2003 1.4 Astra.
- Thread starter Ahleckz
- Start date
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
Fair enough... I'm trying to shortlist, it's between a 2.0 Accord VTEC or 1.8 Focus. No 1.6 Focus or Mondeos about. The 1.8 focus seems like the better idea all round really...
It's hard buying a car, but now I have the money sitting in my bank I need to make a decision. 2.5k for a car and insurance. Mmmm.
It's hard buying a car, but now I have the money sitting in my bank I need to make a decision. 2.5k for a car and insurance. Mmmm.
I hate the cars. I've tried driving the girlfriends one (1.4 2002) many a time. Impossible to get comfy, the only way the driving position could be worse was if somehow you were sat inside the car, upside down, strapped to the roof, with a machine with rogered you every minute. Gutless engine, just no go what so ever. Inside is nasty, however there is a reasonable amount of space, but that space accentuates how awful the inside really is. There is literally zero feeling that you're connected to the car. Everytime I time I drive it, I feel completely dettached, so far dettached that I really don't feel like I have control of the car which a) barely moves, b) even if it did hit anything, would do no damage to what-so-ever, unless you chucked it from a cliff onto whatever you hit and c) has no feel through either the steering, petals or seat of what the car is doing.
Girlfriend reversed hers into the lampost outside the house today. Cracked the bumper and ruined the spoiler.
She's done her self a favour there...
Girlfriend reversed hers into the lampost outside the house today. Cracked the bumper and ruined the spoiler.
She's done her self a favour there...
Well in this case he might as well buy a 1987 1.0 Ford Popular Plus. It does the job lol, we're not all Jenson Button.
I actually quite like that age of astra - I used to drive them for work and do a lot of round town miles in them and found them light and took very little effort to drive especially when tired - given the choice between the older and newer style astra I'd always pick the old version. Not fast but very light - feels like a go kart when you're pushing it.
I bought one of these for my mum a few years ago (1.6 8v Auto). So far it's been completely solid and dependable as well as very relaxing/easy to drive for the world's most nervous driver, like a big armchair really. Nothing whatsoever has gone wrong.
Perfectly decent cheap runabout. Not for car nerds.
Perfectly decent cheap runabout. Not for car nerds.
Soldato
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A Focus is the better car if your looking for something similar.
1.6 Zetec/Ghia is the one to go for.
1.6 Zetec/Ghia is the one to go for.
Associate
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I have a 1.6 Zetec Focus on a T-plate - it's built better, drives better, and looks better than any Astraaaargh...
Although, saying that, my 2nd car was a 1.6 Astra. A 1982 Mk1 Astra, so it was a bit cooler
Although, saying that, my 2nd car was a 1.6 Astra. A 1982 Mk1 Astra, so it was a bit cooler
The astra hate never stops amazing me on these forums.
I bought a 2003 1.8 sri 2 months ago, and I don't what you guys were driving but it must have been a completely different car.
The braking is progressive and decent, it does not throw you into the winshield like your average renault clio for example.
Steering gives a decent amount of feedback, it's not an M3 ofc but it's not awfuly light to make you think you're steering a game controller. By comparrison the 1.6 mk2 focus I drove for a couple of miles felt disturbingly light, but I could I have probably gotten used to that in time
Seated are quite comfy, although they are the Recaro ones, not the crappier ones that come in LS versions.
The interior is bland looking but the focus mk1 ain't gonna win any beauty contest either mind you. Build quality is ok, it does not rattle and there is plenty of storage space around. I'm 6ft 2 and sit very confortable in it, whereas I bang my head really badly on the ceiling on a corsa, for example.
They are reliable (as long as you're not an idiot and ignore the timing belt services), cheap to service, a lot nippier that the 1.8 focus and a bit more economical as well.
If I could have found a 2.0 Zetec focus for the same price and condition, I would have gotten that, but that would have meant me paying nearly twice as much lol.
As for the looks - please, it's very subjective and you make it sound like you're comparing a fiat multipla to a ferrari.
For what I paid, it's a great car.
I bought a 2003 1.8 sri 2 months ago, and I don't what you guys were driving but it must have been a completely different car.
The braking is progressive and decent, it does not throw you into the winshield like your average renault clio for example.
Steering gives a decent amount of feedback, it's not an M3 ofc but it's not awfuly light to make you think you're steering a game controller. By comparrison the 1.6 mk2 focus I drove for a couple of miles felt disturbingly light, but I could I have probably gotten used to that in time
Seated are quite comfy, although they are the Recaro ones, not the crappier ones that come in LS versions.
The interior is bland looking but the focus mk1 ain't gonna win any beauty contest either mind you. Build quality is ok, it does not rattle and there is plenty of storage space around. I'm 6ft 2 and sit very confortable in it, whereas I bang my head really badly on the ceiling on a corsa, for example.
They are reliable (as long as you're not an idiot and ignore the timing belt services), cheap to service, a lot nippier that the 1.8 focus and a bit more economical as well.
If I could have found a 2.0 Zetec focus for the same price and condition, I would have gotten that, but that would have meant me paying nearly twice as much lol.
As for the looks - please, it's very subjective and you make it sound like you're comparing a fiat multipla to a ferrari.
For what I paid, it's a great car.
Says it all really.
There's a reason why the Astra is cheaper, I'll let you ponder it.
I really hate this nonsense. For a start, nobody even mentioned performance before you posted that. Why people say things like this to justify their own poor decisions I'll never know.
Performance is only one aspect of a car, the astra manages to be crap In a whole host of them. Even if you're not interested in driving quickly, the 1.4 will be frustrating if nothing else and probably not that economic because it'll be laboured.
"I own/Ed one" isn't a good justification for saying a car is decent!! Ever notice how everyone jumping to the astra's defence has either owned or currently owns one? Yet most people slating them, myself included, have driven one in an unbiased situation and hated them. 've driven the focus for the same reasons but never owned one - its clearly the better car
The focus is the same idea, but better in every possible way. Youre better off sacrificing age or mileage to get the better car. Although the 1.8 in the focus isn't the ideal engine, it's a much better choice than a baseline engined astra
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Meh, I like mine, but then it's also still my first car so I'm more than willing to concede that I don't have a great deal of experience or expectation from it. For what it is though, it looks better, smarter and sportier than any equivalent Focus or other car in the same category/price range, it's been very reliable, not particularly expensive to own or run, and doesn't feel terribly slow (1.6).
The Focus probably is the better car, but the way the Astra gets talked about on here it's like it's held together with blu-tack and will kill you immediately. Mine seems fairly solid and I'm still alive.
Indeed, it's bizarre that the people who choose to continue to own one actually don't dislike it.
The Focus probably is the better car, but the way the Astra gets talked about on here it's like it's held together with blu-tack and will kill you immediately. Mine seems fairly solid and I'm still alive.
Indeed, it's bizarre that the people who choose to continue to own one actually don't dislike it.
Point was, there isn't anyone defending it who was driven it subjectively. Yet, there are people who have driven the focus subjectively who will reccomend that
Most people who own one seem to do so because they inherited it, or dad said they had to get something with less than 50k miles etc. You see very few people, with an active interest in cars who will make a conscious decision to buy an astra over a focus
Most people who own one seem to do so because they inherited it, or dad said they had to get something with less than 50k miles etc. You see very few people, with an active interest in cars who will make a conscious decision to buy an astra over a focus
And that's just it. You've got a bunch of people who have given exact reasons for the focus being a better choice. But the only reasons the people defending the astra can muster are 'lol vauxhall haters' and 'so what if it's slow'.....Lets have some actual reasons for buying one over the other rather than petty name calling shal we?