h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

My sister has had a Corsa for around 10 years now without a bit of trouble. And she hasn't seen the need to service it either so I would definitely agree that it is reliable.
The bodywork on it has always left a little to be desired though.

So what you said really

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With a budget of £2k, it pays to look around, really. You should be able to find a decent Vauxhall Corsa 1.2. I'm not sure about the rust - the pre-98 ones do look a bit worse for wear, but that could just be age . A friend of mine has a 1.0 Corsa (X-reg) and it's a great little car.

For your £2k you could also get a Ford Ka - handles well, cheap as chips to service but it feels a bit flimsy and plasticky and isn't the best for carrying lots of people or stuff. You might also be able to get a previous generation Ford Fiesta, which should be OK (the 1.25 Zetec is a good engine to go for).

You could also look at a previous generation VW Polo or Mk3 Golf - solid, practically bombproof as long as they've been serviced, seem to be reasonably resistant to rust. But as VWs seem to hold their value well you might not get as new or as tidy a car for your money - unless it has intergalactic mileage. This isn't a problem as long as it's been serviced regularly - but servicing will be a bit more expensive than for the Ford or the Vauxhall.

I don't know if you're considering the baby VW, the Lupo and its SEAT equivalent, the Arosa - but if you are, go for the SEAT as it's the same car (give or take a few visual bits like the lights) and servicing is cheaper. It's solid, doesn't seem to be vulnerable to rust and it's reliable. But if you carry lots of people and/or stuff regularly, you'd be better off with a Polo/Corsa.

Overall I would say look around at what's available in your price range, try to drive a few of the options, and decide which you like. None of these cars are in short supply, so it's worth taking time to decide which one really suits you.

I hope something in that essay was useful!

Who was the travelling sales rep?

Re: Corsas, only thing I know about them is the suffer from the same problem as the Nova - emminently nickable. Not due to any particular flaw in their security (as far as I am aware) but because lots of toerags like to stick plastic all over them and its cheaper to nick one than buy spares.

oo yoh callin a toerag mate,
naaar, corsa's ar shite man,yo wanna rob a lexus dare top i'm tellin yoh.
Laters

Mike, Salford

Is now the time to point out I know how to break into a Nova and hotwire it? (Probably not!)

Besides, it's hardly worth the effort to do it, these days

Many apologies to all the Toerags and Thieves in my local.

Please don't nick my punto.

(A concerned resident, Salford)

I saw what I thought was the first properly done, carefully put together Corsa max power type thing in town. It did actually look quite good, had been finished properly and put together with what looked like some thought.

Until I saw it driving down the road and realised the front undertray thingy was actually some kitchen top formica loosly attached so as it went over bumps it wobbled making the (no doubt expensive) foglights illuminate all sorts of random things, like tree tops and drain covers.

rofl...haha

There's one near me with twin big bore exhausts. I thought they were a new cool shape until the car set off, bass bins maxed out, to reveal not only had the rear suspension been lowered too far but the pipes themselves were not properly attached.

Great showers of sparks flew from them every time he changed gear or pulled away. Maybe he thought it was cool or maybe he couldn't hear the scaping over the stereo.

I used to pull the fuel injection fuse from my orion 16i ghia to stop people from "taking without consent".

Ah, the clever way. Same with friends who have a landrover, just take the distributor cap with them when they leave it!

Thanks for the sugestions Think it'll be between the Corsa and a Ka then, going by the comments. Learned to drive in a SEAT and didn't really like it.. but then again I was hardly an expert at that stage.

Looks wise, I would chose the Corsa- i've always wanted to tip a Ka over and spin it on its roof. Any other downsides to the Ka apart from it's Telly Tubby appearance?

I have got a Corsa and I hate it with a passion. I cannot wait to be shot of the thing. If you are oging Vauxhall then the 1.4i Astra (or the 1.6 if you can afford the insurance) are an infinitly better bet IMHO.

Why, why, why?- do tell

Is it just not to your taste, or are there real tangable things about it that are bad? Might they just be car specific- i.e. you got a lemon- or are they design things?

Just noticed that Corsa spelt backwards is Asroc

Well it isn't just mine I have drivin a couple of Corsas since I bought mine and they have the same faults IMHO.

Firstly for such a small car the handling is (I think) rubbish. Compared to a Fiesta or a 205 or a Polo (similar sized cars) I thik they handle like articulated lorries.

Subjectivly I think they look rubbish (allthough the new shape is a massive improvement). Plus they dont like crashes much!

I think the Astra is a marked superior car. More roomey, cheaper and better performance for your money.

Like I said though cars are very much a "horses for courses" thang. I have only ever driven "mertit" corsas. Namely without PS, EW ect... THe LS and GSI models are much better apparantly.