Dachshund wrote:
...I previously knew the Aska as a rebadged Accord, but out of curiosity I looked up that particular year... To my surprise, it's a rebadged GM J-body AKA Chevy Cavalier in the US
Most US residents will not take that as a compliment, but it's fairly unusual (to me).
I guess there's some sort of automated manual by Irmscher...
...If it has those wheels, DOEEET.
There are at least two threads on this forum that discuss the fact that the Aska is NOT a rebadged Chevy Cavalier:
viewtopic.php?t=2212&start=41
viewtopic.php?t=11489
The Aska is a sister car of the Cavalier and the Opel Ascona C. Claiming that an Ascona is just a rebadged Chevy Cavalier, to an Opel enthusiast, would probably start a fight.
The exterior appearance of these vehicles was very similar, but they were built entirely in the countries that they were sold in, each with their own unique engines and transmissions, sourced from their own local manufacturer. Most parts are probably not truly interchangeable without requiring modification, as would be the case of a car built in one plant location with different name badges put on the sides.
Unlike the Chevrolet Cavalier, both the Ascona and the Aska have not only motorsports histories, but successes on the race track.
Something that sets the Aska apart from even the Ascona is the 2.0 liter Turbocharged engine with 140 PS, which was available from the time the car was introduced. Apparently, the Ascona's most powerful engine was a 130 PS non-turbo available only in 1987 and 1988, while a 115 PS engine was the top of the range from 1982 through 1986.
The second thread cited above discusses what may be the only racing event that the Aska faced an Ascona in competition. As covered in the video linked to in that thread, the Aska won.
