Description

1970 Opel GT

SOLD £10,864

Gorgeous 'mini Corvette' in excellent condition throughout; one of only 34 in the UK 

The impossibly pretty Opel GT started as a design concept intended to bring a little glitz and glamour to the Opel stand for the 1965 Paris and Frankfurt shows. It certainly managed that, the public giving such a positive reaction to the ‘mini Corvette’ that GM decided to put it into production. Based on the Kadett platform, it was available with either a 67bhp 1.1-litre or 102bhp 1.9-litre engine although very few customers opted for the smaller engine which was hardly surprising given the sporty looks of the car. The voluptuous body with lovely pop-up headlights (manually operated by a lever on the centre console) was made in France by Brissonneau & Lotz (better known for making trains), and provided plenty of interior space for even the tallest of drivers. With disc front brakes, four-speed manual transmission, rear-wheel drive and good weight distribution, the car went well and handled nicely with more than 103,000 finding buyers before production came to a halt in 1973, all in LHD and 80% of them sold to the American market. This gorgeous GT 1.9 dates from 1970 and was first UK registered in May 1996 at which point it had 54,600 miles on the clock, a total which has since risen to 77,600 miles as detailed in 12 old MOTs on file. It was restored some years ago including a full repaint and interior retrim with many invoices to show meticulous upkeep since. This included a bespoke stainless steel exhaust system in 2000 and a new clutch in 2004 at 66,824 miles. Our vendor acquired the car in 2017 and has improved it still further including localised paint rectification, thorough tuning and servicing and many new parts: distributor cap; rotor arm; HT leads; coil; spark plugs; starter motor; battery; clutch cable; fuel filter; alloy wheel nuts; battery cut-off switch etc. In really lovely condition throughout with just a few minor blemishes to the paintwork on the bonnet and one below the rear screen (as shown in the photos), it started promptly and ran perfectly as we moved it around for these pictures. The history file also includes a wealth of literature on the model including an owner’s handbook, period road tests and magazine features, various books on the GT and the Opel range, original sales brochures plus much else besides. One of only 34 such cars still UK registered, it must surely be among the smartest remaining and will attract loads of attention wherever it goes. For more information please contact James Dennison on 07970 309907 or email james.dennison@brightwells.com