New to Forums. Hello !

[paulmanta]

HI,

I have just found and joined the forums, I am normally found on the Opel Manta Owners club forum but I thought it might be nice to branch out and join this site too.

Apart from Mantas (4 at the moment)I also have a G reg AstraMax van ! We have had it from new and it was used as my manta parts hauler for many years but a while ago I took it off the road and dry stored it pending a strip down and freshen up.

That freshen up has started but I need to get some sheet metal, hopefully new stuff to do a proper job of the inner wings and around the lower A panels.

Back a long while ago (15 years +) I did have the foresight to buy up some other stuff like new rear doors, a brand new dashboard and even an almost mint used GTE bonnet. I am not going to use the bonnet now though, I think I will do the van as standard and keep it original since it seems to have become very rare !

Hopefully I will get a few pics up of the project as it happens but I will say I am very busy with lots of other projects so its not going to be a fast restoration !

All the best
Paul

[The Griffin]

Welcome
Always good to see work carried out, start a diary. Very rare van you have so its good to hear your going to look after it.

[DarrenH]

hi paul manta sure i speak for many of us that we would look forward to a blog in the diary/resto section

[Pigeonrat]

Yes, get some pics up! I'd love an Astramax with a period livery, such as the blue and white Gas Board livery of the time, or maybe Eastern Electricity or something. Good to see you'll keep it standard, as you say they're a rare beast now...I'd probably do the same, although a 1300 built to Nova Sport spec with twin 40s and a cam would be very tempting!

[paulmanta]

Hi, Thanks for the comments ! I will try and get some pics sorted soon, I have a lot of photos from when I used it to haul my auto jumble stand around, I used to buy and sell Manta parts and this van has been to Billing many times and parked in the omoc field.

We bought it new from Wincanton garages down here in deepest Cornwall, a nice mid blue with steel wheels with no trims. its a Diesel ! rather slow but seems to always give good mpg.


I have a good contact in the Netherlands who is helping to find inner wings and other sheetmetal I need.

[mick g]

Hi Paul, I have loads of panels if you need them..

[dancedj]

Sounds like a good project and great you have had it from new - I have a new GM handbrake cable for the Astramax and a lot of other standard parts.

[paulmanta]

Handy to know ! I am doing a 1990 Nova at the moment and also a 86 Manta, once i have got those out the workshop i am going to pull the van out of its corner and get a list up of all the parts i need.
I am trying to find pictures of the van but they are on a disc somewhere. I had pics on photobucket...

[paulmanta]

[paulmanta]

That was an utter spam fest ! At least i got the link to the pic. This was taken at Billing a long time ago, probably 10 years.

I dry store all my cars in a big warehouse so at least they dont get any worse once i take them off the road to tidy them up. This one has taken a lot longer to get done than i hoped. Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans.

[Harvey]

Looked lovely way back then Paul and by the sounds of it you know what you're doing when it comes to resto work. Mick G does indeed have a large collection of panels so have a chat with him should you need anything as he's probably got it.

I know what you mean about Photobucket! I took the plunge and deleted all my pics and account last year and now host my own images, it's a little more time consuming but way faster than trying to do anything in Photobucket.

PS Welcome to the site

[Dunwell1982]

Hi all .I have just joined and this is the first time I have joined a forum . I have a lovely mk2 astra gte I am rebuilding at the and struggling to buying some seat trims. Dose any one know where I could get some from thanks you. Ian