Yes, it's the long-awaited (by spottedlaurel at least) proper pics of the 'Turdmobile Mk2', taken today in the lovely winter sunshine down here in Berkshire.
Apologies for the incredibly dull angles, these are primarily for the agreed value portion of my classic car insurance, plus I've got a cold coming on and couldn't be arsed doing anything fancy.
To summarise for those of you who haven't seen my threads in General Chat - car bought for £51 (beat off the banger racers) from eBay. 58,000 miles (I reckon genuine looking at the bodywork, interior and one elderly couple owning it between 1987 and 2004), but the numpty previous owner has lost the history. I do have the last 6 MOT's though, showing the mileage rising from 39k to 57k at 3k/year increments, which seems to make sense.
It's got a bit of rot in the rear arches and needed a plate at the end of each sill for the MOT, plus a new back box. I got the cambelt done at the same time for safety's sake, but if I'd done the welding myself and left the cambelt (probably has been changed before - as the oil, air and fuel filters were GM it's probably been dealer-serviced all it's life) we would have been on the road with 12 months' ticket for just over a ton. As it stands though, she's only set me back £295 all-in so far.
They just don't make interiors this brown any more (on this side of the pond at least). Seats are comfy. All the 'toys' (manual sunroof, electric heated mirrors and central locking, plus period Philips stereo) still work.
Ah, the heart of the beast. The 115bhp 1.8 engine as fitted to the Mk1 and pre-87 Mk2 Astra GTE, numerous Cavalier Mk2s and also the 'aero' Carlton I believe. The car weighs 985kg according to the brochure, so performance is quite lively. Torque steer on greasy roundabouts borders on the frightening.
Plans are to join a suitable club (Vauxhall-Opel Drivers Club looking the most likely) and do some shows next year, flush the coolant and do a full service (just need to change the oil - plugs, air filter and fuel filter already done), refurb the alloys (they're a bit curbed) and fix a few niggly faults (temp gauge doesn't work, cold idle too low, steering wheel not on straight).
Apologies for the incredibly dull angles, these are primarily for the agreed value portion of my classic car insurance, plus I've got a cold coming on and couldn't be arsed doing anything fancy.
To summarise for those of you who haven't seen my threads in General Chat - car bought for £51 (beat off the banger racers) from eBay. 58,000 miles (I reckon genuine looking at the bodywork, interior and one elderly couple owning it between 1987 and 2004), but the numpty previous owner has lost the history. I do have the last 6 MOT's though, showing the mileage rising from 39k to 57k at 3k/year increments, which seems to make sense.
It's got a bit of rot in the rear arches and needed a plate at the end of each sill for the MOT, plus a new back box. I got the cambelt done at the same time for safety's sake, but if I'd done the welding myself and left the cambelt (probably has been changed before - as the oil, air and fuel filters were GM it's probably been dealer-serviced all it's life) we would have been on the road with 12 months' ticket for just over a ton. As it stands though, she's only set me back £295 all-in so far.
They just don't make interiors this brown any more (on this side of the pond at least). Seats are comfy. All the 'toys' (manual sunroof, electric heated mirrors and central locking, plus period Philips stereo) still work.
Ah, the heart of the beast. The 115bhp 1.8 engine as fitted to the Mk1 and pre-87 Mk2 Astra GTE, numerous Cavalier Mk2s and also the 'aero' Carlton I believe. The car weighs 985kg according to the brochure, so performance is quite lively. Torque steer on greasy roundabouts borders on the frightening.
Plans are to join a suitable club (Vauxhall-Opel Drivers Club looking the most likely) and do some shows next year, flush the coolant and do a full service (just need to change the oil - plugs, air filter and fuel filter already done), refurb the alloys (they're a bit curbed) and fix a few niggly faults (temp gauge doesn't work, cold idle too low, steering wheel not on straight).
