Nov Dec 2008 Denis
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InsideInsideInside thisthisthis issue:issue:issue: 350 cid Swedish Blender, Opel at War Stuttgart Opel Meet by G. Rust Manta Museum Racer, Congressional Motors? Opel Owner in WA & MD meets Press Tech: Demystifying the GT Air Filter OMC New Years Party Details, Opel Nationals, Early Info Volume 28, Issue 6 November/December 2008 OMC Editor’s Central We want submissions! Welcome to the Opel Motorsport Club THE OPEL M OTORSPORT CLUB IS CELEBRATING ITS 28TH YEAR OF DEDICATION TO THE PRESERVATION AND APPRECIATION OF ALL GERMAN OPELS , WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON MODELS IMPORTED INTO THE UNITED STATES. WE ARE HEADQUARTERED IN THE LOS ANGELES AREA, AND HAVE CHAPTERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, IN EUROPE, AS WELL AS MEMBERS IN CANADA AND MEXICO. MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS INCLUDE SUBSCRIPTION TO OUR NEWSLET- TER, THE BLITZ, LISTINGS FOR PARTS AND SERVICE SUPPLIERS, BLITZ INDEX & TECH TIP INDEX (1985-DATE), FREE CLASSIFIED ADS (3 PER YEAR), CLUB ITEMS, MEMBER ROSTER, OWNER SUPPORT AND ACTIVITIES , INCLUDING MEETINGS AND OUR ANNUAL PICNIC & CAR SHOW The Club Regional Chapters The Blitz TO APPLY FOR MEMBERSHIP European Chapter (Netherlands) SEND EVENT INFORMATI ON, TECH CONTACT: Contact Louis van Steen: (011 31) 297 340 TIPS, PARTS INFORMATION, LETTERS , OMC TREASURER, c/o Dick Counsil 536 (please take note of the time zone CHAPTER ACTIVITY ANNOUNCEMENTS, 3824 Franklin Street before calling), fast60gt (at) yahoo.com ADVERTISEMENTS AND ALL OTHER ITEMS OF INTEREST TO: La Crescenta, CA 91214-1607 Florida Chapter (Coral Gables, FL) Opel BLITZ Editor Contact John Malone: 305-443-8513 P.O Box 4004 MEMBERSHIP DUES: Michigan Chapter Sonora, CA 95370-4004 USA Regular: $45 Annually via Checks and Contact John Brooks: 616-233-9050 ext 12 Deadline: (At Discretion of OMC Editor) Money Orders (US funds only, made payable to Opel Motorsport Club) or $47 Johncinquo (at) hotmail.com. Submissions will be accepted either typewritten, annually via PayPal. Mid Atlantic Opel Club (Richmond, VA) on Microsoft Word, Publisher or Works compatible disk or e-mailed to the Editor. Online: $20 annually or $21 via PayPal Contact Charles Goin: 804-379-9737 cgoin (at) mindspring.com [email protected] New England Opel Club (Swansea, MA) Drawings or Photos accepted and encouraged. Send PayPal funds to: Contributions to the Blitz will be published on a Contact Gary Farias: 508-679-2740 [email protected] space-available basis. Gary (at) opelgt.com Include your name and address information. The Blitz is the official publication of the Opel North American Opel GT Chapter MEETINGS: Motorsport Club (OMC). Published bi-monthly. (Chicago, IL) The OMC meetings are as announced, at Circulation is limited to club members and Contact Jim Toler: 630-964-9797 varying locations. Please consult the OMC prospective club members. All submissions be- come the property of the OMC and will not be Blitz calendar or OMC website to find out Northern California Chapter (Sonora, returned. Articles, photographs, drawings, who is hosting the next meeting or event. CA) Contact Gil Wesson: 209-928-1110 technical tips, and other materials appearing in Opelgts (at) opelgtsource.com the Blitz may not be reproduced without the ex- Ohio Chapter (Columbus, OH) pressed, written permission of the OMC. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Contact Larry Shal: 614-861-1565 officers or members of the OMC. Online Opel Sites Pacific Northwest Chapter (Shelton, WA) Contact Paul Kaman: 360-426-9267 ADVERTISING IN THE BLITZ CLASSIFIEDS OMC is on the Internet. The site features Rocky Mountain Opels (Security, CO) (CARS & PARTS FOR SALE OR WANTED): Club News, Event Coverage, Tech Tips, Contact Branston DiBrell Jr 719-391-9421 Up to 50 words, plus name & phone, and a OMC & Opel History, features and much single photo: dibrellb (at) rmi.net more. 1 Month $6.00 3 Months $15.00 San Diego Opel Motorsport Club 6 Months $23.00 12 Months $39.00 Visit us at: www.opelclub.com Contact TBA when available. (3 Free Ads per year for members) Other Good Opel Sites: BUSINESS ADS : (SUBJECT TO CHANGE) www.opelgt.com Texas Opel Club (Leonard, TX) Contact Rodney Killingsworth, 903-587- Half Page $35 for 1 month, Website of the NEOC Full Page (Temporarily Unavailable) Includes a Tech help Bulletin Board 9640 Tyrodk (at) fanninelectric.com Insert $120 for 1 month, [email protected] Carolina Opel Club Business Card $60 for 1year Subscribe to this useful e-mail posting site Contact Roy Bell: 704-782-1866 Color Back Cover (Temporarily Unavailable) E-mail: CarolinaOpelClub (at) aol.com Send Ad Copy and payment (payable to Opel http://clubs.hemmings.com/ Motorsport Club) to Blitz Editor. We chose to use (at) in place of @ for spam frameset.cfm?club=oana CHANGE OF ADDRESS:: The OANA Website To minimize delays, please provide the OMC 2007 OPEL MOTORSPORT CLUB Treasurer with address changes at least one OFFICERS & STAFF month in advance. CLUB OFFICER’S PRESIDENT PAUL HEEBINK E-MAIL ADDRESS VICE PRESIDENT Jerry Hendrix 805-526-3765 ON THE COVER: ACTIVITIES TBA TREASURER Dick Counsil 818-248-5504 Face: OMC Blitz Staff [email protected] BLITZ EDITOR TBA WEBMASTER Rich Upper right: Manta Tuning Race Rep. Roger Wilson President’s Letter Economic downturns, recession, and cutbacks effect everyone in some way, and in the first week of December it hit me too as I lost my job of 12 years as General Manager of an NBC television station in Yuma Arizona. I even had to give up my company car!! No fear as my trusty 1975 Sportwagon was pressed into service. Driving around town in my 33 year old car “sans” power windows, cruise control, and automatic transmission became good metaphor for appreciating life and the basic joys. I have my health and my family and I very optimistic about becoming reemployed. Recently I removed the rear seat and created a very functional platform to carry things. The Sportwagon was loaded to the hilt this past Saturday as I carried a load of tables and chairs to my young son’s birthday party. Everywhere I went I got a thumbs up or a question. The under 40 crowd asked ”Is that a Datsun?” or “Is that a Vega?” The older people smiled and said “I haven’t seen one of those in years… it looks great!” It is good to be brought back to earth sometimes and I can’t think of a better way than in my 1975 Opel timemachine….Happy Holidays to all!! Paul Letter From The Historian Obsession: excessive preoccupation with an idea, or delusion. Webster’s Dictionary This summer, two thousand and eight, marks my 25th anniversary of continual uninterrupted Opel ownership. The event would have gone completely unnoticed if RallyeBob on ‘opelgt.com’ had not mentioned his quarter century milestone online. And if owning one brand of automobile is not obsession, then please tell me what is! It also go me to thinking: What was the most sought after improvement we as Opel owners desire or crave? The answer for me was multifaceted, but eventually boiled down to seeking more performance and more power. Invariably, people at car shows have ask me, ‘Do you have a V 8 in there?’, or as the Dodge commercial years ago asked, ‘Does that thing have a Hemi?’ Horsepower and cars go hand in hand and as a nation we judge our automobiles in 1/4 mile incre- ments. Pick up any car magazine, such as Road & Track, and you will see the 1/4 mile potential of their feature car. Of course you will also find other specifications, but the 1/4 mile still times still rules. If you want more proof, grab the TV remote and look for the reality show “Pinks”. Do you want to know the 1/4 mile time of a 1995 Toyota Tercel? No problem. The 1/4 mile time is listed online as 18.4 seconds. Note: In contrast the stock Opel GT ran the 1/4 mile in 17.6 seconds and the 1974 Manta did so in 18.3 seconds. I myself started craving for more power back with my first 1974 Manta in 1983. I dropped in a set of oversize 9:1 compression pistons, a 292 degree .450 lift cam, added a Weber and a 4 into 1 tube header. Since then I have installed built a number of Opels with performance engines. As I have gotten older (remember 25 years) my obsession for performance has drifted from all out horse power to something a bit more mature. This ‘more-mature’ route had me chose engines that not only made power, but that would deliver reliable daily performance. To fulfill that goal I turned to larger displacement Opel engines with fuel injection and more high tech Opel engines. Jury: I present Exhibit A. My 1973 GT with a fuel injected 2.4L. Exhibit B. My 73 Manta with the 150 hp Opel 2.0 16V engine. However an automobile can not live on HP alone. As my obsession progressed I realized that any automobile must be a total package to be truly brilliant. The driveline must be able to handle the extra power, corner with confidence, and haul you down from triple digits speeds without drama! My quest turned to bigger clutches, 5 speed transmissions, 4 wheel disk brakes, larger sway bars, polyurethane bushings, performance shocks, and either stiffer or lowering springs. This obsession (or drive to perfection, if you wish) has even spread to my more mundane cars. such as my daily driver 1980 Buick Regal. She started life as a 105hp 3.8L V6 but now sports a ’89 Trans Am GTA L98 engine with tune port injection and 240 hp with 340 foot pounds of torque.