Fast Times: Joachim Winkelhock 20 Years at Opel
“Joachim Winkelhock is a fantastic brand ambassador for us”, says Opel CEO, Michael Lohscheller. “Despite all his success in motor sport, he has remained a ‘normal’, grounded person and always approachable for the fans. They love it when he drives one of our classics on oldtimer rallies. With his skill and talent, he has also developed many of our sporty models. Thank you, Jockel, for 20 years of excellent teamwork!” Formula 1 driver, British touring car champion, DTM and Le Mans winner, Opel brand ambassador – all this and much more is Joachim Winkelhock. In the UK, he is famous as “Smokin’ Jo” for smoking rear tyres and his previous fondness for cigarettes. In Germany, everyone calls him "Jockel", which sounds a bit like “jockey” and therefore suits his diminutive figure. Jockel won the German and European Formula 3 Championships in 1988 in the WTS team of Michael Schumacher manager, Willi Weber. Just a year later, he graduated to F1 with AGS before breaking into the touring car business full-time. In 1993, “Smokin' Jo” became British Champion with BMW. He then crowned his time with the Munich team in 1999 by winning the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans.
No more races as a professional, but Jockel still much enjoys driving the jewels from Opel Classic’s treasure chest on vintage rallies. “I have two favourites there! First, the 1971 Opel Kadett B 1900 Rallye driven by Anders Kulläng. This car made Opel really popular with privateers and is something like an ancestor of the new Opel Corsa-e Rally. Then there's the Opel Admiral V8 – a very relaxed cruiser. With big fat V8 rumbling under the bonnet, the Admiral floats along like a sofa on wheels. Preferably with my wife Sally sitting next to me.” Unfortunately, this has not been possible this year. However, the Winkelhocks have made up for it by sampling the Opel Grandland X, the first plug-in hybrid to park on the family driveway. “From home I can glide quietly and electrically to the autobahn, where it goes just as well as my regular company car from Rüsselsheim.” |