'85 Monza GSE arrives...

[Rionart]

Well I finally got the Monza home.
Here's the story...
I decided to look for a 'test' car to ship over from the UK without actually going over there to load it etc, just using different firms to do all the work.
My idea was to see a) Could this actually be done, and what was the pain level going to be like... b) Just how expensive a proposition was it going to be...
Well I've always wanted a Monza GSE, and when one came up on Evil Bay UK with a very poorly written ad and no pics, I watched it and bid at the end to win for the grand sum of £205.
That was the easy part!!
I won't go into the whole saga of shipping it etc, suffice to say it took 2 months exactly from the day I won it to getting it home....and cost $4,400.00 to make it happen.
To be honest, the only real pain was dealing with the Canadian Government agencies (CFIA-Canadian Food Inspection Agency)...I know, it's a car, what the hell do they want...well they have the power to check any vehicle entering Canada from overseas, and demand it be pressure washed to remove all soil...a process which, when done their way, costs roughly $800!!
So anyway, I'm now a lot wiser to how the process works, and the car made it here in one piece.
So what does £200 buy you?
A 1985 Monza GSE, the rare 5 speed version, mechanically in great shape (it started right up to drive out of the container), but needing some serious bodywork.
The interior is pretty good, but the front fenders have bondo in them, and the biggest and most serious issue is the front L/H suspension tower (a well known Monza issue), which is starting to tear away from the inner fender and renders the car totally unsafe to drive.
This car had some $6,000 spent on it in the last 10 years at a UK Opel specialist, so it is pretty dissapointing to see it in this state.
Here's a couple of pics to start with...

[BQS4]

Nice Rob!! I see a bright blue Wagon in the back ground, but, there's a certain "red car" missing from the picture....LOL

[Phoenix]

Very Cool.

[Rionart]

Originally Posted by BQS4 Nice Rob!! I see a bright blue Wagon in the back ground, but, there's a certain "red car" missing from the picture....LOL

LOL...there are 2 "red cars" under covers on the drive...the Sportwagon and the white Ascona are blocking them.

[DutchOpel]

You told me about this car and how you bought it 'blind' at Billing last month. This is an identical car to my Monza GSE, which was fitted with the 4-speed automatic. I took my Monza apart to serve as a donor for my Bitter SC which I bought in LA. It had the same spots as yours. That said, this one doesn't look all that bad even though it needs some work. Good ones are getting rarer by the minute.

[Rionart]

Originally Posted by DutchOpel You told me about this car and how you bought it 'blind' at Billing last month. This is an identical car to my Monza GSE, which was fitted with the 4-speed automatic. I took my Monza apart to serve as a donor for my Bitter SC which I bought in LA. It had the same spots as yours. That said, this one doesn't look all that bad even though it needs some work. Good ones are getting rarer by the minute.

Hello Louis!
Corrosion is the worst part of this one, mechanical and interior are pretty good.
If I can find the correct repair panels I should have it driveable fairly quickly, then it can be a rolling restoration...

[DutchOpel]

Good to get a complete car, where you are the pickings for Monzas are thin. Was that just 4 or 5 in North America. Go for NOS panels if you can, the aftermarket repair panels for the inner wings are more like patch panels. My Monza GSE had ABS and for that the top of the turret was connected to the top of the innerwing with two extra panels. Be sure to check the rear suspension arms where the spring sits on them. Another point on my GSE that was not so good. I was hoping to use them as spares on my SC, but already junked one - it was beyond repair. Also saw the pictures of Billing you posted. Any of the widebody Manta A my friend Nico and I drove up in? Surely you took a photo of that car. Have a nice weekend playing with the Monza.

[Rionart]

I can't believe I didn't upload any pics of Nico's car....fix that right now...

[oldopelguy]

If the car is just too far gone to fix I have a good spot for the motor and trans out of it, you know, just in case.....

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by Rionart I can't believe I didn't upload any pics of Nico's car....fix that right now...

That car is f*****g hot!

[Rionart]

Originally Posted by oldopelguy If the car is just too far gone to fix I have a good spot for the motor and trans out of it, you know, just in case.....

A 3 litre straight six CIH with a getrag 265....can't see anyone wanting an old lump like that...nothing more than a good boat anchor.....

[David McCollam]

The attached photo shows the 3.0L 24V Dual Ram about to be installed the red Manta A in the second photo with a Manta B front suspension upgrade. The yellow Manta is a smaller engine, 2.0L 16V, intercooled turbo, with independent rear suspension. Both vehicles by U. Klippert, Germany.

[tekenaar]

Originally Posted by Rionart A 3 litre straight six CIH with a getrag 265....can't see anyone wanting an old lump like that...nothing more than a good boat anchor.....

How about a rear shot of the GSE . . . just want to see the trunk lines and the spoiler . . . musings for my same year Bitter SC. Real happy to see Louis pop up here finally! WELCOME . . . WELKOM!

En Louis, heb ik niet eenige jaren geleden die Getrag 240 van jou gekocht die nu in mijn oranje 2,2 SSD48 GT zit?

[Rionart]

Here you go Otto....

[RallyBob]

Originally Posted by tekenaar Real happy to see Louis pop up here finally! WELCOME . . . WELKOM!

van Steen???

[Rionart]

Originally Posted by RallyBob van Steen???

Bingo

[RallyBob]

Well then, hello Louis! Long time since we've talked (2000 OMC I think).

Bob Legere

[tekenaar]

Originally Posted by Rionart Here you go Otto....

Thanks, Rob . . . begs the question, "Exactly how does that spoiler attach to the rear lid and what is the width?

[tekenaar]

Originally Posted by David McCollam The attached photo shows the 3.0L 24V Dual Ram about to be installed the red Manta A in the second photo with a Manta B front suspension upgrade. The yellow Manta is a smaller engine, 2.0L 16V, intercooled turbo, with independent rear suspension. Both vehicles by U. Klippert, Germany.

. . . yeah, Uwe builds some bad-ass cars, doesn't he?! His latest addition is a Pontiac GTO for which he just got a Holden Monaro front "bumper" in England! He also owns a TE-2800 undergoing restoration right now . . .

[heimue]

Rob, I almost couldn't believe you bought another car? Did you just do that because you are sick and tired of the i200 and finally want to sell it to me?

Dieter

[ard674t]

Otto, the spoiler attaches via two big 8mm bolts, each about 1/3 the way along the spoiler and two small self tappers at each edge, plus a long run of double sided sticky tape on the leading edge. Note the rear wiper pokes through it, so you'd need to find something to do there for it not to look strange on a Bitter.

Rob, the tailgate on that Monza looks nicely aligned. On mine the metal part of the tailgate pokes out from the back of the car almost immediately after realignment. I mentioned it to Achim and he said it was one of those things about Monza ownership that you get used to - it either pokes out or you realign it regularly. Something to look forward to!

Nice Monza, by the way.
Cheers,
Nick

[tekenaar]

Originally Posted by ard674t Otto, the spoiler attaches via two big 8mm bolts, each about 1/3 the way along the spoiler and two small self tappers at each edge, plus a long run of double sided sticky tape on the leading edge. Note the rear wiper pokes through it, so you'd need to find something to do there for it not to look strange on a Bitter. Rob, the tailgate on that Monza looks nicely aligned. On mine the metal part of the tailgate pokes out from the back of the car almost immediately after realignment. I mentioned it to Achim and he said it was one of those things about Monza ownership that you get used to - it either pokes out or you realign it regularly. Something to look forward to! Nice Monza, by the way. Cheers, Nick

Thanks, Nick! Boy this is really getting to be an 'international' thread . . .

. . . Rob (CA), Louis (NL), Uwe (D), Dieter (D), Nick (GB), Achim (D) . . .

[OpelGT-de]

Originally Posted by Rionart I won't go into the whole saga of shipping it etc, suffice to say it took 2 months exactly from the day I won it to getting it home....and cost $4,400.00 to make it happen. .

sounds easy.
Will it be possible to register this car in the US after you recieved the CDN license?

[Rionart]

Hello Rolf,
I've never tried taking a car INTO the 'States...I somehow think it would not be an easy thing to do, otherwise a bunch of people would already be "importing" cars thru that loophole that would otherwise not be allowed in.
Maybe someone else on the site has better knowledge of the rules for bringing an older car into the USA?
rgds, Rob.

[tekenaar]

Originally Posted by Rionart Hello Rolf, I've never tried taking a car INTO the 'States...I somehow think it would not be an easy thing to do, otherwise a bunch of people would already be "importing" cars thru that loophole that would otherwise not be allowed in. Maybe someone else on the site has better knowledge of the rules for bringing an older car into the USA? rgds, Rob.

. . . going from Canada to the US can't possibly as bad as trying to go the other way!