Cost of Restoring Your Opel GT

[SoCalOpelGT]

West Coast GT - well said and I agree on everything you outlined.

Just want to add this: Locate the following book and enjoy in the listing's of the newly added Opel GT to the "collectible car status". The 71" ~ 75' Opel Manta 1900/Coupe/Rallye/Luxus also made it. * I may not of accurately remembered Manta descriptions.

[GTJIM]

Originally Posted by SoCalOpelGT West Coast GT - well said and I agree on everything you outlined.

WC GT offers a calm and rational reason as to why it is sensible to spend thousands on a GT - and you agree with everything! Even produce documentary evidence.

You are BOTH as mad as the rest of us.

[SoCalOpelGT]

Originally Posted by GTJIM WC GT offers a calm and rational reason as to why it is sensible to spend thousands on a GT - and you agree with everything! Even produce documentary evidence. You are BOTH as mad as the rest of us.

Hi GTJIM,

How are things in the Opel world "down under"?

I hope everyone reads what WC GT has to say. He did do a good job as well as others, on this topic!

I'm proud to be a part of this mad GT group.

[GTJIM]

Originally Posted by SoCalOpelGT Hi GTJIM, How are things in the Opel world "down under"? I hope everyone reads what WC GT has to say. He did do a good job as well as others, on this topic! I'm proud to be a part of this mad GT group.

The "Down Under" part of Opeldom is fine - especially since I found this fine group of Opelers. WC GT's article is persuasive and right on the money!

Also very proud to be part of this mad GT group

"I have never suffered from insanity - Infact I quite enjoy it" Sir Issac Newton

[calvin]

Well it should have been $150 cause that’s what I paid for a running, extra engine extra tranny 3 starters and a ton of other parts, would pass inspection dented and a bit rusty Manta.. 'cept I had the bug left over from my army days in the late 70ies

so when I saw an drivetrainless, not to rusty TX Manta with a fancy suspension lowered with 3 extra sway bars, koni's, for $600 with extra wheels and dual Weber 40ies needing a rebuild, 4 race tires, 2 race radiators, a racing harness and for another 1500 and then Bob Legeres how too article... mind you it took me two years to get the money to buy all that and the cars sitting for about two years while I scratched up the 3,000 for the engine and 1500 for brakes, paint seats and bodywork, all work done more or less by me. .A non pro (and it shows if you look closely)

First I killed a tranny and then 3 months latter lunched the engine so I am back to square two.
So this round add another 3 grand on top of that for the engine with "NECESSARY" improvements like dual Weber 48ies and roller rockers with a ton of stuff never finished from the first round.

By the time I am done I bet I will have at least ten grand in not counting any labor.

[nobody]

Since this thread has taken a bit of a turn to why instead of how much. I figured I could post to how I look at it. when I got the latest GTs they were from a few pics on another site. One was supposed to be parts and the other running, it turned out the running car was junk and the parts car was the keeper. However they came with a boatload of parts, a big NOS batch of stuff. I've continued to stockpile parts and sell a few of the duplicates to finance the car. I still have more parts than I started with and the bottom line financially is that I have almost no money in the car but alot of labor and lets not forget all the time involved making it all work this way. If you ever get the chance to buy Opel parts or cars in bulk do it, they are becoming too rare and the ones left need those parts more now than ever. It is a labor of love for me to sort and send parts to people, But then again it finances my wild ideas and the restore in general. I've gotten to know a few Opelers that way that rarely if ever show up here, so there are more plusses. Besides any Opel or Opel part deserves to be used if it has any use left in it. My balance sheet shows a + 200 or so on the car. does this mean I have a 10 K car for 200 bucks? less labor of course.

[opeldean]

I will be glad to sell my marker lights for way less than $280.
Nobody..this person has more in a light than you have in you whole car..
except the bllod sweat and tears!

[cjkca]

$400.00 Purchase of 70 GT 1900 S.
$2.00 Can of GoJo
$0.00 Dismantleing GT

Dreaming about what it will look like finished ....PRICELESS

[opeldean]

I bought the best opel my budget could afford over a year ago . It was $7000.($200 a month on a
3 year car loan with about 5% interest)
I paid professionals for a new windshield and seals put in, firewall and gas tank welded plus some miscellaneous stuff . This
Put me close to $8,500 at the start. It is a basic solid CA car, not a spec of rust.
Body and frame is all straight. Since then I have driven it almost 10,000 miles.

I have spent approx another $200 a month in “stuff” every month for the last
15 months.$700 in paint for my first try at a paint job that I will need to redo to be better. For example, last month it was a rear end, this month are 2.0 opel exhaust Valves @ 28 ea. Before that ET alloy wheels were $200. Misc. stuff like
Plugs, electronic ignition, sprint manifold,2 in exhaust, carb rebuild, destec lights,
2 car covers to keep her cool in the summer, etc. I can drop the column and pull
The instrument panel in 10 min or less!

I am not just repairing the car, I am fixing it up to my satisfaction. I just want a
Solid, fun, daily driver. and that is what it is and much more.

Cost of acquisition:
My brother traveled the 2000 + miles to go get the car and bring it back.Plus he
Gave me a satellite radio ..then later an OGTS dash for my birthday. What is
The added value? Priceless

Future costs; A friend is building a cylinder head for me and will install a fresh
Engine. I will buy all the parts but he is donating his labor thru friendship and things I have helped him with..
What is the value ? priceless!

Currently I have a real nice, sporty car that runs awesome for about $11,500.
In a year and a half it will be close to $14000. The car is reliable and can be driven anywhere.It is practical to a degree.
Insurance and taxes are cheap. I have only needed one tow! I carry a
Powered jumpers, oil, fluids, hand tools and a vo-meter.

I have no regrets. The car and my hobby is costing me about $400 a month.
I have friends who spend that a month in bars,sporting events,jet skiis,boats,etc.
It will be paid off
In a year and a half. I have owned a bunch of cars in my life. This is by far the most fun. I will keep the car my entire life as there is an emotional bond.

I have driven her 150 miles in the last 2 days between my jobs. Life is good..
Even if your opel is not running ..at least you got one.

[truman]

This one on ebay looks interesting and the spare parts list is impressive- http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6390

[jerseyopel]

Went looking at the auto parts places for nos stuff,found a set of calipers for 100.00, a master cyl rebuilt for 52.00, new water pump 37.00, tailight assy for 25.00 with lens, and spark plug wires for 4.00. So far invested 4600.00 but plan on about 10,000 for perfection.

[tunepipe911]

looking at how much to spend on a gt,I realise you guys are still
cheaper of than us overseas
buying gt's aprox 3500 to 7500euro depending on state of the car,
restoring not included
it has to be said,when it is a good restoration,you have a car that turns
heads and it is not even a porsche!!!

[opelbits]

If your bank account is not empty, then you're not done.

[GTJIM]

Originally Posted by opelbits If your bank account is not empty, then you're not done.

What about when your bank account IS empty - and you are still not done. :o

[baz]

Originally Posted by GTJIM What about when your bank account IS empty - and you are still not done. :o

then you've got opelitis for sure

[jeff denton]

We've got about $6000 into Speedway GT. It cost $150 originally. I've been asked if I'd sell it, the answer is yes, but not yet, and I'd need $15,000 for it. Yes, we have a lot of time into it! Presently, however, it is all for naught until we can come up with some 4.11-4.30 gears for it... There is no use even taking it back to the track until then. It may be a street car some day, who knows? At least it will be very safe.

[Graham]

I'm afraid to put my cost on this site---my wife might see it!

[ConreroGT]

Originally Posted by West Coast GT Have you guys had a chance to see Gil’s GT from Opel GT Source? I’m thinking maybe it could be in a class with Porsche. And I mean one of the good ones. I only got a chance to look at it at the Opel picnic he hosted last month, (and it looks damn good) but I’m betting it would perform close to a ‘Vette, BMW, Porsche level. I’m real curious what it cost, but don’t know him well enough to ask. His car could very well be the standard by which all others are measured.

I asked Gil what the motor cost when I was deciding to rebuild the 2.2 I had, or go different...he said the motor alone is worth $15,000, if you can find one.

I figure with the wheels, paint, body work, interior....it has to be somewhere between $25,000 to $30,000 invested/worth.

[ConreroGT]

Originally Posted by jeff denton We've got about $6000 into Speedway GT. It cost $150 originally. I've been asked if I'd sell it, the answer is yes, but not yet, and I'd need $15,000 for it. Yes, we have a lot of time into it! Presently, however, it is all for naught until we can come up with some 4.11-4.30 gears for it... There is no use even taking it back to the track until then. It may be a street car some day, who knows? At least it will be very safe.

Have you checked a place out of Memphis, Tn called "Specialty Gear" www.specialtygear.com I havn't looked into them too detailed yet. But I was going to ask them about making custom diff. gears for the Opel GT.

[jeff denton]

Thanks, Con. I went to their site and e-mailed them a note. I've been to lots of ring and pinion company websites and asked about Opel possibilities, none yet has been of any help.
But I persist. Thanks again!

[simplemind7]

so far i've spent $250, 200 for the first half of the body work and 50 for wires, connectors, etc to fix up the wiring, gotta pay another 200 or 300 in about a month when the body works done. then i still need new brakes or rebuild mine, brake lines, maybe a MC (haven't checked its condition out yet), headlight cable, clutch cable, windshield, exhaust from the manifold back and a few little bits, anyone got an approximate idea how much that will come to?

[GoinManta]

Yikes.. I havent thought about how much on my sons car..

But I know its got to be in the $6000 range by now.. a LOT of that $30 at a time (Advance Auto, NAPA, and Ebay love me)

Charles

[benncojr]

Well,
I started with a non-running GT with 30+years of parts from 6+ cars (2 engins, 2 ARA A/C units, 12 rims) for $2,000. I am still going thru the parts and selling items that I do not think I need or want (Don't ask on the A/C units one is for me the other is for my brother). I still have to get the car running (with out hot wiring it), install new wiring, get the dash fixed (it was ate by a critter that died in the car), fix the rust, paint it. Then we have the fun of the upgrades, suspension, breaks, engin, A/C, Targa kit, ground effects. I am expecting over time I will put in hard cash of about $10,000, but I will have one of the finest GT's going that will eatup the rice burnes left and right

[namba209]

Darn Rick, you're getting off cheap with all that you plan to do on the GT. When I started this project, I had a zero balance on one $15K credit card over three years ago. I've been putting $500 on the card every month, maxed it out a couple of times and now it's getting down a bit again. How much have I spent so far? Don't ask!!!, I don't know, and I'm really sure I don't want to know. What I do know is it is fun doing it and will be even more fun driving it, if I ever get that far.

[benncojr]

Ron,
You are right but my wife looks over my sholder all the time when I am typing so it maybe a whole lot more. I am trying to offset some of the cost with some of the items I have.

I did not include the cost of the tools that I need for the restoration (Air-compresor, Air tools, Mig welder, Paint gun, car lifts, new garage, DSL Line to new garage, computer for new garage, oven to bake the paint on, refregerator to keep cool drink for the times waiting for the oven to bake the paint on.....)