Boxster S & Vectra VXR - A great pairing?
Discussion
Hi all, I thought it was about time for me to lurk a bit less and to show off some of my fleet in here, so here goes...
The newest addition to the fleet is my 2000 Boxster S, which was bought a month ago to replace my much loved 1991 MX5, which I had run for 2 1/2 years and really enjoyed. Here's a picture of the two together before the Mazda went off to it's new home with a mate...
Moving from one to the other has provided an interesting contrast, so he are a few thoughts so far. Firstly, the boxster desperately needs a full set of new tyres (which it's getting on Monday), so they may be having an impact, but even so, it is very sure-footed, feeling much more planted than the Mazda.The boxster does of course have much more performance on tap, and is much more refined, but the need for high-speed stability does mean that the steering doesn't have quite the immediacy of the mx5 (but it's by no means vague!).
I've not done big miles yet, so will add more impressions later - meanwhile, onto the high speed load lugger... A 2007 Vauxhall Vectra VXR. This is a car that attracts a lot of bias, so before thinking of Clarkson, read Evo's thoughts on their long-termer - http://www.evo.co.uk/carreviews/evolongtermtests/2...
This is a car that you have to take for what it is - a huge, rapid tool for carrying lots of stuff. It's definitely not the thing to go for if you're after the ultimate delicate chassis balance, but it's also not the hideous understeer machine that Jezza would suggest!
I bought this one in April 2009, when it was under 2 years old with 14,000 miles - and compared to a list of over £30k with options, it cost under £11k - so depreciation definitely worked in my favour! It's got loads of kit on it including sat-nav, blutooth, cruise, xenons, etc and is absolutely enormous - with the back seats down you have a flat, 2m long load bay, so there's not much that you can't fit in it and with the seats up there's loads of space for both people and stuff (very handy with a toddler and a second one on the way!).
So it's very practical, and isn't a caterham, so what's good about it? Well, it is really defined by the 2.8 turbocharged v6, which pulls this big bus along in a way that surprises many people - especially now it's remapped to give somewhere around 300-310BHP and 400+lbft. The torque really changes the nature of the car with the map, so you can drive it like a big diesel and ride the torque (great for quick, effortless cruising) or hit the gas and it will pull hard from down at 2500rpm.
I think that it's a pretty good package, although it does of course like a drink (average over 16000 miles with me is 22.2mpg) and is in the top tax bracket, but it's worth it! I do like to try sometimes to go for non-conventional choices and the vectra is definitely unusual - most people don't realise what it is (with only 134 estates and about 850 hatches, that's no surprise) other than just a rep motor with a lairy paint job, and I've only seen another 4 on the road (all hatches).
Stickered for Le Mans!
I think overall the combination of the vectra and the Mazda/boxster is a good mix of practical and fun for most occasions! I'll add more the this thread later about the others in the fleet - a 2004 Renaultsport Clio 182 and a 1985 Mini, which is a long-term rebuild project!
The newest addition to the fleet is my 2000 Boxster S, which was bought a month ago to replace my much loved 1991 MX5, which I had run for 2 1/2 years and really enjoyed. Here's a picture of the two together before the Mazda went off to it's new home with a mate...
Moving from one to the other has provided an interesting contrast, so he are a few thoughts so far. Firstly, the boxster desperately needs a full set of new tyres (which it's getting on Monday), so they may be having an impact, but even so, it is very sure-footed, feeling much more planted than the Mazda.The boxster does of course have much more performance on tap, and is much more refined, but the need for high-speed stability does mean that the steering doesn't have quite the immediacy of the mx5 (but it's by no means vague!).
I've not done big miles yet, so will add more impressions later - meanwhile, onto the high speed load lugger... A 2007 Vauxhall Vectra VXR. This is a car that attracts a lot of bias, so before thinking of Clarkson, read Evo's thoughts on their long-termer - http://www.evo.co.uk/carreviews/evolongtermtests/2...
This is a car that you have to take for what it is - a huge, rapid tool for carrying lots of stuff. It's definitely not the thing to go for if you're after the ultimate delicate chassis balance, but it's also not the hideous understeer machine that Jezza would suggest!
I bought this one in April 2009, when it was under 2 years old with 14,000 miles - and compared to a list of over £30k with options, it cost under £11k - so depreciation definitely worked in my favour! It's got loads of kit on it including sat-nav, blutooth, cruise, xenons, etc and is absolutely enormous - with the back seats down you have a flat, 2m long load bay, so there's not much that you can't fit in it and with the seats up there's loads of space for both people and stuff (very handy with a toddler and a second one on the way!).
So it's very practical, and isn't a caterham, so what's good about it? Well, it is really defined by the 2.8 turbocharged v6, which pulls this big bus along in a way that surprises many people - especially now it's remapped to give somewhere around 300-310BHP and 400+lbft. The torque really changes the nature of the car with the map, so you can drive it like a big diesel and ride the torque (great for quick, effortless cruising) or hit the gas and it will pull hard from down at 2500rpm.
I think that it's a pretty good package, although it does of course like a drink (average over 16000 miles with me is 22.2mpg) and is in the top tax bracket, but it's worth it! I do like to try sometimes to go for non-conventional choices and the vectra is definitely unusual - most people don't realise what it is (with only 134 estates and about 850 hatches, that's no surprise) other than just a rep motor with a lairy paint job, and I've only seen another 4 on the road (all hatches).
Stickered for Le Mans!
I think overall the combination of the vectra and the Mazda/boxster is a good mix of practical and fun for most occasions! I'll add more the this thread later about the others in the fleet - a 2004 Renaultsport Clio 182 and a 1985 Mini, which is a long-term rebuild project!
Edited by browno on Friday 16th September 22:58
Edited by browno on Saturday 17th September 08:37
That Vectra VXR is ace. I know they get some s
t for being understeery, having one of the worst chassis of any modern road car etc, but I saw one (saloon, not estate) being used as an unmarked car on some Traffic Cops program on ITV one, so they can't be that bad. Come to think of it, on Road Wars they often use an unmarked Vectra GSI. They are obviously tough and quick enough!
t for being understeery, having one of the worst chassis of any modern road car etc, but I saw one (saloon, not estate) being used as an unmarked car on some Traffic Cops program on ITV one, so they can't be that bad. Come to think of it, on Road Wars they often use an unmarked Vectra GSI. They are obviously tough and quick enough!The Vectra VXR is a performance bargain, jezza did this car no favors when he was a hooligan on top gear in one (same with Astra VXR too). Good choice of cars.
Mate has a Boxster, tyres certainly are not cheap! His had a suspected engine mounting that has pretty much exceeded its useful life. Changed it and he cannot belive the difference it has made. Might be worth checking it out seems that they are common for this, he says it feels like a new car!
Mate has a Boxster, tyres certainly are not cheap! His had a suspected engine mounting that has pretty much exceeded its useful life. Changed it and he cannot belive the difference it has made. Might be worth checking it out seems that they are common for this, he says it feels like a new car!
esp love the Vectra VXR's amd as already mentioned the BiB love them too my local force use one as an ANPR carI also have a 2001 boxster with 18'' wheels which needs ther rears changing.I find when I'm on country roads the car tends to 'Bump steer' a lot which I have put down to the tyres.As it's a garage queen they'll be geting changed over the winter when the wheels are re-furbed.
I also have a front arm to change due to a suspension squeak so when it's on the ramps I'm going over it with a fine toothcomb to see if and bushes ect need changing.
Still a cracking car!
I also have a front arm to change due to a suspension squeak so when it's on the ramps I'm going over it with a fine toothcomb to see if and bushes ect need changing.
Still a cracking car!
Thanks for all the positive comments - I was a bit worried about getting the right tone to my post so that I can show I'm happy with the vectra, without coming across as a blinkered fanboy, so it's great to see that the people of PH can see past what you see on the telly!
Since it's getting some love, here are a couple more pictures:
And 3/4 of the fleet in mid-2009:
While I'm adding to my tales, I'll add a little more about some of the other cars - first off my wife's car (and family go-kart!), a 2004 Renaultsport 182, which was bought new back in October 2004 to replace a little 1.0 12v corsa.
I was a bit of a sceptic when it comes to French cars before this, but after a couple of mates bought 172's, we decided to go for it. It's a very well kitted out little car as standard - much above what it's price would suggest (Xenons, cruise, climate, auto wipers and lights all standard). Having owned a 205GTi at the same time, it really is the nearest you will get to an old-school hot hatch in a modern-ish package - very chuckable, but also much safer, more refined and robust. It doesn't do big miles (in fact, it's only done 32,000 so far), but has been very good - it needed a new cat a couple of years ago for MOT, and the timing belt is a horrible job, but other than that it's been a case of add fuel, tyres and service it.
It also looks great in Black Gold (which has golden metallic flecks in it) when cleaned up:
Since it's getting some love, here are a couple more pictures:
And 3/4 of the fleet in mid-2009:
While I'm adding to my tales, I'll add a little more about some of the other cars - first off my wife's car (and family go-kart!), a 2004 Renaultsport 182, which was bought new back in October 2004 to replace a little 1.0 12v corsa.
I was a bit of a sceptic when it comes to French cars before this, but after a couple of mates bought 172's, we decided to go for it. It's a very well kitted out little car as standard - much above what it's price would suggest (Xenons, cruise, climate, auto wipers and lights all standard). Having owned a 205GTi at the same time, it really is the nearest you will get to an old-school hot hatch in a modern-ish package - very chuckable, but also much safer, more refined and robust. It doesn't do big miles (in fact, it's only done 32,000 so far), but has been very good - it needed a new cat a couple of years ago for MOT, and the timing belt is a horrible job, but other than that it's been a case of add fuel, tyres and service it.
It also looks great in Black Gold (which has golden metallic flecks in it) when cleaned up:
Apologies in advance, but I fear a large essay is imminent on the next car in the fleet – my 1985 Mini City E, which is a VERY long term project!
To get to the start of the project, we need to go all the way back to the summer of 1993, when I was 16 and eager to get behind the wheel. I had saved up a fair bit of money, and was keen to get myself a car that I could tidy up in the six months before I could start driving. My Dad had spotted a mini that was being repaired at a garage owned by my mate’s Dad, and was up for sale as the owner’s husband had been banned for 12 months. So, a week or so later (on August 31st 1993, in fact), I became the proud owner of a 1985 Mini City E, which had a new MOT that day and had recorded 47420 miles. It was in good condition, but hadn’t been cleaned in a long time, so on the first day it looked like this (with me & my brother in it looking very young & of course stylish!)
So I got my most stylish gear on and got to work giving it a clean, and got rid of the fetching brown interior, after which it looked a lot tidier:
The only visible fault was a small rust hole in the bonnet, so I got rid of that:
Then we thought it would be worthwhile getting it into the garage so that we could whip out the rust-prone rear subframe to repair it as needed and paint the floor in that area:
The good news was that the original subframe was in great condition, as was the boot floor, so we stripped everything back, gave it all several coats of hammerite to protect it from the elements and reassembled it all looking much better:
So far, so good – in fact we’d found it quite straightforward – and at this point is where things changed from a quick tidy up into a more serious project. Having sorted out the rear end, I also stripped and painted the floor in the middle of the car without any problems. Then we decided to up the ante by taking out the front subframe – achieved by simply lifting the body off the front running gear, which was then wheeled out.
Then the engine/gearbox and all brake and suspension components were separated from the subframe and it was built back to give us a rolling shell (so that the engine could be rebuilt and put back into the shell later)
This resulted in a shell that was well protected underneath and looked like this:
As it had turned into more than a quick tidy-up, and I wasn’t going to have it ready for when I did my test, I decided that the paintwork wasn’t great, and could be improved – so it was sent off to a mate’s garage for a paintjob… He assured me that he’d take great care of my pride & joy for me…
The car was prepped and primed, but then the project stalled for the first time, as it was being painted as a favour, it was low priority – so spent about 2 years sitting in a shed at the garage awaiting attention.
Eventually, when I was at Uni, and had nice long summer holidays I got cracking on with it again – I built the engine up which is based on the original 998cc unit, but significantly upgraded (I was concerned about insurance at the time, and the engine was in such good nick, I decided to modify it, rather than transplant it) with the following bits:
Minisport stage 1 kit (alloy inlet & LCB exhaust manifolds, superflow exhaust & K&N filter)
Minisport stage 3 cylinder head
Minisport road/rally cam
Single 1 ¾” SU HIF44 carb
Aldon electronic ignition conversion
After a bit of nudging, the car then got painted in Ferrari Rosso Corse with a Ford Diamond White roof – and I had a motor that looked like this:
So the motor was fitted (and sounded fantastic) – then the spending then started on shiny bits for it including lots of trim, a six-point safety devices roll cage, a pair of cobra low-back buckets and all sorts of other stuff. With a big push on to fit this lot up, the car was looking pretty good and just needed some trim and wiring finishing before it was ready:
However, at this point things changed again, and the project stalled for the second, longer time. I ended up staying on at Uni for 3 more years to do a PhD and towards the end of that 3 years, my dad (who can be seen in some of the earlier pictures) died suddenly aged just 49.
Eventually I ended up finally getting myself a job, which was back near home, and bought a house – so got a mate with a truck to bring the car over into my new garage – so, we are up to 2004, 11 years after I bought it, and it looked like this:
Finally after lots of failed attempts, in 2008, I decided to have a big push and finally get it on the road, as it has become such a huge joke with all my friends and family that I have the infamous unfinished mini that it needs to be finished! I also figured that since it’s something that I’ve worked so hard on with my Dad and Brother that I need to finish it off as a memory of him too.
I stripped the top end of the engine again and rebuilt the head, rebuilt the carb and got the engine running again before I started work on some of the other jobs that need doing – some that weren’t done originally, others that need doing because of the lay-up.
After a lot of work, it didn’t look much different – but it had a lot of jobs attended to:
The electrics all now work, and the remaining jobs were focussed on sorting out the interior and tidying all the wiring. One of the big jobs was getting out both screens to fit new seals, which meant I could also take out the dash and retrim it. It was then looking lots better – but taking lots of time to get the details sorted out – things like the heater, which had a leaky matrix has been taken out, stripped and all the parts painted and reassembled with a new matrix, and replacing just about everything in the cooling system (new water pump, thermostat and everything else flushed out) - only to find that the pipes into the heater matrix were also leaky, so were also replaced!
Unfortunately, since then I've moved house and had a baby arrive, so progress has stalled again – in fact writing this is making me think that I should clear out the junk in the garage and get another push on at sorting it out! I'll keep this thread updated with any progress! Sorry for the mass essay, but I hope this is of interest!
To get to the start of the project, we need to go all the way back to the summer of 1993, when I was 16 and eager to get behind the wheel. I had saved up a fair bit of money, and was keen to get myself a car that I could tidy up in the six months before I could start driving. My Dad had spotted a mini that was being repaired at a garage owned by my mate’s Dad, and was up for sale as the owner’s husband had been banned for 12 months. So, a week or so later (on August 31st 1993, in fact), I became the proud owner of a 1985 Mini City E, which had a new MOT that day and had recorded 47420 miles. It was in good condition, but hadn’t been cleaned in a long time, so on the first day it looked like this (with me & my brother in it looking very young & of course stylish!)
So I got my most stylish gear on and got to work giving it a clean, and got rid of the fetching brown interior, after which it looked a lot tidier:
The only visible fault was a small rust hole in the bonnet, so I got rid of that:
Then we thought it would be worthwhile getting it into the garage so that we could whip out the rust-prone rear subframe to repair it as needed and paint the floor in that area:
The good news was that the original subframe was in great condition, as was the boot floor, so we stripped everything back, gave it all several coats of hammerite to protect it from the elements and reassembled it all looking much better:
So far, so good – in fact we’d found it quite straightforward – and at this point is where things changed from a quick tidy up into a more serious project. Having sorted out the rear end, I also stripped and painted the floor in the middle of the car without any problems. Then we decided to up the ante by taking out the front subframe – achieved by simply lifting the body off the front running gear, which was then wheeled out.
Then the engine/gearbox and all brake and suspension components were separated from the subframe and it was built back to give us a rolling shell (so that the engine could be rebuilt and put back into the shell later)
This resulted in a shell that was well protected underneath and looked like this:
As it had turned into more than a quick tidy-up, and I wasn’t going to have it ready for when I did my test, I decided that the paintwork wasn’t great, and could be improved – so it was sent off to a mate’s garage for a paintjob… He assured me that he’d take great care of my pride & joy for me…
The car was prepped and primed, but then the project stalled for the first time, as it was being painted as a favour, it was low priority – so spent about 2 years sitting in a shed at the garage awaiting attention.
Eventually, when I was at Uni, and had nice long summer holidays I got cracking on with it again – I built the engine up which is based on the original 998cc unit, but significantly upgraded (I was concerned about insurance at the time, and the engine was in such good nick, I decided to modify it, rather than transplant it) with the following bits:
Minisport stage 1 kit (alloy inlet & LCB exhaust manifolds, superflow exhaust & K&N filter)
Minisport stage 3 cylinder head
Minisport road/rally cam
Single 1 ¾” SU HIF44 carb
Aldon electronic ignition conversion
After a bit of nudging, the car then got painted in Ferrari Rosso Corse with a Ford Diamond White roof – and I had a motor that looked like this:
So the motor was fitted (and sounded fantastic) – then the spending then started on shiny bits for it including lots of trim, a six-point safety devices roll cage, a pair of cobra low-back buckets and all sorts of other stuff. With a big push on to fit this lot up, the car was looking pretty good and just needed some trim and wiring finishing before it was ready:
However, at this point things changed again, and the project stalled for the second, longer time. I ended up staying on at Uni for 3 more years to do a PhD and towards the end of that 3 years, my dad (who can be seen in some of the earlier pictures) died suddenly aged just 49.
Eventually I ended up finally getting myself a job, which was back near home, and bought a house – so got a mate with a truck to bring the car over into my new garage – so, we are up to 2004, 11 years after I bought it, and it looked like this:
Finally after lots of failed attempts, in 2008, I decided to have a big push and finally get it on the road, as it has become such a huge joke with all my friends and family that I have the infamous unfinished mini that it needs to be finished! I also figured that since it’s something that I’ve worked so hard on with my Dad and Brother that I need to finish it off as a memory of him too.
I stripped the top end of the engine again and rebuilt the head, rebuilt the carb and got the engine running again before I started work on some of the other jobs that need doing – some that weren’t done originally, others that need doing because of the lay-up.
After a lot of work, it didn’t look much different – but it had a lot of jobs attended to:
The electrics all now work, and the remaining jobs were focussed on sorting out the interior and tidying all the wiring. One of the big jobs was getting out both screens to fit new seals, which meant I could also take out the dash and retrim it. It was then looking lots better – but taking lots of time to get the details sorted out – things like the heater, which had a leaky matrix has been taken out, stripped and all the parts painted and reassembled with a new matrix, and replacing just about everything in the cooling system (new water pump, thermostat and everything else flushed out) - only to find that the pipes into the heater matrix were also leaky, so were also replaced!
Unfortunately, since then I've moved house and had a baby arrive, so progress has stalled again – in fact writing this is making me think that I should clear out the junk in the garage and get another push on at sorting it out! I'll keep this thread updated with any progress! Sorry for the mass essay, but I hope this is of interest!
Edited by browno on Monday 22 April 13:33
Another short update for today - having bought the Boxster knowing the rear tyres were Marshalls that were on the limit, and the fronts were N-rated Michelins, but down to 3mm, I bit the bullet and had a set of four Continental N2's fitted.
Beforehand, there was a terrible, non-directional drone from the rear, which was non-directional but vaired with road surface (essentially due to rubbish, worn tyres!). I've only driven it back from town, but the drone is gone, and it does feel a little more secure. I guess it'll take a few miles to let the new tyres bed in, but it's definitely a good improvement already!
Beforehand, there was a terrible, non-directional drone from the rear, which was non-directional but vaired with road surface (essentially due to rubbish, worn tyres!). I've only driven it back from town, but the drone is gone, and it does feel a little more secure. I guess it'll take a few miles to let the new tyres bed in, but it's definitely a good improvement already!
Time for an update since I've been getting to know the Boxster better and made a few visual tweaks.
First up, the driving impressions - it is going really well at the moment, and I've covered nearly a thousand miles so far - although mostly local miles so no real hooning, apart from a single blast up into the peaks for a mate's wedding, which was great fun - especially the late night run back with the roof down!
I've had a day off for a big clean today (my brother joined me with his recently acquired MINI Cooper S convertible), so here are some more pictures of a clean car, and the changes I've made...
Headlights cleaned up, and facelift side repeaters replaced with ambers to bring it back to original (as bought, the car had amber headlights but facelift rears and side repeaters).
Rear lamps also taken back to original, which I think looks more cohesive with the silver paintwork, especially now it's clean!
I've also added a smiley on the boot lid, and a Porsche decal on the windstop - although I think it's a bit busy with both, so I may lose one or the other...
I've got a pair of new plates on order that should look better than the current grubby ones, and once they're on it's a case of waiting for my mate to have a quiet few days so that I can borrow a lift in his workshop and give it a decent service and check-over.
First up, the driving impressions - it is going really well at the moment, and I've covered nearly a thousand miles so far - although mostly local miles so no real hooning, apart from a single blast up into the peaks for a mate's wedding, which was great fun - especially the late night run back with the roof down!
I've had a day off for a big clean today (my brother joined me with his recently acquired MINI Cooper S convertible), so here are some more pictures of a clean car, and the changes I've made...
Headlights cleaned up, and facelift side repeaters replaced with ambers to bring it back to original (as bought, the car had amber headlights but facelift rears and side repeaters).
Rear lamps also taken back to original, which I think looks more cohesive with the silver paintwork, especially now it's clean!
I've also added a smiley on the boot lid, and a Porsche decal on the windstop - although I think it's a bit busy with both, so I may lose one or the other...
I've got a pair of new plates on order that should look better than the current grubby ones, and once they're on it's a case of waiting for my mate to have a quiet few days so that I can borrow a lift in his workshop and give it a decent service and check-over.
Edited by browno on Wednesday 19th October 21:44
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