Second Drive
Last night under the toxic influence of single malt, Rudra gave me the keys to his Bling Machine. Mentally, slipping on my five gold rings, the shiny shirt , hip hop denims, coolers etc, I took the wheel.
Getting my driving position was easy, a bit like the Opel Vectra that I used to use a a pool car. Noticed the gear lever had long throws but shift like the Opel Vectra. Took about 10 shifts to acclimatize, I did crunch em during a second to third quick shift. Took it upto 80 - very stable but low speed bumps are apparent due to the wide wheels.
Engine - smooth - not one to be gunned but it has good torque and one does not have to focus on what gear one is in, the torque looks after this. I found myself mainly in third when I could have been in fourth -vtec habit.
Steering - reasonable accuracy not as eager as the Honda. Cornering is predictable. Was not able to judge high speed cornering as I was under the influence of some friends from Scotland so had no room for error.
Only demerit are the headlights which are pathetic on mainbeam.
So - what is this car - is it a Korean cast off ? Nope! why is it good value ? Answer is in the text - read Vectra - it uses Vectra components of the last generation ago - they may not be the latest in technology but they are proven and you get the benefit of amortised costs. It is an optimised product and european in nature.
I would not eliminate this car from my shortlist (I did one year ago due to Daewoo snobbery!). They say the 1.6 has a sweeter engine - may look at a 1.6 and tune it up. Would I buy this over a Corolla - possibly - Corolla looks as if costs have been cut except for the engine. Would I choose this over a new Honda City - in all three options - the desitination is the same, it is how you get there. Well in my mind, it is like the watch that one chooses to wear
Optra- reliable components in an attractive package at a reasonable price
Corolla -Perceived image - good basic mechanicals in a bland package
Honda City - High Image, up to date technology fair but not excessive premium
Now look at watches
- Titan, Seiko or Tissot respectively - all decent brands doing the same thing with a different package.
As for me, I used to have Tissot but now have an Omega - shame that my car does not match up to it.
So thats it, this "Daewoo" ain't a dog, it is the Vectra at an Astra price |