Iconic Opel Kadett Superboss driven
By khulekani / on October 14th, 2020 / in Car Reviews, featured
By Khulekani Dumisa
Call it a giant slayer or just the king of the racetrack in its hay days, the Superboss has many fans in the country. In fact, its formula remains admirable to this day and is often missed. Sometimes cars get over engineered and then become out of reach for enthusiasts who absolutely adore them. This was not the case with the 125 kW Superboss, the idea was to go back to basics in order to achieve optimal performance.
Exterior and interior
The Superboss looks simple by today’s standards. In fact, if you didn’t know what it is, its sporty credentials, except for one or two badges, may largely go unnoticed. In a world where oversized bumpers, grilles and wings are the norm, the simplicity of the Superboss is admirable.
Inside, the simple theme continues. When viewed from the prism of what we have become accustomed to today, the Superboss may appear unfinished even. In fact, even by the standards of its glory days, the Superboss was actually stripped of many luxurious features in the interior so as to reduce its weight thus maximising on the power on offer.
That said, the quality is decent and the cabin feels fairly roomy, at least for the driver and front passenger. This is not the case for those attempting to sit on the back bench unfortunately.
On the road
The Superboss doesn’t have a powered steering, so that’s the first big lesson. For a driver who hasn’t experienced this “anti-theft” feature, getting your head around the non-powered steering helps you acquaint yourself with the car. Once that is out of the way, the time to tango with the 2.0L 16V engine comes sooner that you would expect. Made to sound good, even by today’s standards, there is enough juice on tap from early in the rev range. The car just wants to go.
Soberly, its eagerness is not without purpose. This of course is what clinched it its legendary stature on racetracks during its glory days. The car has the ability to attack corners with speed whilst managing to remain planted. The car also manages to stick to the road when going straight and pushing top speeds. Dial this back, the Superboss manages to ride quite well for a car built with the racetrack in mind. It’s actually a classic you could drive every day.