1985 Opel Monza GSE from UK and Ireland - Comments

Rear driveshafts regularly came undone.

Viscous fan seized up.

Fuel tank rusted out

Inner wings rusted out.

Electrics iffy.

Front discs cracked (twice).

Front spring broke.

These are fantastic cars, I owned two of them. The GSE has much better suspension and the four speed auto is a must.

Fuel consumption is surprisingly good and the straight six engine is a classsic.

The big problem is the lack of rust prevention. The fuel tanks rot out and are very expensive to replace. The inner wing areas do not have sufficient bracing and literaly crack after a bit of rust sets in - check for this very carefully if buying (do front wheels tilt inwards at the top).

The handbrake is only just good enough to scrape an MOT when in top condition. This means a brake rebuild at least once a year!

Front suspension suffers and is a garage job to service (very, very tight nuts - very big springs).

A rattling timing chain (common) is bad news, supposedly an engine out, head and sump off job to fix - some magicians claim they can do it without!

Apart from that a brilliant car, if I could find a nice one that had everything fixed, I would buy another.

True about the rust, inner wings on mine round the strut tops and rear valence disintegrated.

4 speed switchable box is good, I used to drive on the stick all the time.

Economical if driven sedately.

Superb comfort over distance, those Recaros are better than the seats in my brother's SLK!

I owned two Monzas. And the maintenance matters. The first one was maintained 100% by its previous German owner (I imported the car in 1994) and I never had problems with it (just the well-known rust).

The second one (after number one crashed) was owned by a young man who just had to show-off with the car. Speeding and tanking, no maintenance. The car, though still with the nice 'Monza smell' (you know what I mean) never proved to be 100% faithful to me.

I myself have recently acquired a Monza GSE earlier this year. The car had been stood for two years, being previously owned by my father, and needed some work!

Allthough this work didn't seem too much to begin with, once getting started turned out to be a nightmare!

To begin it started out as the heater fan seizing, but after the pain in the #!?* changing it and thinking she was ready for the road more problems occured!

OVER FUELING! What an absolute nightmare! everything changed from the sparkplugs to a new ECU, but still to no prevail!

One week before my driving holiday was due and a big lump of steel outside my house! Until a drunken conversation in the pub with a mechanic friend and my father.

Two days later and my little babys on the road! Receiving some admiring glances and some stranger glances from people of my own age (23) I continued to cruise and lift my head in pride driving my first ever project car!

I would like to say that even though they might be considered big and clumsy they are an awsome motor!

I owned one for five years. I replaced the radiator and had the aforementioned overfueling problem, but just tightened the pipe connections every few months (if they split, I just cut the end off and tightened them again!). The inner wings were repaired and the front outer ones replaced then the car was re-sprayed the original colour. The rear trailing arms had to be replaced just before I sold it (which I regret). I would have forgiven that car anything it was so reliable and so good to drive. If I saw another really good one, I don't think I could resist buying it. But then going back to the pubs of your youth was never a good idea so maybe I wouldn't!

Regarding the fuel problems - most Opel/Vauxhals of this vintage have this problem. The original fuel hose is not up to the job and the very high under-bonnet temperatures do not help. At the first sign of bother (petrol smells, fueling problems) replace the lot. It is very important to use top quality hose and the right clips (the clear rubbish with string inside will not do!!). Expect it to be expensive!

An erratic idle speed is usually down to the additional air valve packing up. A good dose of carb cleaner is worth a try, but they are often shot.

I have four Monza's and they are very reliable mechanically. However if you wish to enjoy the Monza experience better learn to weld.

I do not use them as daily transport but have enjoyed tours around Europe and the UK and have owned Monza's for 15 years now.

There is a company called GM6 in Cornwall who can sutisfy all parts or restoration needs and they are perfectionists.