240z Vs Opel GT

[Guest Reahreic]

Ive been forced to watch reruns of Get Smart and have noticed the Opel Gt which he drives in some of the episodes.

 

now theres no denying that the 240z is one sexy car (personal opinion) and the GT looks very interesting and unique.

 

now im not American and am still a youngster so i have no real life experience with either vehicles and i was wondering if anyone here would have some experience to share regarding the two cars, i have done alot of research on the z series of cars and some on the GT. but i was wondering which would be a nicer restore.

 

i understand the Z is way more powerfull as the GT has a crappy 4cyl 96hp engine, but i cant hurt to be interested.

[nbesheer]

Not sure where you're located but, I would assume that Opel parts are going to be harder and more expensive then the 240z

[Tony D]

Beware, the Opel was sold in Europe for some time, and those DOHC latemodel engines will push the GT body well into the speedranges that would scare many people.

 

Especially with that short wheelbase!

 

The Opel GT was the car referred to as 'The Poor-Man's Corvette' and also as "Baby Vette".

 

Incidentally, V8 swaps in Opels are not as uncommon as you might think, you just put it in from underneath...

[myplasticegg]

One now, one later?

 

I plan on my midlife crisis to be an Opel GT... with a turbo rotary. But for now, the Zs are relatively cheap to work on as long as you don't get 'while i'm at it.'

[jerryb]

If you think Zcars had rust issues your in for an awakening with the baby vette. I dont think Ive seen a solid Opel GT ...OR ANY Opel GTon the road in years! They are great looking cars but knid of small. I prefer the Z.

 

Anyone know of any solid Opel GTs?

[Gareth]

I live in Europe, and Opel GTs are much more common here than in the States. Most of them came with Opel's trusty old CIH engines, which are plentiful (they were used in many models), reliable and easy to modify.

 

Late in the 80s, Opel introduced a family of 1996cc, DOHC, 150HP C20XE engines, which originally came in Opel Kaddet GSi (American Pontiac Le Mans, if I remember correctly). With some mods, they can be fitted to RWD platforms, such as the GT. American GM Ecotec engines may also be a good alternative for the factory powerplant - they already proved their potential in the FWD drag racing scene.

 

If I were to choose between the Datsun and the Opel, I'd take the 240Z anytime. It is faster, handles better (IRS vs. Opel's solid axle taken straight from the Kadett C / Vauxhall Chevette / Chevy Chevette), is a better engine swap candidate, and... It's Japanese.

[jeffer949]

my neighbor who is an old probably 70 year old lady has a really really really nice restored one.... she babies that thing so much lol. i dont think ive heard it rapped out past 2-3grand

[Shift_Light]

af in high school drove an orange I think 72 Opel GT. It was tiny. The back bench "seat" would hold one small to medium-sized high school student. A V8 swap into that tiny car would yield an impressive hp to weight ratio.

[Netrix]

af in high school drove an orange I think 72 Opel GT. It was tiny. The back bench "seat" would hold one small to medium-sized high school student. A V8 swap into that tiny car would yield an impressive hp to weight ratio.

V8 Opel Page http://stephenmason.com/cars/opelgtv8m.html

 

That wasn't a seat... that was just the rear deck, must've been a small student to fit back there =)

My friend has two Opel GT's and parts enough to probably build another. Parts for Opels are cheap, similar to Datsuns as they're not in that high of demand ($150 240z fender vs $700 Dodge Challenger fender). About 6 months ago he bought a Opel GT that sat in a garage for the last 20 years and had a mint interior, although it was the 1.1l engine. Anyways bought it for $700 no rust. He said a while back he had a brand new NOS tail panel for Opel GT and threw it away because he needed room and it was worthless to sell.

 

As for 240z being a better car, debatable to the end of time. Opel GT's handle great, they weren't much for top speed, but they'll surprise you. Another thing to consider is they were made by Germany, which make amazing machines, high craftsmanship compared to Japan. This also had its faults, they make everything so damn complicated, like the headlights. Also never take apart the dash it's Pandora's box and to think this car is from the 70's. For being such a small car they're is more room for taller people, I dare say more room than a 240z.

 

Another thing is the guy who designed the Opel GT was later hired by GM and designed the corvette of the era.

 

"The Opel GT used a steel unibody and a conventional front-engined, rear-wheel drive layout. The Cam-In-Head (CIH) engine was mounted far back in the chassis to improve weight distribution. Front suspension consisted of double A-arms and a transverse leaf spring. A live axle and coil springs were used in the rear. The power-assisted braking system used discs in the front, drums in the rear. Steering was unassisted." - Wikipedia

 

This is what both of my friends looks like:

[jerryb]

wow what a great looking car! I havent seen one in years and forget how nice it realy was. Thanx for posting the pic

 

Check out this vid...wait to see how the headlights work!

 

[heavy85]

I've had both. The Opel is TINY and under that bench in the back is the gas tank. Mine was missing the bench so if you looked back the gas tank was staring at you. Something I didn't even realize until after I bought it was there is no hatch. The back does not open. The headlights are cool as they roll instead of flip up although the cable lever takes a good yank to get them to turn. Resale on Opel (at least a few years ago) was nill. You could find a restored only for a few grand.

 

Cameron

[Guest Reahreic]

The body does seem a tad small as im 6'5" and top speed isn't as important to me as acceleration and handling. Now that you mentions "Mini Vette" the car does have a stingray sort of shape.

 

Im currently in Arkansas but have family in Europe and am from South Africa so getting Opel parts isn't too hard. and the Opel Astra 2.0IE ( i think 1998) engine should fit nicely and offer great performance vs fuel economy. My father had an Astra and if i remember correctly that little thing could fly.

 

currently i have about $5000 saved for the restoration of a nice 2 door sports. i like the fastback design but don't want a mustang or big size common muscle car. That and i don't really care for an engine larger than 3.2L. and am pretty fond of the I6 or I4 RWD design.

[deja]

Another thing is the guy who designed the Opel GT was later hired by GM and designed the corvette of the era.

 

I believe that is backwards. The Opel GT was styled chiefly by GM’s Clare MacKichan, who’d played a big part in designing the 1955 Chevrolet before his tour of duty in the Russelsheim studios.

To shake Opel up a bit, GM sent American Clare MacKichan to the German subsidiary in 1962. MacKichan, a pupil of Harley Earl who had led Chevrolet's design studio since 1952, helped refine the design of the 1953 Corvette and oversaw the design of the 1955-'57 Chevrolets and the 1957 Corvette SS.

[Michael]

Back during my graduate student days in the Los Angeles area in the late 1990’s, an acquaintance of mine had 3 or 4 Opel GT’s - all stored in a Caltech parking garage. Two were parts cars, but one was spotless. The rotating headlights and lack of rear hatch were rather quirky, but the exterior aesthetics were very attractive.

 

I’ve heard of Opel GT’s as drag cars, with everything from 426 Hemis to turbo 4-cylinders. Personally I think that the best swap option would be a Mustang 5.0 V8, built mildly to around 250 hp. This would probably be the threshold at which chassis reinforcement or major suspension mods would not yet be necessary.

[Guest nacree]

Hey guys,

 

I have 2 Opel GT's (neither have any rust) and they are fun cars. Parts are easy to get- common stuff is available off the shelf from most parts stores. And you can get everything from http://www.opelgtsource.com

 

Anyone interested in Opel GT should visit http://www.opelgt.com

they are a bunch of nice people with varied interest in cars and very few snobs.

 

GT's are way undervalued in my opinion. They are much more rare than Z cars but can be had for almost nothing. They get a lot of attention though- more than I would like actually.

 

But Z's are faster to be sure. The two cars weigh about the same and the Z has at least 25% more horsepower. Things can be done to make Opels faster though- I am currently working on a 3.4V6 swap right now.

 

-Nathan

Albuquerque New Mexico

[Netrix]

I believe that is backwards. The Opel GT was styled chiefly by GM’s Clare MacKichan, who’d played a big part in designing the 1955 Chevrolet before his tour of duty in the Russelsheim studios.

To shake Opel up a bit, GM sent American Clare MacKichan to the German subsidiary in 1962. MacKichan, a pupil of Harley Earl who had led Chevrolet's design studio since 1952, helped refine the design of the 1953 Corvette and oversaw the design of the 1955-'57 Chevrolets and the 1957 Corvette SS.

Your right, I get my history facts mixed up sometimes. What I meant by the whole corvette thing was that the 1968 to 1982 C3 Stingray was heavily based on the Opel GT, which designs dated back to 1962 originally. I just assumed it was the same designer since GM owned Opel. When it finally came to America it was around 1968 I believe same time as C3 corvette, were it got it's many nicknames like "Poorman's Corvette"

 

My friend who has the Opels and I went to a GM dealer and asked about the new Opel GT. They knew nothing about it and had no information. Then we proceeded to make the salesmen sweat when we were working him over the price of the $40,000 GMC pickup there that had crap for options. He didn't like when we kept bringing up the Toyota Tunda having better stuff for cheaper prices, atleast Toyota doesn't have to use shims in the doors.

[Tony D]

If you think Zcars had rust issues your in for an awakening with the baby vette. I dont think Ive seen a solid Opel GT ...OR ANY Opel GTon the road in years! They are great looking cars but knid of small. I prefer the Z.

 

Anyone know of any solid Opel GTs?

 

I have one in the back yard! Interesting Story, as well. I got it from the original owner who took it off the road in 1987. He loved the car, and 'intended' to restore it, but never got around to doing it. I get the car, along with the factory service manual and every scrap of registration and titling paperwork ever done on the car. Nice Provenance....

 

So the car is sun-beat, but the body is ROCK SOLID. A little dinged here and there, but nothing but SoCal Surface Rust from being in the sun and oxidizing.

 

So I look through all the paper, and make my way through years and years of registrations till I get to a Buick-Oldsmobile Dealership Wroksheet. It was the original Salesman's Workup for the original sale deal.

 

Ready for this? The original owner, in November 1969, got a WHOLE $1500 trade in value on his shiny, new, white Opel GT...

 

What did he trade in, you ask?

 

A RED 1964 MUSTANG V8...

 

I could not believe what I was seeing, so I called the guy and asked him about it. Sho'nuff! The guy said "Oh, that Mustang got a lot of looks...but that V8 just SUCKED gas. And when I saw that little Opel on the lot, I said "Hey, that LOOKS like a Vette, but I won't have to take any sh*t from my Mustang Friends buying THAT! Besides, that thing got GREAT gas mileage!"

 

The more things change, the more they stay the same...

 

I can't recall, but the Stang may have been convertible. All I know for sure is the car was 'the first year' of the Mustang... Imagine which is worth more in the same condition today????

[mull]

Here's a sweet Opel GT from Sweden.

 

 

 

 

 

More pics:

http://medlem.spray.se/lofagt/opelgt2006/5.jpg

http://medlem.spray.se/lofagt/opelgt2006/2.jpg

http://medlem.spray.se/lofagt/opelgt2006/8.jpg

http://medlem.spray.se/lofagt/opelgt2006/Picture-002.jpg

 

Link:

http://www.pipe-arts.com/gt1.html

[Tony D]

Oh, I needed to see that!

Adds to the list of 'things to do'....

[deja]

I drove a '68 Opel Gt in 68 and was not impressed. Nice looking but it was so slow and didn't handle very well either.

 

The 2007 Opel GT is The Pontiac Solstice in German clothing and won't be imported to the US. I guess GM figures they already have the Saturn version why bring in another clone.

 

LOL. Yeah GM salesmen start to sweat when you bring up Totota.

 

Your right, I get my history facts mixed up sometimes. What I meant by the whole corvette thing was that the 1968 to 1982 C3 Stingray was heavily based on the Opel GT, which designs dated back to 1962 originally. I just assumed it was the same designer since GM owned Opel. When it finally came to America it was around 1968 I believe same time as C3 corvette, were it got it's many nicknames like "Poorman's Corvette"

 

My friend who has the Opels and I went to a GM dealer and asked about the new Opel GT. They knew nothing about it and had no information. Then we proceeded to make the salesmen sweat when we were working him over the price of the $40,000 GMC pickup there that had crap for options. He didn't like when we kept bringing up the Toyota Tunda having better stuff for cheaper prices, atleast Toyota doesn't have to use shims in the doors.