The official name is quite long: Opel Kadett Rallye 1900 Sprint. And it is rare. Very rare. 72 Rallye Sprint were imported to Sweden between 1967 and 1973, and only 12 is believed to remain.
These Opels have an almost mythical aura glowing around them. During the late Sixties and early Seventies it was as close to a real rally car the general public could buy.
An ordinary Kadett Rallye had an 1100 cc engine with 60 horsepower - but Opel wanted to go further. So they decided to squeeze in the 1900 cc engine from the Rekord into the small Kadett body, supported by twin Weber carburetors. Due to its size, it wasn’t possible to put it in the ordinary way, from above. The whole front suspension had to be removed and the engine was mounted from beneath.
Now the Kadett Rallye had 106 horsepower, an incredible number in the late Sixties. To emphasize that this wasn’t an ordinary Kadett Rally, Opel added the name Sprint. Kadett Rallye Sprint quickly achieved an iconic status and today a true Sprint is among the most sought after historic rally cars.
One of these is now among the most interesting cars on the Bilweb Auction listing for 2 June. It is part of a big collection of classic Saab and Opel cars from the Kisa car museum in Sweden that is up for bidding. This Sprint is from 1970 and restored into the smallest detail by the Swedish Opel expert Jimmy Altberg. It was ready in 2011 when it was awarded with the ”Best Kadett” prize from the Swedish Opel Club. It is still in an immaculate condition.
Everything is true to the original: from the yellow and black paint to the ”Opel Rallye Team” stickers. The four Hella rally lights with the correct Opel specification. Halda Speedpilot and Twinmaster. Close-ratio transmission. Group 1 camshaft. 70 litre fuel tank from an Opel Blitz in the boot. Painted underbody without any rust protection. And the list can be made much longer.
This is, however, not a car for the Sunday trip to the park. The Swedish car magazine Teknikens Varld wrote in an article in 1970 that the Sprint is a true rally car: ”It is designed to to win on bad gravel roads in the hand of very skilled drivers”.
Bilweb Auction has estimated the value of the car to between 290 000 and 330 000 SEK.
29 MAJ 13:32 MATHIAS BJÖRKMAN
Kadett Rallye Sprint - a gravel road hero on Bilweb Auctions
The official name is quite long: Opel Kadett Rallye 1900 Sprint. And it is rare. Very rare. 72 Rallye Sprint were imported to Sweden between 1967 and 1973, and only 12 is believed to remain.
