Southern reg Vauxhalls

bs2014

Am I just pedantic or am I the only one here would never buy an imported vauxhall, the badge alongside the southern plate just looks **** and stands out like a mile! Without a doubt, the vauxhalls are better specced and have a tastier engines ect, with SRI spec easily sourced. Somehow, people seem to drive them oblivious to the badge. I've nothing against imports as per say, would drive any brand import except vauxhall. My father is the same, when we bought our astra, we had to wait months on an nearly new "opel" to come available, with a lower spec and engine as opposed to an immediate available vauxhall!

MuppetCheck

They can be had very cheaply in the UK. It wouldn't really bother me to be honest, you can always swap the badge and be done with it if it did bother you. The back of AN astra means you'll have to buy a new boot lid switch alright but others are a straight swap.

Specs are actually slightly higher on the Irish ones compared to the UK equivalent. There are one or two models extra there though and they do special editions too which rarely happens here.

Anan1

As with driving a car in a colour I don't particularly like, it all comes down to price.

Leonard Hofstadter

MuppetCheck wrote: »

Specs are actually slightly higher on the Irish ones compared to the UK equivalent. There are one or two models extra there though and they do special editions too which rarely happens here.

Thing is if you were to look for one on the second hand market, the spec would be much better in Britain. They'll buy 1.6, 1.4 and 1.6 turbo petrols or 2.0 CDTI diesels in SRi or Elite spec. The Irish will buy whatever spec is the lowest, with the boggo NA 1.4 petrol, or, since diesel is all the rage these days, the 1.3 CDTi with its miserable 95 bhp. An Irish spec SRi may be better than a British spec one, but you won't find many on the emerald isle whereas there's no shortage of them in the UK, not least because Vauxhalls are considerably more popular there than Opels are in Ireland.

bs2014

You summed up the Vauxhall/Opel product mix essentially in a nutshell!

Supergurrier

Oh the black and tan shame of aircon and cruise control !

Cee-Jay-Cee

As soon as I see an Opel, I think, old man in poverty spec car. It's a horrible brand and made worse by the irish insistency on buying the lowest powered engine with the most basic spec so that they can save a few hundred euros and without consideration for the huge depreciation the cars will have taken when it comes to sell. I wouldn't touch an Opel to save my life, they truly are one if the dullest cars with an equally dull name, on the market.

MuppetCheck

captainspeed wrote: »

Thing is if you were to look for one on the second hand market, the spec would be much better in Britain. They'll buy 1.6, 1.4 and 1.6 turbo petrols or 2.0 CDTI diesels in SRi or Elite spec. The Irish will buy whatever spec is the lowest, with the boggo NA 1.4 petrol, or, since diesel is all the rage these days, the 1.3 CDTi with its miserable 95 bhp. An Irish spec SRi may be better than a British spec one, but you won't find many on the emerald isle whereas there's no shortage of them in the UK, not least because Vauxhalls are considerably more popular there than Opels are in Ireland.

Of course they will be - it's a much larger market. From using UK forums a lot the SRI and Elite spec models are in the minority and there are a surprising amount of basic N/A petrol too. The specs aren't as high as you'd think - seems bluetooth, xenons and shiny wheels are the big ones with the odd nav. Par for the course on all makes.

What winds me up about specs here is they charge for bluebook. They do in the UK too but it should be standard.

corsav6

We have 2 vauxhalls, prefer the spec and the badge is far nicer.
OP, are you saying you and your dad actually waited to spend more money on a lower spec Opel just to avoid the Vauxhall badge?

MuppetCheck

corsav6 wrote: »

We have 2 vauxhalls, prefer the spec and the badge is far nicer.
OP, are you saying you and your dad actually waited to spend more money on a lower spec Opel just to avoid the Vauxhall badge?

I don't know why you'd do that. Big discounts on one should be expected.

HJL

bs2014 wrote: »

Am I just pedantic

Yes.


Vauxhall viva la vida.

Cogsy88

Stay away from both opel and vauxhall. There rubbish.

lomb

Was opel always seen as dirt though? Back in the eighties they had the Ascona, Monza, Senator etc. They were fairly sought after cars. I think at one point was Opel the biggest seller in Ireland?

ThisRegard

I never understand why threads like this continuously come up. People wouldn't drive a car because of a bit of plastic but would happily drive the same car with a different bit of plastic?

jacksie66

This post has been deleted.

Quazzie

Buy a Vauxhall, then go on e-bay and spend about €50 on Opel badges and an Opel grill and you get a better specced "Opel" for smaller money.

Simples

Leonard Hofstadter

lomb wrote: »

Was opel always seen as dirt though? Back in the eighties they had the Ascona, Monza, Senator etc. They were fairly sought after cars. I think at one point was Opel the biggest seller in Ireland?

Opel in Ireland has a much better reputation than Vauxhall does in the UK, remember all those motoring articles (especially in Top Gear) about how bad 90s Vauxhalls were? Especially the original Vectra (or second generation Vectra for Opel buyers).

Thing is, Vauxhall has a far higher share of the market in Britain than it does in Ireland, so reputation only counts for so much, Vauxhall is number 2 in Britain, Opel is far lower down the sales charts in Ireland...

corsav6

Cogsy88 wrote: »

Stay away from both opel and vauxhall. There rubbish.

What would you recommend then?

Cienciano

Why op? What's the problem with them?

Doylers

I bought an 05 astra there in November, €2600 and I'll tell you one thing by far better condition then the crap you see for sale down here. Not one scratch, interior spotless, air con, cruise control and a full service history.

Cee-Jay-Cee

Doylers wrote: »

I bought an 05 astra there in November, €2600 and I'll tell you one thing by far better condition then the crap you see for sale down here. Not one scratch, interior spotless, air con, cruise control and a full service history.

While I agree that vauxhalls are generally better spec'd cars, a pre-owned car is only as good as the last owner kept it. There are plenty of very well kept Opels in Ireland.

keithclancy

Its a bit weird since its an American owned German company.

Cleveland Hot Pocket

keithclancy wrote: »

Its a bit weird since its an American owned German company.

+1,Seeing as they are both GM cars designed on the same platform, a little badge and some better spec wouldn't be a reason not to buy a vauxhall.

JohnBoy26

captainspeed wrote: »

Opel in Ireland has a much better reputation than Vauxhall does in the UK, remember all those motoring articles (especially in Top Gear) about how bad 90s Vauxhalls were? Especially the original Vectra (or second generation Vectra for Opel buyers).

Thing is, Vauxhall has a far higher share of the market in Britain than it does in Ireland, so reputation only counts for so much, Vauxhall is number 2 in Britain, Opel is far lower down the sales charts in Ireland...

Yes Vauxhall faired very badly in the top gear satisfaction surveys back in the day, which wasn't surprising really when you think of the muck cars they were churning out at the time.

Toyota and Honda were at the most satisfying to own in the UK at the time.

ba_barabus

I've owned two Opels and broke neither. I've only had similar success with Toyota. While they're bland and built to be a form of transport I've never found them to be a bad car.

bs2014

My parents have had 5 opels and drove opel this past 16 years, never given a days trouble any of them, the thing is, I somewhat like them, but I want to like vauxhalls, but despite sri spec ect, the badge just irritates me!

MuppetCheck

To be honest I wouldn't take SRI as being a high spec car. It's alright but there's nothing at all fantastic about the standard equipment. You could have a lower spec car with a few options and it would be a nicer car.

On autotrader in the UK I'd look for the engine I want and ignore the spec as they tend to go for options which is rare here as people usually change the colour and that's it.

You could also go the irmshcher route and deranged to feck

Stallingrad

bs2014 wrote: »

My parents have had 5 opels and drove opel this past 16 years, never given a days trouble any of them, the thing is, I somewhat like them, but I want to like vauxhalls, but despite sri spec ect, the badge just irritates me!

No one has driven any car/cars for 16 years without a days trouble!

MuppetCheck

Stallingrad wrote: »

No one has driven any car/cars for 16 years without a days trouble!

Could well be the warranty idea - people don't seem to count it as trouble when it doesn't cost them:D

ThisRegard

MuppetCheck wrote: »

To be honest I wouldn't take SRI as being a high spec car. It's alright but there's nothing at all fantastic about the standard equipment. You could have a lower spec car with a few options and it would be a nicer car.

The SRi has different suspension and seats amongst other things, it's not all about the equipment.

MuppetCheck

ThisRegard wrote: »

The SRi has different suspension and seats amongst other things, it's not all about the equipment.

The seats can be had on most models too if you look about. Get one with leather and it has the multi adjustable ones which are sport seats. I agree on the suspension difference as it transforms the handling.

micraX

Quazzie wrote: »

Buy a Vauxhall, then go on e-bay and spend about €50 on Opel badges and an Opel grill and you get a better specced "Opel" for smaller money.

Simples

Would there not be issues with insurance as your insuring a Vauxhall not an opel, yet it would have opel badges on it?

colm_mcm

micraX wrote: »

Would there not be issues with insurance as your insuring a Vauxhall not an opel, yet it would have opel badges on it?

How? You could put an Electrolux badge on it and it won't make a difference.

Cogsy88

corsav6 wrote: »

What would you recommend then?

Anything. Jus don't buy opel/vauxhall.

Noccy_Mondy

Cogsy88 wrote: »

Anything. Jus don't buy opel/vauxhall.

Have you anything to back up that view, or is it just pub talk?

timmy4u2

Cogsy88 wrote: »

Anything. Jus don't buy opel/vauxhall.

I have found, contrary to another poster that Vauxhalls are quite dear to buy in the UK.
Back to why I would never buy one.
The 1.4 petrol engine, the one with the timing chain is a disaster.
The chain will struggle to get past 80k miles without being replaced.
There is a plastic water take off pipe on the water pump that becomes brittle and breaks.

They are very prone to overheating and head gasket trouble and very often self destruct in those situations.
And they do not have a temperature guage just in case you you might cop on to a heating problem developing.
Second hand engines are like hens teeth and 60k mls engines are fetching up to €1000.
I think that says it all.

corsav6

Cogsy88 wrote: »

Anything. Jus don't buy opel/vauxhall.

OK then, I'll throw the 2 Astra's on done deal tomorrow and hope I get enough to buy "anything else". You sound like you know what your talking about.

Pawwed Rig

I love Bulmers. Wouldn't touch that Magners sh**e though.

Cogsy88

corsav6 wrote: »

OK then, I'll throw the 2 Astra's on done deal tomorrow and hope I get enough to buy "anything else". You sound like you know what your talking about.

Always crap turbos, combos snap timing chains. Astras give trouble with erg valves. 1.0 liter corsas also snap chains. Older ones rust and fall apart and don't get me started on c20xes and c20lets leak oil everywhere cause of dat stupid 2 part sump gasket nd they also burn huge amounts of oil. Zaffys also Burn oil. I had an opel once nd the chain tensioner failed. Total engine wipeout. Ders a reason y der so cheap secondhand.

GalwayKiefer

Could you not get in trouble with the Gardai for rebadging a car?

timmy4u2

Cogsy88 wrote: »

Anything. Jus don't buy opel/vauxhall.

GalwayKiefer wrote: »

Could you not get in trouble with the Gardai for rebadging a car?

You could for ringing one but that involves a lot more than changing the badges.
Or if you put a Rhino horn on the bonnet

corsav6

Cogsy88 wrote: »

Always crap turbos, combos snap timing chains. Astras give trouble with erg valves. 1.0 liter corsas also snap chains. Older ones rust and fall apart and don't get me started on c20xes and c20lets leak oil everywhere cause of dat stupid 2 part sump gasket nd they also burn huge amounts of oil. Zaffys also Burn oil. I had an opel once nd the chain tensioner failed. Total engine wipeout. Ders a reason y der so cheap secondhand.

Total engine wipeout? Maybe you should have serviced it and the tensioner wouldn't have been oil starved.
I have owned a few vauxhalls over the years and had the usual egr problems, but regular servicing and don't thrash them until they warm up and their a sound car.
Searh Google for the cause of most of the problems you listed and you will see most can be avoided. And while your at it compare their reliability to other manufacturers, not as bad as you make out.

Cleveland Hot Pocket

GalwayKiefer wrote: »

Could you not get in trouble with the Gardai for rebadging a car?

Perhaps you should for an RS4 TDI :P

Cogsy88

corsav6 wrote: »

Total engine wipeout? Maybe you should have serviced it and the tensioner wouldn't have been oil starved.
I have owned a few vauxhalls over the years and had the usual egr problems, but regular servicing and don't thrash them until they warm up and their a sound car.
Searh Google for the cause of most of the problems you listed and you will see most can be avoided. And while your at it compare their reliability to other manufacturers, not as bad as you make out.

It also blew a turbo previously on it. i did service it. So u check the internet to see how to stop your opel from breaking after you buy it. Ford or toyota only for me. I've always driven fords and have not had any bad problems. There underpowered, but better late then never.

dr.fuzzenstein

Buy a Ford. Problem solved.

Cogsy88

dr.fuzzenstein wrote: »

Buy a Ford. Problem solved.

This guy knows what he's about.

Cleveland Hot Pocket

Cogsy88 wrote: »

It also blew a turbo previously on it. i did service it. So u check the internet to see how to stop your opel from breaking after you buy it. Ford or toyota only for me. I've always driven fords and have not had any bad problems. There underpowered, but better late then never.

So go buy the ecoboost ford focus and come back to us when the turbo blows on that too!

beauf

CJC999 wrote: »

As soon as I see an Opel, I think, old man in poverty spec car. It's a horrible brand and made worse by the irish insistency on buying the lowest powered engine with the most basic spec so that they can save a few hundred euros and without consideration for the huge depreciation the cars will have taken when it comes to sell. I wouldn't touch an Opel to save my life, they truly are one if the dullest cars with an equally dull name, on the market.

A little harsh....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Speedster_Turbo_1.JPG

Cogsy88

Change the oil nd she won't blow up. Regularly serviced my combo nd it still died.

Cogsy88

CJC999 wrote: »

As soon as I see an Opel, I think, old man in poverty spec car. It's a horrible brand and made worse by the irish insistency on buying the lowest powered engine with the most basic spec so that they can save a few hundred euros and without consideration for the huge depreciation the cars will have taken when it comes to sell. I wouldn't touch an Opel to save my life, they truly are one if the dullest cars with an equally dull name, on the market.

I like this man.

corsav6

Cogsy88 wrote: »

It also blew a turbo previously on it. i did service it. So u check the internet to see how to stop your opel from breaking after you buy it. Ford or toyota only for me. I've always driven fords and have not had any bad problems. There underpowered, but better late then never.

Ford or Toyota, in fairness you could hardly consider them very reliable, plenty of complaints on various forums, as with most other manufacturers.