolet Tigra in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico, although only for about three years - in Mexico only one - and its sales were very limited. Obviously, in the United Kingdom it was not Opel, but Vauxhall and the option of putting the Pontiac seal on it and marketing it in the United States was considered. The step was never taken because its small size and limited features made it unsuitable for that market.
And since we're talking about considerations, the Opel Tigra served as the basis for some crazy ideas. Leaving aside the speedster which was presented as a prototype in 1993 -Opel called it the Roadster-, A Tigra was created with a V6 engine placed just behind the cabin. Plus, it was a 6-liter V3 from the Opel Omega, so a lot of changes had to be made.
The Corsa platform It was never designed to house an engine in the rear center position., there was not even the intention of using engines that exceeded 1.600 cubic centimeters. The idea of the project was to study the potential of the model and it was nothing more than that, a study, because It didn't make sense in the range and because its price skyrocketed to unacceptable and unjustifiable levels. Furthermore, the Opel Speedster It was already in development.
Place the engine behind the seats It meant redesigning the entire back of the platform, as well as adding reinforcements to the structure. The front axle was taken from the Opel Vectra - although modifications were made - and the fuel tank was placed under the front hood. A crazy idea with 211 hp and 270 Nm of torque, propulsion and, although performance figures were not published, This engine launched the Omega up to 243 km/h. We are not going to deny that it would have been a toy, but something like the British Ford Racing Puma, with its 155 HP and an almost racing setup, would have been much more logical and very interesting.
THE REAL V6
If there was a Opel Tigra with 6-cylinder V mechanics, although it never set foot on the street and had all-wheel drive. This was the model developed for the Andros Trophy, which had the shapes of its body from the Opel Tigra, since that championship is run with “silhouette” type cars, with a steel tube chassis, a central engine of between 350 and 400 HP and all-wheel drive. He was also seen in the Autocross championship.
