RE: Shed of the Week: Vauxhall Omega Elite
Discussion
sgtBerbatov said:
IanCress said:
Cat C, 143k miles, faults and rust. You've really got to like that engine to pay £1.5k for this.
I like the Omega, especially the estate, but I wouldn't be going for this one.
I drove a Buick LaCrosse in America in September, and absolutely loved the engine. I'd probably buy this whip if the engine was similar to that Buick.I like the Omega, especially the estate, but I wouldn't be going for this one.
But then it's a Vauxhall, and badge snobbery prevents me from being seen behind the wheel of one.
Nice enough shed, and on the point of mainstream manufacturers making wafty barges, bear in mind that the Ford Mondeo and Vauxhall Insignia, though they were an evolution of the sub barge models, they are now bigger than the class up from back then.
Not much experience of the Insignia apart from my brother having one as a company car, though my abiding memory of it was it smelt like when you havent cleaned the oven and it smells of burning fat which is not a good smell, but went in a Mondeo the other day and I had forgotten how pleasant they are to ride in, it was a fairly high spec auto but it was quiet, supremely comfy and very spacious, every inch the modern Granada/Scorpio. They have tried to spice it up with the Vignale thing but that wont coax people out of German brands, at the end of the day its a Ford and most want Audi/BMW/Mercedes.
I think a lot rule them out in favour of German stuff but the Mondeo is a brilliant and very underrated piece of kit, makes me wonder how many in S Line A4's getting bounced around would actually be a lot comfier in a Mondeo, they arent "sporty" but are better for it, they drive and handle very well.
Seen as the wooden spoon really in the corporate car park but the Omega wasnt really, it was getting that way but it still had some kudos, but the insignia doesnt, Ricky Gervais had David Brent driving one in the David Brent film. I think the Omega is the point that the German stuff really started making inroads, previously a Merc or BMW was the director, not the salesmen, they had Cavaliers and were dreaming of stepping up to Carlton or Granada Scorpio.
Funny how things change.
J4CKO said:
sgtBerbatov said:
IanCress said:
Cat C, 143k miles, faults and rust. You've really got to like that engine to pay £1.5k for this.
I like the Omega, especially the estate, but I wouldn't be going for this one.
I drove a Buick LaCrosse in America in September, and absolutely loved the engine. I'd probably buy this whip if the engine was similar to that Buick.I like the Omega, especially the estate, but I wouldn't be going for this one.
But then it's a Vauxhall, and badge snobbery prevents me from being seen behind the wheel of one.
Nice enough shed, and on the point of mainstream manufacturers making wafty barges, bear in mind that the Ford Mondeo and Vauxhall Insignia, though they were an evolution of the sub barge models, they are now bigger than the class up from back then.
Not much experience of the Insignia apart from my brother having one as a company car, though my abiding memory of it was it smelt like when you havent cleaned the oven and it smells of burning fat which is not a good smell, but went in a Mondeo the other day and I had forgotten how pleasant they are to ride in, it was a fairly high spec auto but it was quiet, supremely comfy and very spacious, every inch the modern Granada/Scorpio. They have tried to spice it up with the Vignale thing but that wont coax people out of German brands, at the end of the day its a Ford and most want Audi/BMW/Mercedes.
I think a lot rule them out in favour of German stuff but the Mondeo is a brilliant and very underrated piece of kit, makes me wonder how many in S Line A4's getting bounced around would actually be a lot comfier in a Mondeo, they arent "sporty" but are better for it, they drive and handle very well.
Seen as the wooden spoon really in the corporate car park but the Omega wasnt really, it was getting that way but it still had some kudos, but the insignia doesnt, Ricky Gervais had David Brent driving one in the David Brent film. I think the Omega is the point that the German stuff really started making inroads, previously a Merc or BMW was the director, not the salesmen, they had Cavaliers and were dreaming of stepping up to Carlton or Granada Scorpio.
Funny how things change.
I had an Insignia as a rental for a week, work paid for it as I was driving all over the place. It was alright, boring as hell but comfortable in a firm ride kinda way.
But it's a Vauxhall at the end of the day, and an old Vauxhall. The only people, really, driving old Vauxhall's are chavs. And I'm not a chav.
Always had a soft spot for big Vauxhall saloons. I remember being impressed with my uncles Vauxhall Carlton CDX back in the early 90s. It was only a 2 litre, but very torquey, roomy and comfortable with decent chassis. The Senator 24 valve was a brilliant car and the go to police pursuit car for years.
With the Omega, I never felt they moved the game on much from the Senator but the police loved them, circa 2004 I remember chatting to a copper who was at a car show with his Octavia VRS Mk1. I was telling him I rated the Octavias and he said that they handled well but lacked top end pull for the high speed pursuits. "Not as good as my Vauxhall omega" he said. He then gushingly explained how the Omega was the best police car he'd ever owned. Much better than the Volvo T5s, which he said in the wet were hopeless at putting down their power.
So I've no idea why the earlier posted says his was so slow. I also remember a Road Wars or Traffic Cops police car chase with a Vauxhall Omega where it kept up with an Impreza Turbo being driven flat out, which btw eventually crashed. It was Pat and Carl, I think, who drove the Omegas in Road Wars. Legends, those guys!!!
As for "only chavs driving old Vauxhalls". Not that snobby old cliché again. Round my way, you can say the same about old BMWs and Audis these days. In fact the Mk1 and early Mk2 Audi A3 is a firm favourite now of the so called Chav brigade.
With the Omega, I never felt they moved the game on much from the Senator but the police loved them, circa 2004 I remember chatting to a copper who was at a car show with his Octavia VRS Mk1. I was telling him I rated the Octavias and he said that they handled well but lacked top end pull for the high speed pursuits. "Not as good as my Vauxhall omega" he said. He then gushingly explained how the Omega was the best police car he'd ever owned. Much better than the Volvo T5s, which he said in the wet were hopeless at putting down their power.
So I've no idea why the earlier posted says his was so slow. I also remember a Road Wars or Traffic Cops police car chase with a Vauxhall Omega where it kept up with an Impreza Turbo being driven flat out, which btw eventually crashed. It was Pat and Carl, I think, who drove the Omegas in Road Wars. Legends, those guys!!!
As for "only chavs driving old Vauxhalls". Not that snobby old cliché again. Round my way, you can say the same about old BMWs and Audis these days. In fact the Mk1 and early Mk2 Audi A3 is a firm favourite now of the so called Chav brigade.
Edited by greenarrow on Friday 14th December 10:16
SOTW said:
The Cat C thing mentioned in the ad needn't be a worry. On older cars, Cat C status is usually an uncontroversial consequence of quite small accident repair costs outweighing the value of the vehicle.
That depends on when it was Cat C'd I suppose. Not any time recently as we are now on Cat N (non-structural damage) and Cat S (Structural damage). Cat C used to mean 'a reasonable amount of damage, can be fixed but at more cost than the car is worth'.The ad states it was 'repaired by the previous owner to a good standard', but isn't the previous owner the seller? Or is it his mate? Or one of the other previous owners?
Either way, Cat C isn't a small accident, that would be Cat D. Cat C was always something a bit heavier, and certainly more than replaceable panels.
greenarrow said:
Always had a soft spot for big Vauxhall saloons. I remember being impressed with my uncles Vauxhall Carlton CDX back in the early 90s.
My GF's brother (now wife and brother in law) had a Carlton 2.0 CDX and oh how I wanted that car back in 1992, we went to his aunties in Wales in it and he said the company were getting shut and it was pretty cheap, I could almost afford it. It was parked outside the front door and I found myself gawping at it as I went past, a strange desire for a 21 year old lad but it did look pretty smart in black, anyway, for reasons that I have forgotten it never came off.My boss had a 1.8L I used to drive but it wasnt a patch on the 2 litre injected CDX version.
Back in 2001, I bought a Black pre facelift Omega 3.0 MV6, with 10000 miles on the clock. It was a big fast comfortable car and I loved it. That car was really cherished, I owned that car for six years and sold it to buy a Black Monaro. Sadly I had to sell the Omega for peanuts as the used values were terrible.
As for my Monaro that too is cherished, and after 12 years I still own it, this ones a keeper. I think Vauxhall have made some lovely big cars over the years but when I look at their cars today there is absolutely nothing of any interest.
As for my Monaro that too is cherished, and after 12 years I still own it, this ones a keeper. I think Vauxhall have made some lovely big cars over the years but when I look at their cars today there is absolutely nothing of any interest.
My old boss had, as I recall, the 2.5 auto version which I used to drive a lot. Indeed, I hold my personal best top end on the Okehampton bypass in it (sorry Andy!) Very comfortable on long runs, set the cruise at about 95 and sit back. It did however have a penchant for eating front tyres which we could never sort out. And if you had the instant consumption figures showing, no matter what you did, it wouldn't drop below 7 mpg. Nice barge.
Before that he ran a Carlton up to an astronomical mileage, which after it was sold we had someone (poss the police) phone up about as it had had a serious haircut to the recorded miles after selling it. The rest of the cars condition was good though, so it wouldn't have been immediately obvious.
Before that he ran a Carlton up to an astronomical mileage, which after it was sold we had someone (poss the police) phone up about as it had had a serious haircut to the recorded miles after selling it. The rest of the cars condition was good though, so it wouldn't have been immediately obvious.
Turbobanana said:
sgtBerbatov said:
But... badge snobbery prevents me from being seen behind the wheel of one.
Have you updated your profile recently?sgtBerbatov's Garage said:
Toyota Corolla 1.3
Peugeot 3008 Sport
Peugeot 107 Milesim
Peugeot 3008 Sport
Peugeot 107 Milesim
greenarrow said:
Always had a soft spot for big Vauxhall saloons. I remember being impressed with my uncles Vauxhall Carlton CDX back in the early 90s. It was only a 2 litre, but very torquey, roomy and comfortable with decent chassis. The Senator 24 valve was a brilliant car and the go to police pursuit car for years.
With the Omega, I never felt they moved the game on much from the Senator but the police loved them, circa 2004 I remember chatting to a copper who was at a car show with his Octavia VRS Mk1. I was telling him I rated the Octavias and he said that they handled well but lacked top end pull for the high speed pursuits. "Not as good as my Vauxhall omega" he said. He then gushingly explained how the Omega was the best police car he'd ever owned. Much better than the Volvo T5s, which he said in the wet were hopeless at putting down their power.
With the Omega, I never felt they moved the game on much from the Senator but the police loved them, circa 2004 I remember chatting to a copper who was at a car show with his Octavia VRS Mk1. I was telling him I rated the Octavias and he said that they handled well but lacked top end pull for the high speed pursuits. "Not as good as my Vauxhall omega" he said. He then gushingly explained how the Omega was the best police car he'd ever owned. Much better than the Volvo T5s, which he said in the wet were hopeless at putting down their power.
That's spooky - a neighbour drove the unmarked black Skoda Vrs locally but he preferred the Senator 24V to Omega patrol cars. He mentioned they had some problems early on with the Omegas suffering oil starvation on hard cornering/high speed attendances. He also preferred them both to the T5s but he moved onto an unmarked 330d estate/Touring after the Skoda and T5s
Jex said:
I never thought they had the same presence as the Senator (saw an immaculate one of those a few weeks ago - amazing how narrow they look now).
A colleague had an Omega and they were comfortable to be a passenger in - he aspired to an Elite, but his next car was a 5 series BMW (also comfortable to be a passenger in).
A bizarre fact about the Senator I always get a kick out of: a 1999 Camaro is longer. Given I always remember Carltons and Senators as boats I found it interesting that a two-door coupe is longer.A colleague had an Omega and they were comfortable to be a passenger in - he aspired to an Elite, but his next car was a 5 series BMW (also comfortable to be a passenger in).
Not a fan of the facelift addenda, too fussy.
Ran a 2.0 auto for 6 months in 1995 (strange deal from a GM offshoot - £80/week all in) which was GL trim (pas but no a/c).
Great car for commute from Kent to Corby - over 40mpg regularly. Didn't the adverts back then make a big thing about the seat construction? Horsehair? Anyhoo - nice car I enjoyed driving, just like the Carlton before.
But £1500 for that?
Ran a 2.0 auto for 6 months in 1995 (strange deal from a GM offshoot - £80/week all in) which was GL trim (pas but no a/c).
Great car for commute from Kent to Corby - over 40mpg regularly. Didn't the adverts back then make a big thing about the seat construction? Horsehair? Anyhoo - nice car I enjoyed driving, just like the Carlton before.
But £1500 for that?
I love "Shed of the Week" - it's pretty much the only reason I visit this web site, and I love it because I, like most, would get real satisfaction from knowing that I've bought something cool, fast, unusual, gorgeous, or whatever adjective you choose, for the bargain price of a grand and a half.
However, the only adjectives that I can apply to this are dull, boring, ugly, boring, rubbish, dull and ugly again. It's overpriced by 1500 quid. There was no love in the design nor the engineering of this car and I don't see how it deserves the accolade of The Shed - a 3L V6 alone shouldn't be enough to elevate it to this level, unless it's an Alfa Busso V6 (and even then it'd also need to be installed in something sexier than this).
And to even mention a Lotus Carlton within the same text is blasphemy
Am I alone on this opinion?
There MUST be a better Shed than this one, no?
However, the only adjectives that I can apply to this are dull, boring, ugly, boring, rubbish, dull and ugly again. It's overpriced by 1500 quid. There was no love in the design nor the engineering of this car and I don't see how it deserves the accolade of The Shed - a 3L V6 alone shouldn't be enough to elevate it to this level, unless it's an Alfa Busso V6 (and even then it'd also need to be installed in something sexier than this).
And to even mention a Lotus Carlton within the same text is blasphemy
Am I alone on this opinion?
There MUST be a better Shed than this one, no?
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