What to look out for on a astra 1.8 convertible bertone

yes, lack of body rigidity, a woeful engine and horrid cabin.

Sadly all of these issues are deep rooted right across the Astra range so watch out!
 
Not a lot to say really other than its a belt driven engine so check cam belt and water pump have been done and are not due.

I owned an Astra TwinTop Design and it was on ok car but was never for me, I lost my arse on it tbh after buying it new and selling within 6 months. The squeeks, rattles and overall build quality were all big gripes for me and was why I just had to get rid.

I always liked the styling of the bertone but ill tell you now the cab will have more scuttle shake than you can shake a stick at unless for whatever reason they made the TwinTop less ridgid than the earlier Bertone styled cars which I doubt.
 
Someone in work bought one a couple of months ago, and for the money (peanuts) the car has survived the test of time reasonably well.

The 1.8 is pretty much bullet proof, there are a couple of normal issues such as the Idle Valves sticking (wonky idle) but other than that, the 1.8 pretty much isn't stressed and seems to not have any major issues.
As for the convertible aspect, as long as it works, that's about all you need, it's mechanism isn't a million miles different then say the E46 and it should not have any signs of wear/tear.

The Astra of that age was getting long in the tooth, and is like the early focus, not a nice place to be compared to modern cars.
 
Cheers for replies, i would be coming from a focus 04 plate 1.8tdci, but needs to much work doing, starting to rust, turbo boost pipes are broke and taped up together for the turbo to work and few other bits need doing.

I will check about the cam belt and water pump.

Will update tomorrow if i get it or not.
 
Feel the carpets behind the back seats as well for signs of water ingress... Lift the mats if there is any.
 
jamiehard1989 said:
Cheers for replies, i would be coming from a focus 04 plate 1.8tdci, but needs to much work doing, starting to rust, turbo boost pipes are broke and taped up together for the turbo to work and few other bits need doing.

I will check about the cam belt and water pump.

Will update tomorrow if i get it or not.
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A bit of rust and a couple of rubber turbo pipes? Sounds like a write off.
 
jamiehard1989 said:
Cheers for replies, i would be coming from a focus 04 plate 1.8tdci, but needs to much work doing, starting to rust, turbo boost pipes are broke and taped up together for the turbo to work and few other bits need doing.

I will check about the cam belt and water pump.

Will update tomorrow if i get it or not.
Click to expand...

The Focus is suffering from typical old car faff but only in exactly the same way an Astra of the same age will.

This is a totally pointless move.

It's actually a backwards step as the 04 Astra Cab is on the Astra platform that's a generation older than your Focus.
 
jamiehard1989 said:
Cheers for replies, i would be coming from a focus 04 plate 1.8tdci, but needs to much work doing, starting to rust, turbo boost pipes are broke and taped up together for the turbo to work and few other bits need doing.

I will check about the cam belt and water pump.

Will update tomorrow if i get it or not.
Click to expand...


Fix the Focus as it's a much better car. I went from a Mk 1 Focus 1.8tdi to a 04 plate Astra G 1.6 SXI with the twinport engine and the handling of the Focus was miles ahead. Even if the one you are looking at is the Astra H (mk5) it has the same running gear as the Astra H (Mk4) so won't handle any better.
 
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