Few questions regarding an Opel Astra..

richierichballs

Hi,
I am absolutely clueless when it comes to cars and motors,
A friend of mine advised to make a thread in this section as he claims their are some users in here who really know their stuff.

I'm looking at purchasing an Opel Astra,
I've had a look at a few and my budget is and around 4k-4.5k,
I have came across a few I may be going to see this week and I have a few questions.

One has 138km and is an 06 Astra Sxi 1.5 but is a Vauxhall and is from a garage, but when I asked about a garage waranty he said it they're wouldn't be one. Doe is make an difference being it's in the republic, in regards to the manufacture? It's an Irish reg.

The other is also 06 Astra gtc for the same price but has 188km on it,
But its a 1.4L.

Both are NCT'd, I plan on having a mechanic look at them when I visit,
The 138km one will obviously be my first stop. What do you think and what should I look out for?

johnnydeep

richierichballs wrote: »

Hi,
I am absolutely clueless when it comes to cars and motors,
A friend of mine advised to make a thread in this section as he claims their are some users in here who really know their stuff.

I'm looking at purchasing an Opel Astra,
I've had a look at a few and my budget is and around 4k-4.5k,
I have came across a few I may be going to see this week and I have a few questions.

One has 138km and is an 06 Astra Sxi 1.5 but is a Vauxhall and is from a garage, but when I asked about a garage waranty he said it they're wouldn't be one. Doe is make an difference being it's in the republic, in regards to the manufacture? It's an Irish reg.

The other is also 06 Astra gtc for the same price but has 188km on it,
But its a 1.4L.

Both are NCT'd, I plan on having a mechanic look at them when I visit,
The 138km one will obviously be my first stop. What do you think and what should I look out for?

these engines are dirt

bazz26

I wouldn't be buying anything from a dealer who isn't willing to stand over it anyways.

richierichballs

johnnydeep wrote: »

these engines are dirt

Are Opel engines bad in general?

browner85

is the 1.8 sri a better engine? i know two ppl that have them and not a bother out of either?

Pops_20

I'm driving a 06 1.6 Astra with 160k kms and I have not had any trouble so far. I find that the 1.6 engine suits the car well as it sits in the middle of the range and has relatively good power and fuel economy. Personally I would go for the gtc, grand looking car. If you are bringing a mechanic with you then he/she should know what to look out for.

JohnBoy26

Does it have to be an Astra. Something like this is nicer than an Astra IMO.
http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4899267

johnnydeep

richierichballs wrote: »

Are Opel engines bad in general?

the 1.4 certainly is

richierichballs

JohnBoy26 wrote: »

Does it have to be an Astra. Something like this is nicer than an Astra IMO.
http://cars.donedeal.ie/for-sale/cars/4899267

No, it doesn't effectively have to be an Astra, but it is my preferred option and a car I have admired for a number of years now.

I'm not really keen on a Mazda, but I appreciate the suggestion.

richierichballs

johnnydeep wrote: »

the 1.4 certainly is

Really? And in regards to the live of the 1.4 engine compared to that of the 1.5,
Is there much of a difference?

Are Opel engines in general, bad?

wendell borton

Nothing bad about the astra 1.4 engine, its the most common engine found in them, as good if not better than the equivalent 1.4 in fords, vw's.

richierichballs

wendell borton wrote: »

Nothing bad about the astra 1.4 engine, its the most common engine found in them, as good if not better than the equivalent 1.4 in fords, vw's.

What kind of mileage, do they usually start to give trouble?

johnnydeep

wendell borton wrote: »

Nothing bad about the astra 1.4 engine, its the most common engine found in them, as good if not better than the equivalent 1.4 in fords, vw's.

your right v.w no great shakes either. if the 1.4 opel engine is okay. then the scrap yards should be full of them and they could be bought dirt cheap. get me some and I will buy them off you

166man

I have heard of the 1.4 petrols giving up the ghost on more than one occasion but never experienced it. What's you mileage OP? Maybe a diesel might be worth looking at?

Also I wouldn't discount the higher mileage car, it may well have had an easier life than the lower mileage one...

anniehoo

Worst car ive owned was an Opel Tigra. The pain that car cost me was unreal. Overheating, cracks in manifold, endless trips to the garage,huge repair bills then it died after the head gasket blew