When the Hessischer Rundfunk team reached the Friedrich-Lutzmann-Ring in Rüsselsheim am Main on the afternoon of the first Friday in November, the weather gods had an insight: the sun came out – for the only time for the next few days, by the way – and enabled great drone shots of the company headquarters as well as work. A successful start has been made for the five-person team led by HR icon Tobias Kämmerer, who not only moderates the HR3 Morning Show on the radio, but also has his name for a popular regional television format: namely “Tobi’s city trip”.
In the series, Tobias Kämmerer looks for unique experiences in Hessian cities. He tries out new things and discovers one or two insider tips. The series is one of the most popular regional formats in HR. And the current episode takes Kämmerer and his team to Rüsselsheim. The drone flight around the company headquarters is the start of a busy weekend for the HR team. In total, the crew will be guests at Opel and Stellantis Germany for three days and will film, among other things, in the design center, the factory and at Opel Classic.
Unveiling of the Opel Experimental: The brand study recently celebrated its premiere at the IAA Mobility.
Virtual worlds: Moderator Tobi Kämmerer explores the inside of the brand study using 3D glasses.
In the beginning there was the clay: Chief designer Florian Theis (right) explains the individual work steps.
At prime time
The episode will be entitled “Tobi’s city trip: Opel and vintage cars in Rüsselsheim” and will be available in the ARD media library from November 28th. The 45-minute program is scheduled to be broadcast on December 5, 2023 – at prime time at 8:15 p.m. on HR television.
The first stop is the Opel Design, where Kämmerer has the opportunity to work on a clay model on Friday and take a closer look at the Opel Experimental brand study. Florian Theis, Chief Designer Advanced Concepts Interior & Exterior, will answer his questions there. The two talk about automotive design from the past, today and the trends of the future. The presenter’s Opel past also comes up: his first car was a Kadett C.
With the help of 3D glasses, Kämmerer can even virtually go inside the concept recently presented at the IAA Mobility in Munich, which like no other represents the future of the brand with the lightning bolt. He is surprised by the light and sound animations the Experimental has to offer and that the study can even be moved with a remote control. The HR team also extensively examines the new Opel Astra Sports Tourer – the model from Rüsselsheim that reflects the brand’s current design language.
Fascination with automobile manufacturing
The next stop takes “Tobi” – as everyone likes to call him – and his crew into production. First we go into the shell construction. Kämmerer is impressed by the countless robots that assemble body parts at great speed and reliability – including flying sparks.
Then we move on to the finishing and final assembly, where Tobi even gets to lend a hand: under the eyes of the experts on the assembly line, the presenter, together with production employee Norbert Klimek, installs a headlight in a brand new Opel Astra. Tobi Kämmerer is accompanied on his tour of the factory by Sascha Holl from production management – an Opel veteran who started his training with the brand at the age of 16 and has now been working at Opel in Rüsselsheim for 25 years.
Fascinating robot ballet: The camera team visits the shell, where, among other things, the body parts for the Opel Astra are welded, riveted and glued.
On the assembly line: The presenter tries his hand at being a production employee and installs a headlight in an Astra under the expert instructions of Norbert Klimek.
Done! Factory communicator Jens Schmidt (from left), production employee Norbert Klimek, the moderator and Opel veteran Sascha Holl after work.
“Tobi is also an extremely nice and relaxed guy off camera.”
– Sascha Holl –
Sascha Holl is an experienced and convinced Opel driver. And he quickly asks Tobi Kämmerer for autograph cards for the children, because they are fans of the informative, feel-good format on Hessischer Rundfunk. In general, the likeable presenter attracts a lot of attention at the factory and is clearly having a lot of fun during his visit.
“The shoot was a welcome change in our busy everyday work routine,” says Sascha Holl afterwards. “What made me most happy was that Tobi is an extremely nice and relaxed guy off camera too. He was very impressed by the size of our work. All in all, we had a lot of fun filming at the factory and laughed a lot.”
Band flow to the finale
After the headlight has been installed correctly, it goes to the assembly line, where the finished cars roll off the assembly line under their own power for the first time. A long evening for the television crew ends around 8 p.m. – all the necessary settings are in place for the day. Further filming in and around Rüsselsheim is on the agenda on Saturday, for example at the historic Opel racetrack at Schönauer Hof.
Guests in the hallowed halls: Classic boss Leif Rohwedder (second from left) welcomes the camera team.
The classic collection makes everyone smile: the presenter has taken a seat in the “Black Widow”.
And on Sunday we go to the Classic workshop. Leif Rohwedder, head of Opel Classic, and colleague Jens Cooper take the film team to the historic K6 building. Here Kämmerer has the opportunity to admire many vintage cars from Opel’s rich history up close. These include the 4 HP “Doktorwagen”, the “Black Widow”, the Twin concept study and the CD from 1969. He is particularly fond of the bright yellow Manta GSe – the friendly presenter does a number of laps around the factory premises in the coupé, which was converted into an electric car in 2021. In short: We are excited and looking forward to the result! Take a look: From November 28th in the ARD media library and on December 5th at 8:15 p.m. on HR television.
November 2023
Text: Nico Schmidt; Collaboration: Leif Rohwedder; Photos: Jens Cooper, Matthias Meyer, Leif Rohwedder, Nico Schmidt and Jens Schmidt