2007 National Meet & Route 66 Mother Road Festival Sept 28th thru 30th 2007

[opelspyder]

Pics are great!! Now Charles, you know that was being a little rough on my old motor...but glad to hear it is still kicking but in a couple of gears. I was actually hoping to get it here for a run on the Dyno, just out of curiosity, but there is always next year. I used to burn them hard, but I don't know how much it takes to burn those 17s Dallas has on the back now...of course after all the tire dressing I put on them after the local car shows, I was leaving sideways.
Keith

[OpelAl]

This was my very 1st car show ever been to of this magnitude, and I promise you I'll be back next year. My wife and I had a great time, even though she was down with her back. John and his wife Connie really coordinated this event top notch. All of the Opels were winners in my book, I enjoyed looking at every one of them. Thanx to Dallas, I for one night was owner of the one of a kind Opel GT's. While driving in the parade I heard of lot of nice car!
Didn't really know everyone there but I can tell Opel people are the best!
Next year I'll drive my car in the parade, and stay for the whole event.
Sorry for leaving without saying bye to everyone, but wife was really hurting, and we was close to where I parked the car. She went to hospital this morning and was admitted, they are going to give her shots in the morning to try to relieve the pain. Once again thankyou all for a great time!:

[Gordy]

Hope the Mrs. gets to feeling better real fast! Nothing worse than a bad back or a tooth ache! Take care! Gordy

[opelbits]

Yep, a good time was had by all. Where Bradford found the nunnery gymnast bikini team, I'll never know....I hear there were footprints on the ceiling of his motel room.

[opeljohn]

I'm sitting here trying to figure out Opelbits post but then maybe I don't want to know. I really wanted to let everyone who was here know you were part of a record breaking event. Not only did we have a record number of Opelers, todays paper said total registration was 1,169 Cars. The Friday night cruise had 1100. They estimate the crowds at 85,000. It was just a heck of a weekend for a car show. Connie and I sure enjoyed those who could make it and missed those who could not. Bye the way next years event dates are Sept 26-28, If you can't make the Nationals at Charlotte be here.
Thanks
John

[Mach1Tom]

Well, I got in yesterday (Wed) evening after I detoured to the Chicago area to visit relatives for a few days. The GT ran great again. It's getting some miles racked up doing these long distance weekend trips.

As everyone else stated, thank you very much John & Connie. Each year the event keeps getting better & better. An even larger variety of Opels this year. Jeff W definitely takes some great pictures during the show & posts on the site each night. I didn't even need to get my camera out. I met a few new Opelers & learned a few new things too. I'm really looking forward to all of next years Opel events.

~ Tom

[tomking]

Most of you recall I had fuel problems as we were in line to check into the RT66 show. I am not sure I was out of gas and even after getting gas I continued to have problems. I drove it to work on Thursday and on my way home from work that evening it would only run 10 to 20 seconds and then act like it was getting starved of fuel. I finally called my wife and she came to get me. Later I took my trailer back and loaded it up and brought it home. I spent all day Friday dropping the fuel tank and trouble shooting. I of course had that leak which was a deteriorated hose. So I replaced all the hoses. I think what my problem was, the fuel sock was too loose a fit on the downpipe and it was bottoming out and hence closing off the suction line. Not being able to find a suitable replacement at the auto store, I just drilled a hole thru it at the top collar and pinned it in place.
My lack of a fuel gage reading was the float. It was brass and had a split in it. I tried fixing it but ruined it instead. Sure did need one of those small pin torches. So I removed the brass barrell and took the float assembly off a dead weber carb and soldered it on. Now I have an indicating fuel gage.
Thanks for the suggestions Saturday night on what to look for.
I looked at the DVD of the 2006 Mother Road show and it was GREAT. Who made that? Whoever did gets a real thumbs up from me as that was a great job. Good Opeling to all.

[Gordy]

Tom, Glad you got your problems resolved and it sounds like you got a lot of minor issues corrected in the meantime. It was nice meeting you all in Springfield.

[West Coast GT]

Finally arrived home from the Route 66 Mother Road car show & Opel National.

OpelJohn & the lovely Ms Connie did an outstanding job and I thank them for all their work to make this event enjoyable and exciting for us. Good job.

It was good meeting members from around the country; to steal from an old Honda commercial, “You meet the nicest people in an Opel”.

Gil and Dennis – Thank Goodness.

Trip ReCap:
1972 GT, original Solex running on primary barrel only (see 1st breakdown below), unmodified 1.9 engine, 4-speed manual, electronic ignition, brand spanking-new 185/70/13 tires. Original butt-punishing back-breaking GT seats. Moderately overloaded. Windows down most of the trip.

Hauled butt from Vallejo, CA (north end of the SF Bay, just south of Napa Valley) east along Interstate 80 crossing Sierra Nevada, Rockies (Continental Divide), high desert, high plains, and the Mississippi into the Midwest to Route 66’s eastern terminal in downtown Chicago.

Followed historic Route 66 to the Opel National and the Route 66 Car Show. BTW, just checked and I’m 3rd place for longest drive behind a car from Washington and a car from Eureka, CA.

My brother and I then returned to California via Route 66 to its western termination at the Santa Monica Pier where we celebrated our survival through LA traffic with a cold beer and dinner at Bubba Gump’s on the pier.

We then drove north out of the Los Angeles Basin into the Great Central Valley and ultimately to the San Francisco Bay Area. Home again, home again, jiggity-jig.

Trip Stats:
Miles Driven – 5,246
Fuel Consumed – 168.1 gallons
Average Fuel Price - $2.94/gallon
Highest Fuel Price - $4.40/gallon (Mojave Desert, CA)
Lowest Fuel Price - $2.58/gallon (Council Bluffs, IA)
Oil Consumed – 2.5 quarts ($21.06 for a quart at an Indian reservation in Arizona (guess they’re wise to the old bead trick))

Trip Average Fuel Mileage – 31.2 mpg
Best Fuel Mileage Segment – 37.3 mpg (Elko, Nevada to Salt Lake City)
Worst Fuel Mileage Segment – 26.3 mpg (Wilmington, IL to Edwards, IL (segment includes 30 minutes of idling to get into the car show))

Break Downs:
Carb Linkage – lost the ball-nut on the original Solex at the end of the 1st day, near the Bonneville Salt Flats. 10 minutes, one zip-tie, two rubber-bands later we were on the road again running on just the primary barrel for the remaining trip.

Punctured Tire – Two screws in the passenger front tire at the Chain of Rocks Bridge in southern Illinois. 1-hour field fix held until the next morning where we had it professionally repaired in Lebanon, MO. My brother insisted I replace my worthless spare with a new tire. Go figure.

Speedometer Failure – Speedo dried up like an independent gas station during the ’74 embargo. Rather than risk damage to the gage or, more importantly, the transmission’s speedometer cable gear I disconnected it (and topped off the trans gear lube while I was at it) in Seligman, AZ (Yeah, I know. Where the hell’s Seligman?)

Trip Damage:
Some rotten bastard tried to pry my chromed gas cap off and managed to dislodge the filler neck, resulting in the cap sitting cockeyed.

One of my new chromed exhaust tips (welded on) went missing and is somewhere out there in search of its destiny.

Minor paint chips and scratches from road pebbles.

Road tar & road grime that will be removed this week, and new wax applied.

Seats:
I put up with the original GT Marques de Sade style bucket seats until Salt Lake City, where my tail bone finally screamed too loudly. (Do all of you have the same problem, or am I just a notch or two down the evolution scale and retain a tail remnant? I am able to form basic sentences and use simple tools.) A fabric store had inexpensive un-upholstered throw pillows, which if correctly placed will cantilever one’s tail.

By our return trip we had become acclimated to the small cabin and seats/pillows; actually feeling comfortable except for egress issues typical of older Opelers such as ourselves (52 & 59).

Sound:
Between the loud exhaust and the luggage covering the speakers, the new sound system was unusable except as a clock. We can now speak very loudly for hours on end.

Lessons Learned:
If going on a long trip, look at the subsystems for failure points; electrical, brakes, fuel, mechanical. The basic CIH cast iron Opel engine from the 70’s is very robust and is probably your strong link.
Look for a small spare tire that will fit in the original space. Tires/wheels we use these days will not fit in the back.
Pack light. Plan to stop to wash clothes once or twice rather than carry 12 to 14 days of clothing. Pack like you’re backpacking. Or discard used clothes and buy new along the route.
Leave the GT at home and take a Manta.
Take a ’63 Lincoln Continental or Hawk GT.
If you don’t have air conditioning, travel during October before the snows, but after the intense heat of the desert. Our weather was perfect and we had only 6 miles in the rain, four of which was driving to and from dinner.
If loads are max’ed or exceeding design, try to time it so you climb the highest altitude / steepest grades with a half tank or less.

And the greatest lesson learned, of course; great people drive old Opels.

[dcm013]

Truly an epic journey, one I'm sure you'll never forget.

Don

[BQS4]

"I put up with the original GT Marques de Sade style bucket seats until Salt Lake City, where my tail bone finally screamed too loudly. (Do all of you have the same problem, or am I just a notch or two down the evolution scale and retain a tail remnant? I am able to form basic sentences and use simple tools.) "

Not meaning to side track the thread, but, in the Charlotte Auto Fair thread, my nephew drove his GT (first time on a distance trip) to Charlotte. When we made our first gas stop, he gingerly got out of the GT and exclaimed something about his butt being flat, to which I replided, now you know why GT owners swap the seats out for Recaros, or Miatas seats or Fiero seats.

[namba209]

A truly grand story of epic proportions. I must take exception at two points, or maybe it's just my physical structure. I've never had a problem with the GT seats, in fact they're comfortable to me. Getting in and out has also never been a problem, as it appears to be for you youngsters. To get in, I put my right foot on the floor, grab the steering wheel and slide down the seat back until i'm sitting in the seat, then bring my left foot in to the floor, simple. To get out, I place my left foot on the ground, left hand on the door sill and roll outside the car to bring my right leg out until I can stand facing the rear of the car, again, simple. I do have to say my structure is 145 lbs and I'm 5' 9", with 3 herniated discs in my back. That being said, there have been times it has taken 1/2 hour to get out of either the GT or monza.

[West Coast GT]

I don't bend. Never have, never will. I can barely put socks on. Been that way even as a kid. I like your egress method and will give it a try.

I'm curious, what was your second point of contention?

[namba209]

Originally Posted by West Coast GT I'm curious, what was your second point of contention?

Oh, the uncomfortable seats, you said. I find them very comfortable. I just feel good when I sit in them, they fit me.

[willis]

Just wanted to thank John and Connie. They did a great job for all of us. I will be back next year. Next year my GT will be finished and I will bring it. It was super nice of John and all the other Opel guys to let me show my Sky with their Opels. For all you other guys and girls that did not make it this year you missed a great time

[Gordy]

Would it be stupid to next year have name badges with our OpelGT.com handle as well as our full names and home towns on them? Nothing fancy and I would be happy to pick up the tab. It's just now that we are home and I am referring to someone or their car, my wife is lost on who they were. Might help names and faces register better for the first timers like we were.

[sawdust]

I second that. I remember cars better than I do names.

[manta73wi]

Originally Posted by Gordy Might help names and faces register better for the first timers like we were.

Name tags are a great suggestion Gordy! I think that would certainly be workable. One thing that may help is that I'm working on a DVD of this year's similar to the one I made of last year's in which I use the pictures John D took of each attending Opel and its owner and then add text with their name and GT.com handle.

Tom, thanks for the compliment on the DVD - 'twas I that put it together for the 2006 attendees.

Keith/West Coast - THANKS for sharing your brief memoire of your trip. How incredible to do the trip in an Opel. My family and I did Route 66 from downtown Chicago to the Santa Monica pier this summer in late June, and it was a great trip! I must say it was a great way to see America and feel more connected to the diversity this country has to offer. The people we met along the way were just so friendly and warm.

I salute your fortitude in taking your GT. My family and I did our 66 trip in a 2003 Chrysler Town & Country Limited, so we had some of the best seats I've ever experienced along with automatic climate control and decent audio system to ease the trip. I would still like to do the trip in a vintage car someday, but this worked out well with the wife and kids, and was a great way to go for a first time doing the whole route. We put on 5.500 miles over a 3 week period as we made a lot of stops along the way to absorb the flavor of the Mother Road.

I would concur that the stock GT seats I've experienced weren't good for long distances. My '73 Manta seats, though, are really comfortable for distance travel.

I agree with you Keith - you really DO meet the best people in an Opel!!
-Jeff W.
'75, '74, and '73 Mantas

[tomking]

Jeff thank you so much for making that video of the 2006 Mother Road Show and our Opels. You did a fantastic job of creating a memorable video! I hope you take on the project for the 07 show as it too was a special one. This video I think can be used as an additional tool to help garner interest in Opels by those folks who either like the cars, or as is the case with so many people, those who had one early in life and would enjoy having one again.
If we want to, it would be a great DVD to be playing at the Charlotte show coming up. Thanks again Jeff. GREAT JOB.

[Ooooner]

OK... Where can I see this video?