1974 A Series Opel Manta Blog

The Opel Project blog has been setup to record the rebuild of my 1974 A Series Opel Manta.
OPEL
1974 A Series Opel Manta Blog
OPEL

1974 A Series Opel MantaFeatured

My 1974 A Series Opel Manta. It’s been a long project and there are still a few little modifications I want to do in the future,. Now running a 2.0l+ CIH engine on full OMEX 600 engine management with Webcon throttle bodies. Everything is custom-made or adapted, from the full 2.5″ stainless steel exhaust, Wilwood racing callipers, Cosworth rear callipers, Hydraulic clutch, Chevy S10 clutch kit and lots more.. Read on for full details of the rebuild and hopefully one-day pictures of her out on the road in Germany!

Continue reading
Fuel tank, OPEL

Testing the new Opel Manta A Series fuel sender

It was time to test out the new fuel sender! After wiring it in and fitting a new earth strap, just to make sure it was time to fill the tank up and see what happened! I was not disappointed as with 5 litres of fuel in the tank the gauge was reading just inside the red. Which thought was pretty good as the old one was right into the white the other side of the red and when i emptied out the tank, there was at least 15 litres if not more, fuel in there so now i know…

Continue reading
Fuel tank

Opel Manta A Series Fuel Sender Replacement

One thing on my list of jobs i wanted to do at some point was replace the fuel sender as mine has never seemed to be that accurate and im sure it was reading lower than the actual level. Also where i had swapped to the fuel injection i needed to block up the fuel outlet on the sender as that is all part of the fuel pump for the injection. Firstly, where do you find a new A Series fuel sender and even harder one that is setup for injection with no fuel outlet! Well, i never seemed to…

Continue reading
Fuel tank

Fuel Pump Upgrade

When i started the proper restoration and upgrade of the A Series, there were not too many options for aftermarket in-tank pumps for the full fuel injection and as I didn’t want to go the whole swirl pot in the boot option, I opted for an all-in-one pump and swirl pot from a Punto, which worked great but was made for a much deeper tanks than the A Series and was quite a bulky plastic unit and as the pump was too tall I ended up having a flange welded to the tank and cutting a hole in the boot…

Continue reading
Electrical

Sharp RG – 7050E radio

A couple of months ago as i was having a little search on eBay, I came across someone selling a Sharp RG – 7050E radio. This was the exact radio that was fitted to the car when I bought it 🙂 and that one had sadly seen better days. The seller said it was in mint condition and he was selling it because the cassette was stuck in it and he could get it out, which is what happened to the one I had, so obviously a common thing when they get old. I knew how to get the cassette…

Continue reading
Uncategorized

Autumn Adventuring in the Opel

Since the VBO meeting, i haven’t had time to use the Opel much. Just a couple of runs out to Compton Abbas Airfield to see the Spitfires. This week is the last week that they will be there so if the weather is dry and sunny tomorrow I will be taking a little trip out to see them. Then I think its time to tackle a couple of jobs that I have had on my list for a while.    

Continue reading
Travel

VBO Meeting Sywell 2024

This weekend it was the VBO meeting at Sywell Aerodrome. So it was time for a trip up in the Opel as I missed last years. The Opel was fully put to its test on the way up due to an accident and road closure at Newbury and the usual great handling of the UK police! After a bit of a diversion down lots of back roads I finally made it to Leicester for a stop over! This time the alternator charged fully and I can definitely say that the Evans waterless coolant does it job as not only was…

Continue reading
Travel

A couple of little trips out in the Opel

In between all the July rain there have been a few nice days where I have been able to get out in the sunshine for a drive in the Opel. On Thursday I took a trip up to Compton Abbas airfield as they had a day when the 2 seater Spitrie’s were flying in and out of the airfield. And on Sunday it was a trip out to the Sherborne Caster Classic & Sports Car show. Loads of really nice classic cars supercars but not an Opel in site! You could pay to put your car on display but as…

Continue reading

Popular posts

GM/Opel CIH Engine Timing Chain Guides & Potential Problems

Im writing this little post on some of this issues i have encountered when building my Opel Manta CIH engine due to the differences between the Original GM/OPEL timing...

Finishing the Exhaust

I have finally got back round to doing some more work on the car!! The summer has been a bit busy with work so not much time has been...