2001 Vauxhall Vectra SRi 140 from UK and Ireland - Comments

Nothing yet.

Goes well and looks good, and even has reasonable handling up to a point, but still understeers too much and has horrible numb steering. The SRI badge is a marketing ploy clearly, but at what I paid for it, I couldn't care less.

Despite it's awful reputation, the 2001 Vectra is a reasonably pleasant, if very unremarkable car. Comfortable enough, reasonably economical, and typical fleet market standard equipment. Good reliability so far.

The main reason I bought one was it's dirt cheap. UKP 2600 for a 69k warranted miler at the local auction. If I can get two years out of it, it will have paid its purchase price back in profit (car allowance scheme).

Goes up and down motorways as well as anything else, not totally horrible to drive, and disposable at the end of it. A tool to do a job, and it does it well enough. No complaints.

100,000 miles now on the clock and it's still going strong.

The fuel gauge has become a little erratic at the bottom of its travel, but I'm not too bothered. Just using the trip meter now - not worth spending the money or time fixing it.

Doing oil and filter changes, plus a check over every 10k, and other bits as they come up. Not that there has been anything major. Heavily lipped front discs replaced last month along with pads, and the rear view mirror snapped off recently. Otherwise all good.

Good, strong reliable car. The plan at the moment is to run it to 140,000 miles or so (early next year probably) and out it. Assuming no major expense on the car in the next year, whatever I get for it is my Summer holiday for next year, and the allowance has left me enough to buy another similarly aged car with enough left over for 2 years maintenance. The next two years allowance goes in the bank and earns interest to be added to the bung of tax relief I get back from Gordon Brown each financial year for using my own car for business.

Company cars I have decided are for morons. The typical boring motorway / stop start trek of most business travel isn't in the least bit pleasurable. Why are people so bothered about what car they do it in? This sits on a motorway at 90 or averages 3 mph around the creaking M25 as well as any BMW or Mercedes.