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[anV6]

Great to know. Thanks! 

I've been doing some reading on differentials etc.

The manual V6 has a Final Drive Ratio of 3.70, which is not bad at all. It's the same a the VXR8 too. Not as biased towards top speed as the Lotus Carlton's 3.45, but then again neither could it go nearly as fast.

The automatic cars have a 3.90 FDR.

What surprised me though was the gear ratios of the V6 manuals. Much shorter gears than for example the Monaros. Never drove a Monaro but are they pretty lethargic to drive?

Anyhow it seems the manual V6 is good enough in the differential department to turn into a performance saloon. I guess the suspension is also not a problem. Now is on to tuning the dreaded V6 engine. 

By the way, the Omega is definitely available with a LSD here. I have seen a few listed. At least this is what I think they mean by "locked differential" or 45% differential.

The LC has a 6 speed gearbox and IIRC top speed was hit in fifth as sixth was too tall for the revs to rise any further.

Very interesting. 

I didn't know that.

[Kevin Wood]

Everything you need to know about gear ratios is here: http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/index.php?topic=90497.0

[anV6]

Thanks for the link. I will check it out.

On a different note, while looking for Omegas MV6 online I came across a Carlton GSi in very good nick for a very, very good price. I always liked the Carlton. Despite it's faults (like any other car) I always thought it looked nice. I wonder if it will ever become a classic. Probably not.

But the GSi in question looks really good and my wallet start itching.  Am I crazy??

[Doctor Gollum]

Thanks for the link. I will check it out.

On a different note, while looking for Omegas MV6 online I came across a Carlton GSi in very good nick for a very, very good price. I always liked the Carlton. Despite it's faults (like any other car) I always thought it looked nice. I wonder if it will ever become a classic. Probably not.

But the GSi in question looks really good and my wallet start itching.  Am I crazy??

Buy it. It is twice the car the Omega will be... Especially with an Irmscher 4.0 lump

[anV6]

Thanks for the link. I will check it out.

On a different note, while looking for Omegas MV6 online I came across a Carlton GSi in very good nick for a very, very good price. I always liked the Carlton. Despite it's faults (like any other car) I always thought it looked nice. I wonder if it will ever become a classic. Probably not.

But the GSi in question looks really good and my wallet start itching.  Am I crazy??

Buy it. It is twice the car the Omega will be... Especially with an Irmscher 4.0 lump

It is not an Irmscher though. It's the standard Opel i-6 3.0 24v.


Also, I'm about to buy the Haynes book for the Omega B. I obviously need to buy the English version, which is for the Vauxhall. With all the confusing trims between German and UK versions, do I have to worry about using the Vauxhall Haynes for an Opel?

[Doctor Gollum]

Thanks for the link. I will check it out.

On a different note, while looking for Omegas MV6 online I came across a Carlton GSi in very good nick for a very, very good price. I always liked the Carlton. Despite it's faults (like any other car) I always thought it looked nice. I wonder if it will ever become a classic. Probably not.

But the GSi in question looks really good and my wallet start itching.  Am I crazy??

Buy it. It is twice the car the Omega will be... Especially with an Irmscher 4.0 lump

It is not an Irmscher though. It's the standard Opel i-6 3.0 24v.


Also, I'm about to buy the Haynes book for the Omega B. I obviously need to buy the English version, which is for the Vauxhall. With all the confusing trims between German and UK versions, do I have to worry about using the Vauxhall Haynes for an Opel?

I meant you could readily fit the 24v 4.0 bits to it

Haynes is perfect unless you don't know the difference between left/right and passenger/driver

[anV6]

Thanks for the link. I will check it out.

On a different note, while looking for Omegas MV6 online I came across a Carlton GSi in very good nick for a very, very good price. I always liked the Carlton. Despite it's faults (like any other car) I always thought it looked nice. I wonder if it will ever become a classic. Probably not.

But the GSi in question looks really good and my wallet start itching.  Am I crazy??

Buy it. It is twice the car the Omega will be... Especially with an Irmscher 4.0 lump

It is not an Irmscher though. It's the standard Opel i-6 3.0 24v.


Also, I'm about to buy the Haynes book for the Omega B. I obviously need to buy the English version, which is for the Vauxhall. With all the confusing trims between German and UK versions, do I have to worry about using the Vauxhall Haynes for an Opel?

I meant you could readily fit the 24v 4.0 bits to it

Haynes is perfect unless you don't know the difference between left/right and passenger/driver

I see what you mean now. 

I guess I didn't see before because I would think the Irmscher engine is not easy to come by. They seem more rare than the Lotus Carlton. Probably because they were just as expensive but made over 100bhp less than the Lotus. So I doubt it's easy to find a Irmscher 4.0. engine for a swap. But are you saying the bits to turn a 3.0 into a 4.0 are readily available?

But Gollum, may I ask what makes you say the Carlton GSi is twice the car the Omega would ever be? Looking at the specs, the power of the 24v 3.0 I-6 is basically the same as the V6 3.0. I think the Carlton is a bit lighter than the Omega and I know the chassis are similar. But the Omega surely is more modern, which I would think would be a positive somehow. So why is the GSi twice the car in your opinion?

Thanks for the tip on the Haynes. 

I was just afraid some parts would be different between the Opels and Vauxhall.

[Doctor Gollum]

Here's why...

http://m.ebay.de/itm/Irmscher-Nockenwelle-C40SE-C30SE-Motor-Senator-i4-0-24V-Omega-A-3-0i-24V-/252585141461?nav=SEARCH

http://m.ebay.de/itm/Opel-Omega-EVO-500-3-0-DTM-Crankshaft-Vilebrequin-Kurbelwelle-/272427043713?nav=SEARCH

http://m.ebay.de/itm/Opel-Omega-A-Automatic-C40-SE-24V-Edelstahl-Faecherkruemmer-Einmalig-Neu-/232123519095?nav=SEARCH

http://m.ebay.de/itm/Irmscher-Steuergeraet-Motronic-C40SE-Senator-B-i-4-0-/252551655124?nav=SEARCH

Actually, forget that lot and buy this...

http://m.ebay.de/itm/Opel-Rekord-E2-Caravan-4-0l-24V-Irmscher-C40SE-zum-Ausschlachten-/201698412920?nav=SEARCH

[anV6]

OK. These are a few bits. But hardly any complete conversion kit. Looks like a lot to chase for 68bhp extra. Not to mention the prices.

And I would still be interested in reading your reasoning as to why the GSi is twice the car the Omega is. 

[Doctor Gollum]

OK. These are a few bits. But hardly any complete conversion kit. Looks like a lot to chase for 68bhp extra. Not to mention the prices.

And I would still be interested in reading your reasoning as to why the GSi is twice the car the Omega is. 

If I have to spell it out...

Those parts are merely examples of performance upgrades for the C30E lumps... The Omega A is lighter... The engine has proper tuning potential unlike the V6 which would melt at the thought of forced induction...

And if you click the last link, your car search is over

[Doctor Gollum]

Put another way, that's 68bhp more than you'll get from an X30/Z32 lump in a car that is lighter

[TheBoy]

I've always had a soft spot for the last of the Carltons, obviously in 24v form. And the Senators/Omega-A for that matter.

But I wouldn't buy one now.

They are a lot older, and produced at a time when all Vx/Opel cars rusted before your eyes.  A standard 3.0 24v Senator is not quite as quick as an equivalent 3.0l Omega, and the Omega has more predictable handling without the big boat anchor up front.

Electrical reliability, the Omega's electronic systems are virtually bomb proof (bar post 98 V6 ABS units, and pre 98 MIDs) and diagnosable.  The Carlton/Senator do have fail amounts of electrical gremlins.


But then I wouldn't buy a PFL or the achievement topping MFL either now, due to age and likely corrosion issues.  I'd only ever buy a late Elite that was in good condition on body and chassis. And TBH, then only if it was cheap.

[anV6]

OK. These are a few bits. But hardly any complete conversion kit. Looks like a lot to chase for 68bhp extra. Not to mention the prices.

And I would still be interested in reading your reasoning as to why the GSi is twice the car the Omega is. 

If I have to spell it out...

Those parts are merely examples of performance upgrades for the C30E lumps... The Omega A is lighter... The engine has proper tuning potential unlike the V6 which would melt at the thought of forced induction...

And if you click the last link, your car search is over

You don't need to spell that out. 
We are on the same page about that.   

I just don't see how that makes a Carlton GSi twice the car the Omega will be.

Even if it was twice as fast, in a straight line, it wouldn't necessarily be twice the car. A car is so much more than just speed. 

But the GSi is barely faster than the MV6. It reaches 60mp/h in 7.6 secs vs 8.0 with the MV6 but has pretty much the same top speed. 

This is of course in stock form. Sure, if tuned with the Irmscher 4.0 it gets you an extra 10mp/h in top speed. At least the Irmscher built 4.0 car was 10mp/h faster than the standard GSi. This is not a whole lot. Specially when you consider how much witch hunting you would have to do to find all the needed parts for the 4.0 conversion. It's not like you can just walk in a store and buy.

And like I said, a car is so much more than just speed. There are so many slower cars I would rather drive than faster ones because they are more fun or are better cars in a whole.

 It may take years till you can find all the parts to complete the engine. And at over a thousand quid for a crankshaft, not worth it in my opinion.

About the old Rekord Estate ending my car search, I would need to get my head around driving an old 1993 Carlton as a daily. I would not want to drive an early 80's Opel around, Irmscher or not. So that is not for me.

If motor size and bhp was all I was looking for I would just go the old American V8 muscle car path. 

I need a car which is also practical. Not only a weekend car to toy around.   

Put another way, that's 68bhp more than you'll get from an X30/Z32 lump in a car that is lighter

Sure. But it's lighter for a reason. It's lacking every safety feature on the book. I think the only modern safety feature it has is ABS. Chassis stiffness is also worse than the Omega. Probably part of the reason it is lighter. It is also much more prone to rust. Old tech. Most likely harder to find parts than for the Omega etc. That is all even before starting to discuss things like handling, which matters more than just speed. Or before analyzing if the Carlton is as reliable as the Omega, address electrical problems and other things older cars are worse at.

So I'm still not seeing twice the car there. Sorry. This is the part I would need you to spell out for me. 

[anV6]

I've always had a soft spot for the last of the Carltons, obviously in 24v form. And the Senators/Omega-A for that matter.

But I wouldn't buy one now.

They are a lot older, and produced at a time when all Vx/Opel cars rusted before your eyes.  A standard 3.0 24v Senator is not quite as quick as an equivalent 3.0l Omega, and the Omega has more predictable handling without the big boat anchor up front.

Electrical reliability, the Omega's electronic systems are virtually bomb proof (bar post 98 V6 ABS units, and pre 98 MIDs) and diagnosable.  The Carlton/Senator do have fail amounts of electrical gremlins.


But then I wouldn't buy a PFL or the achievement topping MFL either now, due to age and likely corrosion issues.  I'd only ever buy a late Elite that was in good condition on body and chassis. And TBH, then only if it was cheap.

Seeing you talk like that it makes it sound like you don't think a whole lot of the Omega. 

But you do have one right?


I also always had a soft spot for the Carlton. The Lotus Carlton is still one of my favorite saloons to this day.  But I'm with you there. I would be concerned in driving one everyday as a daily driver. Reliability and specially rust.

The Senator is quite a bit heavier than the Carlton right? Makes sense it wouldn't be as quick as a MV6. The Carlton GSi just about manages to beat the FL 3.0 MV6 manual, which is still impressive considering how old it is.

[Doctor Gollum]

In a word... Soul