Tuesday 12th November 2002

New Astra GSi

Can this 200hp hatch recapture the magic of old?

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[apache]

esp, tcp, asap, why don't they just drive the back wheels instead of trying to bodge a bad job with acronyms

[JPHERSEY]

Great in a couple of years...20,000 miles...8k.
Does anyone buy Vauxhalls new ?

[v8thunder]

For God's sake, Vauxhall, Bring back the Calibra, we need a proper sports car, not an Astra gtrsxvtizsr super turbo injection 'crap bodykit' special edition. Use your 150mph engine in something that really deserves it, dammit.

[apache]

'kin right!........was the Calibra rear wheel drive?

[raceboy]

Calibra 4x4 turbo

[Fatboy]

'kin right!........was the Calibra rear wheel drive?

Nope, it was a cavalier in drag.

[MoJocvh]

200 brake turbo engine.....Hmmmmm will it fit into the back of the MoJo????????

Probably a better engine FOR THE ROAD that the Honda vtec's (3 changes to 60 wtf!!!) but nowhere near it in looks (or anything else for that matter) at least the "old" gte had a bit of presance.

[hertsbiker]

argghh! RWD bias coming into the discussion again! - I bet this Astra won't end up doing a 180 on a wet roundabout though.... (hmm, may understeer *off* the road, but I feel for most idiot drivers that FWD is pretty good).

C

[cockers]

I did a 180 on a wet roundabout in my 106 the other day. I was trying to slide it around, as I have successfully many times in the past, but didn't hitthe throttle sufficiently quickly after lifting off.

Had a very disapproving look from the lady following in her Fester!

Anyway, if there is a point to my reply, it's that FWD ain't foolproof either, if it's been set up to resist understeer.

And on the subject of Astras, is the phrase "recapture the magic of old" appropriate? Astra GTEs and GSIs were shite. As were Calibras.

[adeewuff]

MoJocvh said:
Probably a better engine FOR THE ROAD that the Honda vtec's (3 changes to 60 wtf!!!) but nowhere near it in looks (or anything else for that matter) at least the "old" gte had a bit of presance.

Errrrr... I think you mean two changes for 60mph in the Honda. The CTR will only do 57mph in second, oh know what a tragedy!

Anyway the top speed on these Vauxhalls is a complete fantasy. I remember Autocar taking one of these cars to Bruntingthorpe Airfield and it struggling to get over 130 mph, maybe they'll do 150mph downhill or off a cliff....

[paul]

cockers said: And on the subject of Astras, is the phrase "recapture the magic of old" appropriate? Astra GTEs and GSIs were shite. As were Calibras.

I have to rise to this one as the owner of 2 Calibras (some time ago now). Yes they had their faults, but they were far from shite.

My 1st was a 16v and my second was a 4x4 turbo. The mistake with these cars is to assume they are sports cars. Treat 'em like a poor man's GT (think XJS for 1/3 the price) and they are actually quite accomplished. The turbo took me from London to Bordeaux on a couple of occasions and even made it upto Chamonix during a snowstorm. By far the prettiest car than 22 grand could buy you back in '94 and reasonably well screwed together.

Bit of a scrote-magnet though, never worried about curbing the nice BBS alloys on the turbo as they seemed to get stolen every couple of months...

[v8thunder]

'Carbon look B-pillars', oh, I see, so make a heavy steel pillar look like it's made out of race-tech weight-saving material, when in fact you've just made it heavier. Great work guys, in the same vein as 'sporty' means 'metal gearlever and instrument surrounds' If you have to do something 'hotted up', bring back the Lotus Carlton - what about something based on the current Omega - That's rear wheel drive.

[cockers]

paul said: The mistake with these cars is to assume they are sports cars. Treat 'em like a poor man's GT (think XJS for 1/3 the price) and they are actually quite accomplished.

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Fair enough. I stand corrected.