All vxls r8 shizzle, Royale wedding info.

[nisfan]

I was alerted to a Vauxhall Royale possibly going cheap by FOAD. I know absolutely nothing about these so what are they like?

I have messaged the guy, just waiting to hear back. This also means i would have to sell my e30 325i which a friend will be looking at.

Only info i have is it apperently doesnt run due to no fuel and is as rusty as THAT renault 18gtd derskine is saving.

[STUNO]

Sounds like it would be the best 5 pounds you ever spend.

[nisfan]

5 whole pounds? Is it worth that much?

[Cavcraft]

Rusty as you like, but THE best velour interior ever seen. Save it.

[Bucketeer]

^^^^ Agreed. Do it.

 

Rust is temporary, velour is for life.

Or something.

[Shep Shepherd]

A seriously rare car now. Get it bought.

[Asimo]

I tried to buy one of those in 1983, and it was too rotten to bother with then! Good luck with the welding.

[Timewaster]

Opel rekord redekorated with vauxhall badges. IIRC.

 

copyright Joypal 1996

[cort16]

 

There was a guy in Glasgow who has a thread on RR fixing one of these up but it was never ending and I think he might have given up and sold it.

I wonder if it's the same car?

[cort16]

http://retrorides.proboards.com/thread/100996/1981-vauxhall-royale-saloon-owner?page=13

[spike60]

I had it's Germanic brother, a Monza GSE and it needed strut tops at 9 years old on an otherwise bonny car, I can't imagine how rotten a 30 odd year one would be. Think fuel tanks are made from unobtianium and yes, mine was leaking at 9 years old. I would very wary of won't run because has no fuel in it, I would imagine it has nothing left to put fuel into. Lovely car, though mine was manual Recaro flavour rather than the auto velour usual Vauxhall version.

[Skizzer]

A sorted one of these would be a truly wondrous thing.  Good luck.

 

For encouragement, have a pic of a lovely Opel version that lives near my mother-in-law:

Opel Senator in Flensburg by Skizzer, on Flickr

 

Colc had a Royale Coupe, didn't he?  Colc to the beige courtesy phone please.

[Rocket88]

reporting for duty............front chassis legs,strut tops are usual places for the brown festering nast.................strut tops self evident, front legs a bit harder to spot.Fuel tanks, fuel pumps can be a sod, exhaust rear boxes pretty much unobtainable, but nothing too exotic. if it's a carb, it'll be a Pieberg...........'nuff said.

Boxes, auto or manual, pretty bullet proof, as are the engines.

[vulgalour]

Everything I've seen of these online tells me they look sharp, have the best interior of their era but rot faster and more comprehensively than a Ford Ka.  I've never seen one in person.

[Junkman]

It will be rusty without a trace of a doubt, this is just inevitable.

 

The silky smooth inline sixes are pullers. You will be surprised how fast these are even by today's standards,

at the same time, you will be surprised how economical they are. Just wafting along can yield 36 OMGMPG.

Engines and automatic gearboxes are generally reliable, but not without common issues, one being the rails

for the timing chains, which are now made from an alloy of unobtainium and bumrape.

The auto boxes are pretty bullet proof and - as as always - the manual boxes are as good as the last owner was,

and there are very few people walking this planet, who treat manual gearboxes properly.

 

Interiors are almost yank comfy and they are about as quiet inside as their obese transcontinental Uncles.

 

These cars have a cult following in Germany due to being among the best Autobahn stormers ever built,

hence it would be advisable to join the German Opel Commodore/Senator club. They are a helpful bunch when it

comes to parts and advise, and they are usually proficient enough in English to understand what you need, or

know someone who is. 

The English Autobahnstormers club is also extremely helpful and they are in partnership with the German club.

[Bren]

As stated earlier, they rot everywhere, from front number plate to rear, however the worst will be at the front.

 

Check the front tyres - if they are badly worn on their inner edges it is because the strut tops and inner wings are getting weak and are starting to move.

 

If it is a carb model the solex 4a1 is a PITA to repair and even when in good fettle only manage around 14mpg around town - you may see mid 20's on a run but nothing more. Injection models are more economical.

 

If you bought it and scrapped it the seats would not look out of place on your living room.

 

If it all sounds a bit grim actually it's not - they are a lovely drive and I would have another one.

 

Sadly the one on RR was moved on due to the front chassis legs being like ryvita, sadly it looks to have been scrapped now - it was an ex -PC car as well.

 

Pics please.

[Asimo]

Setright wrote in CAR magazine sometime in the early '80s that the only car worth the extra over a Monza automatic was the 928 automatic.

[Junkman]

If it's a carb, I'd avoid it, tbh.

They are the injections' evil twins.

[Bren]

Another thing - the early royale had a cheap wood effect dash which looked more in keeping with a nissan cedric than a premium GM product - later cars had the standard senator dash. I actually prefer the earlier fascia, with it's single speaker in the middle.

 

Electric windows are motor and cable operated - mine were fooked. The lot was replaced with timber props ( the ultimate autoshite bodge?) as somebody had been there before us and utterly fucked them up.

[Cavcraft]

Premium GM product?

[Rocket88]

fake wood dash with caramac seats..........................yummy nom noms

[Spiny Norman]

http://retrorides.proboards.com/thread/100996/1981-vauxhall-royale-saloon-owner?page=13

 

That's my old one. Lovely cars to drive, but they dissolve like 80s Fiats. Carbs are a PITA to set up and made of monkey metal. Interiors are made out of pure 100% unadulterated WIN! 

 

[r.welfare]

I had a gold Rekord with those seats. The dashboard was less fancy though. I thoroughly agree that these cars are full of win. I also had a blue Rekord but the blue velour just ain't the same visual spectacle.

[Bren]

Mine had a blue interior - like being in the fantasy bar.

[chaseracer]

I was leching over this...

 

 

...at Cosford earlier today.

 

Hope it offers some inspiration and encouragement...

 

[sierraman]

Is the ex PC Royale no more then?

[Skizzer]

That interior is absolutely bloody gorgeous, including the fake wood.  Would love one of these, in gold with gold velour.

 

Must learn to weld.

[nisfan]

this one is gold but i wont be going as i have heard it is completely rotten

[DodgyBastard]

It isn't completely rotten.

[DodgyBastard]

Pics

 

 

 

 

He also got a complete black one which was rotten and broke and kept a few spares.

 

 

Worth £350?