View Full Version : Review your Car
As some of you know Im very interested in my cars these days, mostly since Ive just started driving in the last year but also because I am in the process of choosing a new car.
So as the title says, review your car, regardless of age or if somone has allready posted that model. Try and make it ballanced and as specific as possible (car make, name and model if you know it), also add pictures if you want.
Okay heres mine....
Corsa Merit 1.2 (93) 5dr
Well the first word that springs to mind is basic, No PAS, ABS, Aircon or any electric luxuries (windows etc). I guess considdering the car is 12 years old this wasnt uncomon when it was built but is incredibly noticable now. It does make up for this though by being incredibly cheap to buy/insure/run/tax/repair, making it the ideal student or first time drivers car.
Its not very intersting to drive but it is functional, cornering isnt great but everything else is fine.
Honda Stream (http://www.honda.co.uk/cars/newcars/modelHome.jsp?yearId=&modelId=10411&bodyId=&bodyDescription=&engineId=&badgeId=&transmissionId=&colourId=&colourAllocationId=&wheelPartNo=)
Good car for a family. The 2l version is very quick (for a people carrier). Handling is excellent.
Seats 7 ( or 5 with plenty of luggage space. The rear seats fold into the floor so you don't have to store them anywhere else.
Ford Focus Estate
A nice family car, plenty of room in the boot for a large pram and an even larger pile of shopping. 1.6 petrol engine is nippy without pressing you into your seat and handling is good, nice and firm round corners. PAS, ABS and aircon all standard, but the aircon is not terribly effective due to poor positioning of the blowers.
Front seats are not the most comfortable I've had by quite some way.
Build quality is suspect - paintjob is a little patchy in parts and the model is known to have a weakness for leaks on the nearside at the bottom of the windscreen where it rests against part of the aircon system.
Overall, it scores highly for me on practicality but not so well on comfort and quality.
Renault Megane
Big for its class. Keyless is handy esp if you have the hands free version. Suffers from Renaults poor build quality - rattles!
Focus 1.6 Zetec - Good little car, lots of passenger leg room, boot is a bit pokey but seats can come down.
Nice engine, like Chris T said, nippy but not for riceboys. Handling is the best I've had of the cars I've owned.
Buying a Scud Octavia next week though (vRS :D) should be an interesting write up.
Volvo V70 SE Auto. My 6th Volvo.:D
Good, solid, ultra reliable car. Now much better looking and better to drive than the earlier 740/940 models, huge capacity. All the usual toys,leather seats, PAS, Air con, E windows, cruise control, heated side mirrors, etc. but best of all, heated front seats, absolute heaven in winter.
Recognised as having one of the most comfortable, well designed front seats available. Even after very long drives you do not feel stiff or cramped.
Not the most economic on fuel, but it is used for my business so it is deductable.;) Due to change it in 4 months, wonder what my next car will be.:)
Very good resale values, particularly for the estate models such as this.
There is a picture of it here. http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/showpost.php?p=386982&postcount=392
2000 Peugeot 306 5Dr Meridian, in that wonderful pearlesent dark blue (Yes I know its a bird's car, but :PP: )
Fair good good nick. Relatively low mileage. Just had a shock absorber changed last service. Has a broken glovebox door, but I am getting that sorted. Started having some intermittent engine management probs (probably due to the imobiliser) recently. All in all, its been good as gold.
Its a nice car, but the gearbox is awful. Very clunky. It came fully loaded. full electric windows, mirrors, alloys. Power output is reasonable for the car.
VW Lupo as recommended my my friend who is a driving instructor. It feels more like a large car and the visibility is superb.
I drive a 330d (which I love as it is manual and goes like s*it off a shovel) but if I had to have a small car this is what I would choose.
Please dont kill me...
BMW 525d Touring
V. comfortable. Auto box not much cop (bad clutch when pulling away).
Centeralized Idrive controls pain at first, but can do it without looking after a while.
Fits dog crate in nicely.
Dave Stones
27-05-2005, 16:04
Peugeot 106 mardi Gras 1.4D 3door, 109000 miles, L reg, that red colour that all peugeot 106s and 306s seem to be...
Runs very well, though with me in the driving seat there is no room for a passenger behind me. Is currently waiting for some new brake components :)
Has few luxuries, it has an airblower, front and rear windscreen wipers, manual windows, though it did come fitted with some 6x9 parcel shelf speakers from the person i bought it from... Has a sunroof and immobiliser too, actually... no power steering though, so i'm out of breath after parallel parking...
homealone
27-05-2005, 16:18
Honda Jazz 1.4 se 2004 plate
I didn't think I'd like it at first - its mainly used by Mrs Gaz, so she got to choose.
However, it is nippy, handles ok, is comfortable, has excellent fuel consumption (nearly 50mpg) and the controls are light & precise. The options for the rear seats are brilliant, they fold completely flat to give the largest possible space, or split fold, but also the seat squabs can be lifted up to give a low sill luggage space directly behind the front seats. I can easily get my push bike in the back.
Kit wise, it has discs all round, electric windows all round, PAS, ABS, AirCon, twin air bags, heated drivers mirror, immobiliser & dead locks. That last was a surprise - there is no alarm fitted, but an alarm doesn't prevent the 'smash glass nick handbag' type of incident anyway, but they won't get in the doors or get it started if they clamber through a window.
I've been converted ;)
orangebird
27-05-2005, 16:20
1997 Golf TDI. Love it, best car I ever had. Economical, nippy, all electric, PAS, blah blah blah. :tu:
Just had a Renault Espace hire car dropped off. My 11 year old summed it up quite well: "It's ugly!". It's also enormous. I shall let you know what it's like when I return from my hols.
Normally drive a Scenic. Reliable, spacious, doesn't eat too much juice, comfy - good family motor.
Ta-ta
Normally drive a Scenic. Reliable, spacious, doesn't eat too much juice, comfy - good family motor.
Ta-ta
Is it the off-road senic? They look so funny!
Chimaera
27-05-2005, 17:23
Bog standard basic Ford Ka Style - and I mean basic! :rolleyes:
Wasn't my choice of car, (long story!) but I'm quite pleased with it - although I'm fairly tall for a 'bird' I have enough legroom when driving, handles well around town and is a doddle to park. It's not too bad on motorways (could be a bit quieter!), boot is big enough for carting around my work gear (just about!) and will be an ideal learner's car whn I take a certain other forum member out soon for driving lessons! :Yikes:
It's also a nice low insurance group and quite economical with the petrol too :tu:
And the fact that it's only a 4 seater stops taxi abuse from my daughters! :D
(Although I'd really like an Aston Martin DB9)
Is it the off-road senic? They look so funny!
God no! Not into 4x4s and definitely not a Scenic 4x4!
daewoo matiz se 799cc 2001 model
small nippy car for its engine size, struggles a bit up hills, but ideal for nipping around town and parking in small spaces. Surprisingly it can even do 80mph on the motor way easy enough. im well pleased with it. fuel consuption is good, small boot tho, enough for 2/3 bags of shopping the rest have to go on the back seat. low insurance and tax, ideal cheap girly car which gets u to A & B.
4 door, quite good leg room, and not cramped up like usual small cars. would be ideal for low milage user as does not eat petrol.
suits me on my one mile to work and back each day!
Mondeo TDCI estate 2 litre, air con, cruise control, electric windows, sat nav. Goes like a bullet the front seats leave allot to be desired.
iain_herts
28-05-2005, 10:51
i have a vauxhull corsa c 1.0i comfort X reg 2000 3 cylinder 3door(its a hair dryer so no jokes well thats wot they call it at work)power steering eletric mirrors/windows,sunroof, remote centrol locking.
very cheap to run cheap to insure group 1
Y reg 1.4litre Rover 25
Comfy, and handles nicely- "british", rather than softy French rides. A couple of rattles, drinks quite a lot of fuel, but the 1.4 means vroom vroom... it really goes :)
BMW 320d Touring Sport (2004) :erm:
Great seats, especially with lumber support
6 speed box pulls nicely in all gears
Got the version with indicators that work! :) ;)
Dension IceLink+ for IPOD (although having a few teething problems)
Bluetooth phonekit
Sunshine glass in rear (keeps car a bit cooler)
18" M-Sport Alloys are mint
Metalic Black (I.e. not the one in the image)
It's a company one and no I would not buy one personnally, but it's a great drive not too great on the juice but that might have something to do with my right foot. Boot space is great but the load cover is fairly low which means you cannot cover things easily. You cannot remove rear headrests without breaking the spring clips that hold them in which is a pain (but I've done it!). Annoying seperate water tank for rear wash wipe.
John Shut
01-06-2005, 23:58
My Austin Ambassador Y reg, Y reg, Yreg
My Austin Ambassador Y reg is a car that I revere
My Austin Ambassador Y reg, Y reg, Y reg
Donââ‚Âà ‚¬ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚¢t keep asking me why, Reg
It just happens to be that year
Now you may covet a Clio
Or a Mondeo
Marvel at the Montego
Fine but not me, no
Now you may be utterly sold on
Your Peugeot, your Proton
Your Mitsubishi Shogun
But Iâ₠¬ÃƒÆ’¢â€žÂ¢ll always dote on
My Austin Ambassador Y reg, Y reg, Y reg etc.
Iâ₠¬ÃƒÆ’¢â€žÂ¢d even say no ter
A Rolls with a chauffeur
A brand new Toyota
A Skoda? Give over!
Iâ₠¬ÃƒÆ’¢â€žÂ¢ve got an Austin Ambassador Y reg, Y reg, Y reg
Donââ‚Âà ‚¬ÃƒÂ¢Ã¢â‚¬Å¾Ã‚¢t keep asking me why, Reg
It just happens to be that year
LMAO nice first post John :tu: :welcome: to the forums you will go far!
MovedGoalPosts
02-06-2005, 01:13
Alfa Romeo 156 Sportwagon Selespeed 2.0l petrol Twinspark (2001)
Great fun to drive, with potent responsive engine, yet moderate economy. The selespeed is excellent with the option to either drive in City (fully automatic mode) or select gears with the press buttons on the steering wheel. Note this is a manaul gearbox with computer controlled gear selection, rather than a lot of the tiptronic type vehicles that are automatics with a preselect ability for the "manual" button slectors.
Had from new and been reliable. Air con though is not very potent, servicing doesn't come cheap, and it got through all four tyres after 27,500 miles :(
Externally it looks superior (in my view) to the saloon, but the boot desite the "sportwagon" tag is in fact quite limited as the back of the car is very curved so it's not a load lugger. Back seat passengers have limited foot space.
Doesn't like average speedhumps, front frequently grounds even at lowest of speeds.
Depreciation is a killer. Lost well over £10,000 in less than 4 years :eek: Not cheap to insure either.
MGF 1.8i Pearlescent Purple - Girly Car ;)
Very nippy, when I put my foot down the baby growls grrrrrrrr (twin exhausts on the back). Not too bad on petrol, 2 sports seats and a sports steering wheel so feels like I'm driving a go-kart. Hood is easy to take down and it's lovely cruising about on a hot sunny day.
It's a mid engine car so tends to be noisy, not a car to do the weekly shopping in as the tiny boot is full with a couple of carrier bags. Parts seem to be difficult at the moment as I've been waiting nearly 3 months for some bearings that need to be replaced :rolleyes: Insurance is high, even for me with full no claims (currently £80 per month :erm: ) It's got Leccy Windows, Air Con etc etc and the suspension is such that you feel every bump in the road, think it's for that "sports car" effect.
All in all it's my baby and I don't regret buying it for one second :D :D :D
MovedGoalPosts
02-06-2005, 01:25
Renault Espace 2.2DT (1997)
Excellent load lugger. Purchased last year about fourth hand with 50,000 on the clock specifically to transport myself and dive kit about, together with mates and their kit. Has comforably transported 4 adults (inc driver) each of whom had as luggage twin scuba cylinders, a dive box (imagine one of those office moving large plastic crate things), plus around 14kg of lead, each, and assorted clothing. Went from Surrey to the Orkneys averaging 37mpg at 70-80Mph on motorways, easily dealing with the hills on the way.
Been reliable for me, but only had it for a year and 5,000 miles. This version has lots of toys like aircon, CD changer, etc. Very comfortable, quite responsive, and handles much better than I expected for what is a large vehicle.
Door rubber seals are the most obvious weakness, many being detached or split.
Ford Fiesta...old and basic but I love it :)
Y reg 1.4litre Rover 25
Comfy, and handles nicely- "british", rather than softy French rides. A couple of rattles, drinks quite a lot of fuel, but the 1.4 means vroom vroom... it really goes :)
I've got a W reg 1.4 Rover 25 (burgundy sort of colour-ish)
Tends to rattle a little when it's going at higher speeds (but the wind noise tends to cover that ;) )
Fuel consumption's not too bad, bearing in kind I do 70 miles a day minimum - I get almost 300 miles out if a full tank. Nice and comfy, and a lot of head / leg room considering how tall I am :tu:
allieyoung666
02-06-2005, 12:44
Ours doesnt rattle and it is really nippy, full of lift off when you need it!!!
Buying a Scud Octavia next week though (vRS :D) should be an interesting write up.Got it this morning :D
All I can say is... wow!! :shocked:
Awesome performance in the guise of a "sensible, practical, family car" *cough* ;)
It's great to drive, has the smoothest, most forgiving clutch ever, a boot you can get lost in... love it to bits already!
Definately the best kept secret in the performance car arena.
180bhp from the 1.8T engine (exactly the same unit as the Audi TT) delivered smoothly but firmly, a nice gentle whistle from the turbo as you give it that little nudge towards 5500rpm.. loverly :)
http://img204.echo.cx/img204/4681/octy32sr.th.jpg (http://img204.echo.cx/my.php?image=octy32sr.jpg)http://img204.echo.cx/img204/9503/octy27ak.th.jpg (http://img204.echo.cx/my.php?image=octy27ak.jpg)http://img232.echo.cx/img232/6063/octy18hb.th.jpg (http://img232.echo.cx/my.php?image=octy18hb.jpg)
*group 16 insurance though .. ouch
J reg Citreon BX19 Diesel...........
It keeps going, and going, and going........
grandmaster
21-07-2005, 08:57
I drive a Landrover Freelander
I hate snow so when i had the chance to drive this without getting stuck i had to have it.
Its very roomy enough boot space for the pram and other junk.
The only thing i wish it had would be a low range gears instead of hill decent control (which is okay)
but otherwise
I love it !
a White M reg 1.4 Vauxhall Astra, I own it but have not passed my test yet.
my trusty rusty isuzu troopie 2.8td 0-60 allegedly
186000 miles and still rockin but it aint knockin:woot:
R reg Rover 414, 135,000m passed the last two years MoT without any servicing whatsoever (I didn't even check the tyre pressures ! :o: ).
Comfy, spacious, nippy and reliable, no leaks, no rust, no rattles, leccy windows and sunroof, central locking. Nice family car.
Not a patch on the Capri 3.0 with breathed on lump I used to have - - that was 'fun', but needed new head gaskets twice a year !!! :shocked:
2003 Seat Ibiza 130 1.9 TDi Sport, with a few of the optional extras!
I think it's great, and as it's basically a VW it's got good build quality & reliability.
Compared to my old Diesel Golf, it's got one hell of a lot of power at 130Bhp, and is very economical on the fuel, I have got 61MPG out of it on some journeys.
The traction control is great for saving the tyres when pulling out at junctions.
My only thing I can say against it is the boot is a tad small, but that doesn't bother me too much as the other half has a bigger car!!!
2001 Volvo S60 2.0T SE.
REALLY comfortable front seats - I drove 300 miles non stop, and was not at all achy when I got to the other end :Yikes:
All the toys, Climate control (dual zone so passenger can set their own temp), electric heated seats and mirrors with memory, electric windows, traction control, ABS, Leather and wood trim, 15 speaker 4CD stack dolby stereo.etc.
done 118,000 miles - only problem was the aircon which failed recently (new compressor required), but has been absolutely rock solid in all other ways.
Euro NCAP 4 Star safety rating, sixty million (ok lots - front, side and in-seat) airbags and a boot that cannot be opened from inside the car unless you have unlocked it from within the boot itself make it safe in all ways.
pretty quick for a large car, holds the road really well, plus you get to see the shock on the boy racers in their souped up Saxos (Sorry saxodriver :angel: ) as you fly past them on the bends . :devsmoke:
Great fun on the back roads, really comfy on the motorway..
Not too bad on the fuel (about 30Mpg, but I drive pretty quickly most of the time), large boot, can fit a large pram plus a couple of bags without a problem.
Only minor nag is that the rear legroom is a bit limited, so 5 tall adults could be a bit of a squeeze.
As of September this year I will have a V reg corsa 1.0 12v envoy. Its allready mine but I wont be insured on it until september and im not going to get rid of my current car until then.
Good points
It goes like stink, Leaves my current car standing, ive been told its mainly due to the low milleage but also due to the difference between an 8v and a 12v engine.
Its nice and tidy and asside from a fairly long but faint scrape down the passenger side the body work is immaculate.
Even though it doesnt have any PAS the steering is still lighter than my current corsa.
Only 19K on the clock with proof to back it up, so unlike my current car this one will either last me a long time or will sell for a fair bit :)
Bad points
It has a few niggles, most of wich are wear and tear that my dad has simply not been willing to pay to have fixed (and he's not savvy enough for a bit of DIY). These are as follows...
Only the center mirror adjusts, the handles on the side mirrors have come away (They are still there but arnt connected to the mechanism) 5min job tops to fix both.
The clutch is insaneley low, as soon as your foot lifts about an inch the car is allready moving, ive stalled it a couple of times because of this (Im guessing the clutch cable needs adjusting).
The Handbrake isnt very good, again I think it might just be that the cable is stretched or fraying, because the one in my current corsa works great.
The cassette player doesnt work in the head unit, though this doesnt matter as I will be replacing it with a much better unit in september (trying to wrangle it as a 22nd birthday present :D ).
The only Geniune bad point is the lack of PAS, for the age of the car I really thought it would have been a standard feature.
So nothing really bad to say about the car other than standard maintainence wich would have happened to any car my Dad had owned ;)
Citroen Xsara 2.0L HDi LX (90bhp)
Very comfortable car, good spec, PAS, EW, AC etc
Great engine, always gives 50mpg + no matter how you drive it with good performance through the gears due to the massive torque on tap.
Good boot size, just been on a camping holiday for two and we got everything, cool box et al in the boot, a few things on the back seat but as it was just the two of us not an issue.
Good safety, airbags all round and side impact bars etc etc
Handles like its on rails due to the 195 / 55 tyres and has a WRC winning background.
To sum up, a sporty deisel that is comfortable, well specced and economical.
Oh, and if you squint just right it kinda looks like a subaru.... :D Well all the people that let me pass must think so...
VW Polo GT - a step down power-wise from my Rover 620si but it's nippy, a LOT cheaper to run and can look good without looking like it's been chavved.
Dave Stones
22-07-2005, 15:18
The only Geniune bad point is the lack of PAS, for the age of the car I really thought it would have been a standard feature.
So nothing really bad to say about the car other than standard maintainence wich would have happened to any car my Dad had owned ;)
moaning about power steering, what are you, a man or a mouse? ;) Non-PAS cars build muscle and character :p:
moaning about power steering, what are you, a man or a mouse? ;) Non-PAS cars build muscle and character :p:
...which translates as Dave Stones can't yet afford to be insured on a car with power steering due to his age :D :D ;)
budwieser
22-07-2005, 15:21
1st car Peugeot 406 tdi EST Excellent! S Reg 1998
2nd car ( My Runaround) Ford Escort D reg Pile of shiite! 1987.:D
where do i go to squeek i cant imagine life without p.a.s /a.b.s/ s.i.p / a.c / e.w /s.r.s/ forgot the rest :)
timewarrior2001
22-07-2005, 15:39
T reg Vauxhall Vectra 1.8 LS
What can I say, I bought the car third hand, had 70,000 on the clock.
I've put a further 24,000 on it.
I replaced the exhaust system £150
Had new disks and pads all round £225
and due to running problems and discovery it had not had the Vauxhall engine mod done, £150 to drill out carb breather holes and re-program the ECU.
Being a 1.8 its kinda thirsty, and my driving style doesnt help much, but power, wow does it have bags of power. Its confortable for long journeys, I dont htink twice about London and back in a day Thats approximately a 500mile round trip!!!!!. Massive amounts of room and can even get my weekly shop done with wheel chair in boot.
Its got a reputation as a reps car, but lets face it, the milage reps do then the vectra must be a good car or they wouldnt buy it.
ONe gripe I used ot have with it was in hot weather the engine management light would flick on..........I cured this by putting some oil in......ok nearly a gallon of oil, but thats besides the point, at least it warned me lol.
Dave Stones
22-07-2005, 15:51
...which translates as Dave Stones can't yet afford to be insured on a car with power steering due to his age :D :D ;)
i don't want a car with power steering... learnt to drive in a fiesta with power steering, didnt like it one bit. I like my old fashioned-ness :)
none of this SRS business either, if i crash i'm gonna know about it ;)
and air conditioning? pah. just wind the window down...
it has a manual ffsr though...
_____________
you just watch it russell...
the next car I have my eye on when i start earning money and have a no claims is a lotus esprit, old old old, and ive done a prospective insurance quote and i will be able to afford that...:D:D
i could live with a lotus esprit ( bond had one )
Dave Stones
22-07-2005, 15:57
i could live with a lotus esprit ( bond had one )
red. red red red red red. none of this white... the great thing is, they are available on classic insurance so they are comparatively cheap to insure, for what they are...that's not so much reviewing my car anyway...
my car is in an earlier post...
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