1988 GT Exclusive hatch

[Leon]

Hi all

Been into Mantas for years but for some reason I just never got round to buying one.

I got a decent tax rebate in January and decided I was going to spend it on a "new" car, so I started trawling through ads looking for a clean Chevette. The plan was to get a non rot-box, carry out an XE or 2.0 SEH conversion and just use it as a daily driver.

Problem was, every Chevette I saw was either a basket case or a "barn find" that some chancer wanted £2000 for even though it hadn't been near an MOT station in 15 years. All I wanted was a relatively clean daily driver type car and found one surprisingly hard to get hold of - so I expanded my search to Mantas

It was the same story with Mantas - £250 welding-practice fodder or £4000 20,000 miler concours, neither of which I wanted. Until eventually I came across one on a classic car site which took my fancy.

It was a 1988 GT Exclusive - someone has fitted GTE skirts, and the nicer GTE Exclusive interior and alloys. It was also a hatch (perfect! I needed a hatch for it's load carrying abilities) and it was a 1.8 (ideal for my engine plans) so I went to have a look at it.

Overall it was very straight. Some very very minor bubbling around the sunroof which will haunt me in years to come no doubt, good sills and solid original (as far as I can tell) chassis rails, solid original battery tray, crossmember, boot floor and so on.

The paint was quite dull, it's been resprayed a couple of years back and it looks like a bit of a rush job particularly below the swage line.

Also obviously had replacement wings as it has no side repeaters despite being F reg!

It drove nicely so I made an offer on the asking and took it home.

Here she is as I bought her:

Nice clean interior

Next up some pics of the structure

[Leon]

Sill tops:

Sill bottoms:

Chassis rails:

Battery tray:

Headlamp bowl:

Crossmember:

Boot floor:

Rear pockets:

Looking in the cavities the car has been treated to a fair bit of waxoyl in the past which has helped keep it in decent condition. Something I will carry on doing using Bilt Hamber Dynax Cavity Wax in the doors, rear panels, roof, bonnet, sills and so on.

[Leon]

Plenty of room for improvement and preventative maintenence though!

First off I popped off the side skirts and gave the sills some attention.

Cleaned off and treated with Nitromors around any corroded areas to get rid of lifting paint

Given a good dose of Bilt Hamber Deox-Gel to get rid of any minor corrosion

Then a going over with Hydrate80 to stabilise and provide a good base coat

Then primed, and given a subsequent few coats of stonechip paint

Finally topcoat and lacquer

Then refitted the skirts using stainless self tappers (remember it's a GT so it doesn't have the original trim clips to hold on the skirts)

Doing the other sill this morning. It's tedious but worth doing IMO for peace of mind come the next MOT.

[Leon]

Taking a break from laying on my shoulder on the floor I also wanted to brighten up the exterior.

I know that the red graphics on Monaco blue cars cause mass controversy and lots of people hate them, and hate it even more when people fit decals that are not pointy enough, or even worse - *gasp* THE WRONG SHADE OF RED!!!

Well, I'm not lots of people and I bloody well LIKE bright red so on they went . I used GT/E graphics and just left off the "E" - not strictly original I suppose but I am not aiming for originality

Then I gave the whole thing a bloody good clean and polish and she has ended up like this:

Comments (good or bad) welcome!

[MikeyRules]

A great project Leon, and a great solid car by the looks of it!!

She has come up well paint work wise, it looks tons better and even the interior looks mint and well looked after... So whats next fella? You gonna tackle the engine transplant or enjoy it as it is for a while?

[Leon]

Cheers Mike, yeah it is pretty solid, a few scabby bits but hey - who's perfect? (apart from maybe Keeley Hazell )

At the moment I'm just enjoying driving it. I need to source a few bits and bobs like new headlamps, stop the exhaust knocking, replace the dodgy coil and the rubber bonnet supports but the long term plan is definitely XE or Ecotec as this 1.8 is a little lacking in grunt for my liking.

A few other recent jobs I've done:

DTV stickers under the bonnet

24-LED fog light bulb in the reverse lamp slot as my fog lamp is missing:

Blue LED's to replace the original grain o' wheat dash bulbs. Wish they were this bright in real life, the dash lighting on the Manta is AWFUL, the worst I've ever had in a car:

Rear bumper off - it's dull and needs respraying and lacquering:

Pleased at how solid the valance is too.

HELP - WHERE CAN I GET MONACO BLUE IN AN AEROSOL? MY LOCAL VAUXHALL DEALERS LOOKED AT ME LIKE I WAS A THREE HEADED ALIEN WHEN I ASKED FOR IT!

Done more rust sorting today, will post up the pics after I've had me barbecue

[Sutty2006]

Sorry if im going to sound out of hand here, but why buy a MINT 1800 exclusive to rip out the 1800 and replace it with a redtop? Things like this really get on my tits. Why do that to a decent 1800..? This motor i know personally. In fact I nearly bought it but was too late.

I threaten to redtop my 1800 GT all the time, only because its tired and everytime i get it running it goes pop. If you plan to redtop a manta, you should really buy a knackered 1800.

I know i'l get my arse chewed out for this and have nothing against anyone converting to redtop, but on a perfectly good 1800 actually breaks my heart. Id long for a decent running 1800!!!

[Leon]

Sorry if im going to sound out of hand here, but why buy a MINT 1800 exclusive to rip out the 1800 and replace it with a redtop? Things like this really get on my tits. Why do that to a decent 1800..? This motor i know personally. In fact I nearly bought it but was too late.

Why does it upset you?

I had no intention of "ripping" anything out, I'm not a butcher, I'm a car enthusiast.

I don't think a 1.8 Exclusive hatch is ever going to be an object of immense desirability or rarity - and this one is not even in original specification, it does not have the right wheels, interior or bodykit.

If it was an i240 or one of only 50 made I could understand the concern, but at looking at things objectively it's just a run of the mill Opel Manta.

I threaten to redtop my 1800 GT all the time, only because its tired and everytime i get it running it goes pop. If you plan to redtop a manta, you should really buy a knackered 1800.

You're making it sound like I'm going to banger race the thing, not put in a better engine

If you want to convert yours to 16v, do it! You don't have to think up excuses to carry out the work.

Personally I would prefer to start with as good a base car as I could find. Mine has an intermittent sticking tappet and leaks oil. Is that close enough to being knackered

I know i'l get my arse chewed out for this and have nothing against anyone converting to redtop, but on a perfectly good 1800 actually breaks my heart. Id long for a decent running 1800!!!

I'm certainly not going to chew your arse for your comments, we all see things differently and place importance on different things - a friend has recently turned what was a spotless Mk2 Escort Harrier into a full blown Group 4 stage rally car and sometimes I wonder if that was the "right" thing to do with that particular car - but it's his car and he can do with it as he wishes. Still, I'd rather it be turned into a rally car than see it rotting in a field or be trailered around between shows only coming out for a polish every summer.

An XE or Ecotec conversion on a Manta 1.8 is a relatively non-invasive procedure as I'm sure you know only too well - there is no hacking around of the body involved, no permanent damage or disfigurement to the shell, and if someone wanted to return it to original specification it could easily be done.

However if I'd bought this particular car for it's distributor, gearbox, mounts and sump for a Locost...... I'd be the first to agree with you!

[Sutty2006]

Each to their own i supose. I have a soft spot for 1800's. Id like first dibs on it if you sell the remains, as personally id rather keep my 1800 the way it is and a second engine that i know is a good one will come in handy..

[garymanc]

hi leon

try at a motor factors or paint shop

it's about £12.50 a tin

but it sprays like a spray gun

nice hatch by the way

[mantadoc]

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Edited September 27, 2017 by mantadoc

[opel2000]

Nice looking Hatch you have there Leon

Must say I totally agree with you about plopping an XE in it, I always found the 1.8 to be totally gutless really, I know they have potential when tuned but would have to throw cash at it just to get to the XE's original power.

The XE that was in my old Calibra was such a smooth effortless engine, pretty much what should have been fitted in the Manta anyway.

Forgot to mention......... Dash lights, LOL, yeah mate absolutley bl00dy useless aint they.

[Leon]

Each to their own i supose. I have a soft spot for 1800's. Id like first dibs on it if you sell the remains, as personally id rather keep my 1800 the way it is and a second engine that i know is a good one will come in handy

No problem

try at a motor factors or paint shop

it's about £12.50 a tin

but it sprays like a spray gun

Cheers - will give my local a try

After years of patching up cars I can certainly see why someone would start a project with a minter.

There are only so many times you can go through the same welding operations on cars before it gets boring. Starting with a good motor cuts out all the boring stuff and lets you do the fun stuff straight away.

Exactly my thinking

You do as you like Leon, it's you car. I will take the mick if ytou get half way through and then break it though.

Must say I totally agree with you about plopping an XE in it, I always found the 1.8 to be totally gutless really, I know they have potential when tuned but would have to throw cash at it just to get to the XE's original power.

The XE that was in my old Calibra was such a smooth effortless engine, pretty much what should have been fitted in the Manta anyway.

That's the way I see it. If it makes me more inclined to use the car and keep it nice then upgrading the engine can only be a good thing.

Cheers for all the comments, dragging on with the rust proofing today and it's hot and tedious.

[Leon]

Okay more work done in an effort to keep her in good nick

Did the other sill (not as nice as the other side, but still very good) and a spot of rust that had grown up on the top of the sill itself

First, Nitromors the affected area:

Then rub away all the shrivelled paint:

Apply DeOx Gel:

Remove with a wire brush and clean the area up, then apply a few coats of Hydrate80 to stabilise the area:

Looks like this when dried:

That's not very pretty though, so it got lots and lots of coats of stonechip black:

Then some top coat (this is actually the wrong colour, a Volvo shade, it's a very close match and will do for this sort of thing:

Finally some lacquer:

And back on with the sideskirt with stainless fastners

As you can see the colour match isn't perfect but in real life it's barely noticeable. Hell, it's an inner sill, you only see it when you open the door anyway!

Hopefully that will at least slow down the progress of any MOT-failing rot

[mikeanodd]

"pretty gutless"he says.do what you like with your car dude.tell you wot thou,me an me dt250 will shat all over him and his ride..

[opel2000]

"pretty gutless"he says.do what you like with your car dude.tell you wot thou,me an me dt250 will shat all over him and his ride..

Er,,,,, Are you quite sure about that.

Apart from my current daily drive I can't remember the last time i was drivining anything with less than 200BHP through the rear wheels...

If I let a DT250 past,,,, it would of been because it went past me.

Racing is for on the tracks mate

And yes mate....... the 1.8 is a gutless 90bhp lump

And also.......... "Will" as in "I will in the future do this thing etc." that is called future tense

Followed by "Shat" as in I shat all over him etc. that is called past tense, as in something you had done.

So I take it you plan to do something that you had already done, it's the only way your comment (apart from being absolute 8ollucs in the first place) can make any sense mate.

[mickappy]

haha dt250 pmsl

now get a reet toy like my kx500

or its little brother my kx250

xe will give it a kick up the rrrrss

[Leon]

One thing I will miss about the 1.8 is the induction note. What carb is on these? Sounds lovely and raucous when you're giving it some beans.

[Sutty2006]

Sorry guys but the 1800 aint gutless...... Try driving it harder

And once you've driven my carlton, milk floats are more powerful!

[mantadoc]

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Edited September 27, 2017 by mantadoc

[mickappy]

Also about 85% of bikers will find themselves lying in the road unexpectedly at some point in time or another.

thats me so its getting 400 r turbo treatment

[mantadoc]

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Edited September 27, 2017 by mantadoc

[Sutty2006]

When you've jumped out of a bigger more modern engine the 1800 is bound to be gutless compaired to larger lumps.

[mantadoc]

Deleted

Edited September 27, 2017 by mantadoc

[Leon]

When you've jumped out of a bigger more modern engine the 1800 is bound to be gutless compaired to larger lumps.

I haven't though, not really....

Car history:

Mk3 Escort 1600

Mk1 Fiesta 1100

Mk1 Sierra 2000

Mk2 Sierra 1800

Mk2 Sierra 2000

Nova 1400

Mk2 Golf 1054

205 GTI 1600

Nova 1200

309 GTI 1900

309 GTI 1900

E30 BMW 320i

309 GTI 1900

Rover 213

Mk2 Golf GTI 1800

Mk2 Sierra 1800

Mk1 Mondeo 1800

Mk3 Supra 3000 T

Honda Civic 1600

Volvo 940 2300

I don't think any of those are particularly rapid cars!, not by a long shot! Yes I also have regular use of a Nissan 200SX which has a lot more oomph but I'd never compare the Manta to that, it has less than half the power!

The Manta feels relatively urgent compared to my last car, the Volvo, but what wouldn't? At the end of the day the 1.8 (in my opinion) has just not quite enough power to make the Manta completely satisfying to drive. It's not anything to do with straight line speed either, I'm talking about general oomph on corner exits and the like.

It'll do for now though