Any Opel car is a fairly rare sight in the U.S., and cars like the Kadett are even more rare, as they were often driven until they either rusted away or had a catastrophic mechanical failure and were then literally thrown away. For that reason, I was delighted when I found a 1967 Opel Kadett L Wagon on AutoHunter, which is why I have made it my AutoHunter Spotlight for the day.
The Kadett has a long history dating back to 1936, when the first compact model was produced by Opel in Germany. There was an expected gap in production after 1940 due to the war and then, the long German reconstruction that followed, but in 1962 the Kadett was back in production as a new model known as the Kadett A.
In 1965 Opel launched the second generation of the postwar Kadett, the series B. The Kadett B was available as a two-door coupe, fastback, sedan and a wagon. This Kadett was heavier and larger than the old version of the car, resulting in more interior room. (It is also interesting that the new Opel GT sportswear was largely based on Kadett B mechanical parts.)
The car featured as our AutoHunter Spotlight is a 1967 Kadett L in wagon form, which was actually officially called the Kadett Caravan or Kombi. The auction ends on Thursday, June 5, 2025, at 11:30 a.m. (PDT).
The seller describes this Opel Kadett as powered by a 1.9-liter inline-four mated to a two-speed Powerglide automatic transmission. Finished in Flame Red over a black vinyl interior, this classic station wagon is offered with the original owner’s manual, service records and a clear title.
The owner states this Kadett has its original drivetrain and has covered a total of only 42,390 miles from new.
The Flame Red paint on the body looks to be in good shape and the door gaps appear to be good. Overall, this looks like a clean example of a car that has become extremely rare and seldom seen in this country. It is riding on 13-inch stock steel wheels with factory chrome hubcaps. The 175/80 Deluxe Classic Steel-Belted All Season whitewall radial tires have had only about 1,000 miles put on them since they were fitted.
The interior of this Kadett features bucket seats with black vinyl upholstery that, from what I can tell, seem to be finished in both the correct pattern vinyl and the correct stitch pattern. The same is true with the door cards and the dash (which does have a few cracks), both of which appear to be in good shape and of the original type fitted to this Kadett when new.
Under the hood is the 1.9-liter inline 4-cylinder engine with a Weber 2-barrel carb used to deliver fuel, which was installed in 2022. The seller also states that the first owner had this car’s engine swapped with the 1.9-liter when it was new and added the Powerglide transmission to replace the 4-speed. The standard engine in this Kadett would have been a 1.1-liter, so this was a good idea. Additional service history includes a complete tune-up in 2019 and the addition of a new generator in 2021.
Overall, this looks to be one of the nicer examples of a Series B Kadett I have seen in years. It would be a perfect car to take and show at the Carlisle Import Show, which takes place each year in May and happens to have more classic Opels on display than probably anywhere else in the U.S. It is also an obvious choice as a Concours d’ Lemons entrant and would be a prime candidate to win a class award there.
One thing I can all but guarantee is that you are not likely to run not another one of these cars too often, no matter where you live, as their survival rate is very low. If you are looking for a unique and useful classic German car that is different than all the rest, you may want to place a bid or two on this Kadett.
The auction for this 1967 Opel Kadett Wagon ends on Thursday, June 5, 2025, at 11:30 a.m. (PDT).
Visit the AutoHunter listing for more information and a photo gallery
