First Car - Corsa C
Discussion
I passed my driving test 3 years ago at 18, and having browsed AutoTrader/eBay/PH regularly for the past couple of years, I finally saved the funds needed to purchase my first car and insurance - thanks to an industrial placement.
The main reason I ended up with a Corsa was because it was considerably cheaper to insure than anything else I had considered (including Fiestas). I live in a very high risk area for car insurance, probably due to my fellow Asians having weak necks and an unusual tendency to emergency stop
. If it wasn't so ridiculous I'd be driving a ST170 right now, trust me.
Another reason was that I had to get Max Power out of my system, having grown up watching Fast + Furious. My plans were nothing overly tacky, just de-chroming the headlights, de-badging the rear, and painting the alloys. Possibly some uprated speakers/head unit as well. But these urges stopped after I purchased the car for some reason
No point putting money into something I can't wait to get rid of.
Anyway, onto the car itself- Corsa C 1.4 Twinport 90bhp. I picked it up in mid-June, and have driven about 750 miles since, which isn't a lot I suppose. The trim level is 'Exclusiv', which comes with heated leather seats, climate control, Irmscher styling pack (side skirts, rear spoiler, and splitter), 16" alloys, lowered by 15mm, tinted rear window, and alarm as standard. Three days after I'd bought it, I spotted freshly chipped paint in various places along the N/S door edge, no doubt from a wire coat hanger
.
Apologies for the bad pictures, only bought a proper camera yesterday. The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice the different tyre treads on the rear
edit: [pics removed]
The main reason I ended up with a Corsa was because it was considerably cheaper to insure than anything else I had considered (including Fiestas). I live in a very high risk area for car insurance, probably due to my fellow Asians having weak necks and an unusual tendency to emergency stop
. If it wasn't so ridiculous I'd be driving a ST170 right now, trust me.Another reason was that I had to get Max Power out of my system, having grown up watching Fast + Furious. My plans were nothing overly tacky, just de-chroming the headlights, de-badging the rear, and painting the alloys. Possibly some uprated speakers/head unit as well. But these urges stopped after I purchased the car for some reason
No point putting money into something I can't wait to get rid of.Anyway, onto the car itself- Corsa C 1.4 Twinport 90bhp. I picked it up in mid-June, and have driven about 750 miles since, which isn't a lot I suppose. The trim level is 'Exclusiv', which comes with heated leather seats, climate control, Irmscher styling pack (side skirts, rear spoiler, and splitter), 16" alloys, lowered by 15mm, tinted rear window, and alarm as standard. Three days after I'd bought it, I spotted freshly chipped paint in various places along the N/S door edge, no doubt from a wire coat hanger
.Apologies for the bad pictures, only bought a proper camera yesterday. The eagle-eyed amongst you will notice the different tyre treads on the rear
edit: [pics removed]
Edited by MinuteMan on Monday 13th May 12:26
These get a lot of stick, however i hired one back in the day and drove it to london and back dailey for 3 weeks, [going from cheshire], it was a diesel though, i was suprised having owned the previous corsa at how good a car it was, black is the best colour for them as well, hope you enjoy it.
T7G said:
S10GTA said:
I predict this will not go well for you.
Why? Insurance fraud is (or at least, was) rife around here. From my personal experience it's mainly Asians who do it in these parts. Merely an observation.Mum has a basic 2004 1.2 Life version of these - had it since new (pretty much) and it has been fantastic. Never let us down, has needed a coolant hose and a track rod end (thank you Highland Council...) and thats it!
Would be a good first car, and they are great in town. Good job getting a 1.4 in a decent spec, I will never understand insurance! I still can't get insured on my Mum's one because I am too high risk, apparently...
Would be a good first car, and they are great in town. Good job getting a 1.4 in a decent spec, I will never understand insurance! I still can't get insured on my Mum's one because I am too high risk, apparently...
iggysport said:
Good spec for a Corsa but it seems like the only colour Corsa Cs are in is black, you did well to insure a 1.4, what do you pay on insurance if you don't mind me asking?
A smidge under £1500 fully comp with £250 total excess. That's at 21 with a full licence for 3 years, with 2 experienced drivers on the policy as additional drivers. If I had recently passed my test this figure would be at £3500!rumple said:
These get a lot of stick, however i hired one back in the day and drove it to london and back dailey for 3 weeks, [going from cheshire], it was a diesel though, i was suprised having owned the previous corsa at how good a car it was, black is the best colour for them as well, hope you enjoy it.
Genuine question, did you ever sit in the back?These cars have the worst back seats I have ever been forced to endure. Nice first car otherwise.
Nice spec there OP, I too have a Corsa (diesel one) and like you have insurance problems due to fellow asians - though in my part of the country I think its the worse.
I wasn't planning on putting any money into mine either, partly because Corsa bits seem to stupidly priced especially the irmscher stuff, so I'm just doing a little bit of colour coding etc to freshen the look up a bit
I wasn't planning on putting any money into mine either, partly because Corsa bits seem to stupidly priced especially the irmscher stuff, so I'm just doing a little bit of colour coding etc to freshen the look up a bit
T7G said:
A smidge under £1500 fully comp with £250 total excess. That's at 21 with a full licence for 3 years, with 2 experienced drivers on the policy as additional drivers. If I had recently passed my test this figure would be at £3500!
Ah misread the thread, thought you was 18. Christ your area must be bad, your paying what I was paying when I was 18! 20 now and paying £1344 on a 1.5, but not fully comp.Don't blame you for waiting, £3500 is insane!
The Nur said:
rumple said:
These get a lot of stick, however i hired one back in the day and drove it to london and back dailey for 3 weeks, [going from cheshire], it was a diesel though, i was suprised having owned the previous corsa at how good a car it was, black is the best colour for them as well, hope you enjoy it.
Genuine question, did you ever sit in the back?These cars have the worst back seats I have ever been forced to endure. Nice first car otherwise.
Congrats! Good decision not to tart it up. Looks fine as is.
My first car also, although yours is a much nicer spec! It proved very reliable. I thought it didn't have much grip, and a bit of a tendency to lose the back end. I thought the steering was nice though, much more lively than some other cars I've been in.
Only thing I noticed was mine seemed pretty hard to drive smoothly, needed perfect rev matching for a pleasant passenger experience. The current car has made me a lazier driver; you just throw it in and out of gears without any lurching about.
Watch out for leaky/damp footwells. Loads of them have this problem!
My first car also, although yours is a much nicer spec! It proved very reliable. I thought it didn't have much grip, and a bit of a tendency to lose the back end. I thought the steering was nice though, much more lively than some other cars I've been in.
Only thing I noticed was mine seemed pretty hard to drive smoothly, needed perfect rev matching for a pleasant passenger experience. The current car has made me a lazier driver; you just throw it in and out of gears without any lurching about.
Watch out for leaky/damp footwells. Loads of them have this problem!
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