A Souvenir of the Occupation.
When the German occupiers finally left Denmark in 1945 they left behind many vehicles that had been both brought or commandeered as military property. The car above is one such vehicle, we refer to the Opel Six, not the bright red off roadster)!
This is a 1935 Opel Six, 2 door saloon. The number on the bodywork is 20108. Not to be confused with the "Super Six". It remained abandoned and untended until 1947, when it was registered by a painter and used as his daily transport until 1967. It has been repainted once, very poorly, in a greyish colour. From 1967 until 1975 it stood as an exhibit in a small automobile museum in Stenderup. It was then acquired by a collector and disappeared from sight until the current owner acquired it.
He had been "after" the Opel for several years and in 2008 managed to purchase it from the now elderly owner, who was aged 80. This collector had amassed a collection of some 30 cars and 18 motorcycles, and the Opel did not look as if it would ever be restored by him.
Currently the car is a non runner, but very complete and original. In some places the "dunkelgelb" paint is visible beneath the drab grey paint. Also, as if any further proof were needed of it's former masters ownership the new owner has the 1947 motor certificate, which cites the car as being "Tysk Efterladenskab" in other words a "German relic".
As no unit markings or otherwise have thus far come to light, it is now to undergo restoration back to "Wehrmacht" use, as a Fallschirmjäger vehicle of Normandy "invasionfront" vintage.
This is being done as an "homage" to internet Fallschirmjäger guru, Gregory Way, as well as wanting to honour those Green Devils.
In reality the Opel may have had a far more sinister past, the area the car came from (Aarhus), was a Secret Police hotspot. So the original owners may have been either Gestapo or HIPO!
If any of our Danish visitors recognise the Opel or better still they have photographic evidence of its wartime past please get in touch with us. We hope to post further photos once the restoration is complete.