The only thing missing from today’s Nice Price or No Dice Omni GLH is Ol’ Shell’s signature on the glovebox. Let’s see if this Shelby-ized econobox still has what it takes.
Tetanus is an infection that can be acquired through a deep scratch or puncture wound from a rusty piece of metal that harbors the spores of the bacterium Clostridium tetani. It’s also common amongst babies and pregnant women who haven’t been immunized against the infection by taking tetanus-toxoid-containing vaccines. Infection causes a number of serious, frequently life-threatening symptoms requiring emergency treatment.
Most of us are probably vaccinated against tetanus, and hence, the seller’s warning that the 1967 Ford Cortina GT project car we looked at yesterday “has some rust” shouldn’t faze us in the least. Its value proposition—a $2,450 asking price against what its restored worth might be—did, however, scare a lot of us off. Ultimately, that worked out to a massive 78% No Dice loss. Rust in peace, brave Cortina.
Omni-potent
Nearly two full decades separate yesterday’s Cortina GT from today’s 1986 Dodge Omni GLH, but when conceived, the modus operandi of each was basically the same: a sportier edition of a small economy car. Both Cortina and Omni also have European origins, with the Ford having been born and bred in Great Britain and the Omni having been designed there.
The Omni, however, is far more massaged than Ford managed with the Cortina’s GT package, and it has the distinct attraction of that massaging having been directly at the hands of Carroll Shelby rather than the Cortina’s tenuous Lotus position.
Chrysler was late to the domestic small car market, having spent most of the 1970s importing Crickets from Britain for Plymouth and Mitsubishis from Japan for Dodge. Launched in 1978, the Dodge Omni and its near-twin, the Plymouth Horizon, leapfrogged the other American competitors as these models followed the European practice of FWD with a transverse engine and end-on gearbox. That made the pair the first domestic small cars with this now-common layout.
Go like HE Double Toothpicks
The pair were a relative success for Chrysler, despite the company teetering on bankruptcy during the model’s development and launch, and lacking a suitable engine to power the cars. The financial situation was addressed through a federal loan, and Chrysler resolved the engine issue by purchasing four-cylinder motors from Volkswagen.
That allowed the company time to get the more profitable K-Cars to market and develop its SOHC inline-four that would see duty in both those K-Cars and the Omni Horizon. It also freed up Chrysler Chairman and Olympic-level cigar chomper Lee Iacocca to get racing legend Carroll Shelby to work his magic on the Omni (sorry, Plymouth patrons), making a hotter version to compete with the recently introduced and well-respected Volkswagen GTI. The result was the Omni GLH, which stood for Goes Like Hell, and that was later upped to GLH-T when Shelby bolted in the turbo edition of Chrysler’s 2.2-liter four.
More muscle
This Omni GLH comes in electric blue with black and red bolt-ons. It looks stock from the outside but is far from all-original underneath. According to the ad, the engine has been rebuilt at some point with up-rated internals, a GLH-S intercooler, and a custom chip that remaps the engine computer. That should all make more power than the stock engine’s 146 horsepower. Helping keep those extra ponies in line, the five-speed gearbox has been treated to a trans girdle and an uprated clutch. Along with that comes coilovers in front, Koni shocks in the back, and a minivan brake upgrade.
Aesthetically, the car looks OK, although not without flaws. The seller even describes it as a “solid 20-footer. Not perfect, but a great driver.” The cabin has some wear and tear evident on its big, puffy buckets, but both the dash and the back seat look to be in great condition. The steering column cover, though, has gone AWOL. On the downside, the seller warns that the car smokes when it gets hot and postulates that it might need a new turbo to cure that problem. It also doesn’t come with the aftermarket wheel shown in several of the pictures but will have the original five-lug pizza plates instead.
Dodgy or a deal?
Frustratingly, the Facebook Marketplace ad doesn’t list either mileage or title status—two important factors in our decision contemplation. The car does appear to be wearing Pennsylvania antique car plates, so there’s that. It’s also one of the funkiest cars to have ever been created under Carroll Shelby’s guidance, so keep that in mind.
According to that less-than-complete ad, the seller is willing to entertain a trade for some other vehicle or, in lieu of that, $8,500 in cash.
What’s our take on this Omni GLH-T and that $8,500 asking? Is that fair for what’s described as a 20-footer car? Or, for asking that much, can this GLH GTFO?
You decide!
Facebook Marketplace out of Hummelstown, Pennsylvania, or go here if the ad disappears.
H/T to John Barse for the hookup!
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