We have no less than three in-depth CCs on the Kadett B, but none of these finds were the base two door sedan, a classic “stripper” if there ever was one. Curtis Perry found this in Monster (yes), a town in the province of South Holland, the Netherlands. And how well suited it is, given the Dutch propensity to thrift. And tidiness; given the great shape it’s in.
This brings back memories, as my older brother’s best friend had access to one exactly like this, in the same beige, which had replaced a very tough but well-worn stripper ’55 Chevy 120 two door sedan. Which, ironically, was nicknamed “The Monster”.
As you undoubtedly have heard many times by now, my father drove its predecessor, a green Kadett A, just like this. And my brother drove that often, so he and his friend would not uncommonly engage in Kadett races. They were quite very well matched, as the Kadett A was lighter (a featherweight 1408 lbs) and had a 46 hp 987 cc engine, while the plumper Kadett B weighed all of 1544 lbs but had a slightly bigger 1077 cc engine making rated at 54 hp. I vividly remember them lining up at side by side by side at stoplights, and hearing the faintest little chirp of the 12″ rear tires as clutches were dumped, with the little ohv four revved up for action.
Of course, if I was along in the A, it then weighed about the same overall as the B, negating its ability to hole shot the B when I wasn’t along. My brother gave it all he could, but the extra horses of the B almost inevitable won the day.
It’s pretty obvious that the B, which arrived in 1966, sat on the same platform as the A, which dated back to 1962. But the B’s body was pushed out in every direction, and it even got curved side glass.
The Kadett had a torque tube rear suspension with leaf springs, which, like the rest of the car was designed to be as cheap as possible to manufacture. There had been complaints about the rough ride and poor handling, including a tendency to roll. So for 1968, the Kadett got a new coil spring rear suspension, which our featured car apparently has, due to the absence of leaf springs behind the rear wheel. The next post will expand on the them of this change in rear suspension, as it’s a humorous story involving Bob Lutz.
Fortunately, my brother and his friend Geoff never rolled either of the two Kadetts. My father’s green A did start losing power after just two years, and required a full valve job. I’m sure my brother’s endless thrashings had nothing to do with it. It was replaced by sturdier stuff: a 1968 Dart slant six.
The Vauxhall Viva was heavily based on the Kadett, and we have an insider’s story on that too.
Here’s our comprehensive Kadett library:
The Real Story About The Best Bob Lutz Photo Ever PN
CC Opel Kadett B: It Dethroned The Volkswagen PN
CC 1968 Opel Kadett Rallye 1900: The European GTO Which Upended The Old World Order PN
CC 1969 Opel Kadett LS: Buick Dealers Really Sold These? Tom Klockau
The Opel Kadett Assassination By Car and Driver PN
The Story Of My Father, A GM Executive, Part 3 – Viva Russelsheim! Charles Platt
Cool car!
The profile reminds me of a Chevy II, especially at the nose.
You want “Chevy II,” take a look at the grill, in the Bob Lutz post that followed this one.
Of course, you have to stand on your head to see it (not really).
Is there a comparison anywhere against the contemporary E10 Corolla? Their similar layout makes a more interesting contrast instead of the usual “X” vs. Beetle test.
Below the Greenhouse, I see a very slight resemblance to the second generation Corvair. It would definitely look better with larger wheels.
Superb !
The Opel Kadett A-B-C-D-E; our automobile-compeer and -personification. Opel’s non-stop bull’s-eye score, commercially.
Most likely Monster comes from the Latin Monasterium. Monastery, in good English.
Back to the Kadett. An acquaintance had a bright orange Opel Kadett B, a 2-door sedan, just like the one in the first picture. It had a dent after a minor collision, and he grumbled about the repair costs. “Damned” -he said- “my next car will be sperm-colored, so I can respray it myself !”
As a teenager, a friend of mine had a 66 or 67 Kadett wagon, with the wheezing 1077 cc engine. The thing was kind of amusing to drive, but slow as they come. The gearshift seemed like it was 3 feet long, something that was changed in later models.
I actually at one time wanted a 68 or later Kadett Wagon, but fate smiled on me and I never found a suitable one.
My family escaped the fall of the Soviet Union in the late 80s in one of the bright green models. We border hopped to Spain from Poland before we eventually moved to Chicago in the 90s. I was only a child but I remember having quite the time in the backseat of one of these. We donated it to a neighbor in Madrid before moving to the States.
Love Opels! My dad had a 1974 1900 Wagon in yellow with a black interior and stick shift that I loved! He wrapped it around a telephone pole drunk, unfortunately, and moved on to a used 1974 Audi Fox automatic that was a nightmare.
Anyway, this article lead me to do a search for other Opel articles on the web, which of course brought me back to your writing Paul: http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/2009/05/curbside-classics-1974-opel-manta/
In that article, you said your dad didn’t have a manual transmission until the Opel, but what about the Ford 390 4-speed you wrote so convincingly about!? Did I get punk’d by an April Fools story or something?
That article was one of my first, and a bit…lacking. The Manta CC here is better: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1975-opel-manta-3100-thats-not-a-typo-the-german-camaro/
Next time, just use the “Search by Google” feature here at CC, and don’t bother with what has been posted at other web sites. 🙂 When it comes to old Opels, we have very comprehensive coverage. Including this one on the Opel 1900: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1975-opel-1900-ascona-what-the-vega-could-have-been/
What is this Ford 390 four speed you speak of? 🙂
Paul, thanks for your reply! I’ve already read all the opel stuff on this site, and I think I’ve told you I like reading just about everything you write, so I enjoyed that one as well!
I’m sure you’re kidding about which Ford 390, but it’s the 1961 Starliner here: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-american/curbside-classic-1961-ford-starliner/
You’re a serious Opel-lover then.
Regarding the ’61 Ford; it does say “Alter-Biography” in the title. That should be the tip-off. 😉
Wow, I guess my attention to detail is lacking! It was so convincing!
Reminds me of our landlord’s car in Athens in the early 70s–his was a white 4-door.
I can’t believe these Kadetts weighed less than 1600 lbs! I thought this was a more substantial car than our Beetle and had it pegged at about 2000 lbs. however, considering Paul says so, I believe it.
Thanks for another great piece. Have you featured a mid-late 60s Opel Rekord? I have some memories of Rekord rides in the 70s and 80s. These cars lasted forever on Greece, IMO, the most rugged mass market cars.
I’ll be looking for your brilliant Rekord insights!!
Yes, these Kadetts were very light, and felt a bit flimsy compared to the solid VW.
I haven’t done an in-depth post on the 60s Rekord; here’s a shorter one: https://www.curbsideclassic.com/curbside-classics-european/cc-capsule-1965-opel-rekord-b-caravan-the-only-one-in-the-world-with-1963-tags-anyway/
Thanks Paul!
I remember seeing those also as a kid, but only a few.
I was thinking of the late 60s / early 70s, with the Coke bottle profile on the rear door.
But looking at at 1960 Kadett and 1962 Rekord, and comparing the next generation of both looks so much better to me. And they led to the Asconas and Mantas that I really liked. With the 6 cylinder 1978 Senator being a viable alternative to a Mercedes 200 or 250, I would say the 70s were Opel’s high point, like the mid 60s were for Chevy
The seventies certainly were Opel’s peak era.
The GT, Kadett, Ascona, Manta, Rekord, Commodore, Admiral, Diplomat and at the end the Senator and Monza.
No other automaker could offer such a wide diversity of car models, engines and body types. Not even Ford, Opel’s main competitor back then.
When the 1st “oil crisis” hit in the early 70s, some friends traded or sold their near new Pontiac Grand Prix and bought 2 cars: a Honda N600 sedan and an Opel Kadett wagon. The wagon had the smallest engine that Opel offered in the U.S. and automatic transmission. I was asked to drive 1 of these 2 on the freeway from one side of Jacksonville, Florida to Orange Park, Florida…about 15 miles in all. Of course I picked the Honda (no automatic transmission in that fuel miser). So have never driven an Opel or their British related Vauxhall “cousins”, but have admired many of them. I so wanted a blue Manta Luxus in the mid 70s, but got sidetracked with my 74 Audi Fox instead.
My maternal grandmother had the Vauxhall version a two door Viva sedan with one muffler removed for more ground clearance for her driveway the resulting freeing up of the exhaust system let the little four rev out pretty well 50mph achieveable in second gear, I later had a 70 two door HB Viva estate that performed nowhere near as well, handled ok but not much power and that was from the larger 1256cc motor, I also had a HA Viva with HC 1256 engine and box inserted that went well 90mph indicated on the flat much more grunt than the 1057cc motor it came with originally.
I love the Kadett B. Just plain honest transportation. My daily driver ’70 sedan. 1.1 R motor
Erik. You really have to write up your car and share with us what it’s like to drive a Kadett B as a daily driver. Come on…we’ve waited long enough. 🙂
What a funny fishtail shaped tail pipe. Is it stock ?
No. These were once a popular aftermarket item, mainly in the 50s.
I wonder why did this car have such a high beltline (quite unfashionable for the time) ? Did it share some elements of the internal body structure with the older models, like the Olympia Rekord ?
It did not share any body structure with the larger Opels. One reason for the high belt line is that glass is quite a bit heavier (and more expensive) than sheet steel. The Kadett was cost and weight engineered very aggressively.
The exhaust tip is a motorcycle accessory. It hides the teeny stock pipe.
As so often happens, CC has helped me extract a long-dormant memory which is perhaps slightly relevant with the recent Opel stories. A friend i knew in college always called these cars “Woefuls”. Though it was those college years when the 1900 (Ascona) and Manta were sold in the US, and those Opels were anything but woeful, in my opinion.
Just to let you know that another Opel Kadett B LIVES in the US! This is my 1970 European Spec Opel Kadett B, 1.1 Litre I4, 4 Speed Manual Transmission. Found it outside of Chicago 2 years ago, stored in a garage since 1983. Original Mileage of 53,000 km (around 33k Miles). Dirty, bad paint, and bad original maintenance, but, that was the fun of it. NO RUST. Great car now. Wins prizes at car shows and I could not drive a car that gets more attention.
I had a 1969 US Spec Kadett in 1971 and 1972 while I was in High School. Many memories are brought back with this reincarnation. 🙂
Congratulations! Very nice sedan.