Loads of Superboss (South African tuned Astra GTE 16v) pics here.

[Ed]

Aah these make me want my GTE back! Look how rust free they all are too; damn you British weather!

To all Superboss owners... [pictures thread]

[Astra Dan]

Lovely. Weren't they touching 170BHP with cams and chips, from the factory?

[GTE 16v]

4 stud Cav turbo rims.

[Ed]

Lovely. Weren't they touching 170BHP with cams and chips, from the factory?

Certainly were. I copied the spec on one of my GTEs. Think they had an LSD too?

4 stud Cav turbo rims.

WTF. Never knew they existed.

[8valve-craig]

They did three didnt they?

Baby boss 1.8 8v

Boss 2.0 16v

Superboss 2.0 16v chipped with schrick cams?

[DarrenH]

gsi - 1.8
boss - 2.0 8v
big boss - 155bhp 2.0 16v
super boss - 165bhp 2.0 16v

i like them, i like the ethos. i think the wheels and styling date them badly though, do you think ? they look more late 80s than a standard gsi/gte16v

[Astra Dan]

I dunno, are the wheels 15"? I rather like them. Might be able to fill them with 288s maybe? I quite like the colour coded skirts I think.

Anyone seen 4 stud Turbo rims before?

[Ed]

Yeah I love the Superboss wheels. I think they look far better than the standard GTE wheels we got; personally I think the standard wheels are the worst part of a GTE.

I'd love to know more about the Superboss and how it came about. Seems bizarre that Vauxhall/Opel would one day think to themselves:

"let's take our already awesome GSI/GTE 16v, and tune it further, and call it the Superboss. Now what country should we release it exclusively in..........I know South Africa! Perfect"

Was there really more of a market for them in SA than over here, or in Europe, assuming that's why it was done? Find it hard to beleive.

[Astra Dan]

I agree. Standard GTE wheels are total ass. If I wasn't so concernecc with OE spec, mine'd be 5 studded and on Turbo rims or summat.

I think, like the 200TS LET Mk3 Astra, it's not strictly a GM product. Weren't they officially endorsed models by a tuning company? Like MSD with the Vectra GSi.

[caprixpack]

south Africa is a bit odd where cars are concerned, ford did the same with the v8 capris and v8 sierras and 3.4 liter versions of the essex v6 all were only available in south Africa

[8valve-craig]

I think they STILL make mk1 golfs over there too

[scooby-KILLER]

I think they STILL make mk1 golfs over there too

not sure if its the mk1 or mk2 still in production but i had heard some thing along ^ the lines of that

[Ed]

They must be a nation of pure petrol heads.

[Ed]

I think, like the 200TS LET Mk3 Astra, it's not strictly a GM product. Weren't they officially endorsed models by a tuning company? Like MSD with the Vectra GSi.

Oh right, yeah that would make sense.

[DarrenH]

the mods added to form the "superboss" were for homologation purposes, group N category in south african touring car championship. gave opel victory over bmw 3 series, three years running

[*BenH*]

Every time I see them I want those wheels and the grills for the fog light vents for mine.

[Ed]

the mods added to form the "superboss" were for homologation purposes, group N category in south african touring car championship. gave opel victory over bmw 3 series, three years running

Aah that's the answer the then.

[8valve-craig]

not sure if its the mk1 or mk2 still in production but i had heard some thing along ^ the lines of that

Yea its the mk1. They call it a Vw city and it has the wort "city" pressed into the rear quarter panels.....

[scooby-KILLER]

Yea its the mk1. They call it a Vw city and it has the wort "city" pressed into the rear quarter panels.....

ah ok every day is a school day!,

first time i have seen the 4 stud turbo wheels to, bet they would be hard to come by,

not so sure on the fog/grille's or the wheels

[Adam]

so after that thread years ago on here about turbo rims being 4 stud lmao..u sure they 15"?

[pas-chill]

I cannot let this thread go by without adding my bit. First off, the post on the Opel Owners Forum thread was by StevO, who stayed here in London for a short while but is now back in sunny South Africa (it's currently Spring there). The Cav turbo type rims in the pic are indeed from an S.A. Opel kadett or Astra tS and are only available in five stud 16", same as here. Those rims were modified by welding in the back face of the rim then re-drilling to 4 stud. They've been done to a few of those type of rims to use on normal 4 stud cars, but they're not a popular mod as the welding is excessive and make the rim very heavy (also expensive). As anyone who has seen the rim will know, it is quite hollow at the back around the bolt holes and takes a lot to fill.

Moving on the iconic Opel Kadett GSi 16V S (Superboss) there was only the one type made, the only variable was the colours they came in. They were built for homolgation purposes, the car that was sold to the public was the base for the car to be raced, therefore it was loaded with only "race" goodies like the lighter and wider Aluett wheels in 7J X 15". Andre Verwey built an LSD for the gearbox (which had a shorter final drive than the normal F20 16V gearbox) The motor had Schrick cams with 276* duration. The interesting thing about the cams is that they had a "road" and "race" profile. They could be turned 180* and the cam pulley dowel moved accordingly, then the car would be docile for road use. Of course, set them back and the car became a "not for traffic" fire breathing monster then quickly became a legend in race circles.

I did a feature that appeared in the Total Vauxhall magazine, of a friends Opel Superboss, reg. no. 276GSI-GP. His car is one of the neatest cleanest examples of this car that you can find and is his daily driver. He also races it at most drag race events, the most memorable for me being the one time he raced in Tarlton in Johannesburg on the Thursday evening after work. He used the car to work the next day then drove it 600kms to Durban Friday evening to race in the Durban drags on Saturday. Time for Tarlton (at altitude) 14.7 seconds. Durban (sea level) 14 flat. His family actually own a few of these beautiful cars.

Yes, it is true that South Africans are proper petrol heads. We couldn't get the E30 M3 so our answer? The E30 333i, a specially built 3 series with the 733i 3.2L motor. The Capri built and sold by Basil Green Ford (Edenval,JHB) had the 302 Mustang engine and four speed gearbox. We had a Chevrolet equivalent in the form of a Firenza with 302cc Camaro motor and four speed gearbox. No Cosworth Sierra for South Africans?, no problem. Throw in a Mustang V8, T5 5 speed gearbox and Granada diff into and ordinary Sierra an call it the XR8. There's a few other S.A. home grown production cars but it is outside the scope of this thread and might bore some of you.

[Ed]

Very interesting read that ^^^

So in these examples you've given, is it a South African outfit each time who takes a standard car and creates what you've described above as opposed to the official manufacturers themselves? Do the manufactureres then endorse these creations?

Do many SBs got broken on ebay and the like? I'd imagine the parts would be very sought after over here.

[DarrenH]

awesome info, although mechanically impossible (without specialised valve train) to have a double profile cam or for it to run upside down

guessing cam has 2 dowel holes 180 deg apart, cam sprocket has 2 holes, 2 different valve timing.

[Astra Dan]

Suprb info there!

Dareen, he does mention the cam pulley has to be moved accordingly, so I assume it's as you say.
Screw that with the Turbo rims though, you could 5 stud the whole car in half a day!

[8valve-craig]

Just noticed that none have sunroofs....