Faults:

Gearbox whine.

Exhaust.

Handbrake was useless, even after new brakes.

Starter motor.

And rust in its final year. Lots of rust.

General Comments:

Cheap and cheerful Nova - a popular choice as a first car for a teenager in the UK during the 1980s and 1990s.

I have soo many memories with this car, but I'll take the rose tinted glasses off for this review to be honest about it. It was a popular hatchback, but flawed in many ways.

To be honest it was a death trap. It felt light and flimsy. Not safe at all. And I hated its boy racer image. Everyone at traffic lights in an "SR" Nova wanted to race me in my basic Merit! Thankfully I was mature enough even at 18 to ignore them.

But as an economical run around it was ideal for me with a cheap used purchase price, and low insurance. Actually wasn't that great on fuel though I suspect something was wrong and it was consuming a bit too much. The previous owner also didn't care for it well and I bought it with no history when I knew little about cars. Repair costs were usually OK however.

The 1.2 was actually fast enough. I never "modded" it as many people did. I added a nice set of alloy wheels and I was happy enough with that. I was the first among my group of college friends to learn to drive and they were always happy to come along for a drive on a sunny day, good times.

But the interior was horrible, very 1980s with sharp edges and plastic everywhere. Noisy at 70 mph. Cramped, even with my average height and build. Seats comfy enough if a bit hard after long drives.

Still, it never let me down and I had it a good few years before passing it on to my grandparents as a cheap run around for them. They scrapped it the following year after it failed its MOT due to rusty problems, which was the death of many Novas.

Faults:

Nothing major, normal wear and tear... New cam-belts, gaskets, bearings, etc.

General Comments:

Fantastic little car!

Cheap to maintain, if you are a dab hand at engineering (or own a Haynes manual!) it is very easy to work on.

Easy on fuel, I get about 37mpg round town, got over 47mpg down the motorway (no joke I calculated it!)

Starts first time, pulls away from most other small cars (even modern ones), fantastic performance in such a small car, funny when people underestimate it and then get burnt of by it!

Fairly comfortable for an older car.

Handling is OK, but as stock tends to roll, and if pushed to the limits, the back end loses grip with no warning and you spin.

Only negative is that chavs like it, security issue.

Faults:

Small shunt a few months after purchase, required cosmetic work on rear bumber/tailgate.

Original exhaust replaced @ C. 70k.

New clutch plate @ 80k.

Persistent rattle from the tailgate hinges since new.

Specks of rust on door sills, rear wheel arches and wheels.

General Comments:

This car was bought new by my parents when I started school in 1988. I'm now approaching 21. That gives a reflection of how long the Nova has been in our family.

Both me and my brother learned to drive in this car. It is easy to park due to its boxiness; unlike my instructor's '96 Micra you can see where the corners are. Insurance is pennies, because it is hard to go fast enough to crash. Having said that, grip from the skinny tyres is pretty lame.

The car has been utterly reliable. It has never let any member of my family down once. It doesn't like long drives on the motorway in the wet; the distributor needs to be dried every so often, but mechanically it is completely sound.

Very easy on petrol round town. Surprisingly thirsty on the motorway. It only has a 37 bhp engine and a 4 speed 'box so you really need to thrash it to keep up with the rest of the traffic.

Mechanically about as complicated as a tin opener. Engine is a pushrod 2 valves per cylinder unit. Changed the clutch with my Dad on the front drive. Parts very cheap.

Quite fun to drive, if rather slow. Sharp throttle response

I still don't know why my parents bought such a low-spec car, but it has been faithful and reliable for many years and shows no sign of stopping. I wouldn't by the car myself as it is too unrefined and uncomfortable on the motorway.

It must be the least modified white Nova in the UK! The only external change is a radio aerial added last summer.

Buy one if you want reliable transport at absolute bargain basement prices, but don't expect refinement.