Y reg Corsa: free car, it would have been rude not to...
Discussion
Hi,
My wife's Uncle passed away last year leaving his Vauxhall Corsa needing a new home. It sat in the executor's yard for 18mths before being offered to us as I like "old cars". I guess I do, here's my Corrado thread and I am also restoring a mk2 Golf 16v and coming the end of a mk3 16v restoration
There are a number of young 20 somthings in the family but they simply wouldn't be seen dead in this Corsa and preferred to lease/PCP their small Audis etc. When it was offered to us I snapped it straight up - free car, it had only done 10,300 miles and my wife's Uncle stored it in a garage for all of its life. I thought it would make a fantastic run around for us...
...and I wasn't wrong. On collection day I went in hand with a battery and hooked it up. The car fired up on first turn of the key. Not bad for somehting that had sat for 18mths. No tappet noises either, just a smooth sounding engine. First issue was the clutch - it didn't do anything on pressing the pedal - but a few pumps of the pedal and it starting working again.
First job was to get it ready for an MOT so I dropped the car off at a local family recommended garage and it had the following
4x new tyres (the tyres on the car were the original supplied michelin tyres!)
Oil and filter change
Brake fluid change
Wiper blades and some bulbs
Striped down the brakes and cleaned up
New Aux belt
MOT
They cleaned up the floors and applied a coat of waxoil too.
I was expecting a bill of £500+ but was pleasently suprised to be charged £360 for all of that.
The car passed the MOT and I drove it home 300 miles along the M4, intially I took it easy cruising at 60 mph but later got bored and started to sit at 70-80 which it did with ease. The first tank of fuel cost £59 to fill and completed 430 miles. That trip was probably the longest single trip the car has ever completed.
We've been using the car for a few weeks now and the odo reads 11,200 miles. Touch wood no issues. It feels like a tight new car and has zero interior rattles, unlike my Corrado.
Some photos of the car below. I really like the red interior. It has 2 airbags, isofix and perhaps I am out of touch but it is certainly no different to be in and drive compared to my mums VW Up. My wife's Uncle kept the original Vauxhall stock tag on the key and also I found in the back seat footwell the Vauxhall temporary floormat it would have had when it bought it new. No one has ever sat in the back. Plans are to use and look after it as our local run around car.
My wife's Uncle passed away last year leaving his Vauxhall Corsa needing a new home. It sat in the executor's yard for 18mths before being offered to us as I like "old cars". I guess I do, here's my Corrado thread and I am also restoring a mk2 Golf 16v and coming the end of a mk3 16v restoration
There are a number of young 20 somthings in the family but they simply wouldn't be seen dead in this Corsa and preferred to lease/PCP their small Audis etc. When it was offered to us I snapped it straight up - free car, it had only done 10,300 miles and my wife's Uncle stored it in a garage for all of its life. I thought it would make a fantastic run around for us...
...and I wasn't wrong. On collection day I went in hand with a battery and hooked it up. The car fired up on first turn of the key. Not bad for somehting that had sat for 18mths. No tappet noises either, just a smooth sounding engine. First issue was the clutch - it didn't do anything on pressing the pedal - but a few pumps of the pedal and it starting working again.
First job was to get it ready for an MOT so I dropped the car off at a local family recommended garage and it had the following
4x new tyres (the tyres on the car were the original supplied michelin tyres!)
Oil and filter change
Brake fluid change
Wiper blades and some bulbs
Striped down the brakes and cleaned up
New Aux belt
MOT
They cleaned up the floors and applied a coat of waxoil too.
I was expecting a bill of £500+ but was pleasently suprised to be charged £360 for all of that.
The car passed the MOT and I drove it home 300 miles along the M4, intially I took it easy cruising at 60 mph but later got bored and started to sit at 70-80 which it did with ease. The first tank of fuel cost £59 to fill and completed 430 miles. That trip was probably the longest single trip the car has ever completed.
We've been using the car for a few weeks now and the odo reads 11,200 miles. Touch wood no issues. It feels like a tight new car and has zero interior rattles, unlike my Corrado.
Some photos of the car below. I really like the red interior. It has 2 airbags, isofix and perhaps I am out of touch but it is certainly no different to be in and drive compared to my mums VW Up. My wife's Uncle kept the original Vauxhall stock tag on the key and also I found in the back seat footwell the Vauxhall temporary floormat it would have had when it bought it new. No one has ever sat in the back. Plans are to use and look after it as our local run around car.
Exact same car as my wife had as her first car (my sisters second car) and the first car I drove once I'd passed my test.
They're superb little cars.
One very quick bit of advice (having owned 3 Corsa Cs). Get the brake servo plate sealed up. The sealant used from factory doesn't seal the mounting plate to the firewall properly and it'll leak when it's left in the rain, which will flood the interior.
They're superb little cars.
One very quick bit of advice (having owned 3 Corsa Cs). Get the brake servo plate sealed up. The sealant used from factory doesn't seal the mounting plate to the firewall properly and it'll leak when it's left in the rain, which will flood the interior.
Edited by Dannbodge on Tuesday 23 August 12:52
I love these little heaps. I've owned too many to count, and still have my first car, a 2002 1.0 litre, that we drive form Suffolk to Devon twice a year.
As mentioned, these can leak, mainly from the brake servo seal, and the fusebox lid next to the battery.
One modification absolutely worth doing is insulation. 3 door models have a huge empty space around the rear arches that's perfect to stuff full of dacron or something similar. It's a really easy job, too. Rear seats out, and then interior trim just pops off other than a couple of torx screws.
The difference afterwards was night and day, the tyre roar is so much less noticeable.
As mentioned, these can leak, mainly from the brake servo seal, and the fusebox lid next to the battery.
One modification absolutely worth doing is insulation. 3 door models have a huge empty space around the rear arches that's perfect to stuff full of dacron or something similar. It's a really easy job, too. Rear seats out, and then interior trim just pops off other than a couple of torx screws.
The difference afterwards was night and day, the tyre roar is so much less noticeable.
You should give that the clean of it's life, park it in a completely white garage and film yourself starting the engine wearing a pair of red socks.
Got to be worth £3,995 then?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJRool9DBCs
Got to be worth £3,995 then?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJRool9DBCs
_Mja_ said:
Hi,
My wife's Uncle passed away last year leaving his Vauxhall Corsa needing a new home. It sat in the executor's yard for 18mths before being offered to us as I like "old cars". I guess I do, here's my Corrado thread and I am also restoring a mk2 Golf 16v and coming the end of a mk3 16v restoration
There are a number of young 20 somthings in the family but they simply wouldn't be seen dead in this Corsa and preferred to lease/PCP their small Audis etc. When it was offered to us I snapped it straight up - free car, it had only done 10,300 miles and my wife's Uncle stored it in a garage for all of its life. I thought it would make a fantastic run around for us...
...and I wasn't wrong. On collection day I went in hand with a battery and hooked it up. The car fired up on first turn of the key. Not bad for somehting that had sat for 18mths. No tappet noises either, just a smooth sounding engine. First issue was the clutch - it didn't do anything on pressing the pedal - but a few pumps of the pedal and it starting working again.
First job was to get it ready for an MOT so I dropped the car off at a local family recommended garage and it had the following
4x new tyres (the tyres on the car were the original supplied michelin tyres!)
Oil and filter change
Brake fluid change
Wiper blades and some bulbs
Striped down the brakes and cleaned up
New Aux belt
MOT
They cleaned up the floors and applied a coat of waxoil too.
I was expecting a bill of £500+ but was pleasently suprised to be charged £360 for all of that.
The car passed the MOT and I drove it home 300 miles along the M4, intially I took it easy cruising at 60 mph but later got bored and started to sit at 70-80 which it did with ease. The first tank of fuel cost £59 to fill and completed 430 miles. That trip was probably the longest single trip the car has ever completed.
We've been using the car for a few weeks now and the odo reads 11,200 miles. Touch wood no issues. It feels like a tight new car and has zero interior rattles, unlike my Corrado.
Some photos of the car below. I really like the red interior. It has 2 airbags, isofix and perhaps I am out of touch but it is certainly no different to be in and drive compared to my mums VW Up. My wife's Uncle kept the original Vauxhall stock tag on the key and also I found in the back seat footwell the Vauxhall temporary floormat it would have had when it bought it new. No one has ever sat in the back. Plans are to use and look after it as our local run around car.
Great car and great photos.My wife's Uncle passed away last year leaving his Vauxhall Corsa needing a new home. It sat in the executor's yard for 18mths before being offered to us as I like "old cars". I guess I do, here's my Corrado thread and I am also restoring a mk2 Golf 16v and coming the end of a mk3 16v restoration
There are a number of young 20 somthings in the family but they simply wouldn't be seen dead in this Corsa and preferred to lease/PCP their small Audis etc. When it was offered to us I snapped it straight up - free car, it had only done 10,300 miles and my wife's Uncle stored it in a garage for all of its life. I thought it would make a fantastic run around for us...
...and I wasn't wrong. On collection day I went in hand with a battery and hooked it up. The car fired up on first turn of the key. Not bad for somehting that had sat for 18mths. No tappet noises either, just a smooth sounding engine. First issue was the clutch - it didn't do anything on pressing the pedal - but a few pumps of the pedal and it starting working again.
First job was to get it ready for an MOT so I dropped the car off at a local family recommended garage and it had the following
4x new tyres (the tyres on the car were the original supplied michelin tyres!)
Oil and filter change
Brake fluid change
Wiper blades and some bulbs
Striped down the brakes and cleaned up
New Aux belt
MOT
They cleaned up the floors and applied a coat of waxoil too.
I was expecting a bill of £500+ but was pleasently suprised to be charged £360 for all of that.
The car passed the MOT and I drove it home 300 miles along the M4, intially I took it easy cruising at 60 mph but later got bored and started to sit at 70-80 which it did with ease. The first tank of fuel cost £59 to fill and completed 430 miles. That trip was probably the longest single trip the car has ever completed.
We've been using the car for a few weeks now and the odo reads 11,200 miles. Touch wood no issues. It feels like a tight new car and has zero interior rattles, unlike my Corrado.
Some photos of the car below. I really like the red interior. It has 2 airbags, isofix and perhaps I am out of touch but it is certainly no different to be in and drive compared to my mums VW Up. My wife's Uncle kept the original Vauxhall stock tag on the key and also I found in the back seat footwell the Vauxhall temporary floormat it would have had when it bought it new. No one has ever sat in the back. Plans are to use and look after it as our local run around car.
I would be minded to keep this long term and cherish it. It still has original dealer (pre-September 2001) number plates and I like the fact that even the key tag is original and bears an 0181 dialling code.
It's 20 years old, so let's say this was 2001, it would be akin to driving a car from 1981.
It's a modern classic you've got. These and any car for that matter tend to not be appreciated until they resurface many years later by which point they're past the 2nd hand runaround banger phase and back to being iconic collectibles.
Were to sell it, you can rest assured it would be bought by someone who would simply run it into the ground and it'll end up getting scrapped.
A blessing in disguise none of the youngsters wanted it.
Keep looking after it. A nice interior shampoo would be a good idea, and maybe use it sparingly if you're to maintain its condition. Maybe even consider taking some preventative anti-rust measures from now and avoid using it during gritting season.
I think it would be worth it in the end, especially when in another 20-30 years' time it will be a car that will be appreciated by present generations reminding them of cars from a bygone era.
I reluctantly sold a 1992 J reg locally registered and owned Nissan Micra to my dad's friend who needed a runaround. Gorgeous condition, clean and low mileage and great car to be in. It was about 13 years old at the time but lo and behold, it was scrapped within a year or two. An absolute travesty.
A few people have said to garage it up and use occassionally, my wife also thought to do the same and I can see the attraction. My garage though is taken up with a Corrado VR6 (renovated), Oak green mk2 Golf 16v (under renovation) and a low ish mile Mk3 Golf 16v (78k) that I have renovated the underside with powdercoat frames and new bushes, brake lines etc etc and just needs some attention to a couple of areas of paint due to lacquer peel (body kit has been removed and no rust present).
We are now using the Corsa as a local run around and once the novelty factor has worn off I guess we will put around 3k on it per annum.
We are now using the Corsa as a local run around and once the novelty factor has worn off I guess we will put around 3k on it per annum.
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