1999 Vauxhall Corsa Reviews - Page 5 of 7

Many things have gone wrong with this car, some are as follows:

* Idle air control valve costs £150 to replace.

* Central Deadlocking fails - quoted £200 to repair.

* Manual window winder doesn't fully open - quoted £135 to replace.

* Engine valve goes, repaired for £1000 inc engine re-build! Then 3 weeks later it goes wrong again! Asked for a further £1000 to repair again, plus £350 to replace the 'EMG' valve - this is an on-going repair which I'm arguing should be guaranteed under the original £1000 repair.

It was a very nippy car when bought at new, but having to spend over 1/3 of the purchase price in further repairs within 2 and a half years leaves me feeling very bitter about the experience with this car. Have driven the car very carefully and followed servicing instructions to the 'T', yet dealer has blamed driving style for the number of repairs needed. Unfortunate.

I had had the Corsa around 8 months when I received a letter from Vauxhall. The letter was advising me that the seat belts weren't to their satisfaction and that I need to take it to my nearest Vauxhall dealer to get them changed.

I have recently had a crash in the car and when some work was carried out under the bonnet, the vehicle control light kept flashing on and off. I took it back to Vauxhall and it was a problem that Vauxhall knew about and they fixed it free of charge as it was a fault when making them.

I am really glad that I bought this car, it is super. It is really nippy and ideal for parking in small spaces. It's quite quick off the mark too. Handles everything well.

Hot starting problems - badly adjusted throttle cable.

Drivers door lock - weak link broke.

Offside outer CV joint gaiter clamp - broke.

Offside outer CV joint (as a result of above) - knocking noise.

Speedo can stick at low speed.

Cassette player can play tapes at varying speeds.

Squeaking driver's seat.

I wanted to buy a Corsa since it was launched under that name in the UK (1993) and I got the chance when buying my first non-learner car after leaving University. Unfortunately, it hasn't lived up to expectations and Vauxhall have lost my business as a result.

The car does have many great features:

Looks - The new Corsa is a bit of a mess in comparison.

Paint quality - Has kept its shine.

Fuel Economy - 51 MPG over the last 12,000 miles!

Performance - Considering the engine size and economy.

Steering - Zero play when switching direction or at dead-ahead.

However for these you have to live with:

Noise - Few sound deadening materials.

Lack of comfort - nowhere to rest your left foot / steering wheel is heavily offset and at an angle / seat lacks lumbar support.

Reliability - Not that bad, but too many minor problems.

Middle box baffles breaking up - causing rattling. (replaced).

Exhaust blowing - (replaced).

Loose dashboard, and interior (tightened regularly).

Engine management light regularly lights up. (Vauxhall say there are no problems with the engine electronics).

Central locking deadlock has snapped (replaced).

Steering veers off to the left even on flat cambered roads (Vauxhall say there is nothing wrong with the tyres, wheels, balance or tracking).

Recently a rattling sound from the engine compartment (probably a CAT bracket and will hopefully soon sort out).

Why do I keep this car? Because I am a student who can't afford another new recent car.

I have spent loads on fixing problems with the car.

Vauxhall dealer/mechanics are useless. Especially when the car was still under warranty. They did not fix my car problems so I had to go external rather then pay further cash for problems that were not being fixed.

Runs a lot better now that I have put a Piper sports exhaust on.

Looking to lower the suspension to help with bad road handling.

Soon to get low profile alloy wheels to reduce further road veer and tyre fold.