Frankenstein identification

thys

Low Mileage
Hi all,

I’m brand new here, as I’m considering dipping my toes into X1/9 ownership.

I’ve been looking at classifieds of vehicles available locally, and one specific vehicle is currently drawing my attention. It’s clearly a bit of a Frankenstein, but it’s fairly cheap and seems to fit my usage requirements.

Apart from having the engine swopped for a 4A-GZE (Sacrilege?), it has the dashboard from a ‘90s Opel Astra. I’ve wondered why anyone would do such a thing, and I suspect it may have been a LHD to RHD conversion that necessitated a new dashboard.

What’s currently puzzling me is the rear end. I’ve looked at a lot of pictures online, and have never seen these lights on a X1/9, so I guess they may also have been transplanted. Can anyone identify what they might be?
 

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Hello thys, WELCOME TO XWEB! :)

I am pretty sure that car is the same car being discussed in this thread from back in August 2010. Maybe you can learn some things from that thread, but the owner hasn't visited Xweb since 2011. The picture links are still alive which is pretty amazing given the way Photobucket went off the rails over the last couple years.

The tail lights are as custom as the engine install. They are not stock X1/9 lenses from any year that I know of.
 
Thanks JimD, my mind is blown that you found it that fast!

I suspect you’re right - it seems to be the same car. It’s probably changed hands a few times over the years, and a number of things have changed.

As mentioned, a different dash has been grafted in. Also notice the twin windscreen wipers in place of the previous single unit.
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The wheels were also changed:
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The unfortunate part is that the vehicle is around 200 miles / 300km away, and I can’t go and view it under current restrictions.

I’m not a big fan of some of the modifications, but as I am looking for something to use on the track I’m not too worried about some of them - I’d probably modify it to my liking anyway.
 
Hi and welcome to the forum, hope you find a X and we hear more from you. I see you and the car are in South Africa. I vaguely seem to recall the X1/9's that were sold there were different in some ways from the ones in North America, but I'm not certain. I have noticed there are a handful of X's there, and most seem to have been modified and customized quite a bit....as was this car. The engine swap is a major job, so if you were interested in a X with more power then this might be a good deal (depending on the price). There have been several modifications throughout this particular X, and the answer to the question "why" is because someone wanted his car to be different for others. Just judging from some of the pics it appears to be fairly well done.
 
The bottom line is that while we are happy you found us, we will be able to give little if any help with this car since it is so far modified from a stock X or even one with modified X motor. I certainly would not buy it, or any other car, without looking at it in person.
 
Thanks Dr Jeff, carl,

You’re right - this car has clearly seen a lot of modification and apart from the basic underpinnings share little in common with a stock X1/9.

I plan to use it purely as a track day car, hence the desire for some additional power and lesser concern for originality. That, coupled with a good price and powertrain very common and cheap to run/modify in South Africa, is what I find appealing. Being an older and home-grown transplant, I’m under no illusion that this will entail zero effort or cost ownership. Provided that it checks out (I wouldn’t buy this sight unseen), I would be prepared to renew or modify much of what has been done before.

One other point of curiosity - there’s another X1/9 in the market locally (but with a turbocharged Opel engine) that has the exact same dashboard. Seems somewhat unlikely that two people would end up with exactly the same personalised solution, so I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a common hand involved.
 
If the powertrain came from a 1st gen MR2, then IIRC there was an earlier transaxle that was less robust than a later transaxle (C50 / C52 pops into my head). The only thing I would say is it would be nice if the car had the later, more robust transaxle.
 
Interesting mods. The only part that really looks really funky to me (besides the choice of dashboard) is the rear fender treatment - just doesn't go with the lines of the car at all.
 
Interesting mods. The only part that really looks really funky to me (besides the choice of dashboard) is the rear fender treatment - just doesn't go with the lines of the car at all.
I prefer the original dash, but that one is also fine. The rear fenders are looking like a quick job to accomodate the large wheels. Fine if the intent is racing. Like the front nose. We maybe are used too much to the original, but I like the original better. The part I don't like is the front grill. Probably an easy fix if it was mine! The side blinkers disappeared. Would be a problem to pass safety inspection here. I hope it isn't filled with bondo. I like the rear lenses. I wonder about the installation quality. The lenses surround had to be modified. Is it steel?
 
The stated intent for this car is solely for track day use, therefore it would seem a lot of the mods won't matter - functionally nor aesthetically. The engine swap would be a definite plus for that purpose. Ultimately the overall weight could be reduced by stripping out the interior and unneeded exterior stuff, so a lot of the mods would likely go away. For that matter even the quality of the work won't be too important, aside from the drivetrain. In this instance that's where I'd focus my attention, not the cosmetics.
 
Thanks all for weighing in.

I agree that functionality is more important for me in this case than aesthetics, although I’d want to change a few small eyesores like that front grille right away. I’ll probably go fairly light weight, so the interior will end up pretty minimalist.

Now I just have to find an opportunity to go and see it. I’ve learnt my lesson the hard way, having travelled hundreds of kilometers based on pictures only return home with an empty car trailer. At the same time I’m keeping my eyes open for anything suitable that might become available.

I’ll keep you posted as things develop.
 
I'm curious about the drivetrain in this one. We didn't get many Opels so the engines aren't familiar to me.
It’s listed as having a turbocharged 20XE engine, which is a 2.0l four cylinder twin-cam 16v engine that made it into some Opel/Vauxhall/Holden vehicles. In the mid-90’s, Opel in South Africa produced the Astra/Kadett 200tS, which used a turbocharged version of the engine producing around 150kW in a hot hatch.

This one is claimed to produce around 400kW and is set up as a drag racing car.
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As mentioned, it also sports the Opel Astra dashboard.

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It’s even further away (around 1400km) and advertised at 5 times the price of Frankenstein, so not currently on my shopping list...
 
This one is claimed to produce around 400kW and is set up as a drag racing car
Personally I would not want a engine that has been modified to that extent. Obviously it has a really high boost level and will suffer damage eventually - if not already. Plus I would not want a drag car, just too much abuse in it's life. Given the price difference between the two I wouldn't be too interested in this one. But that's only my personal opinion.

Aside from it's mod level, the 2.0 16V twin-cam Opel with a turbo sounds very interesting. If it had a more stockish engine then it would be a different story.

As a side note on turbo X's, I'm slowly building a very mild turbo version with the stock Fiat engine. And I originally thought about mounting the intercooler like this one in the trunk. However I decided to mount it above the engine, laying flat like that.
 
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