Worst car I have ever driven....

[Hackney]

Any Peugeot...like sitting in a high chair resting on a mattress.
The Vauxhall Astra 1.7d I just drove around (a really quite hilly part of) Southern Spain - wallowy, gutless and pre-dented. I counted 27 already highlighted on the rental sheet.

[AJordan]

I think its just rather fasionable at the moment to hate the corsa.

Whilst its not the best, there are many many new cars today that look worse, drive worse or present worse value for money.

Whilst I'll agree that the 1.0 really can't do overtaking, it is very spacious, reasonably well specced, and yes the windows are automatic, you just have to squeeze the button for a second longer than some other cars!

The indicator gripe is completely justified though, stupid design, won't catch on

[russy01]

Aygo. st.

[otolith]

AJordan said:

I think its just rather fasionable at the moment to hate the corsa.

No, it's stylish to hate the Corsa - fashionable implies that it's going to go out of fashion.

[All that jazz]

AJordan said:

The indicator gripe is completely justified though, stupid design, won't catch on

What is that? Has it changed recently or is it still the same system where you flick the stalk for 3 flashes and push the stalk all the way for them to stay on? That system has been current since 2006 if so.

[Marlin45]

The only truly aweful one I can think of was an insurance supplied Perduoa Nipa back in the early '00's for a few weeks after a prang! Luckily my Co. sent me out of the country as soon as I was given it. I only had the misfortune to drive it back from the rental Co.

Edited by Marlin45 on Tuesday 11th September 00:04

[MoleVision]

I have to agree with the op. The corsa 1.2 is a pathetic thing. Ive had plenty of corsas fiestas focii etc etc and the cores is by far and away the worst.

I also have the opinion the handling is not just bad but dangerous. You have no idea what the wheels are doing, and 1/4 turn of essentially play in the wheel doesn't help. Also because the driving position feels like it's over the front wheels it feels like driving a van.

No temp gauge pisses me off as well. Soft click switches... So you never know how to get your wipers to off setting.

I even had a 1.2 that developed a misfire on one cylinder... That was a slow car!

A very close 2nd tho is the previous gen astra diesel with crazy turbo lag and equally as sensationless steering. I was considering crashing it I hated it so much.

[Baryonyx]

otolith said:

No, it's stylish to hate the Corsa - fashionable implies that it's going to go out of fashion.

Or rather, the Corsa has just never been that good.

I remember my nanna having a Corsa GSi back in the day. B shape, bodykit, three spoke wheels. It wasn't as good as the equivalent Fiesta RS Turbo but it was about as credible as the Corsa ever was until the VXR. It wouldn't pull the skin off a rice pudding though, and she was always getting people wanting to race in it.


This video just about says it all. GSi Corsa supposed to be stretching out but going nowhere fast. Diesel Corsa overdoes it and gets a warning light flashing up mid-video. Avoid these cars.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FsEHTXIYbk

[AJordan]

All that jazz said:

What is that? Has it changed recently or is it still the same system where you flick the stalk for 3 flashes and push the stalk all the way for them to stay on? That system has been current since 2006 if so.

I've never counted how many flashes I get!

Basically, instead of clicking the stalk down and it staying down until you turn it off/it self cancels, it pushes down and returns to the middle position. Due to this, you have no idea when its about to self cancel, and if you turn it off yourself at the same time, you start to signal the other way!

Same with the wipers, you have no idea what speed setting you've got them at...

[Beardo]

Even the 1.4 we had as a hire car was pathetically slow, so God alone knows how slow the 1.2 must be Totally agreed on the seats, utter st.

[TallbutBuxomly]

m555 said:

Hired a nissan tiida back in 2007, in South Africa, before they reached Europe.
handled just like a boat...in choppy waters

As did i knocked around in it for a month and you know what... it was at least 20 times better than this corsa it really was. The seats had springs the engine actually had enough power to get it moving.

[vit4]

durbster said:

I don't understand how any manufacturer can get something like the seats wrong. Surely, at some stage in Vauxhall's 100 year history, they would have found some seats which are comfy and cheap enough to make, so why wouldn't they use them from that point on?

Same goes for gearboxes.

Funny you should mention that, because my pov-spec Astra mk2 is the only car I've driven where I can (and have) drive 13 hours straight and barely need a stretch at the other end (although I've not driven any luxo-barges so I'm sure they'd be the same). Most stuff leaves me aching after an hour or two tops but for some reason the seats in that Astra are perfect.

[TallbutBuxomly]

otolith said:

AJordan said:

I think its just rather fasionable at the moment to hate the corsa.

No, it's stylish to hate the Corsa - fashionable implies that it's going to go out of fashion.

I dont think it has anything to do with style fashion or anything else like that. It is to do with the fact that it simply falls far short of being a decent/average car. It is more a thing of torture.

[billzeebub]

My Dad runs a .1.2 or 1.4 Corsa (04 plate) as a work shed ( South-Kent coast to Greenwich every day). He bought it from a Vauxhall dealer with 20k miles on the clock( ex-motability car I think). It was shagged when he got it, and it is a truly hateful little thing- by far and away the worst car I have ever been in. His other weekend motor is a Saab 9-3 Aero Convertible that he bought new in 2007. Drives the Corsa everywhere, I can't fathom it..I would rather walk!..

[valverguy]

MoleVision said:

I have to agree with the op. The corsa 1.2 is a pathetic thing. Ive had plenty of corsas fiestas focii etc etc and the cores is by far and away the worst.

I also have the opinion the handling is not just bad but dangerous. You have no idea what the wheels are doing, and 1/4 turn of essentially play in the wheel doesn't help. Also because the driving position feels like it's over the front wheels it feels like driving a van.

No temp gauge pisses me off as well. Soft click switches... So you never know how to get your wipers to off setting.

I even had a 1.2 that developed a misfire on one cylinder... That was a slow car!

A very close 2nd tho is the previous gen astra diesel with crazy turbo lag and equally as sensationless steering. I was considering crashing it I hated it so much.

Seriously, what are you basing your comments on the handling on? I run decent tyres (eagle F1's) on a 5dr and the handling is actually very good. A little under steer shows its ugly head when you push it to far, but as good or better than any other eurobox. To say its dangerous is stupid, to say a 1/4 turn is play? I would suggest the car you had was very badly damaged/broken.

The wipers are very easy to tell when they are "off" since it makes a audible click when it is put in the off position.

The only thing i agree on is the lack of temp gauge, it annoys me a great deal.

I am not going to sit here and say its a great car. It isn't, in fact i tell my wife it's st every day. I don't tell her it's st because it doesn't handle well, nor do i tell her it's st because it's dangerous. I tell her it's st because it is soulless and as far as places to be for endless hours of commuting it makes me want to throw my self over the nearest cliff.

[Waugh-terfall]

1.2? That's nothing, I've got a friend with an 08 Breeze with the three cylinder 1.0!

Worst car I've ever driven must be a 1996 Hyundai Accident 1.3i. It's been so far scrubbed from my memory, all I can remember are the noise (did it even have an exhaust?) and the longest throw of any gearbox in existance, it lay flat back against the tunnel in 2nd, 4th and reverse.

Other than that, I'm going to say a near death E30 BMW 316/8i with lots of missing interior trim. Awful driving position, crappy plastics, nasty noise, huge wheel, floppy gearbox, too small.

[All that jazz]

AJordan said:

I've never counted how many flashes I get!

Basically, instead of clicking the stalk down and it staying down until you turn it off/it self cancels, it pushes down and returns to the middle position. Due to this, you have no idea when its about to self cancel, and if you turn it off yourself at the same time, you start to signal the other way!

Same with the wipers, you have no idea what speed setting you've got them at...

Same system since 2006 then as I have both those on my Astravan's. The indicators aren't too bad once you get used to them, the trick is the flick the stalk in the same direction to cancel them, not flick it the other way like you'd do naturally. Logically it doesn't make any sense whatsoever to flick them the same way to cancel them but it does work and you don't end up looking like a tt with your opposite side indication going.

No major complaints about the wiper stalk but the rain-sensing wiper option on the Vx's is utter bks. They either go at double speed when it's spitting or do absolutely fk all when you drive past a truck in a monsoon.

Admittedly I've not driven the Corsa D variant, but the handling and steering are just fine on the Corsa C and Astra H models, especially the sportier spec ones. I can only guess that those complaining about them have never driven a mk4 Golf! I've seen 500,000 tonne oil tankers being described as having better handling than mk4 Golfs! The steering is light in the Corsa C and Astra H, but it is also quite a quick rack compared to other marques and I really like that as it suits my lazy style of driving. It firms up just enough on motorways to be comfortable without feeling floaty and personally I think they have a really nice feel with decent predictable handling.

[aw51 121565]

vit4 said:

Funny you should mention that, because my pov-spec Astra mk2 is the only car I've driven where I can (and have) drive 13 hours straight and barely need a stretch at the other end (although I've not driven any luxo-barges so I'm sure they'd be the same). Most stuff leaves me aching after an hour or two tops but for some reason the seats in that Astra are perfect.

If one has a "bad back" (and my problem is wear in the facet joints) then the "what's a good seat/bad seat" rules tend to go out the window .

I managed 4 hours solid driving my 309 the other week, and would have managed quite a bit longer if I'd had to (it just happened that we got home after 4 hours)...

In the wife's Jazz I can't drive it for more than 20 minutes before the sciatica kicks off, and prising myself out of the thing after much more than an hour involves falling out on to the floor on all fours then picking myself up over at least 5 minutes to regain some semblance of mobility. It's THAT bad!!! OK, it's economical, but it's soulless and physically hurts me to distraction very quickly. The "power steering" is pretty distracting ariound town as well .

[All that jazz]

vit4 said:

Funny you should mention that, because my pov-spec Astra mk2 is the only car I've driven where I can (and have) drive 13 hours straight and barely need a stretch at the other end (although I've not driven any luxo-barges so I'm sure they'd be the same). Most stuff leaves me aching after an hour or two tops but for some reason the seats in that Astra are perfect.

The Sportive mk5 vans come with the same cloth seats that are found in the Astra SRi *I think* (they certainly look the same from the pics online anyway) and they're very 'marmite' with most drivers : they either love them or hate them, there is no middle ground. They are very firm - that much can be said - and the lumbar support is a bit lacking, but the side support is very good and hugs your arse and legs pretty good so you don't feel like you're falling off when going round corners. Even though they are firm, personally I find them really comfy and I typically spend 5-6 hrs per day sat in them.

[mat777]

Probably a Land Rover 109 Diesel, of which I've driven 2 and both were awful.

My 88" petrol is painfully slow enough in modern traffic, but the 2.25l diesel tops out at 40mph. Not only does it accompany the glacial pace with a soundtrack akin to a meccano set in a blender, but because the cabin is bare metal inside it's amplified like being in a drum. Oh, and early 109 brakes are impossible to bleed so the pedal sinks to the floor and has to be pumped to get anything like some form of retardation. Also, being a leaf sprung Land Rover, your spine shatters with every peddble as you sink into/slide around on the flat vinyl slab seats set bolt upright.