1994 Vauxhall Cavalier Reviews - Page 10 of 11

Water pump at 37K miles. All other problems have been minor (eg bulbs failing).

Amazing performance especially at top end (3rd gear will give over 115mph before redline, top in 5th is quoted at 147mph). Economy not too bad (26 to 33 mpg). Servicing by Vauxhall agents is not much more than normal Cavs (e.g 2 litre). Looks smart (white with fan blade alloys and small boot spoiler).

Downsides are insurance (Grp 16) and handling which although better than "standard" Cavs is still not as good as it should be for this amount of performance.

The only problems I have had with the car are with the engine management system, i.e. the CO2 sensor and cam sensor, these faults prevent the car from starting.

Overall I am happy with the performance of the car. Although it is expensive to run; high insurance £1200 per year due to my age (22). The car does need regular servicing to preserve mpg.

My car (which was an ex-company car) has done 90,000 miles. Bearing this in mind, the shockers needed replacing.

Apart from that it has been very reliable. I have done 10,000 miles in 3 months - with no problems.

Heater bulbs have fused - cost £25 to repair (common problem I am told).

CV joint also needed to be done.

Apart from that (and looking at my comprehensive service history) the car has never suffered major faults (touch wood !).

Best buys for reliability appear to be 1.8 and 2.0 models - 8v engine less problematic.

First Vauxhall I have owned.

Very luxurious and comfortable car.

Many many thoughtful design touches in the spacious interior.

Huge boot (great for the pushchair).

Good safety features with ABS, Airbag, Impact beams.

Great 6 speaker stereo (standard).

Excellent motorway cruiser - ride a bit unsettled on normal roads.

Fuel economy surprisingly good (35-40mpg) for a 2.0ltr automatic.

Seats very comfortable (esp in the back) but brake pedal a little high compared to accelerator pedal.

Quite reasonable servicing/parts costs - no need to use expensive dealers unless tuning or engine management work required.

Engine can be a bit boomy (not as refined as jap counterparts) but compensates with good 50-70 and 70-80 acceleration.

The auto box is pretty smooth but can be made to 'clunk' if you hover around the 30mph mark. Otherwise smooth and responsive and usually in the right gear. Sport mode useful - haven't tried winter mode yet.

Make sure you change the cambelt every 36k and change the oil every 6k.

Now looking for a 95 CDX with air con !

Brake light switch failed.

Brake pads wear fairly quickly and ain't cheap for the V6.

Stonking performance and fairly cheap to insure. The car has covered 55000 miles and apart from servicing costs it has set me back £3.50 for the brake light switch!!!! Do NOT go to a Vauxhall Dealer, they are all ripoff merchants...

Turbo quicker...

Engine Management decided best idle speed was 0rpm. Dealer reprogrammed and is now okay.

CD player - dealer unable or unwilling to fix despite many visits over 12 months.

Standard consumables - exhaust, tyres etc.

Aircon causes condensation in passenger footwell.

The best car I have ever driven. A big improvement over the 1993 2.0 8v CD. Ride and handling improved.

2.0 16v engine has lots of performance and is economical.

CD player has speed sensitive volume.