Desert Find: 1968 Opel Kadett Wagon
The seller pulled this 1968 Opel Kadett Wagon out of the Arizona desert where it had reportedly been its whole life until being moved to the great state of Virginia. Despite the burnt and faded paint (just think what your skin would look like after over five decades in the sun), this car looks solid and has “no rust!!!” They have it listed here on eBay in Leesburg, Virginia and there is an unmet opening bid suggestion of $5,000 and no reserve after that.
There’s something about a two-door station wagon that gets to me, maybe because my first car was a rusty 1971 Toyota Corolla two-door wagon that I bought for $400 in 1980 using my high school graduation money. Now, kids get a new Audi or BMW (not to mention free college) and I got $400 for a rusty Toyota. Not that I’m bitter… I’m sure this Opel Kadett would have been a better car than my Corolla was, but I’ve liked small two-door wagons ever since.
The Opel Kadett B was made from 1965 through 1973 and the two-door wagon (or three-door as they called them, including the rear hatchback) was one of two wagon models. There was also a four-door (five-door) wagon, a four-door sedan, and a couple of two-door models. You can see how straight and solid this car looks, don’t let the faded paint fool you. They have included underside photos so you can see for yourself.
Here’s where the beating, relentless Arizona sun wreaked a bit of havoc over the decades, but it doesn’t look as bad as some that we’ve seen. The seller says that once a year they wiped the car down with linseed oil but have never coated the “patina” with anything other than that, and yes, the window seals have been replaced. A big thing inside is that the headliner is missing and that won’t be inexpensive, and they show the rear cargo area but not the bare seats at all.
The engine is Opel’s 1.5-liter CIH (cam-in-head) inline-four with 64 horsepower and the seller says that it was rebuilt, along with having a new clutch, new powder-coated front suspension, brakes, hoses, calipers, and more. They don’t say how it runs but I have to believe that it runs well and it sure looks nice. Have any of you owned an Opel Kadett wagon?
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Comments
Way cool
A buddy of mine had one of these when we were 16. It was a rusty turd with no heat the few times I rode in it. No surprise that it did not last long.
Love that NASCAR exhaust exit! I always liked the look of the Kadett wagons. GLWTA
I have owned several Kadett, but as far as I can remember only one wagon and for a very short time. It was mustard yellow and I bought it from a pipe smoking farmer who had used it transporting hay. It was nice, rust free, low mileage – but absolutely gross inside. Did I mention it was cheap?
I spent a couple of weeks trying to clean every nook and cranny to get the smell out, and was eventually happy with the outcome. I put an ad out and a guy came and bought it right away without any haggling. As we finish the paperwork he says “It’s really far too nice for what I am to use it for as I’m only going to use it for transporting my pigs!”
Opels are very under rated cars, I wonder where does one find parts these days?
They’re sought-after classics in Germany so as a last resort I suppose things could be ordered from there.
Merrily we scroll along, scroll along, ( sound of screeching tires), only one person could be responsible for this post. Ladies and gents, Scotty G.
In the 60s, foreign car choices were very limited, Asian cars hadn’t kicked in yet, and Renaults were more popular. Then there was Dopel,[sic] the “other” German car. One that rode under the radar for the old man. I had several Opels, all good cars. My 1st Opel was a ’67 wagon, very similar to this, but an 1100 motor. This car has an identity crisis. 1st, that dash and extra gauges are right out of the Kadett Rallye, and the motor, I’m not sure. While they did make a 1.5( 1.6, 1.7, 1.9) cam in head, that valve cover was GT specific due to the sloped hood, and of all the Opels I dealt with, I never saw’r a 1.5. They all had the 1.9. I never thought I’d see one again, but time after time, this site proves that wrong. I could see maybe a grand or 2, but I don’t see much interest here. Be a fun little Walmart car, 2 miles, but t’was no road car, not our roads anyways. Unbelievable find.
This brings back some memories. My friend had one that was quite similar. We would remove the fuel tank on my 250 Kawasaki enduro and load it on its side to get the bike to an off-road spot.That was in the seventies, makes my back hurt just thinking about it:-)
In ’84 I bought a ’74 Opel wagon for 350 bucks, for one reason only. It was an automatic and I used that car to teach my wife how to drive. We bought a new Dodge Omni the year before with a 4spd. stick and she couldn’t get the hang of the clutch and driving. I also taught my wifes younger sister to drive on that car. After my wife got her license and got the hang of the stick shift the Opel was then my work car for the next 2 years. One day on the way home I stopped to pickup sheetrock for the ceiling of our family room. 12 pieces on the roof, that stuff is heavy. I kind of swayed a bit, but I went slow, then got a flat tire. The Opel’s jack system is a hole in the side of the body you plug the jack into and turn the crank on top. When I turn the crank the hole went up but the car stayed right where it was, yea the Green Baron as we called it was pretty rusty. Bought a new Ford ranger after that, but the opel served us well.
I have owned many Opels from Kadetts to GTs and Sport wagons.
Mantas also.
They were fun cars and reliable.
In the summer of ’67 I stayed in Lake Forest working 2 jobs to earn money for the next year’s tuition. I was a rising junior and a rising senior was leaving for the summer and asked me to care for his early 60’s Opel wagon (kind of a faded purple burnt umber color). It was clearly a European spec car because the speedo was in KMs. 4 on the tree as I recall (but maybe it was only 3). Not a bad car, but a little scary with 5 people on the Dan Ryan Expressway at 140 Kmph. Young and dumb.
I got my drivers lic. on one of these in the mid 70’s. Drove it for about 2 years. Summer of ’77, I think, after all it was the 70’s and I was a real 70’s kid, I took it on a trip from the Adirondacks to Rhode Island. On the return trip I fell into a real live 1970’s convoy of truckers on the Mass. Turnpike. I slid into the rocking chair and away we went. We ran from Worcester Ma.to the N.Y. state line doing 80+ the whole way! That little Opel ran great. It never skipped a beat. Two days later my dad was driving it and it just quit. Expired like a man having a massive coronary. Not a rattle or sound that foretold of it’s impending demise. One second it was fine, the next it was gone.. Engine shot, electrical system toast. It just coasted to a stop.
Dad’s gone now too. The mechanic doing the post mortem said “That’s just what happens with these little German cars”. I never did tell him about that trip. I ended up getting a ’64 Chevy II, but that’s another story.
I owned 2 Opels, one a red 67 Kadette coupe 1.1 liter 4 speed manual, the a 71 yellow wagon 1.1 liter automatic. The wagon was problematic, but both got me the 25 miles one way to work and back for about 2 years each.
God Bless America
Now….if that were a Cortina wagon…..
Ha! Good luck, a regular Cortina is a tough find. When I was a kid, our family went to Israel not long after the 6 days war, ( 1968?) and the old man rented a Cortina wagon. I remember it had a 4 speed column shift, and while near the West Bank, with burned out tanks, we had a flat tire. Mario Andretti would have sure been proud at how fast me and my brother changed it.
Great story!! I have a 68 4 door and would love to add a wagon to begin a stable! They are tough, but they are out there.
Wonder what happens if no one goes for the $5k bid and no reserve. Does it get relisted? Do they lower the first bid? It would be interesting to see what this goes for.
Had a GT and a Kadette, and, later, a full size sedan while in Germany. Faithful cars, as long as the oil-pan bolts were kept tight.
I had an Opel Rallye maybe of that year with a 1100 motor. I paid the princely sum of $75 for the wee beastie, and it was one car that always started and ran. It simply refused to die. Wish I could find another.
My first car was an Opel Rekord wagon. 1500 cc engine, 3 on the tree. My first new car was a 1968 Kadett. 1500 cc and 4 on the floor. After it was totalled in a head on collision, there was a 1970 Kadett with the 1900 engine. For several years, we had that Kadett and a 1975 Sportwagon. After GM quit importi gfrom Germany, we had a Chevette, wbich was an Opel design, for a decade. Dang good little cars!
My brother in law had one of these. A green 68. It was a odd car even at that time. He used to enjoy weirding out front passengers with the floor pedal windshield washer. Always got a laugh out of that. He also belonged to a kadette klub that had members in several states.
Love the horn under the hood!
I had one in 1980 put a Manta Engine in it and it was very quick to 60 miles per hour.
When I was much younger my mom bought a Opel Record which was at the time one of two registered in the united states!! It was imported from Germany and was the only one that was on the road. My uncle’s house was way back on a dirt road and when it rained or snowed, it turned into a large mud pit. He owned an International 4X4 and had to park it at the Fruitland Ut. General store and have my mom take him home and pick him up the next morning. That little car would go absolutely anywhere. It would go almost straight up the side of a mountain. There was a trail everyone was always trying to make it up in their trucks. Remember this was in the 70’s but still only one out of ten would make it up but that Opel would go up anytime without any trouble at all. The problem was, the starter went out and she had to have one shipped from Germany. That was the only part she replaced. She traded it for a late 50’s Volvo. The 444 style. I was way to young to know exactly which one. I just knew it looked like an old mini hot rod.Sure would like one today.
What happened to Barn finds? I no longer get any notices on my google on my phone and no more extra vehicles at the bottom of the page. The only way I see it anymore is through e-mail. Really a bummer
$2000 or $2500 would be plenty for this one.
Unusual for the smaller engine to have the aftermarket Weber 2-bbl carb, but the original carbs were nearly impossible to find parts for, so it may have just been a necessity. Wonder if the rubber windshield washer foot pump visible under the dash is still functional or if it has cracked to pieces?
I had a 69 Rallye, a 72 Kadett Wagon, and a 74 Manta. Loved them all.
Like ! ….and first brother – inlaw bought a new Ralle when they came out – 1970? and he drove the snot out of it on road and off !
I had the four-door (five-door) version of this car, except in green. It was fun to drive around town or to work but had very limited power. I hauled it behind my moving truck when I came to Missouri in 1982 are parked it in my detached garage. I finally got it out a couple of years later and tried to get it running again. The carburetor needed to be rebuilt, which I did, but unsuccessfully. One of my neighbors saw it and wanted it, so I sold it to him. He had a Pinto carburetor installed and it ran like new again. He sold it to a young man nearby and the kid totaled it within a week of buying it. So sad.
Must’ve been something someone in the military brought home from Europe. Buick sold Kadett B 4-door sedans in the US for 2 non-consecutive model years – 1966 and 1971 – but never the 5-door wagon. Canada didn’t get Opels at all – GM sold them the Vauxhall Viva instead, leveraging Commonwealth tariff preferences.
I, too, sold my “free” Kadett coupe to a neighbor who proceeded to paint it in his driveway and add racing stripes. Unlike me, he had nothing but trouble getting the thing to run right. His mom called my mom complaining that I’d sold them a lemon and I was taken to the car where I got it to start right up, idle, drive and stop all witnessed by the upset new owner. Guess that ol’ car just liked having me behind the wheel and not the new guy? Or maybe it was the rattle can paint job?
My first car was a 64 Opel kadett two door wagon same color. Loved that car. But 6 volt system meant trying to Jumpstart it was a killer. This picture brought back all those memories .
Had a ’68 Opel “Kadette L”, my first car.
Lemon yellow, 4speed on the floor, and IIRC a 1.1liter 4-banger. Very underpowered, wouldn’t get out of its own way. Any overpassing car (or heaven forbid a semi!) would sway it out of the lane. Hardly a good car for just learning to drive, but….I survived!
My family owned a wagon like this and two Kadett coupes…one was given to me for free and I bought a parts car for $75. I agree with HoA about the identity crisis on this wagon. I recognize the Rallye gauges in the dash but the console looks custom-made as does the shift lever. Engine is most definitely hopped up too, with an ubiquitous Weber carb sitting on it. My driving coupe had the 1100 and was the car I learned to drive a stick with.
Auction update: this one ended with no bids and has been listed again with a $5,000 suggested opening bid and there is one bid so far.
That’s about all the money. Should sell for that.