Oliver's son - 79 Opel Kadett

Dr_Grip

Made from concentrate
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Car(s)
79 Opel Kadett|72 Ford Country Sedan|03 Volvo XC70
This is my 1979 Opel Kadett C... i'm mostly opening this thread so i can show you boring step-by-step imagery of the restoration process, which will start as soon as it stops freezing in Berlin.
As you are not allowed to park a car without a valid license AND T?V (T?V is a quite germanly throughout test of roadworthieness you have to take every 2 years) on public roads in germany i had to rent some space to store the car while restoring and could only afford an unheated garage, so any work during the winter is impossible. Anyways, the goal is to have it back on the road for its 30th birthday in August.
529912462_d966381cbb.jpg


TO DO:
-Bodyworks, especially massive amount of rust on the rear fenders (not on the rear wheel houses, though) and front wheel houses.
-Install new shock absorbers
-Install a new carburettor (already bought one)
-Hope that changing the gearbox oil will stop the metallic sound coming from it, otherwise: get a new gearbox
-get new door seals and install them
-new paintjob (basically get the same paintjob done anew)

Some factory specs:
1,2 Liter 4 cylinder engine
52 hp
78 nm Torque
132 km/h (82mph) max speed

I will post pre-restauration photos soon!

Does anyone know if the Recaro seats taken from a Opel Manta will get me in trouble getting a german H-Kennzeichen?
 
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Wow those restrictions suck and sure to hamper the car enthusiast. Good luck on the project, do you have electrical hookups in the garage you rented? If so I'm thinking space heater.
 
Wow those restrictions suck and sure to hamper the car enthusiast. Good luck on the project, do you have electrical hookups in the garage you rented? If so I'm thinking space heater.

Yep, i got electrical hookups, even 32A red which will come in handy for the welding equipment, but as the "garage" is actually an old factory building the only way to stay warm using a space heater would be to place it that close to you that it'll be in your way all the time...
 
Nice car! Apart from the silly flames perhaps ;)

you may or may not already know opel-hecktriebler-forum.de, according to the Opel driving ring fanatics it seems to be the place to go for all RWD Opels...

Does anyone know if the Recaro seats taken from a Opel Manta will get me in trouble getting a german H-Kennzeichen?
Generally yes, unless you manage to prove somehow that there was some sort of special edition of the Kadett that had the same seats. From my experience the best way to deal with anything T?V related is to go straight to one of the really big test centers and just talk to the people about your plans. They will tell you exactly what they?ll want from you, and the big centers usually have people who actually know their shit, and won?t just say no to anything that doesn?t come with a truckload of papers.
 
Nice car! Apart from the silly flames perhaps ;)
I like the silly flames! But still, as i have to re-paint it anyways, the flames won't come back on before the T?V gave me my H-Badge.

you may or may not already know opel-hecktriebler-forum.de, according to the Opel driving ring fanatics it seems to be the place to go for all RWD Opels...
It actually is ;)

Generally yes, unless you manage to prove somehow that there was some sort of special edition of the Kadett that had the same seats.
I feared that. And even if there was, it would be the GT/E racing coup?, thus far from original for my 1.2n saloon. Good thing is: i know where i can borrow some standard seats, at least for a few hours... ;)
 
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So small and such a short wheelbase...give it twice the power and it would be phenomenally fun to flick it sideways.
 
So small and such a short wheelbase...give it twice the power and it would be phenomenally fun to flick it sideways.

The maddest thing i've heard from continental europe is fitting the Opel/Holden Calibra V6 into it, pushing it to 125 hp.
BUT the Vauxhall Chevette (UK, which was basically a Kadett with another grill) and the Chevy Chevette (US, which has a completely different bodywork, but shares the same platform) were known to be fitted with the Rover V8 and Chevy Small Block engines, respectively, giving you 300+ hp in a car smaller than a 2000's Golf and, even fitted with that engine, way below 1.5 tons of weight. Sadly, this kind of madness would never get a road legal certificate in germany. From what i read online even the conversions to the newer-generation Opel V6 is tough to get certified. The only thing i might do is fit a Weber carburettor to my motor, thus pushing it to maybe 65 or 70hp....
 
You could get it certified, and then put on the turbo :D

I could, and first getting it certified as a classic (to save taxes and be exempt from environmental laws) and then put on the fancy paintjob and the Recaros in is definitely working in this direction.

BUT the tech certifications are a different kind of animal... of course i could make any modifications i want to the car and remove them every two years to get my roadworthiness certificate renewed, but if they catch me in the meantime:
-they will at least slap me with a hefty fine
-they may revoke my license, at least for a few months, if not forever
-they may even seize the car
-and in case of an accident, even if it's not my fault, the insurance won't pay.

Just too much at stake for a little extra power. ^^

This quite german biker cartoon shows what happens when you try to get your "sausage indicator" certified:
[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BxsNp6SbS8[/YOUTUBE]
 
BUT the tech certifications are a different kind of animal... of course i could make any modifications i want to the car and remove them every two years to get my roadworthiness certificate renewed, but if they catch me in the meantime:
-they will at least slap me with a hefty fine
-they may revoke my license, at least for a few months, if not forever
-they may even seize the car
-and in case of an accident, even if it's not my fault, the insurance won't pay.

Just too much at stake for a little extra power. ^^
They might take your license, but in order for them to take it forever you?d have to equip your car with a flamethrower or something... of all the things you listed, the only real problem are the insurance issues.

I could, and first getting it certified as a classic (to save taxes and be exempt from environmental laws) and then put on the fancy paintjob and the Recaros in is definitely working in this direction.
I think you?re underestimating this quite a bit... The H-plates give you tax and insurance benefits. If you start changing all the stuff on it after you got the H-certificate, and you get caught, that?s tax evasion. I assume I don?t have to tell you how that?s dealt with in Germany...
 

It's a bargain! Eventhough it's an automatic, which will eat up some of the power and the interieur design is crap, it has run almost no kilometers for it's age and has a MONSTER engine for its size... the paintjob looks suspiciously fresh, look carefully for rust (as the bodywork is completely different from the Kadett, i can't tell you any weak spots, ask google) but if it really is in as good shape as it looks, BUY BUY BUY!

Cool ride! Is it a fun car to drive? Also, I'm curious to how much it weighs. Do you know?
Well, as a cruiser it's the most fun car imaginable, especially as you're seat position is unbelievably low with the sports seats - as a fast car it's hopeless with it's complete lack of any power... even at only 780kg (1700 pound) weight...
 
The reading is probably 67 000 miles, or the body might have done 167 000... Anyway, it's probably been gone thoroughly through when constructed with that powerplant.
 
They might take your license, but in order for them to take it forever you?d have to equip your car with a flamethrower or something... of all the things you listed, the only real problem are the insurance issues.
I must confess, being stripped of the license forever is a worst-case scenario... but being in a accident with the opposing side injured with a non-registered hopped-up car will get you into troubles i don't want to have, no matter whose fault it is... that's much more to worry about than simply insurance...

I think you?re underestimating this quite a bit... The H-plates give you tax and insurance benefits. If you start changing all the stuff on it after you got the H-certificate, and you get caught, that?s tax evasion. I assume I don?t have to tell you how that?s dealt with in Germany...
I know it's risky... but not that much as traffic cops don't care about stuff like that normally, while they definitely care for technical modifications. The last few times the cops stopped me my car sported a shiny green Umweltplakette, which obvious from the Typenschl?ssel, should not be on my car, and the didnt bother at all...
...i am quite sure i'd get the H-plates even WITH the paintjob as there are at least three cars with similar custom paintjobs and H-plates in my neighborhood alone, i just don't want to take any chances... the seats are a different problem.

And by the way, equipping the car with a bigger engine without getting it licensed would be tax evasion on top of everything stated above (as german taxes are per 100ccm capacity).
 
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From what i read online even the conversions to the newer-generation Opel V6 is tough to get certified. The only thing i might do is fit a Weber carburettor to my motor, thus pushing it to maybe 65 or 70hp....
I've seen a magazine article where they built a drag car out of a Chevy Chevette ... they cut out the firewall and put a 500cid (8.2l) Cadillac V8 in it. Utterly and completely terrifying car.

Looks like a fun little car, I dig the flames. Shame about the stricter laws you guys have there.
 
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Shame about the stricter laws you guys have there.
meh, it?s annoying for anyone who modifies or restores cars... But when I look at the deathtraps on wheels in other countries I?m glad we have it. It?s too strict in some parts, too lenient in others, but overall I?m totally for it...
 
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