Is there really that much Manta in an Opel Mokka?

‘Don’t let the facts ruin a good story’ is a famous English saying. Loosely translated, it means that a story sometimes sounds too good to be true, but you still like to go along with it. Or, as far-fetched as it may be, you just want to believe it, even though the truth is probably less heroic or romantic.

Opel Mokka emerges from the GT X Experimental

For example, in 2018 Opel helped the story that the front of its latest concept car, the GT X Experimental, would be inspired by that of the Manta A. Not surprising at all, because it often happens that a brand has style elements from the past to give the present a recognizable touch. To make the story more tangible, Opel reported that the idea was born when a group of young designers came across an old Manta in one of the Opel Classic storage sheds. The designers were captivated by the wide, continuous grille with integrated headlamps.

Mokka first production model with Opel Vizor

That would eventually, through that study model, result in the Opel Vizor: a tough name for the face of today’s Opels. The new Mokka was the first production model with this reference to the good old Manta. Opel even went a step further with the Manta last year: it replaced the petrol engine of a 1974 example with an electric motor, to promote the latest electric models. Sacrilege or not, it was a special experience to be on the road with this electromod; watch the video again. All of the ingredients listed – Manta, Mocha and electro power – come together when we bring our Mokka-e endurance tester together with an original Manta A from 1971. How much Manta is actually in the new Mokka?

Opel Mokka towers over the slender Manta A.

Opel Cullinan?

A Mokka may be a compact SUV, but as soon as we park it next to the slender Manta, it looks like a Rolls-Royce Cullinan! It shows once again how cars have grown in all directions in recent decades and how difficult it must be for contemporary designers to give a design any elegance. It seems to be especially robust and impressive these days.

Still, when you see the Mokka without the reference Manta next to it, it’s quite a fun, playful design, especially in the two-tone color scheme in which our endurance tester was sprayed. Speaking of nods to the past: we know the black hood from the Manta in the sporty GT/E trim; it contrasts nicely with the bright green. There is also a nice bridge to build there, because where the letter E stood for Einspritzung (injection) in the past, it is now the letter that the electrified Opels get stuck behind their type name.

Opel Mokka nose resembles that of the Manta A? It’s kind of what you want to see.

Opel Blitz

The key question of this meeting: to what extent does the grille of the Mokka have anything to do with that of the Manta? Aren’t we just being put under the German marketing cart here? Well, it’s kind of what you want to see. Of course there are similarities: both models have a wide black grille surrounded by a thin, chrome-plated frame. The Opel Blitz is the literal and figurative centerpiece and the central fold over the hood is also a subtly connecting style element. However, the similarities end there.

Real grille on Manta A

The Opel Vizor of the Mokka is sleek and smooth and therefore has a high-tech look, while the face of the Manta is very traditional. Moreover, that car has a real grille, with openings in it – a part that the Mokka-e with its electric motor obviously does not need. The biggest difference is in the headlights: double round copies for the Manta (which stare at you a bit angrily if you look at the front diagonally from above) versus an integrated lamp cluster with modern lighting technology for the Mokka. The cynic will say that it’s all a bit far-fetched and that the two grilles actually have nothing to do with each other. You could also say that Opel has reinterpreted the recognizable facade of perhaps its most beautiful model ever in a fresh way on the Mokka. What do you think?

Eric Siem has owned this 1971 Manta for 38 years. It’s his first car.

The 1971 Opel Manta 1.6 you see here is owned by Eric Siem (56), who has owned it for 38 years. “It’s my first car and I know it from new. It was near us and I used to walk past it on my way to school. I want that later, I thought again and again. My mother knew the owner and so I was able to buy it at some point. That was in 1984 and I paid 4,500 guilders for it. At that time it had 33,000 kilometers on the clock and now that is almost 140,000. The Manta has never been restored, but it was repainted once in 1995. The color code is 303, which is lime green. Originally a uni color, but I wanted metallic, because then the lines come out better in my eyes. You don’t see this color very often, because bright colors were much more popular at the time. I think the design of the Manta is beautiful. I don’t have that much with other Opels. In the summer I hang my old SMV caravan behind it. That is a wonderful combination. Funny that this is possible with the Manta, while the Mokka can’t pull anything at all.”

Yes, that’s how Eric hands out a sneer to our electric endurance tester!