Shed Of The Week: Citroen Saxo VTR
A sprightly Saxo Shed that has survived the 2000s largely unmolested!
The VTR's robust 8-valve 1.6 motor delivers horsepower in the high-90s, which is plenty for a circa 900kg car, and there's enough torque for lazy urban chuntering. Standard, the VTR is good for a near-eight-second 0-60 time and a near-120mph top end (thanks to highish gearing). It's not as lively as a 16-valve VTS, but clean examples of those are not easy to find below £1,000.
Besides, in isolation the VTR has a perfectly decent spring in its step on the twisties. Fast steering and a tied-down body puts lift-off oversteer at your beck and call, presuming two things: one, your feet fit in the footwell, and two, your chassis componentry is in good order.
Lowering Saxos can play merry hell with their driveshafts and suspension bushes, so it's good to see this one standing nice and tall. To some, it may look almost too tall, but that could well be an illusion caused by low-profile tyres on aftermarket TSW alloys. Can't tell if they're 14s or 15s. The original fitment was 14, which makes the tyres dirt cheap, but 15s are hardly expensive these days.
Somebody has made a bit of an effort to keep this Saxo nice and original, up to and including the binning last year of the dreaded 'incorrect colour direction indicators'. Other than that, the MOT history is pretty much entirely down to the replacement of consumable items, which in a Saxo's case includes brake discs, CV joints and gaiters, and most of the arms, ball joints and other bits involved in the front suspension. Brake servos, wheel bearings, seat sliders and power steering appear on the list of weak points, as do ECUs, a fault often triggered by duff Sagem coil packs. Replacements by Bougicord are well rated.
There's no mention on the history of any attention ever being lavished on the fabled Saxo rear axle, which is interesting if not unique. A wobbly one will give you a degree of four-wheel steering that was never part of the Saxo designer's original plan. You shouldn't need to pay more than £250 for a nice refurbed item off tintanet. While you're under there fitting it, best not to look up unless the sight of boot and inner-arch rust appeals to you - though again, remarkably, there is no mention of rot anywhere on this car's MOT history.
Slightly annoyingly, our Shed has the notoriously leak-prone Saxo sunroof, but as Mrs Shed famously said to Shed on the evening of their wedding nuptials, into every life a little rain must fall. Oh dear.
If you decide to go down the route of prepping it for track days, which would be an entirely sensible plan, don't forget to update the brakes and don't settle for anything less than a good quality roll-cage. Bung on a new decat exhaust, filter and manifold and this game little chap will divvy up all the cheap fun you could want.
The creaky old zorst and manifold will probably be on the way out anyway. If the pipe is squeaking, you can sometimes effect a cure with new spring clamps, but even if that doesn't work it won't really matter as the squeaking from the seats will most likely drown it out.
Grey, LOADS OF BILLS AND HISTORY,RARE LITTLE CITROEN NOW,LOW INSURANCE,CHEAP TAX,GOOD MPG,IDEAL POCKET ROCKET AND OR TRACK DAY CAR, Upgrades - Paint Pearlescent, Metallic Paint, 5+ owners, Service history, Standard Features - Slide/Tilt Sunroof with Blind, Alloy Wheels (14in), Electric Windows (Front), Body Coloured Bumpers, Side Protection Mouldings. 4 seats, DIRECT PART EXCHANGE TRADE CLEARANCE,TEST DRIVE WELCOME ALL MAJOR CARDS EXCEPTED., £745 p/x to clear
A quick use of Pistonheads' "SOTW" car search turned up a bunch of cars, all of which I would take over this one. This is a shed for those that, for whatever reason, can't afford to insure a better car.
Sorry, petty rage problem of mine.
Otherwise, meh. We've got a VTR (with a VTS engine fitted) and to be honest, the VTS is still available at shed money. I understand the point of SOTW is to use the PH classifieds, but outside of those you'll find a similar VTS for less than a grand, easily. And the different is worth it.
Otherwise Icelandic Grey is a nice colour (had one myself in 2002, albeit it a Furio 1.4 model) and it's standard.....ish. Exhaust has obviously been chavved at some point.
Sunroof is either seals or blocked drains (if you're lucky), or a rotten mounting tray (if you're not). Ask me how I know
Rust at the back end is usually hidden by the underseal. A 5p-sized hole turns into a rear end rebuild. These, along with the 106, really do rot badly.
If anyone buys it to track, find a 106 S2 Rallye gearbox, or similar. The standard VTR one isn't a sports gearset, and it's.....crap. 40mpg is achievable in daily use though.
Someone taken aftermarket suspension off, and chucked some struts from a 1.1 at it, perhaps?
As someone that's owned one, and loved it at the time, I'd stay away from that.
Apparently not entirely satisfied by my punishment, I had a 1.4 Furio a couple of years later. In hindsight, I really wish I hadn't bothered.
As a road car only with no roll cage I think I'd have felt pretty vulnerable, as not exactly made of the most robust materials! Hopefully its still running around track days for its current owner.
Can't say they are aging particularly well these.
I reckon there's better options out there for a bag of sand.
Also, the mk1 golf gti's 1.6 8v made c. 108 bhp in something like 1902, so how in the name of zeus butthole does the same sized engine made 5 zillion years later not only not match the performance, but generates less?
Now, here's something not so unmolested just to remind us all why this one looks so nice (at first appearance at least):
All unashamedly borrowed from this PH link: http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
Standard:
This one:
Your right about the wheels, they even have the appropriate size tyres on, the 45 profiles. So why do those 2 pictures look so different?
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