Saxxxo VTR

The VTS is quite fast to 60 however, I suppose its because its a small car and its very light. However, I can guess that they don't have enough torque, is that the case? I had a clio 1.4 (obviously not the same) but it was quite quick if it was just me in the car. If there was 5 of us, it didn't pull very well.
 
triggerthat said:
The VTS is quite fast to 60 however, I suppose its because its a small car and its very light. However, I can guess that they don't have enough torque, is that the case? I had a clio 1.4 (obviously not the same) but it was quite quick if it was just me in the car. If there was 5 of us, it didn't pull very well.
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My 106 GTi (same car as the VTS) has plenty enough torque. Much more than the 2 litre cavalier I used to have - especially lower in the rev range where the cav was lacking, the GTi is great around town in 4th, and easing onto the throttle gently in 4th at 30mph, it picks up nicely. It's generally plenty fast enough to have a little fun, and a useful overtaking tool when the revs climb above 4k.

And of course it's not going to pull very well with 5 people in. in a 900kg car, adding 5 people in (lets say averaging 65kg), that's an extra 325kg. Which is an extra ~35% weight on the car, turning the bhp/tonne ratio from ~128bhp/tonne down to just over 95bhp/tonne. A big difference.
 
digitalwolf said:
So 2001 Y's will be 98bhp then?

As for tuning..........I'm keeping it stock. :)
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Judgin by what has been posted above yes however as with the interiors you may find some y plates that are 90bhp due to being sat around before being registered.
 
Just seen an 02 for £3295, with 39k miles on the clock. It's in silver, at a dealers but it looks well looked after. No mention of service history.

Does a change of head unit mean it's likely to have been thrashed? Or is this me just being silly :D

Didn't the saxo come with CD as standard in the later models?
 
digitalwolf said:
Just seen an 02 for £3295, with 39k miles on the clock. It's in silver, at a dealers but it looks well looked after. No mention of service history.

Does a change of head unit mean it's likely to have been thrashed? Or is this me just being silly :D
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I think VTRs have *all* been thrashed mate, but a change of headunit is no indication really. Look at it this way - you're obviously going drive it hard when you get it, having been asking about all the different performance figures, and looking for a 98bhp version. If you pick up one that's been driven hard (but looked after), then it's used to that treatment and will stand up well. A car that's driven hard but well looked after isn't a bad thing.

However.... If it has no service history or other paperwork, walk away. In all liklihood it's not been looked after. A car that's been driven hard for 40k miles without so much as an oil change is going to need big money spending on it soon.
 
timbob said:
I think VTRs have *all* been thrashed mate, but a change of headunit is no indication really. Look at it this way - you're obviously going drive it hard when you get it, having been asking about all the different performance figures, and looking for a 98bhp version. If you pick up one that's been driven hard (but looked after), then it's used to that treatment and will stand up well. A car that's driven hard but well looked after isn't a bad thing.

However.... If it has no service history or other paperwork, walk away. In all liklihood it's not been looked after. A car that's been driven hard for 40k miles without so much as an oil change is going to need big money spending on it soon.
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Thanks for reply, good points made.

Is it worth paying the little extra to pick one up with service history.

I've seen one thats got FSH, but has a kenwood sticker on the back window :( .......cheaper than the 02 I mentioned though.

I will certainly drive it hard, not red line every gear change but I will certainly want to hear it working hard:)
 
digitalwolf said:
Thanks for reply, good points made.

Is it worth paying the little extra to pick one up with service history.

I've seen one thats got FSH, but has a kenwood sticker on the back window :( .......cheaper than the 02 I mentioned though.

I will certainly drive it hard, not red line every gear change but I will certainly want to hear it working hard:)
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I wouldn't get one without a history to be honest. Usually there are signs though - car with no history will often look tired, have a knackered clutch, loose and floppy gearchange, engine may have a coating of oil on the bottom, and the engine bay will generally look cruddy (remember - an engine covered in a build up of crud and muck hasn't had any work done on it!). Sometimes you can come across what appears to be a car in very good condition that has no history at all - be very wary. Remember, someone always has a reason to sell a car, and with an un-looked-after, thrashed car, more often than not it's because their neglect means a big bill is looming and they want rid.

Look at the general condition of the interior and compare that to the mileage to see if it's been clocked. For example: I looked at a GTI which said 70k on the clock, but the interior was horrible. Pedals rubbers were worn, the leather on the steering wheel where your hands go was worn. Engine bay looked neglected - in fact, all the points i mentioned above. It looked like a 150,000 mile car, not a 70,000 mile car. It also had no service history, and was overpriced so I didn't buy it. In fact, it's still for sale now, over 2 months later - and good GTIs seem to sell within days.

But, if you find a decent one that's in good condition and been looked after, has got a full service history and all the old bills and MOTs, and feels solid to drive, don't not buy it just because it's got a Kenwood sticker in the back window!
 
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timbob said:
I wouldn't get one without a history to be honest. Usually there are signs though - car with no history will often look tired, have a knackered clutch, loose and floppy gearchange, engine may have a coating of oil on the bottom, and the engine bay will generally look cruddy (remember - an engine covered in a build up of crud and muck hasn't had any work done on it!). Sometimes you can come across what appears to be a car in very good condition that has no history at all - be very wary. Remember, someone always has a reason to sell a car, and with an un-looked-after, thrashed car, more often than not it's because their neglect means a big bill is looming and they want rid.

Look at the general condition of the interior and compare that to the mileage to see if it's been clocked. For example: I looked at a GTI which said 70k on the clock, but the interior was horrible. Pedals rubbers were worn, the leather on the steering wheel where your hands go was worn. Engine bay looked neglected - in fact, all the points i mentioned above. It looked like a 150,000 mile car, not a 70,000 mile car. It also had no service history, and was overpriced so I didn't buy it. In fact, it's still for sale now, over 2 months later - and good GTIs seem to sell within days.

But, if you find a decent one that's in good condition and been looked after, has got a full service history and all the old bills and MOTs, and feels solid to drive, don't not buy it just because it's got a Kenwood sticker in the back window!
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I don't want a kenwood sticker in the back window. The one i'm looking at has one, easy to get off?

If it has full dealer history does that confirm it isn't clocked?

Lol:D
 
digitalwolf said:
I don't want a kenwood sticker in the back window. The one i'm looking at has one, easy to get off?

If it has full dealer history does that confirm it isn't clocked?

Lol:D
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Just peel it off, couldn't be easier!

Use your head when deciding if it's clocked. If it's got every original MOT certificate, with the mileages matching up with those on the service invoices, and they gradually increase leading up to the mileage shown on the clock on the dash, then chances are it isn't clocked.

If the mileage on the clock is unusually low for the year, and the last few MOTs are missing - but the mileage on the last available one is just short of the mileage shown on the clock, ask yourself where the mileage went in the missing years.

Ask the dealers if it has a "Warranted Mileage" - this means they have checked the cars history using various databases, and the mileage should be genuine. If it doesn't have one, decide for yourself looking at all the bits of paper (in order) and using the general condition of the car as a pointer to work out whether you think the mileage is genuine.

You can also HPI check the car - it costs a bit of money, but if you're all set to buy it, do a check. It will tell you if the mileage you enter causes a discrepancy with any of the DVLA's records of it's mileage.
 
One more top tip before I go and watch the GP and eat some brekky:

Go and look at a lot of cars before you buy one. Even if they're not the right colour, or are the earlier 90bhp VTRs, spend your weekends for a month looking at as many cars as you can. Should be easy, because VTRs are very common.

You'll get a feel for them then, what is normal for the interior, how the engine bays generally look after 40k or 80k miles. Then, you'll be able to say when deciding on one you may buy that the interior is the best condition one you've seen, or the engine bay looks a lot more neglected than the last 10 cars you saw. Or this one has a clutch that feels weird compared to all the others. If you've only driven one example, you might just think that the clutch is supposed to feel like that. You might find one that's making a noise from the rear. If all the others haven't done it, it's probably something in the suspension needing replacing. The dealer may well say "they all do that, sir", but if you've seen 10 cars that don't - you can decide for yourself.

Only by building up a bigger picture of the particular model of car you're after will you get to know things like that.
 
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