One of the earliest surviving Vectra Bs! What's this GLS 1.8 16V like to drive today?
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2024
- The Vectra B got off to bad start in 1995, replacing the much loved but outdated Mk3 Cavalier. Clarkson slated it and there was a lot of criticism from the press as it turned out the car was rushed into production before it was finished.
We ponder the early days and go for a test drive in this mint N reg GLS, a very rare survivor!
Finally my vectra is Famous!
Thanks for videoing the car Dougie - great to meet you.
BTW i am trying to find all other n plate vectras that are still alive and i reckon there is a maximum of 36 still on the road at the moment (some will be p plates) - so far i have found 3 n plates and 11 p plates and neither of the 1995 cars
According to my data there are only 2 Vectra’s from 1995 that still have an MOT! Have you heard of a site called Flickr as well, there are thousands of pictures on there of Vectra’s from the UK which might help your search!
@@lucasbarton1773 correct but n reg also covered 1996 up to August (my car was registered on the 1/5/1996). Therefore i need to eliminate P reg cars as well hence the maximum of 36.
Yes i regularly stalk flickr, FB, youtube instagram etc
@@x_x_x_x_x Ah right, thank you for that information!
I always liked the Vectra b, that's a real survivor there. Can't believe that was 28 year's ago 😮
I also have an n reg vectra 1.8 auto gls with 105 thousand on the clock I'm the 2nd owner and had it since 2003 love it
I had a V Reg vectra b as a stop gap car many years ago. So much of a stop gap 2 years later I still had it and it never let me down. If anything I let it down in the end but that's a story for another day love the channel 90s and 00s Vauxhalls are my bread and butter tbh hence trying to start my own channel with an X Reg 2 former keeper Astra G 1.6 8v Club Z16SE 97k recent cambelt had anything it needed in its life and more since I acquired it. Great Channel keep up the good work 👍
I genuinely like the Vectra B. I think it’s a smart design that has aged better than some of its rivals, the Mondeo of the day looks quite frumpy now in my opinion.
At college back in the day, a lot of people disliked the Vectra B estate we had in our mechanics course workshop, was seriously unloved. I used to like working on it though and even went as far as putting the wheel trims back on to make it look smarter. 😂
These were still fairly common even after the disastrous 2009 Scrappage Scheme, but haven’t seen a Vectra B in ages now. Even the Vectra C is an uncommon sight today.
The Vectra keeps ageing well like a fine wine, it's a very handsome design.
This Vectra was one of my favourite cars at Festival Of The Unexceptional. I can remember these early Vectra's being absolutely everywhere but they all seemed to disappear around 2009/10. It's great to see an N Reg survivor looking so well
We all know what happened around that time.... 2 words, both begin with S and end in E...
@@mattyg267 Yep! The 'Crappage scheme' seemed to make these and Mk1 Mondeos disappear overnight...
I was actually due to take the cavalier this year as the vectra went in 2022 and she was the only one there. Then the cavalier had a coolant leak so had to sub in the Vectra. Its a good job i did otherwise this would never have happened.
There were 8 vectra's this year that i counted
@@The_Car_Stalker Ah I see, I was pleasantly surprised to see so many Vectras this year! But this was my favourite by far
This was sold as a Saturn in the United States.
It was available as a sedan and wagon with either a 2.2L 4cyl or a 3.0L V6 with a 5spd manual or 4-spd automatic.
Early examples earned a reputation for timing belt problems with both engines.
Those issues were eventually corrected and Saturn went on to sell a little over four hundred thousand examples. You still see them occasionally daily driven even though the youngest example is almost 20 years old.
I bought a wagon equipped with a 3 liter V6 in 2001 and I still own it, even though nowadays it's a semi-retired dog Taxi, which has almost 350,000 miles on the original engine and transmission. It's been very very reliable and durable and has never failed to start and it's only left me stranded twice in 20 years. Once from a bad cell in a replacement battery and once when the fuel pump died at 275,000 miles.
Here in the UK we didn’t get the 3.0 V6, only the 2.5 - I’d love to try a U.S. spec car! Was it 24v too?
they had timing belt problems here too, one of mine snapped when it was still pretty new, so they rebuilt the engine under warranty.
@exgtt2061 It still surprises a lot of people with how quick it is.
The V6 was only available with an automatic and it is kind of slow for the first hundred feet but once the revs build up it will move.
It is still accelerating when it hits its governed top speed of 122 mph
My 2000 Sri is just as nice as that. With 48,000 miles it’s had an easy life. But even so they are a nice car to drive very pleased with the build quality on mine and the actual enjoyment of driving it
You still see more early Vectra's on the road than early Mondeo's! I've had both in my day and preferred the Veccy in every way!
He was very lucky finding that and the Cavalier. Two real beauties there for small money 👌🏻
Yes i was lucky, both are 1.8gls that no one really wants, which helps
Only experience of vectra was a 2.0 gls, belonged to brother in law when it was still fairly new on an R plate, lovely lovely car.
I had one of the first MK3 Cavaliers…then I saw a Vectra in this colour blue and fell in love.. I popped into our local dealer to find out what the colour was called and there it stood, a P reg… I bought it on site. It was an absolute disaster with a dash that was always illuminated with one fault or another and I think it bankrupted the Network Q warranty but I didn’t care. I had an Irmsher spoiler and exhaust put on and at 22 I thought I was the mutts nuts! It had a pretty significant smack thanks to a dopey hgv driver and never seemed the same after it was repaired… after it started leaking oil from every orifice I decided to get shot. I last saw it being used as a taxi! Loved that colour.
Most the early Vectra's were brought by fleet and used by Rep's, after 3 years many ended up as Taxi's/Mini-Cabs. I got to know a Cab driver who brought one of these from new. He made last to seven hundred thousand miles before he traded it in for a new Vectra C
Had the 1.8 l Estate with automatic, A/C, cruise control and all the bells and whistles. Loved it to bits and drove it until at 300,000 km (188,000 miles) it was quite literally run down. Had an Astra and a Mokka after that. Never as happy as with the Vectra.
I also remember the drama they had with the timing belt idlers letting go all the time ! Still think they were good cars ! I had a y reg vectra sri and loved it Dougie 👍
My 4th car, and first non Mk2 Astra was a 1995 Vectra B 1.8 16v GLS hatch in Satin Red - N237 CMP. It came with those wheels but I had Cavalier turbine alloys fitted and it looked fantastic. One of the best cars I've ever owned. The one I had was a very tired one by the time I got it in 2001 having 150k. For a 21 year old, it was fantastic - cheaper to insure than my Mk2 Astra 1.8 CDi - F54 NSR and more expensive than the 1998 Rover 825 Sterling I got as a second car... Ultimately, it lasted 2 years with me until it hit 180k, the driver's seat collapsed and the manifold had started blowing and the bolts had snapped. It sounded like a tractor at 30mph... Replaced it with' a 1999 Mk4 Astra 1.4 16v LS 3dr (better than my Dad's then brand new 2003 Focus 1.6 16v LX 5dr both to drive and ride I felt - and a much better built interior with an amazing stereo. Both things Ford has struggled with even until recently - my partner's 2016 C-Max is on it's 3rd Sync unit!).
That Astra was the last Vauxhall I owned until 2006 when I replaced my 1992 Citroen BX 19TXD (the only car I regret getting rid of) with a 2001 Opel Vectra 2.0 DTi CDX estate - X302 WNN. Unfortunately, that wasn't as reliable as my first Vectra oddly enough with my local Vauxhall garage, Curtis Kirkcaldy saying that Opel were worse than Vauxhall for their build quality as some of the parts were different. Especially the Xenon bulbs and controllers (dunno how true that was - did you notice that when you fixed your CDX?). Alas, the Vectra C turned me off Vauxhall after that and I haven't had one since. I ended up going to the blue oval. I have had a string of Mondeos since and I have found they had poorer interior quality and a much worse speaker system than either Vectra and my Mk4 Titanium X just matches the number of speakers! I will say that the Mondeo Mk3 and Mk4 are more involving to drive than the Vectra B but I never once felt it was as bad as it was made out to be. I remember that Top Gear episode with Jezza and that stupid sponge on his head complaining about the ride. Never did agree with him on that nor him also singling out it's performance in the wet as being bad. Again not something I ever noticed. I will say that it was more comfortable than a Mondeo Mk3 long distance - I once drove from Helmsdale to Blackpool in the CDX and I was fine when I arrived. I drove from Edinburgh to London in a 2005 Mk3 Mondeo Ghia X and I was a bit tired and achy by the time I reached Wembley.
Making me feel old now Dougie! Excellent video and a nostalgic trip down memory lane! I miss my Vauxhalls - I would love to find a Belmont CDi... But I fear those are all gone now :(.
You're doing God's work with these videos. Takes me back every time, keep it up 👍
My brother-in-law had a 'N' reg 1.8 16v LS in the same colour as this car that had the timing belt tensioner failure and the engine damaged. It was outside warranty but only main delaer service so Vauxhall pretty much paid for all of the repairs. A friend of mine has Vauxhall Supertouring 2.5 V6 hatch from 1998 with less than 10k on the clock. He doesn't use it but is happy to leave it to be a future classic.
A work collleague bought an N reg 2.0 when it was only about 12 months old. It looked lovely. Another great video Dougie.
Quite fast, sub 8 second to 60.
Had one of these P291TRF until it failed it’s mot in 2015. Done over 100000 miles in it fantastic car.
Currently fixing my Grandmothers Holden Astra manual 1.6l City for our Eldest.
Passed roadworthy (MOT) last week, need to change the timing belt as it is 1/2 as wide (could be the original- 168xxx Km's), radiator decided to split the tank last week too.
Its different going from a 450rwkw XR6T Falcon to driving the 74kw Astra (probably less than 74kw now!)
I had 2 N Reg GLS Vectras both excellent car's N856JNM & N549GPX without a doubt the 2 most reliable cars I've ever owned!
Added both to my list
the first one died in 2014 with 297678 miles on the clock!!! and the second with 211541 in 2008
@@The_Car_Stalker both had the 1.7td Isuzu unit
These cars were bought in their hundreds by my Employer at the time, and we lucky chaps got to drive them to very high mileages which they took willingly. They revolutionised the company car, and blew the competition out of the water. They were fast, economical and comfortable 👍🇬🇧😎
R792FNK that was my late dads Vectra 2litre reg number it got to around 140 thousand before the gearbox failed , my late dads fault as he had a tendency to drive a car into the ground but it was a great car 140mph top speed on the M40 4 disc brakes , really good comfy ride and good fuel economy , sadly nowadays you have 2 choices either a small 1.2 petrol car or an EV not good take me back to the late 90s !!!
Reported to the police
I've had quite a few Vectra B's. The driving position sucks, far too high. The steering on the early cars is awful, feels like the column's made of rubber. But things got better, and post facelift cars are actually quite fun to drive. The engines are all good, I even like the 1.7 and Di.
I had one of these 2.0 GLSi on 1997 when it was still a pretty new / current car , it was a nice enough car although it didn’t quite give the same feel as the mk3 cavalier did had previous to the Vectra, I think clarkeson was unduly mean and unfair to Vauxhall’s cars.
I love these videos. I had an H reg 1.8 GL Auto Cav, and S ref 1.6 16v LS Auto Vectra, both of which I actually owned. Plus lots of company Cavs and Vectras I had over the years. Correct about the size, to see one now they look so small, when they were considered big then, although they actually fitted into average garages which many cars do no nowadays.
Take me back , fond memories of my R reg 1.8 , W reg 2.0 Sri and 02 2.2 dti cdx 👍🏴
You could chirp the wheels in second in those 1.8 16v.
My dad had one brand new a 96 P reg LS, very refined and smooth, but seats filled with concrete they were so firm lol.
Great nostalgic video 👌
Yes, the seats are not the best, especially when you are a big lump that has to squeeze in to most cars anyway
Very underrated car the vectra B I always quite liked them and always fancied a v6
Amazing vid!! Nostalgic feelings coming up 🙏
I know a bloke who had an N reg 2.0L for many years. When he finally scrapped it due to corrosion it had done over 600k miles. One hell of a car.
Thanks for the great video and top marks to Alan for his efforts.
Great video Scottie, on a very nice 1990's Vauxhall car. Had an Astra J didn't get on with it, now drive an Astra K, love it.
Another great vid. I can echo the "driving in London" sentiments. Was down visiting my brother in the Squishsquosh last month (ULEZ exempt woo). Car monstered it, but roads and other drivers - yuck. My brother calls his cat bob too :D
My only Vectra driving experience was a 2007 Vec C 150 CDTI auto motability got me as a hire car, when my Corsa 1.4 decided to gearbox mayo itself in Glenrothes. Had the Vevctra about 6 weeks, fantastic machine, convinced me I had to change the Corsa as it was "no longer meeting my needs" - got it back to Glasgow eventually but problem reoccured, so I never saw it again and was on a hire car until the first of my Astra's was ready.
My dad had years ago has a taxi never let him down
Another great video has always Dougie 👍
These have always been one of my favourite cars. They were everywhere (especially in the gold colour) but seemed to disappear overnight in 2010. I’ve seen about 3 early pre facelift ones since then.
scrappage scheme mate, it killed everything very quickly.
That gold-ish grey was the iconic Vectra B colour. Olive Grey I believe it was called?
I had a N reg 1.7td gls vectra that was probably a early one had the electric sunroof and the old 1.7 diesel carried for from the cavalier which the soon changed the next year I believe it was ultra reliable 👍
do you know the reg?
@@The_Car_Stalker may have a old photo the one I have is outside my house on a snowy day sadly can’t see the reg
Beautiful car - had one when I worked for Carpetworld back in the late 90s. Prone to crankshaft shell failure and really needed semi-synth every 3k to keep her purring. They disappeared just over 10 yrs ago as that's when GMs built-in obsolence kicked in. Traded mine for a Probe but that's another story 😅!
Great review Dougie, I enjoyed hearing about the history of this prominent model in Vauxhalls range from the 90’s.
This one is a beautiful example, as is the Cavalier also featured in this video❤.
Great video Dougie very interesting bits of information about the vectra and the cavalier keep the good work up 👍 👍👍
My uncle bought a brand-new Vectra in early 1997, a gold 1.6LS with a few cheap options- P767ARN. It got passed around the family a lot and stayed with us for 24 and a half years, doing about 130k miles with almost no fundamentals ever going wrong- rust killed it in the end. I wasn't a fan of how it drove but really it was a brilliant car and I'm pretty sure I haven't seen an early Vectra B since
A enjoyable video Dougie, really starting to appreciate this generation of Vectra, i much prefer it to the vectra C.
I had the 1.7LS TD in the same colour on a N reg. Best car i had.
The Vectra is certainly not a bad car, but I do remember a lot of company car owners wanting to keep their Mk3 cavaliers instead of changing. The Mk3 was so good that it was a hard act to follow.
I could never get on with the driving position. It almost feels like you're sitting on top of the dashboard.
My first and last Vauxhall was an N registered Vectra. A 1.8 petrol just like this one.
The thing was horrifically unreliable and I swore back then (I purchased it at 3 years old) that I'd never ever buy another Vauxhall again.
I'm proud to say that I've stuck to my word and a Vauxhall car has never darkened my driveway ever again.
However. By brother on the other hand swears by them and says he's never owned a bad Vauxhall. 🤷♂️
Still..... thank you for the trip down memory lane 👍
Great videos and keep up the good work .
Your more than welcome to come and have a drive of my x reg vectra sri 140 genuine 60k car
Has a s reg Sri 140 in metallic red was immaculate they were a good looking car I thought
Ah velour seats my personal favourite, they don't seem to make them like that now unfortunately
Had one of these in 1999 on an N plate, it was a GLS and when I brought it as an ex company car it had covered 99000 miles.
Do you know the reg?
@@The_Car_Stalker
Nice video Dougie I really enjoyed that one @The_Car_Stalker you presented yourself in this really nicely I thought well done gents!!!
Nice to see low mileage n reg vectra still kicking about
Good information at start as well Dougie
This was supposed to go online at 6pm I missed the premiere. Oops 😂
I briefly had a 2.2 150 sri saloon on a Y reg and wished i had kept it even though the road tax was brutal 🙄😂
I had a company 1.8gls Vectra on a P reg in red. Not as good as my previous Cav 2.0 gls which was a flying machine!. The Vectra was uncomfortable, dull as ditch water to drive, and the headlights were as bright as a birthday cake candle! I did 80K in 2 years in it and then it was due to be changed. Ordered the same again. This one S reg, Vauxhall sold it with added alloys and aircon, but to compensate for that removed the centre arm rest, thinner carpets, cheaper seats, lower grade radio etc. Oh and an ec unit which had a mind of its own like cutting cut on roundabouts and revving its head off at traffic lights! When it went back they complained about all the boot marks on the drivers door where I had booted it every time I got out of it!!
I've always liked the Mk1 and MK11 Cavaliers but never warmed to the Vectra, I've driven quite a few of all of them. I had a 05 Astra 1.8 for a week from work and the fuel consumption on that was shocking.
So much negativity about these Vectras, I enjoyed mine, 50,000 trouble free miles, up hills and down dales. Comfy on our trips to Cornwall from Home Counties
Nice car, lucky lad.
I like Alan, he says "standard" not "stock"
I had the exact spec car brand new in 1996.
Ended up having five gearboxes 😂
Hi dougie, great video on the vectra! A mate of mines dad has an N reg vectra LS 1.8 16v in metallic green with 28k on it i believe, can't be many left! He also has an R reg corse diesel van and a vx4/90!
do you know the reg of the n plate vectra?
yeah its N255NAP, and it actually has 37k miles, still low though@@The_Car_Stalker
Thanks mate - yes that is low, but no MOT since 2008. Still it all helps with tracking down N reg's @@timewellnick
yeah he doesn't drive it, he runs it every few weeks around his yard, its never had any paint and is absolutely immaculate@@The_Car_Stalker
My old chap had a 1.8gls on an early n plate, binned it within months for the 2litre and then a year later went for the V6. Was easy to see the quality improvements across the 3 cars.
I have a chance of a nice early GLS 2 litre in red ..mint condition I'm thinking of turning it into gsi preface with Courtney tuned 3.0 V6 .and gsi kit from a rotten Gsi .would it ruin the car always wanted red preface gsi there rare now long gone
what year is the gls? yes it would ruin it in my opinion - they are so many of these that are red topped. or lowered or blinged up and if thats your thing then fine its your car. But the early ones are so rare now i love them as stock as possible
The problem with the Cav 1.8 was the single point injection.
Another excellent video Doug. 😃 Did you spot the Tigra next to your Cadillac in the car park? 🙂
A very nice car, and a sad reminder of when people bought proper cars, instead of crap suvs/crossovers or "premium" german rubbish. 🙁
Yes the Tigra was also there for a video 😁
@@OnceDrivenForeverSmitten I must admit, I did wonder that, lol! If you're given the opportunities, are you going to do videos on 1970s-mid 80s Vauxhall's, out of interest? 🙂
the 1.8L 113HP models were no slouch 😉
I'm putting it's saloon twin back on the road
Would be good to get a photo once she is ready
@@The_Car_Stalker I'd I sert a pic here if I knew how to
I Know someone with a T plate facelift sri 130 with 17k on the clock, sat rotting away 😢
do you know the reg? is it beyound saving?
I think you were unnecessarily kind to Jeremy Clarkson. He killed the Vectra at birth and I am willing to bet that he had a decent payday from Ford. Don't forget he had an escort cosworth as a long term car in the early 90's
My neighbour had a diesel. N604 AUY
Already looking forward to another ODFS vid.
Hows the respray coming along on the Diplomat?
We had a 1.8LS Automatic on a 99/Twhich was bloody hateful to drive (especially in the cold the gearbox hated letting go of gears!) but the 2.5 SRI V6 manual (97/R) we had was a different beast altogether - much better car in every single way. Interior was nicer, body kit it had on made it look beefier and of course the V6 engine with its awesome noise and bags of torque. I'd have one now.
I had a 1.6 16 valve Auto on S plate, was remarkably quick for the size of engine. indeed passengers with supposedly faster exec cars often commented on how quick it was. but yea I think the 1.8 was worse.
Alternative new catchphrase ? - get out of the car Bob
Sadly Vauxhall is dead - thanks to so many marques they are just a badge engineering exercise as a result of buy outs etc - I mean Ford just going to EV's and so on - car design is dead - just look at all the white vans on the road - they are all the same van with a different grille
identical clone of my mums old one, p361umr i think
I have a 97 Daewoo Espero
Cool. Is it on the road? Drop us an email if you like 👍😁
@@OnceDrivenForeverSmitten it's been off the road since around 2008. I believe if I remember correctly an R reg. I inherited from my grandad.
Ironically, I actually parked up in Lakeside last night for my overnight rest. Just along the road from Evri. I never knew about the burger bus
@@stevecampbell7589 the burgerbus is the only thing of note in thurrock! Try a belly buster......
Had a vectra 2.0 GLS hatch then had a 1.8 arctic saloon. But the cavalier 2.0 GLi I saloon i had was far the better car.
Really? I love both, but my vectra is so much nicer cruiser than the cavalier - more powerful, quieter, smoother, more responsive.
have you reviewed a Carlton (Rekord E or Omega A) and an Omega?
Was this filmed near Chelmsford?
Thurrock
Only £500 for a cavalier is a great deal
and about 2k spent getting her up to spec - new tyres, timing belt, head gasket and other bits and pieces. the £500 headline figure is what i tell the wife.......
When we going to see gsi on channel
Vauxhall vectra A Opel vectra B
When you uploading the NC500 Video?
Love this guys content follow it love his vids... But why butter up a ancient vectra b, ive got a 1.6 astra g and itl beat all of them, and no knocks or bangs... Wud like to see this guy cover the astra h-g models just my view
Mondeo Mk1 to Mk2 was superior by miles!
The Vectra is nothing more than a facelifted Cavalier like when the Morris Marina and Austin Princess became Ital and Ambassador.
The vectra's were terrible then & most definitely terrible now
b3llend
@The_Car_Stalker yes you are lol
1.8s were they had chocolate gearbox's
I had a 2.2 SRi 150. Failed every single MOT miserbly costing over £400 everytime. Chain snapped twice. Rose bushes and trailing arms always needed changing. Went through tyres like nobody's business. Worse car I have even owned. Finally died when it could no longer pass MOT on emotions and water pump went on it. Good riddance.
Terrible car I had to change the exhaust at 4 years and 80000 miles . Got a Passat it lasted for over 20 years
@@emmanueladeyosoye3607 Same, after this I got a B5.5 Passat and it lasted years with no issues.
Dullest car i ever owned!
boring then boring now.
The talking bit at the beginning is like your reading a script.not good but everything else is fantastic 👍🚙
I've sent u a message on fb and Instagram I have a corsa b issue and after ur advise 😊