Why do we use the word vauxhall for cars in Uk whilst the rest of the worls uses opel?

Answer 1

Vauxhall and Opel used to be seperate companies- Vauxhall being a British firm.
Both were bought up by general motors, who combined the manufacture of the two companies, so they were really one maker producing one range of cars.
The reason that the Vauxhall name is used in the uk, is that Vauxhall cars were very well known and popular in the UK, with a good reputation; whereas Opel were very much a minor player in the UK market; it made good business sense to stick with a brand name people knew and trusted.
From what Lululuau is saying, I would infer that GM also bought Holden in Australia so that they could use that name for Opel cars there. Its all about brand awareness.

Answer 2

'fifilapoo' (above) is correct... The name Vauxhall comes from the name of the company which eventually produced the first Vauxhall car. The company was called the Vauxhall Iron Works, based in South London in an area of that name. Later, the name was changed slightly to Vauxhall Ironworks Company Limited. In Germany, at around the same time, Adam Opel founded the Opel car company. Eventually, General Motors of America took over the two companies as part of their world wide corporation. Opels are now confined to German models and Vauxhall to the UK versions. But the models are essentially the same vehicles. [NB In the 1970's, Opels were available in the UK alongside Vauxhalls (I had an Opel Manta Berlinetta 2.0 at one time). The Opels of that era always looked slighty more aesthetically pleasing than the equivalent Vauxhalls. I think it was the 'noses' that did it!] As some one has already pointed out, not all the world uses the name Opel - for example, Holden is the antipodean name, and there are many 'badges' in the USA, all owned by GM.

Answer 3

The Opel brand is used in most of Europe, Russia and South Africa. The Vauxhall brand is used in the UK only. Some models are also badged Holden for Australia and New Zealand or Chevrolet for South America.

Originally Vauxhall and Opel were separate companies, based in the UK and Germany respectively. In the 1920s and 1930s both became part of General Motors. During the 1970s they started to collaborate on models, but with some styling differences, and both brands were sold in many markets.

During the 1980s GM Europe decided to produce identical models for both brands, and therefore only one brand was needed in each market. The Opel brand was the better-selling of the two in all markets except the UK, so it was retained in those markets and Vauxhall was withdrawn.
In the UK, Vauxhall was (and still is) one of the best selling brands in the country, and Opel was a low-volume brand, so the Vauxhall brand was retained for the UK.

Answer 4

Vauxhall was an indipendent motor manufacturer.They started in England at a factory called folks hall works,near Luton.As production rose the main contributor of money(Lord Vauxhall) changed the name to his.It stayed Vauxhall even though it is now owned,and has been since about the 30s, by General Motors
GM kept the brand name of Vauxhall,because it was a familiar brand name in the UK,as did Opel in Europe,and Holden Australia.

Answer 5

Vauxhall Holden

Answer 6

It's a question of national brand awareness. Vauxhall is a long-established British brand, Opel similarly for Germany, Holden in Australia and, I think, Saab now in Sweden.. General Motors now owns the lot, but they keep the brand names the countries are familiar with.

Answer 7

Its the factory they are made/badged in. And also market research. Some names just dont work in some Countries.
I remember my old Dad saying that after WW2, It would have been pretty hard to get good sales on a car with a German name like Opel.
I tend to think that Holden sounds tougher than Vauxhall, anyway. *grins*

Answer 8

Just for the record Emma B, Not all of the rest of the world call there Vauxhall's Opel's. In Australia they are called Holden's, but unfortunately I can't answer the question as to why they are called different names in different countries. I think it's probably just a conglomerate of different automobile companies buying the same basic design of car to share costs, but that's just speculation on my part.

Answer 9

Vauxhall was the car company General Motors took over in the UK to expand it's global operations.

It uses the brand name Holden in Australia

Answer 10

The Opel brand is mainly used in Europe. In the US Vauxhall is General Motors and in Australia they are Holden. I don't know why though, but I am interested in knowing, so anyone else?....