Built on a stretched Rekord, the Senator carried the flagship role through two generations, a Monza coupe, a Comprex diesel and a 24-valve six.
The Opel Senator was a full-size executive saloon from German maker Opel, sold in Europe from 1978 until 1993 across two generations. It had a coupe sibling called the Monza and served as the flagship for both Opel and Vauxhall. The second generation was a longer-bodied version of the Opel Omega.
Between 1978 and 1993 the German maker sold its large executive saloon in two generations. Its fastback sibling, the Monza, gave the range a coupe body, and the Vauxhall Royale name served British buyers for a time. For its whole life the Senator was the flagship saloon for both Opel and Vauxhall.
The car's name shifted from market to market, with Chevrolet, Daewoo and Yugoslav versions joining the story. Its mechanical base was a stretched Opel Rekord, and its engines ranged from fuel-injected sixes to an unusual supercharged diesel.
Where did the Senator come from?
The Senator replaced Opel's KAD cars, the Kapitan, Admiral and Diplomat, which had sold poorly in the full-size luxury segment. It was built as a long-wheelbase Opel Rekord E, and it filled the flagship role that Vauxhall had abandoned when the Ventora was axed with no direct replacement.
The Senator A was part of a General Motors programme that built common platforms for its European brands. The V-Car platform, also known as V78, underpinned the car, and it gave Opel and Vauxhall a shared base for their larger models.
A stretched Rekord with a supercharged diesel and police-spec sixes, the Senator held Opel's flagship role for fifteen years.
Why did Vauxhall need the Senator?
Vauxhall had left the full-size segment when the Cresta and Viscount ended, and the Ventora was its last luxury derivative. The Senator gave the British brand a flagship again, although the Royale was largely a badge-engineered version of the car.
Unlike several other joint Opel and Vauxhall models of the period, the Royale carried only detail differences from its German sister. British buyers were therefore getting the same basic car under a different badge, which was a simple and direct way to fill the gap.
Branding then changed again after the 1982 dealer merger. The Opel marque was repositioned as a performance-luxury brand, and the Royale was dropped in favour of the Senator and Monza before the policy was reversed for 1985.
What were the Senator and Monza called in other markets?
The Senator A and Monza first went on sale in the United Kingdom as the Vauxhall Royale. Vauxhall used the Royale name until 1983, and the Senator later returned to Vauxhall branding for the 1985 model year. In South Africa a Chevrolet Senator filled the gap left by the Caprice Classic.
The Senator also left its mark in Australia and New Zealand, where the Senator and Rekord E formed the base for the Holden Commodore. Daewoo in South Korea sold the car as the Imperial and the Royale, and the Royale Salon Super used the complete Senator bodyshell.
In Yugoslavia the car was sold as the Opel Kikinda, after the Serbian town where IDA-Opel built it under the licence arrangement that made local production possible.
Why did the Monza matter?
The Monza was a three-door fastback on the Senator's platform, intended as a successor to the Opel Commodore coupe. It stayed an Opel until its discontinuation at the end of 1987, and the A2 Monza was never sold as a Vauxhall.
The coupe gave Opel a sporting alternative to the saloon. Although it shared its mechanical package with the Senator, its shape and purpose set it apart in the showroom.
How did the Senator A's engines develop?
The launch engine was the 3.0E, which made 180 PS (132 kW; 178 hp) and 248 Nm (183 lb ft) with fuel injection. The three-speed automatic was Opel's own design from 1969, built in Strasbourg, and it was modified to cope with the stronger engines.
The 2.5E arrived in June 1981 with 136 PS (100 kW), and the 2.8S was discontinued in 1982. The cam-in-head straight-six design stayed in use until the 2.4 Frontera appeared in 1993, which gave the engine family a long working life.
With the 3.0 engine the Monza was the performance flagship, reaching 215 km/h (134 mph) and 0-100 km/h in 8.5 seconds.
What changed with the A2 facelift?
The facelift arrived in November 1982, and the A2 car went on sale in March 1983. Smoother bodywork cut the drag coefficient from 0.45 to 0.36.
A fuel-injected 2.0-litre four made 110 PS (81 kW), later rising to 115 PS, and a 2.3-litre turbodiesel arrived in March 1983.
The 2.5E gained LE-Jetronic injection in 1984, raising power to 140 PS (103 kW). The 2.2E replaced the 2.0E, and the 3.0E was renamed 3.0i. A four-speed automatic replaced the three-speed unit in 1985.
What was the Comprex diesel?
The Comprex was a supercharged diesel that went on sale in 1985. It made 95 PS (70 kW) and a 172 km/h (107 mph) top speed, and it was the only production car in the world to use supercharging of that kind at the time. Irmscher built it rather than Opel.
Irmscher's involvement shows how Opel used specialist tuners for limited projects. The same approach produced the 4-litre Senator later, a car built to the same tuning philosophy.
Only 1,000 units were planned, and the Comprex delivered a twelve percent acceleration gain over the turbodiesel. Its torque came early, with 90 percent of the maximum available from 1300 rpm. The engine was a rare experiment rather than a volume product.
Was there a four-wheel-drive Senator?
Ferguson, which had earlier worked on the Jensen FF, engineered a four-wheel-drive conversion for the Senator. It could be retrofitted to an existing car and used a viscous coupling with a 60/40 rearward bias.
The system was expensive, but it aimed to improve traction without losing the Senator's handling. A limited-edition convertible was also built in Germany by Keinath, which reinforced the car heavily and added weight in the process.
Who else used four-wheel-drive Senators?
Ferguson's conversion found use beyond the showroom. BRIXMIS, the British mission to the Soviet forces in Germany, used four-wheel-drive Senators for collecting technical intelligence. Bitter Cars also adopted the same kit for a four-wheel-drive version of its SC coupe.
The conversion was therefore more than a dealer option. Its use by a government intelligence operation shows how seriously the engineering was taken.
How was the second generation related to the Omega?
Its second generation was the Omega, lengthened to produce a larger flagship. The first generation had been built the same way on a lengthened Rekord, so the model followed a consistent engineering pattern.
That approach let Opel reuse proven mechanical parts. It also explains why the Senator's character was tied to the mid-size cars beneath it.
What did the Senator B bring?
The Senator B arrived in the spring of 1987 as a longer-bodied Opel Omega, and there was no Monza version. Early models used twelve-valve 2.5 and 3.0 litre engines, and the CD model added electronic adjustable suspension, the ERC system that was a European first in a mass-produced car.
The CD car also offered air conditioning, heated seats, walnut panels, cruise control and a trip computer. Buyers could choose a five-speed manual or a four-speed automatic from Aisin-Warner, with Sport, Economy and Winter programmes.
The automatic used torque retard on each shift to smooth gear changes. The ZF-Servotronic steering matched the BMW 7 Series, and the front axle was designed to slide under the car in a crash, which protected the footwell.
How did the 24-valve six perform?
The 24-valve 3.0 arrived in 1989 with 204 PS (150 kW; 201 hp), compared with 177 PS (130 kW; 175 hp) for the twelve-valve. Its Dual Ram intake raised low-speed torque by redirecting airflow, and the system engaged at 4,000 rpm.
For drivers who spent much of their time in town traffic, the low-speed boost was the most useful part of the design. The Dual Ram system gave the big six a stronger feel from a standstill than its power figures alone might suggest.
UK police forces adopted the car in numbers, with the Metropolitan Police the notable exception. Police-specification cars could reach 140 mph (230 km/h), although the bonnet was prone to rippling at that speed.
What happened in the Senator's final years?
Irmscher offered a 4-litre version in 1990 with 272 PS (200 kW). The 2.6-litre Dual Ram replaced the 2.5 for 1990, and the twelve-valve 3-litre was deleted from the range in 1992.
Output slumped as the Omega took over the upper market. Annual production fell from 14,007 in 1990 to 5,952 in 1992, with only 2,688 cars built in 1993. Senator B production totalled 69,943 cars before the car was withdrawn in autumn 1993.
The Omega's arrival made the Senator's position harder to justify, and the output figures show a steady decline rather than a sudden collapse. Each year brought fewer orders, and the final model years were built for a shrinking market.
The UK government ordered around 200 Vauxhall Senators in 1993 for diplomatic and policing use, ahead of the second-generation Omega, which was available from March 1994.
What options did the Senator B offer?
Many features were optional on the Senator B, including leather seats, heated seats front and rear, and LCD instrumentation. Electronic air conditioning with a refrigerator in the glove box was also available, which showed how far the luxury specification had gone.
Standard equipment was generous too, and the ZF-Servotronic steering that matched the 7 Series was part of that package. Buyers who ordered the full options list could build a well-equipped luxury saloon.
Those extras made the Senator B an alternative to the German luxury saloons of the period, even though its basic layout came from the Omega.
Specifications at a glance
The table below lists the key figures for the main engines and versions. Where a value belongs to one version only, the table names it so the figures do not blend together.
| Version | Key figures |
|---|---|
| Senator A launch (3.0E) | 180 PS (132 kW; 178 hp); 248 Nm (183 lb ft); fuel injection |
| Monza 3.0 | 215 km/h (134 mph); 0-100 km/h in 8.5 seconds |
| 2.5E (1981) | 136 PS (100 kW); 140 PS (103 kW) after LE-Jetronic in 1984 |
| 2.0-litre four | 110 PS (81 kW), later 115 PS |
| Comprex diesel | 95 PS (70 kW); 172 km/h (107 mph); 1,000 units planned |
| Senator B twelve-valve 3.0 | 177 PS (130 kW; 175 hp) |
| Senator B 24-valve 3.0 (1989) | 204 PS (150 kW; 201 hp); Dual Ram at 4,000 rpm |
| Irmscher 4-litre (1990) | 272 PS (200 kW) |
| Drag coefficient, A2 facelift | 0.45 reduced to 0.36 |
Frequently asked questions
How quick was the Monza's 3.0 engine?
The 3.0 Monza accelerated from 0-100 km/h in 8.5 seconds, and it was then the fastest car Opel had built. That performance made the coupe the marque's sporting flagship, with power and handling that set it apart from the saloon.
How many second-generation Senators were built?
Production of the Senator B reached 69,943 cars by the time it ended in autumn 1993. That total covered the second generation from its launch in 1987, including the final years when annual output had fallen sharply.
Where was the Opel Kikinda built?
The Opel Kikinda was built by IDA-Opel in Kikinda, Serbia, and sold in Yugoslavia. Production there was a local arrangement, which made the car part of the wider Opel family across the region. The name came from the town itself.
Did the Senator ever run on diesel?
Yes. A 2.3-litre turbodiesel arrived in March 1983, and the supercharged Comprex diesel followed in 1985. The Comprex stood alone among production cars of its time, which made it a rare experiment in the range.
