1992 Citroen ZX Aura review from UK and Ireland

Fuel system required complete overhaul.

Suspension bushes needed replacing.

Engine drank oil at an alarming rate.

Cold-start problems in winter (eventual reason for changing).

Early hesitant acceleration (not totally dissimilar to turbo-lag, despite the car not having a turbo charger, carburetor system needed replacing).

Numerous rattles, and electrical gremlins, particularly notable were windows and central locking.

My first car. For £400 I couldn't really have done better. It wasn't totally reliable, which I admit. But despite this, I was surprisingly sorry to see it go.

For a 1.4 8v engine the car was fast, notably because it was light. As it shared the same 205/306 suspension it was similar to drive, though, had much greater body roll for a softer ride.

The trouble is, if you ever tried to categorise it as a comfortable car, you'd be disappointed. The boot was small, though legroom, quite good. The driving position forced a leg-around wheel type position, and the seats were overly soft French-types, that while comfortable at first, lack any support for longer journeys. Also wind, road and engine noise were all quite loud. As indeed were all the rattling bits of trim.

But even for that I loved this car. It lacked power-steering, but at speed, you wouldn't know, (parking, however, was awful). The visibility was great when it was dry, but in the wet the single-wiper never cleared enough of the screen for my liking.

It rode and handled beautifully. Escorts, Astras and the like (of the same mid-90's era) had nothing on this car. It may have rolled a lot, but it wouldn't lose it's nerve, hanging on around country roads with tennacity.

In fact, when it came to replacing it, I looked at several models, including the Xsara, Megane and Rover 200 that seemed inferior to my tastes in driving ability. It was only the 306 and Focus (the latter being the eventual choice) that seemed an improvement.

So it was cheap, though running it was a pain (repairs costing more than equivalent Ford/Vauxhall marques), it was roomy enough to carry three mates comfortably (though four college bags filled the boot, and not in any style - she's not much of a looker), and from the driver's seat, she was beautiful.

If you're looking for a car that will happily take you to college and back, and give you a love/hate relationship, then this is the one. But be warned, this is no motorway muncher, noise and support are just too lacking.