Is that the price for a fully loaded one with all the toys?

I should know this I know, IO was just told they were about £20k

 

I got a saving on mine like many, through the partners scheme, standard was 19k, with extra's nearly 22k. I got mine for 17,900. Bargain!. Spending the cash saved now on upgrades

 

does the base model come poorly equiped then

 

No, its just that i wanted the 19's and IDS+, arden blue is an extra £400 and they threw in ecc and cc for free (they pushed list price up) cos i ordered it last june and only got it on the 29th dec. Standard you still get 18's, aircon, half leather, mp3cd, etc etc

 

Lot of hype when it first appeared but everyone has turned on it now. Seems the VXR and ST are better to drive.

Golf does seem a bit boring now and is not very fast. eg: on the Nurburgring it has an 8:55 lap time compared to a CTR with 8:47 (don't know what the ST and VXR would be)

 

The vxr time was 8.36, 15 secs quicker than the ST.

 

Is it me but that time does not seem that hot to me.

surely the FWD wouldn't matter on a track!!!

 

Think the standard MY06 STI is 8:27

 

yeh, its just you, the fella asked about the hot hatches and the VXR has been proven the fastest

 

Until the new Civic type R is released :-P

 

Maybe, but that remains to be seen, and it still looks feckin ugly!

 

Cookie if your after information on VXR's you could try on here -
http://www.astra-sri.co.uk/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=44

Loads on here will give you plenty of info, you could also talk to the guys here.
http://www.vxrperformance.co.uk/perf_centre/index.html

Loads of my mates have VXR's and most generally use the VXR performance centre for mods etc.

 

I think I got the best deal, I came across a dealer who had taken in two demonstrators, one went inside the showroom with 7 delivery miles on it, and never even saw the outside world, and the other got used as the demonstrator, and had racked up 1500 miles.

I rocked up, didnt want the one that got used for demos, so got a deal on the brand new one that hadnt been used for £16995.

Thats red, with 19"s, climate, full leather (really nice option!! heated recaros), MP3 stereo, and a years tax, bit of a bargain I thought, as although im down as second owner (dealership as first), the car only had the 7 delivery miles on when I picked it up, just like any brand new car, and had spent its few weeks with the dealer inside the showroom, so nothing to really distinguish it from brand new.

That'll help to offset the depreciation I suppose

 

Thats the "new" Civic Type-R with the same old engine in it? Looks quite nice, and ill be test driving one, but unless they have made some major improvements on the VTEC, power, and torque, I cant see how it would be any quicker than a VXR?

Might be lighter, but wont have much torque anyway, so would need to be about 1000 kg's to really upset the current hot hatch kings, and I cant see it being any less than the current one.

 

If you need info get over to astra-sri.co.uk as scoobywagon said. Also if your thinking about mods the best is probably Thorney motorsport. Mines going in at the end of the month. They will Look after your car and the only ones who have approved dealership and service standard.
Have you ordered it yet? Might be a bit of a wait you know.

 

*awaits onslaught of VXR performance centre is better than Thorney motorsport *

 

pmsl, fight fight fight!! lol

 

My uncle ownes PNG enfield, a rather large dealers, the guy is an arsehole but an uncle nevertheless, so should be able to scam waiting lists.

TBH not that bothered on which is quickest round the ring etc, just looking for an all round nice package


Im staying well away from those websites as new car will remain 100% standard

 

The Vauxhall dealer in Workington has 3 VXR's in for sale at the momment.

Steve

 

I have been lucky enough to drive a few of these.

The VXR isnt a bad car, it does torque steer a little in the lower gears, and like the owner of one said the power delivery isnt that smooth but it is pretty quick. I personally hated the sound of the exhaust as when lifting off to change gear when nailing it as it sounds like a sqeulchy fart !!! Nice Recaros BTW.

The golf Gti isnt slow - I kept a vxr honest around both the Millbrook alpine track and high speed bowl, sounded nice but I found the seats uncomfortable and they are overpriced.

Octavia VRs was quick and handled well but felt just a little larger than the other 2 to throw around. I guess on the open road you would never know.

CTR - well you know what they are like.

Megane 225 - Odd handbrake, quick and responsive but feels a bit like bits are going to drop off.

Focus ST - the only one I havent driven but around here there is a Ford factory, everyone gets privilege discount scheme and so there are literally 100's of them about which puts me off.

PS I also compared a 2.5 WRX and STI at Millbrook with the other cars and thought the 2.5 wrx engine was rough and no faster than my std 2.0 WRX.

Handling wise, on a dry sunny day the others could keep pace with the wrx other than coming out of tight cambered corners but TBH there isnt much in it.

The STI was ballastic when it hit the boost and was in another league in pure performance compared to the rest but there again it costs a lot more.

Phew - sermon over !!

 

That is the funniest thing you have ever said Mark

 

Seriously it will, a property calls now so need to be sensible

 

VXR is not for you then

 

I took delivery of my ST yesterday, after driving a CTR for 3 years. If you don't mind waiting 6 months for the car, if you spec anything other than standard, and even then you have to search around for any in stock.

I test drove most when I picked the ST. The VXR is quicker no doubt, but on the road not noticably so, and at least at the end of the long journey you'll be more relaxed in the ST.

The VXR feels quite compact (small) compared to the ST and you can get the ST (and golf) in five doors if you need to transport a family.

This was personal but I hated Vauxhall's customer services. The test drive was a 10 minute drive on a fixed route which they wouldn'y let me alter.

For individuality, the VXR is nicer looking and the ST is currently outselling the astra 4-1. Residuals on the ST tho will be much higher, Glasses guide even have it better that a golf

A Golf GTi with a DSG gearbox was fantastic but the price

Depends what image you want, the ST is understated and I think the VXR compares to the CTR in the way it presents itself to the world.

Good luck

Whichever you choose tho, will be fun.

 

Why do you say that?

 

not much difference in running cost between scoob and vxr when you total it all up

 

surely not if left in standard form

 

You can still leave it standard and be well pleased, you dont need to have any mods, its quicker than the wrx as is ( i made the the same step from 2 scoobs to the VXR) The running costs are similar but i would say VXR is a little cheaper, services should be about the same but the first one is after 2 years, petrol probably about the same maybe a little better, and obviously insurance is lower.

 

I'm quite surprised at that - i thought the VXR would be a lot cheaper to run - i mean Scoobs are horrendous, surely the servicing and fuel consumption is a lot better.

wouldn't mind a go of one to see what they're like even though they are FWD must be more reliable than my current bag of nails thats parked on my front

 

Servicing should be cheaper cos it needs doing less, the cost of the service should be less but i don't know for sure, got another 18 months until i need one.
Fuel consumption is much better than the the STI (only had one for a few days when waiting for my second wrx to be ready, but was shocking) The VXR is Lighter on fuel than the wrx if you drive normally but can be outrageous when you boot it. But to be honest it doesnt really bother me what i'm spending on fuel as i just put it in and drive, worrying about cost would just get in the way of enjoying a good drive.