RE: Opel Manta GT/E: Spotted
Discussion
tr7v8 said:
blade7 said:
tr7v8 said:
A mate had a 2.0S Capri at the time and a year later "upgraded" to a 2.8i Special. The Manta handled better than both.
I think we're going to have to agree to disagree on this. Suspension/braking wise the 2.8 injection was quite a big improvement on the 2.0/3.0S, and the injection special added a LSD that was another big upgrade. I'd have a GTE coupe over a 2.0S, but the injection special was a much better car.I can't remember why I went for the Manta over the Capri as I was a Ford fan at the time. I originally was after a GTE Mk1 Astra but that ceased production & the MK2 GT/E wasn't available. I think this is why I transferred to the Manta. I was running around in an XR3 at the time. The Capri 2.8 wouldn't have been on the radar as too expensive, also wasn't available as 5 speed at the time. The buying cycle of this was spread over around 6 odd months.
Yes the LSD would have been great on the Manta as well.
I got one for mine ( see above ) - was pretty cheap compared to things nowadays - made it even more fun to drive combined with the quick rack
J4CKO said:
Didnt have enough power, in the dry at least to really warrant an LSD I thought.
You can always make do without one even on something quick like a 335i Jacko - just makes it more fun - if you like that sort of thing - to be able to hold it sliding That was always the appeal of stuff like the old rwd Escorts/Mantas/BMs etc to me
Having said that, I do wonder if yours was a bit poorly Jacko as mine was able to keep up with stuff like MG Montegos and 405SRis fairly easily
Like I say, apart from things like the 2.8i or Lancer Turbo or Mk1 MR2, find a 4-seater common hot hatch/coupe of 2-litre from 83/84 that was much faster than 25 seconds to a ton or could top 120?
Mantas didn’t feel fast, granted, but they did the numbers
Later on, there were faster 16-valve Golfs and Astras and 5 GT turbos of course........but they outran the Mk1 Golf Gti and XR3i of 1983 too
Edited by s m on Thursday 6th December 21:51
s m said:
J4CKO said:
Didnt have enough power, in the dry at least to really warrant an LSD I thought.
You can always make do without one even on something quick like a 335i Jacko - just makes it more fun - if you like that sort of thing - to be able to hold it sliding That was always the appeal of stuff like the old rwd Escorts/Mantas/BMs etc to me
Having said that, I do wonder if yours was a bit poorly Jacko as mine was able to keep up with stuff like MG Montegos and 405SRis fairly easily
Like I say, apart from things like the 2.8i or Lancer Turbo or Mk1 MR2, find a 4-seater common hot hatch/coupe of 2-litre from 83/84 that was much faster than 25 seconds to a ton or could top 120?
Mantas didn’t feel fast, granted, but they did the numbers
Later on, there were faster 16-valve Golfs and Astras and 5 GT turbos of course........but they outran the Mk1 Golf Gti and XR3i of 1983 too
Edited by s m on Thursday 6th December 21:51
Would love to try one again, the seats were lovely even if the rest of the interior was exactly the same as the school caretakers 1978 Cavalier.
I want one, a modified one, more than any other Retro car I can think of, think prices are going to daft as old farts like me (but wealthier) are getting misty eyed.
Whats the nearest now, M240i, GT86 ?
J4CKO said:
s m said:
J4CKO said:
Didnt have enough power, in the dry at least to really warrant an LSD I thought.
You can always make do without one even on something quick like a 335i Jacko - just makes it more fun - if you like that sort of thing - to be able to hold it sliding That was always the appeal of stuff like the old rwd Escorts/Mantas/BMs etc to me
Having said that, I do wonder if yours was a bit poorly Jacko as mine was able to keep up with stuff like MG Montegos and 405SRis fairly easily
Like I say, apart from things like the 2.8i or Lancer Turbo or Mk1 MR2, find a 4-seater common hot hatch/coupe of 2-litre from 83/84 that was much faster than 25 seconds to a ton or could top 120?
Mantas didn’t feel fast, granted, but they did the numbers
Later on, there were faster 16-valve Golfs and Astras and 5 GT turbos of course........but they outran the Mk1 Golf Gti and XR3i of 1983 too
Edited by s m on Thursday 6th December 21:51
Would love to try one again, the seats were lovely even if the rest of the interior was exactly the same as the school caretakers 1978 Cavalier.
I want one, a modified one, more than any other Retro car I can think of, think prices are going to daft as old farts like me (but wealthier) are getting misty eyed.
Whats the nearest now, M240i, GT86 ?
But if you lined them up ( and believe me we often did! ) there was just nothing in it off the mark......and then towards the end the Manta would be nosing ahead
In gear at any speed you always had to be a gear lower in the Manta as opposed to a Gti/XR3ias it was really a 4+E 5 gear box rather than a proper 5-speeder ( the i200 gearset was much better )
5th gear offered good cruising but fairly glacial acceleration in a GTE
This bit from Fast Lane sums it up well
Tested against the rwd AE86 Corolla and Scirocco GTX ( both with more power and 5-speed boxes )
Fastest car against the clock and top speed ? Manta GTE
You’re right about the nostalgia bit too though
I’d love an XE engined one for weekends - GT86 performance in something old-skool
Retropower have done a lot of updated ones so we’re not alone!
https://youtu.be/MtG88-bToas
Edited by s m on Thursday 6th December 22:28
Edited by s m on Thursday 6th December 22:34
Yeah, figures wise not much in it but suppose the Manta was bigger and more GT ish.
I can see them escalating out of reach though if we are talking like this, and they can still be good value compared to an Escort, and lets be honest, they have pretty much as much competition pedigree as any Escort, kind of a bit less obvious and less cult-ish as well
I can see them escalating out of reach though if we are talking like this, and they can still be good value compared to an Escort, and lets be honest, they have pretty much as much competition pedigree as any Escort, kind of a bit less obvious and less cult-ish as well
J4CKO said:
, and they can still be good value compared to an Escort,l
There are virtually none left though, the rust had well and truly got into these by the time they were 10 yrs old ie mid 90's - and that was 25 years ago. Most cars from that era were the same in terms of rot after 10 yrs.I'd love to see GM and Ford start making repro-bodys for the Manta and Capri, would love to have one with modern engine and electrics and brakes and old school everything else.
I actually owned 4 mantas and still have one currently in storage , hence my username 
2 1800's (one hatch and one coupe), and a pair of GTE coupes.
One GTE Coupe was parted out, due to both inner and outer sills having been rotted out, the rear arches had gone, one side to the point someone had taken a repair section and STUCK it on using body filler
I do have some pictures of the day when i broke it for spares.
The Hatch and other GTE were sold, the Hatch unfortunately i think had spun a bearing, and was broken for it's gearbox, mounts and sump.. typical of 1800's in the 00's, everyone wanted the parts for dropping XE's into other things. Thankfully the GTE is currently undergoing a full restoration, and should be returning to the roads soon
As for the 1800 Coupe, well.. that's currently being stored until I've gotten myself into my own place, and got a few plans for it.
Given it's not original, by way of having had a replacement engine at some stage, I've managed to secure a Mk 7 Astra turbo engine, 170bhp C20LER? i believe it is, One below the VXR engine.
It also has the WORST colour interior but one of the rarest too, so that will be saved and put into another car.. I can't bring myself to keep it in the car though!
Also managed to get an RX8 gearbox fairly cheap, so plan is once i've got some space to work on it, it'll be getitng some serious work.. I will be doing a project thread when the time comes.
2 1800's (one hatch and one coupe), and a pair of GTE coupes.
One GTE Coupe was parted out, due to both inner and outer sills having been rotted out, the rear arches had gone, one side to the point someone had taken a repair section and STUCK it on using body filler
I do have some pictures of the day when i broke it for spares.The Hatch and other GTE were sold, the Hatch unfortunately i think had spun a bearing, and was broken for it's gearbox, mounts and sump.. typical of 1800's in the 00's, everyone wanted the parts for dropping XE's into other things. Thankfully the GTE is currently undergoing a full restoration, and should be returning to the roads soon
As for the 1800 Coupe, well.. that's currently being stored until I've gotten myself into my own place, and got a few plans for it.
Given it's not original, by way of having had a replacement engine at some stage, I've managed to secure a Mk 7 Astra turbo engine, 170bhp C20LER? i believe it is, One below the VXR engine.
It also has the WORST colour interior but one of the rarest too, so that will be saved and put into another car.. I can't bring myself to keep it in the car though!
Also managed to get an RX8 gearbox fairly cheap, so plan is once i've got some space to work on it, it'll be getitng some serious work.. I will be doing a project thread when the time comes.
tr7v8 said:
Performance was a different area, the cart springs on the Capri always limited it.
The injection Capri had beefy single leaf springs, and decent Bilstein struts/shocks. I don't remember if it had the anti tramp bars like the Escort RS2, but I never had axle tramp, even with over 200bhp. Sf_Manta said:
I actually owned 4 mantas and still have one currently in storage , hence my username
2 1800's (one hatch and one coupe), and a pair of GTE coupes.
One GTE Coupe was parted out, due to both inner and outer sills having been rotted out, the rear arches had gone, one side to the point someone had taken a repair section and STUCK it on using body filler I do have some pictures of the day when i broke it for spares.
The Hatch and other GTE were sold, the Hatch unfortunately i think had spun a bearing, and was broken for it's gearbox, mounts and sump.. typical of 1800's in the 00's, everyone wanted the parts for dropping XE's into other things. Thankfully the GTE is currently undergoing a full restoration, and should be returning to the roads soon
As for the 1800 Coupe, well.. that's currently being stored until I've gotten myself into my own place, and got a few plans for it.
Given it's not original, by way of having had a replacement engine at some stage, I've managed to secure a Mk 7 Astra turbo engine, 170bhp C20LER? i believe it is, One below the VXR engine.
It also has the WORST colour interior but one of the rarest too, so that will be saved and put into another car.. I can't bring myself to keep it in the car though!
Also managed to get an RX8 gearbox fairly cheap, so plan is once i've got some space to work on it, it'll be getitng some serious work.. I will be doing a project thread when the time comes.
If it’s a 170PS 2.0 turbo from an Astra, it’ll be the Z20LEL from a mk5 Astra. This is the same engine as the 197bhp Z20LER engine you could get in them too - the only difference is engine management2 1800's (one hatch and one coupe), and a pair of GTE coupes.
One GTE Coupe was parted out, due to both inner and outer sills having been rotted out, the rear arches had gone, one side to the point someone had taken a repair section and STUCK it on using body filler
I do have some pictures of the day when i broke it for spares.The Hatch and other GTE were sold, the Hatch unfortunately i think had spun a bearing, and was broken for it's gearbox, mounts and sump.. typical of 1800's in the 00's, everyone wanted the parts for dropping XE's into other things. Thankfully the GTE is currently undergoing a full restoration, and should be returning to the roads soon
As for the 1800 Coupe, well.. that's currently being stored until I've gotten myself into my own place, and got a few plans for it.
Given it's not original, by way of having had a replacement engine at some stage, I've managed to secure a Mk 7 Astra turbo engine, 170bhp C20LER? i believe it is, One below the VXR engine.
It also has the WORST colour interior but one of the rarest too, so that will be saved and put into another car.. I can't bring myself to keep it in the car though!
Also managed to get an RX8 gearbox fairly cheap, so plan is once i've got some space to work on it, it'll be getitng some serious work.. I will be doing a project thread when the time comes.
So that 170PS engine will actually map to pretty much Astra H VXR (Z20LEH) power levels (240PS)
Jimmy Recard said:
Sf_Manta said:
I actually owned 4 mantas and still have one currently in storage , hence my username
2 1800's (one hatch and one coupe), and a pair of GTE coupes.
One GTE Coupe was parted out, due to both inner and outer sills having been rotted out, the rear arches had gone, one side to the point someone had taken a repair section and STUCK it on using body filler I do have some pictures of the day when i broke it for spares.
The Hatch and other GTE were sold, the Hatch unfortunately i think had spun a bearing, and was broken for it's gearbox, mounts and sump.. typical of 1800's in the 00's, everyone wanted the parts for dropping XE's into other things. Thankfully the GTE is currently undergoing a full restoration, and should be returning to the roads soon
As for the 1800 Coupe, well.. that's currently being stored until I've gotten myself into my own place, and got a few plans for it.
Given it's not original, by way of having had a replacement engine at some stage, I've managed to secure a Mk 7 Astra turbo engine, 170bhp C20LER? i believe it is, One below the VXR engine.
It also has the WORST colour interior but one of the rarest too, so that will be saved and put into another car.. I can't bring myself to keep it in the car though!
Also managed to get an RX8 gearbox fairly cheap, so plan is once i've got some space to work on it, it'll be getitng some serious work.. I will be doing a project thread when the time comes.
If it’s a 170PS 2.0 turbo from an Astra, it’ll be the Z20LEL from a mk5 Astra. This is the same engine as the 197bhp Z20LER engine you could get in them too - the only difference is engine management2 1800's (one hatch and one coupe), and a pair of GTE coupes.
One GTE Coupe was parted out, due to both inner and outer sills having been rotted out, the rear arches had gone, one side to the point someone had taken a repair section and STUCK it on using body filler
I do have some pictures of the day when i broke it for spares.The Hatch and other GTE were sold, the Hatch unfortunately i think had spun a bearing, and was broken for it's gearbox, mounts and sump.. typical of 1800's in the 00's, everyone wanted the parts for dropping XE's into other things. Thankfully the GTE is currently undergoing a full restoration, and should be returning to the roads soon
As for the 1800 Coupe, well.. that's currently being stored until I've gotten myself into my own place, and got a few plans for it.
Given it's not original, by way of having had a replacement engine at some stage, I've managed to secure a Mk 7 Astra turbo engine, 170bhp C20LER? i believe it is, One below the VXR engine.
It also has the WORST colour interior but one of the rarest too, so that will be saved and put into another car.. I can't bring myself to keep it in the car though!
Also managed to get an RX8 gearbox fairly cheap, so plan is once i've got some space to work on it, it'll be getitng some serious work.. I will be doing a project thread when the time comes.
So that 170PS engine will actually map to pretty much Astra H VXR (Z20LEH) power levels (240PS)
As for the interior.. it is horrid!
J4CKO said:
.
I can see them escalating out of reach though if we are talking like this, and they can still be good value compared to an Escort, and lets be honest, they have pretty much as much competition pedigree as any Escort, kind of a bit less obvious and less cult-ish as well
I'm amazed EVO has never done an article on the Ascona/Manta 400 and road cars esp considering the recordsI can see them escalating out of reach though if we are talking like this, and they can still be good value compared to an Escort, and lets be honest, they have pretty much as much competition pedigree as any Escort, kind of a bit less obvious and less cult-ish as well
e.g Ascona 400 was the last rwd car to win drivers world championship
Won Safari Rally...and at the other extreme the Swedish and Monte Carlo
Plus the road cars...as fast to 60 as a Lotus Sunbeam for the 400s
mhurley said:
Cool car at the time
Anyone remember the Opel Monza and the Vauxhall Royale Coupe?
Yep, having put 70,000+ miles on my 86 Opel Manta GT/E Coupe company car within 18 months from new, in 1987 I changed it for a rare manual gearbox low mileage 85 Opel Monza GSE, and bought it off the company as I loved it so much, enjoying 150,000+ miles in it over the following 15 years or so.Anyone remember the Opel Monza and the Vauxhall Royale Coupe?
Eventually sold it to another Monza enthusiast after it began to need some restoration, and I'm delighted to see that after a few years off the road, A 3 GSE has been MOT'd since 2013.
Hopefully I'll get to see it again someday, maybe at a car show / owners club meet or something similar.
BFleming said:
PH did an Opel Manta GTE spotted article back in 2015, it's here if you fancy a read: https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
I lifted this from that article, mostly as I think it's fab - the ads that used to fill car magazines back then...
Thanks for that - here's a few more Manta GT/E ads:I lifted this from that article, mostly as I think it's fab - the ads that used to fill car magazines back then...
Miglia 888 said:
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