GM like em or not.

"Svend" (svend) 01/27/2016 at 03:45 • Filed to: None

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Whether you like GM or not with their offerings. It’s hard (certainly in the U.K.) not to have your life influenced by them.

For example the humble Vauxhall Corsa is the backbone of getting new drivers on the road. In fact all four of colleagues children recently passed and their first cars were 2008 Vauxhall Corsa D’s. Two were 1.3CDTi and two were 1.2 petrol engines.

Above is a friend’s son’s car I did a while back and below is a colleague’s daughter’s car which I’ll be cleaning once they get it from the dealer.

All manual gearboxes. They are cheap, pretty reliable, easy to live with and relatively cheap to insure.

Many will move on to a Ford Focus or stay with Vauxhall and get an Astra later on.

AndyG_UK > Svend 01/27/2016 at 04:13

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I might have had a few Corsa’s (and Nova’s) in my younger years, I come from a Vauxhall family (dad, various uncles, cousins etc worked at the Elsmere Port plant).

Leon711 > Svend 01/27/2016 at 04:15

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I had one (Corsa D) as a hire car for a month when I was an innocent victim of a pile up in my Polo. It did the job well even if it was a little gutless (even compared to a 1.4 Polo) it’s not really my thing. I replaced the Polo with an MX5 and now a Golf GTI. That Corsa took some abuse.

Svend > AndyG_UK 01/27/2016 at 04:25

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Many deride Corsas as not good cars but they are what get many young motorists through the first years of driving.

Svend > Leon711 01/27/2016 at 04:30

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That’s the great thing about them. They are cheap to own, run and repair and so perfect for new drivers.

It used to be the Citroen Saxo, Peugeot 106, Ford Fiesta and Vauxhall Corsa. The Citroen and Peugeot got more expensive to own and repair, the Fiesta fell out of love while the cheap honest little Corsa kept soldiering on.

AndyG_UK > Svend 01/27/2016 at 04:35

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They were fine for me at the time, all I needed was a cheap and reliable way to go see my friends so we could go clubbing, I leased them thru my dad for next to nothing, all I did was put fuel in them (and clean them when they were going back to swap for a new one every 12 months!).

Svend > AndyG_UK 01/27/2016 at 04:47

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One colleague downsized from a Zafira to a Corsa after several years and her three children getting older and no longer needing shuttled about. She loves her light red Corsa and her and her young daughter often go out for little drives and go off doing their thing.

Twingo Tamer - About to descend into project car hell. > Svend 01/27/2016 at 05:11

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I know its unfair but I hate these things because of the boy racer crowd. One in a 1.2 challenged me while I was driving my mondeo... I just laughed and carried on my way.

pip bip - choose Corrour > Svend 01/27/2016 at 05:24

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my parents only owned GM cars (Holdens to be precise)

until 2003 i only owned Holdens , 2003 i bought a Mitsubishi as it was $2000 cheaper than equivalent Holden.

wiffleballtony > Svend 01/27/2016 at 11:10

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I’ve had a few GM products. They varied from mediocre to great.

Tohru > Svend 02/07/2016 at 07:39

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This is why I feel sorry for you guys over there. This was my first car.

It had the LO3 5.0L V8 making 170hp and 255ft-lbs of torque, and getting 25mpg US.

Svend > Tohru 02/07/2016 at 08:26

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Don’t feel sorry for us, were not.

They are good, practical, durable and cheap little cars for people to learn how to drive both before and after they pass their driving test.

Our roads are so much narrower and a car like yours would of swiped half the cars on the road while a new driver is learning how to learn depth and positioning on the road. (The 91 Caprice saloon being 214"x77" while the Corsa D 157"x68").

Also the insurance would be astronomical, along with the fuel bills.

Vehicle Excise Duty (road tax) would be massive.

Tohru > Svend 02/07/2016 at 08:52

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The funny thing is the Caprice isn’t even that big.

My ‘76 Delta 88 was 228"x102" - I measured it. I’m 6' tall and could lay flat on the back seat.

It had the “Rocket 350" 5.7L V8 making 170hp and 275 ft-lbs. of torque running through a 3-speed non-overdrive automatic and 2.73:1 rear gears. It had a 26 gallon tank, and I got 16mpg combined city/highway.

Svend > Tohru 02/07/2016 at 09:26

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The 76 sounds like our Dodge Royal Monaco we had in Saudi Arabia.

jkm7680 > Svend 02/09/2016 at 07:38

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They’re not the best to drive though. But I respect them for what they are.

Above 120 km/h they start to feel like a cardboard box on roller skates. They also may have the worst automatic transmission ever made attached to them.

Svend > jkm7680 02/09/2016 at 07:52

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For what they are, they are great little learner and first time cars.