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Cavalier Sporthatch new owner


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I recently became the owner of a 1979 Cavalier Sporthatch and was recommended to peruse the Opel Manta Owners Club's on line offering by Steve Hancock, a Manta A owner I met at Thoresby Hall car show. Steve gave me his telephone number which I have subsequently lost! If you see this Steve, could you give me a call or send a message. Thanks in anticipation.

 

Steve

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Hi Steve and welcome to the OMOC Forum and Club site.

I have dropped Steve a quick message and told him about your post. He is a regular visitor in these parts, so I expect you will hear from him in due course.

I hope you find the site useful and decide to join the club, where you will be able to access the whole site including the recent for sale ads and a wealth of technical information.

Regards,

Paul.

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Many thanks for the several welcome messages. Recent move to mid Lincolnshire so new to the area as well as being new to Cavaliers and Mantas. Had older classics previously.

Car is pretty good (was stored for 15 or more years) but as it gets used one or two issues have arisen, chief of which is the wipers which will now not switch off! Taking the fuse out stops them of course but makes the engine race. Same fuse protects the auto choke but don't know why removing it would make the choke work - the opposite I would have thought.

Will post some photos of the car when I can work out how to do it!

 

Steve.

 

 

 

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Hi there.welcome along. 

The choke is electrically heated so removing the fuse means it will never open,or if it is open taking the fuse out will bring it back on again in a few minutes. 

For the wipers check the big earth screw in front of the motor is tight.if that doesn’t work unplug the intermittent relay just up behind the fusebox.you could have an issue with that or the actual wiper stalk control .last straw could be the motor self park contact that has gone closed .

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Thanks for the info re the auto choke. The large earth screw by the wiper motor is tight. I have replaced the fuse and disabled the wipers by disconnecting the relay. OK with the current weather!

Just need to source a good relay or switch to see which is defective. Would be much easier if it was the relay by the look of things!

Thanks again.

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Thank you for the technical info, it is very much appreciated, but in the event I didn't need to do what you suggested as I was given a replacement relay yesterday evening and everything operates as it should now. May try opening the original relay to see if it can be salvaged. They appear to be hard to come by.

Many thanks to Steve Hancock for the relay (and working clock!).

How easy are exhausts to source? Driving home last night after sorting the electrical gremlin, an internal baffle seems to have come loose. Thought it was blowing at first but no sign of any external problems and it only vibrates at low revs. Not having much classic car luck recently!

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Hi there.glad you got the wipers sorted.the relay may well be fixable.check for bad solder joints or more likely a stuck on relay contact.

as regards the exhaust.the original type replacements are definately getting harder to find now.but there is usually something available if you look around.its the front pipes that seem rarer.if yours is a 1.6 it will be a straight pipe with no front box or if it’s a 2 litre it will have a front box.both are totally interchangeable(saloon,coupe or hatch) but the 2 litre one is quieter.obviously when searching/asking you can quote opel manta hatch 2 litre or gte (not 1.8). Coupe or saloon middle and back boxes  can be made to fit if you get realy stuck but will require some cutting/ welding as the middle and back box bends are different to clear the fuel tank.a lot of hassle.

there are also various big bore stuff available (probably easier to get) but that depends on wether you want to go down that route.noisier and more insurance as it’s classed as modified.

if I were you I would just examine your system from front to back and if it’s otherwise in good condition you can either.....

live with the rattle.

cut out and replace the suspect box itself.go to a factors and find a suitable “box”

replace section if ,as ,when you find another.

if you are good with a grinder and welder then its a good idea to keep your existing system going for as long as you can.due to the rarity of new ones.

these are all “my” opinions and obviously it’s your call. Just glad to see another enthusiast on the forum. Look forward to seeing pictures if you put any on.    Cheers.  Chris".....

 

 

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  • 1 month later...

Exhaust issue sorted now.

When examined closely both silencer boxes were defective. They had gone very thin skinned presumably from internal corrosion and had tiny splits which only became visible on a ramp.

Bit the bullet and had a system made up in stainless steel using the original as a template. All nice and quiet now!

Hope the "trouble free motoring" which was promised on purchase can now commence!

Thanks again for the comments and advice.

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