VX220 - reliable or money pits?

[TameRacingDriver]

I've seen the odd comment on here that their VX220 was a money pit. I am attracted because they are depreciation proof (almost), and I thought the reliability would be OK considering its just an Astra engine (in either form).

Is the turbo worth the extra over the NA. I had a budget of 6K but is it actually worth upping the budget for a Turbo?

[Luke.]

I would have thought they were pretty straightforward and reliable. Meant be good on brakes and tyres too.

[98elise]

i don't see why they should be, its an elise without the K series timebomb.

They are not considered to be money pits in elise circles, unless you count modifiations

[TameRacingDriver]

I really hope they'd be OK. I need an Elise type car in my life at least once. Call me shallow but I am tempted to up the budget for a turbo, properly quick car, everyone should own a properly quick car once.

[funbobby]

had mine for a couple of years and its been peanuts compared to others ive owned- touches wood.

[kambites]

It's apparently getting quite hard to get hold of clams if you damage them. Otherwise they're much the same as Elises - they suffer from lots of niggling problems but there isn't really anything serious to go wrong with them.

[TameRacingDriver]

kambites said:

It's apparently getting quite hard to get hold of clams if you damage them. Otherwise they're much the same as Elises - they suffer from lots of niggling problems but there isn't really anything serious to go wrong with them.

What niggling problems?

[sebhaque]

As kambites said, clams are a PITA to source, as are the head/tail light clusters. Typical VX problems are coolant expansion tanks requiring replacement, paint chips in the cottage cheese front clam, and leaky rooves roofs.

[kambites]

TameRacingDriver said:

kambites said:

It's apparently getting quite hard to get hold of clams if you damage them. Otherwise they're much the same as Elises - they suffer from lots of niggling problems but there isn't really anything serious to go wrong with them.

What niggling problems?

Minor component failures and stupid design flaws - everything from bits of trim coming loose to track rods failing to roof tensioner cables snapping.

[JFReturns]

Yes, they are reliable. The engines normally power cars a few hundred kilos heavier so if looked after they are solid.

You will have niggles, lots of them. There will always be something that needs doing, so it helps if you don't mind getting stuck in.

I loved mine, the best car I've owned but in the end it was too impractical for my needs. I would advise you get one as a second car.....

[TameRacingDriver]

JFReturns said:

You will have niggles, lots of them. There will always be something that needs doing, so it helps if you don't mind getting stuck in.

I loved mine, the best car I've owned but in the end it was too impractical for my needs. I would advise you get one as a second car.....

What type of stuff needs doing? I'm looking for examples. I can do simple stuff probably, but I'm far from being a mechanic.

We have a Corsa for practical needs.

[Mastodon2]

I know the clams are fragile and places offering fibreglass repair are not 10 a penny, for anything more than a crack though, you'll probably be looking at a new clam. There is a black VX220 round my way that took a low speed car park dent that cracked the clam right open on a creased edge between the side and top surfaces. I don't know how hard it is to get replacement clams, or how expensive they are, but it has not been repaired in months.

[tangerine_sedge]

TameRacingDriver said:

JFReturns said:

You will have niggles, lots of them. There will always be something that needs doing, so it helps if you don't mind getting stuck in.

I loved mine, the best car I've owned but in the end it was too impractical for my needs. I would advise you get one as a second car.....

What type of stuff needs doing? I'm looking for examples. I can do simple stuff probably, but I'm far from being a mechanic.

We have a Corsa for practical needs.

I've rarely raised a spanner to mine and use it as a daily commuting vehicle ( for the last 5 years). It has been the most reliable car I have ever owned, but the trim can be quite fragile, i.e. the interior is very tatty.

Buy one with good history and take advice from vx220.org.uk and you can't go wrong!

[Lordbenny]

I bought my N/A for £9,500 and sold it 18 months later for £10,000! Totally depreciation proof!

I miss it....sometimes

[myles1972]

Is there not a guy/company selling clams for the VX on eBay? I'm sure I got that info from PH originally.

[speedster986]

You might want to check out this months buying guide on the home page.

[DanL]

From vague memory, engine mounts, coolant tanks and radiators are weaker points, but not expensive to rectify. Running costs and issues for mine when I owned it are in my profile, but it was under warranty at the time (and newer than they are now).

[Nickyboy]

A guy at work had one and had an off, one part had to be manufactured but only one company in the country could make it, the car was off the road for nearly a year and he ended up having it written off as there was no date as to when it would be fixed.

[John D.]

Lordbenny said:

I bought my N/A for £9,500 and sold it 18 months later for £10,000! Totally depreciation proof!

I miss it....sometimes

Its for sale again (unless you have just sold it?!). Best colour for a VX

RE damage to clams. I too have read/heard replacement clams are hard to come by. Thats why a strangely high proportion of VX are Cat D I believe. I can think of two reputable places within my local area that do top notch fibre glass repairs though. So I don't consider the risk of accident damage a real problem with these cars.

I'm considering getting one at some point. Feel it'll be a more reliable/less niggly car than an S1 Elise, but a little less desirable/special too. The NA is supposed to have a slight edge over the Turbo in the handling stakes. The latter being slightly softer and with a heavier lump in the back, but obviously has the sweetener of more thrust! I'm currently erring on the NA being the one for me as they're cheaper to buy and it'll be a bit of a stop gap until I can afford something I really want.

Bottom line they look like value to me.

[jules_s]

Nickyboy said:

A guy at work had one and had an off, one part had to be manufactured but only one company in the country could make it, the car was off the road for nearly a year and he ended up having it written off as there was no date as to when it would be fixed.

I find that hard to believe tbh

I'm happy to stand corrected, but in 10+ years of ownership I've never heard of anything that 'had' to be specialist manufactured on a vx na or vxt. i've certainly never heard of one witten off for lack of parts availability