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Post by carloskadetts on Apr 5, 2009 9:01:26 GMT
Got this 1979 opel kadett coupe(to break!?) just over a year ago thro the guy who mot's my main kadett. he'd failed it the week before on a couple of minors, the main thing being rotten spring seats on the back axle. spoke to the owner on the phone and he said i could have it for 300 quid to cover the cost of the windscreen and wing he'd bought that year. i figured as i had a coupe already, i could break it and have a full set of spares, as doors,glass etc are like rocking horse crap when you're trying to buy them. Upon seeing the car and having a poke about, i thought better of the first idea of breaking it and decided to keep it. the sills and floor are all original, as are the arches, although a little crusty. the only real rust to deal with is some small areas on the inner wings and around the head lights,and the valance will want replacing. The blokes father had bought it new and i think he was sad to see it go, so i promised to give it a good home! he didn't want it modifying but i can't promise that won't happen, lol. bought another new wing, so got 2 new ones to fit now. got a spare back axle from my other one, so i'm just getting the running gear shot blasted and painted at the moment. with a bit of luck it should be mot'd in the next few months and will probably be a bit of a rolling resto while i decide upon the engine upgrade, and gather those parts together. I'll dig out some more photos and try and post up the stages as it goes along.
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Post by coggers on Apr 5, 2009 12:03:53 GMT
Great project , and a decent price too Right time , right place and all that If it turns out like the white one it'll be okay . Speaking of which , any chance of a ful build thread for the white one ? I only saw bits and pieces on the RR thread
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Post by alymac on Apr 5, 2009 15:14:10 GMT
i know this may be a bit out of date , but to me a 2.0 cih with throttle bodies , seems to tick my box, if my toyota engine goes bang, i go for that,
which way you thinking? volvo turbo 5 pot?
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Post by carloskadetts on Apr 5, 2009 18:03:21 GMT
well coggers, i totally agree i was slack with the photos on the white one. if i did it myself i would have been able to update more. problem was the body was 90 percent so i just got the engine transplant done by a guy who'd done it a few times on mantas, as i got in my head it was time to start attending billing and i wanted the white kadett ready for this summer! theres still the body/paintwork to do, new wheels, and i'll probably spend loads detailing it and getting anything powder coated that comes off it! running gear,wish bones etc, blah blah blah. so theres more to come. i'll do a full,better thread very shortly if thats what people want. as for the red one, aly, i really dont know. looking into all possibilities. was thinking nissan turbo the other week, then z20let with arden blue paint(like astra turbo), whatever i choose is going to have to be 'one step up' from the xe as i'll have got used to the white one by then. if i went old school cih then it would have to be in period colours, 13" deep dish and period parts, like the ones in germany. some of those are... awesome.
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Post by coggers on Apr 5, 2009 18:19:48 GMT
i'll do a full,better thread very shortly if thats what people want. Oh please do , the engine bay alone is totally inspiring let alone the complete car Nice to have a blank canvas for the 'new' coupe though , modern turbo lump would be good although old skool cih sounds a hoot also
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Post by carloskadetts on Apr 6, 2009 10:21:31 GMT
just a couple more pics. armed with a grinder and flap disc i took the crust off the arches a few weeks ago, just to get an idea of how bad it was and what i've got ahead of me. she aint that bad, considering she's 30 years old a trip to halfords for a pot of zinc rich primer was next. i'm putting the chrome bumpers on the white one, along with the side strips. going to fit the painted bumpers to the red one but they'll be painted black. got some black door handles somehere off a manta, and the chrome around the side windows will be black. so the idea is to keep the white one looking totally stock on the surface, apart from some nice wheels, and the red one will have the obvious mods, although who knows what colour it will end up?! strangely enough, i actually dont mind the look of the kadetts without the front bumper. got two new wings now so just a valance to locate. front seats have been junked in favour of a pair of old recaros from a previous kadett. got my front crossmember back from shotblasters so i think i'll paint that this afternoon..
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Post by alymac on Apr 6, 2009 10:36:53 GMT
looking good, your front panel has had it, they are not easy to find, what was wrong with that blue wing you had one, its the same colour as my kadett. dont paint crossmember you regreat it, have it powered coated instead, mines getting done today in satin black and will be longer lasting than paint.
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Post by carloskadetts on Apr 6, 2009 20:31:56 GMT
too late now, its painted. i know the powdercoating is more durable as its baked on, but this has got plenty of layers of truck grade chassis paint, so it should last a few years yet. i hope. the old crossmember is still on at the mo.. wishbones are a proper mess looks 100% better than the old one with its fresh paint so it should go from this: to this, when fitted.. back to work tomorrow so i wont get anything done til next week now
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Post by alymac on Apr 6, 2009 21:25:34 GMT
it does look good, take it back, did you spray or brush. just had mine done today.
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Post by carloskadetts on Aug 5, 2009 14:47:19 GMT
seems a bit quiet on here at the mo, so i thought i'd do a little progress report... finally got my back axle from the shotblasters after they'd had it 3 months! so i fitted it last week. went and got some larger axle stands so i could get the back end up in the air enough to drop the axle down on the trolley jack and then roll it out backwards on the wheels. was on my own and had limited space so it was my only option.(no comments on the white bumpers guys, i know they look hideous. they're going to be black) after a few cups of tea and 45 mins later it was out. now you could see just how nobbed the old one was and why it was the main mot failure on the failure sheet. the spring seats on the axle were so rotten and thin, and holed, that it looked like the springs were about to push through at any time! its strange why the running gear on this car is in such a bad state because the underside of the car is great. it had some sort of ziebart type rust proofing when it was new but these treatments just involved spraying rust prone areas of the bodyshell etc, and the running gear had to fend for itself. anyway did the opposite and lifted the replacement axle up into place and bolted all suspension etc back on. got to get the other components painted up and get a set of new springs but this axle is just to get it back on the road again so i'm not going overboard with it. i'm going to have to change the axle again next year when the engine gets upgraded! only took another 50 mins so i thought i'd pop out and get some brake pipe and renew all that while it was going so well. had a decent afternoons progress so i had another bash at it the following day while the missus was at work. got a lower front panel a couple of months back, thanks again aly, so i chopped the old one off to reveal what was behind it. nothing to bother mentioning, so it'll just get a good clean behind here before the new ones fitted for good. the new panel was for the earlier kadett so i had to weld in some little plates to fill the holes where the indicators go. i made a couple of cuts in it first and bashed it to the right shape, so a tiny skim of filler before its painted and you'd never know it was the wrong panel. this is the worst area of rust really, where the inner wings end and the front panel begins. a usual kadett rust area. nothing else for it but to cut out each bit of rusty metal i find, and weld in clean new metal. you can get the headlight mounting bits from dr-manta but i'm going to make them. nothing else to show yet so i'll do another update as and when (definately needs lowering!)
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Post by alymac on Aug 7, 2009 15:07:11 GMT
starting to take shape, front panel looks ok,
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