1973 Opel GT help/advice

[sloughfoot]

Buy an early Corvette instead. Like a mid-80's. Seriously.

 

[Mr Evilwrench]

Get an 83 Corvette, those are sweet.

 

[ar1973]

A buddy of mine had one when we where in school back in the late 80's we trashed that thing they where of crapp then and Im sure they are now heck I dont think Ive even seen one in 10- 15 years. I'd run away as fast as I could
Just my

 

[steve666]

Three negative points:
1. Even though it was a manual system, they always had trouble with the hideaway headlights, the cable would stretch and they would either not open or close all the way.
2. Finding parts for even simple repairs will be difficult and expensive, and being a 40 year old car it's going to need repairs regularly.
3. Opel was owned by GM and at that time in the 70's GM couldn't make a decent car.

 

[schafe]

Whatever car you pick for your first, get something you really want.
When I picked out the Buttercup yellow '58 Chrysler Imperial, my dad didn't understand.
He said "You sure about this, son?" My response was "Yeah, dad...it's a Hemi!!! It was a gas (money) sucking fool, but I loved it. It would pass anything but a gas station. I wish it was still around so I could once again fondle its "sparrow strainers". Nuff said?

 

[DownByTheTracks]

A former coworker had one of these. He also had other reliable, daily drivers and the Opel was just a play-thing. Then the motor spun a bearing and locked up. He got lucky and found a new short block in Chattanooga, but still hasn't rebuilt it because he can't get all the parts he needs. Poor little thing has sat in the garage for 3 years now.

Hint: If someone says "if I can't sell this thing I'm going to scrap it" that's code for "this is a total POS, you shouldn't buy it 'cuz it's going to bite you later."

 

[IndyDave1776]

Just for a fun little bonus...if you ever have to tear into the engine, a friend of mine discovered vicariously through his brother's teenage misadventure that Opel engines do not have timing marks when his brother bought one. Thankfully, his dad was a good mechanic and managed to make it work anyway.

My recommendation: Don't walk away. Run.

 

[wizard_of_ahs]

For what it's worth, I had a 69 GT in 74. It was hard to get parts THEN, I can't even imagine NOW !!!

It was "cool" when it ran, but most of the time it was Out Of Commission

 

[singlestacksig]

From an Opel guy I know ;
"The 1973 Opel GT shared the entire drive-train (except the transmission gearing) with both the Opel 1900 Sedan and the Manta. All 3 vehicles (between 1971 and 1975) actually had very good straightforward mechanical design and were very easy to work on. Most junk yards would still have a few of any of these 3 vehicles, so parts shouldn't be a problem."

 

[A_Brit_In_Indy]

I've worked on many of these, they are indeed GM (well actually a German Vauxhall) feel free to call me here www.autobahnservicecenter.com and ask for Thomas, we specialize in European cars.

 

[Mosinguy]

I've worked on many of these, they are indeed GM (well actually a German Vauxhall) feel free to call me here www.autobahnservicecenter.com and ask for Thomas, we specialize in European cars.

If my seller emails me back and we can get a deal then I'll probably be calling you. Even if I buy it and the car doesn't work out so well, I can at least tell people about the time I owned an Opel GT.

 

[bubba16430]

You should go to www.OpelGT.com There is a huge wealth of info on there along with a bunch of great guys. As far as parts for them you can get them if you just do a little research. ( I own a 71).

 

[darkkevin]

hey!! i'm all for it, i'm slightly biased tho, i have a 71!!

to be fair, probably a bad choice for a daily driver, parts are out there, but certainly not at your local parts store. i mean something as simple as brake pads or a headlight switch arent available local, find things like that all day online of course, but then your waiting days for your parts to arrive while your car sits. i love them little cars, had several over the years.

 

[CindyE]

When I met my ex back in 1981, he had one of these. It was a fun little car, not very practical though. It did have some issues, but we used it as a daily driver for awhile, it even made a trip from IN to LA. I cried when we sold it. I'm not saying you should or shouldn't buy it. We had a couple more that the ex fixed up and sold, but they were never as sweet as the original one. I've heard them called "poor man's vette" and "baby vette". the one i liked was black, had chrome sidepipes, tinted glass, and custom rims and tires. it was fun to drive, but no room! Back then, there was no internet, but we still managed to find parts...sometimes had to drive a ways!

 

[Clay]

Meh. The guy wants $1,200, but he needs it sold or he's scrapping it. If I can buy it for $400 I'll fiddle with it and if I can't get it to work I'm sure I could make my money back. I'll probably get a 90s Toyota of some sort if that happens. Maybe a Geo.

Offer him SCRAP price then, because thats all he should get. As small as that car is, and with scrap prices where they are, the cars only worth about $200 (if that) in scrap value.

 

[handgun]

Well here is the deal on those cars. Parts here in the us are becoming more and more scarece upgrade the carb to a weber. Inquire if its all rusted out or not.

I have always had a thing for these cars. Drove one a few times, infact an old friend has one in his climate controlled barn.

But the fact is unless you have just about every part laying in a storage room.. i wouldnt consider the daily driver thing.

Cool car for sure.. always has been on my list of a car to own.. but i cant justify it right now.

There are some wicked body kits available for this car as well..

 

[irishhunter]

What are you going to drive in the winter? I suggest a nice jacked up Jeep Wrangler they are cool in the summer and hell on wheels in the winter. Get one with 6 cylinders

 

[steveh_131]

Anyone have experience with these? Might be my first car. I want to know EVERYTHING.

I just checked my crystal ball, and this is your future.

You will drive your cool, interesting, classic looking car around. It may turn a couple heads, but not as many as you like. Girls will find it sort of interesting but then decide it is repulsive once they look inside. But at least you'll stand out!

It will have a list of 25-30 minor problems that you will be determined to fix ASAP. Just little stuff. Cheap stuff, right? You might tackle one or two. Each one will cost you triple what you planned and take an extra couple hours to finish, not including the time spent inventing new foul language. You'll put the rest off until some other time.

You'll discover a leak or two. They'll start small. Fix'em later. The tires will start losing air. Fill'em right back up! You'll get around to vacuuming out that nasty interior. It will still look nasty.

Something large will break. Here is your crossroads. Do you fix it? Or scrap it? You'll be motivated to try to fix it yourself. You may even succeed. But at what cost? Your savings? Your weekend? Your sanity?

Now you're hooked. You've spent an entire weekend plus $500 on parts and a lot of bloody knuckles fixing this piece of junk. You'll be damned if you don't get another few years out of it. But then something else breaks.

Then, if you're smart, you curse fate, scrap it, and buy something boring.

Ask me how I know

 

[t_star]

I just checked my crystal ball, and this is your future.

You will drive your cool, interesting, classic looking car around. It may turn a couple heads, but not as many as you like. Girls will find it sort of interesting but then decide it is repulsive once they look inside. But at least you'll stand out!

It will have a list of 25-30 minor problems that you will be determined to fix ASAP. Just little stuff. Cheap stuff, right? You might tackle one or two. Each one will cost you triple what you planned and take an extra couple hours to finish, not including the time spent inventing new foul language. You'll put the rest off until some other time.

You'll discover a leak or two. They'll start small. Fix'em later. The tires will start losing air. Fill'em right back up! You'll get around to vacuuming out that nasty interior. It will still look nasty.

Something large will break. Here is your crossroads. Do you fix it? Or scrap it? You'll be motivated to try to fix it yourself. You may even succeed. But at what cost? Your savings? Your weekend? Your sanity?

Now you're hooked. You've spent an entire weekend plus $500 on parts and a lot of bloody knuckles fixing this piece of junk. You'll be damned if you don't get another few years out of it. But then something else breaks.

Then, if you're smart, you curse fate, scrap it, and buy something boring.

Ask me how I know

How do you know?
And while we're asking questions, somebody ask darkkevin what his '71 looks like right now.

 

[printcraft]

https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...crown_vic_police_interceptor.html#post3069625

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yil9wlfa0yo