Vauxhall a British car maker since 1903!

[ProfJohnL]

Who do Vauxhall think they are trying to fool?

Their most recent advertising campaign uses the slogan "British car maker since 1903"!

Well yes they were British in 1903, and remained so until 1925, when General motors swallowed them up and in a not very well publicised move in 2017 they slyly shovelled off to french ownership under PSA.

I cant help but feel this is a retrograde step. Whilst Vauxhaul and Opel Cars may not have been the market leaders, they did have some good models which were liked by caravanners.

I suspect we can look forward to Vauxhall, Opel models becoming re-branded versions of Peugeot, and Citroen cars with their inherent poorer quality, and less favourable power and weight for towing.

 

[otherclive]

Who do Vauxhall think they are trying to fool?

Their most recent advertising campaign uses the slogan "British car maker since 1903"!

Well yes they were British in 1903, and remained so until 1925, when General motors swallowed them up and in a not very well publicised move in 2017 they slyly shovelled off to french ownership under PSA.

I cant help but feel this is a retrograde step. Whilst Vauxhaul and Opel Cars may not have been the market leaders, they did have some good models which were liked by caravanners.

I suspect we can look forward to Vauxhall, Opel models becoming re-branded versions of Peugeot, and Citroen cars with their inherent poorer quality, and less favourable power and weight for towing.

Prof

Whilst Vauxhall has produced some good tow cars, but so have Peugeot and Citroen. Even now some PSA models are well regarded. As far as your comments re PSA being poor quality could you state your sources which show brand and model reliability as yours is a common held view wrt French cars but which might be outdated.
Wrt Vauxhall I’ve posted today the news that they are being subject to a criminal prosecution over the long standing safety problem of Zafira fires. Can’t recall any similar poor performance from French makers as from two German producers. Viz BMW and GM Vauxhall/Opel

 

[Dustydog]

Retrograde step :dry: hmy:
Since 1998 Peugeot, Citroen have been working in a joint venture with Ford on Diesel engines.
Prior to 2005 I had four French company cars. All ran over 100k miles and never missed a beat.
Whilst my two Vauxhall’s were also very good it is clear they went downhill once the Vectra replaced the Mk 2 cavalier. Their earlier Diesel engines came from Isuzu.
So who did get it wrong :kiss:

 

[Lutz]

Actually, they haven't even been a British designed and engineered car since about 1980. After that they have only been rebadged Opels (with exception of the VXR8 which was a Holden)

 

[ProfJohnL]

Hello Clive and Dusty

No I can't show you detail you ask for, however I have had or my family have had a number of different makes of vehicle including PSA and Renault. In fact I still have W registered Renault Espace which makes a fine tow car , but it has not been especially reliable, with things like gear shift cables failing, cabin radiator leaking, Central door locking failing, Glow plugs failing, throttle linkage seizing, door seals failing, Door hinges dropping, water leaks through window seals, courtesy lights, and so on, and its only done 85K miles!. But I keep it as it does tow well, and despite being a MPV, it actually drives quite nicely, and being galvanised and plastic, Its not rotting away.

My daughter had a 106, which was constantly breaking down. It also had very thin metal panesl, lean on them and you bend the car.

The owner of the independent garage I use (who is not brand related) has an acronym based on the leading letters of Citroen Renault And Peugeot. A friend who worked for a Vauxhall garage, but almost as soon as PSA took over he told me of a raft of cost cutting policies, and impending changes to vehicle specs, which in his view were detrimental to the vehicles. He has since got a position with a Mercedes dealer.

Obviously experiences can vary from car to car, but compared to other makes, I have had the French models were less reliable, and especially the electrics seem much more prone to failures.

Other makes I have owned have been Vauxhall Opel, Saab VW, but through work and clientele the same pattern was displayed.

I have no doubt that some PSA cars may well have good towing credentials, but that does not necessarily make them equally reliable or durable as other makes.

I fully expect that some people will have had better experiences.

 

[otherclive]

Hello Clive and Dusty

No I can't show you detail you ask for, however I have had or my family have had a number of different makes of vehicle including PSA and Renault. In fact I still have W registered Renault Espace which makes a fine tow car , but it has not been especially reliable, with things like gear shift cables failing, cabin radiator leaking, Central door locking failing, Glow plugs failing, throttle linkage seizing, door seals failing, Door hinges dropping, water leaks through window seals, courtesy lights, and so on, and its only done 85K miles!. But I keep it as it does tow well, and despite being a MPV, it actually drives quite nicely, and being galvanised and plastic, Its not rotting away.

My daughter had a 106, which was constantly breaking down. It also had very thin metal panesl, lean on them and you bend the car.

The owner of the independent garage I use (who is not brand related) has an acronym based on the leading letters of Citroen Renault And Peugeot. A friend who worked for a Vauxhall garage, but almost as soon as PSA took over he told me of a raft of cost cutting policies, and impending changes to vehicle specs, which in his view were detrimental to the vehicles. He has since got a position with a Mercedes dealer.

Obviously experiences can vary from car to car, but compared to other makes, I have had the French models were less reliable, and especially the electrics seem much more prone to failures.

Other makes I have owned have been Vauxhall Opel, Saab VW, but through work and clientele the same pattern was displayed.

I have no doubt that some PSA cars may well have good towing credentials, but that does not necessarily make them equally reliable or durable as other makes.

I fully expect that some people will have had better experiences.

I won’t try and counter your examples as we, friends and neighbours have had good experiences with French cars. However I would say that the examples you give aren’t exactly current. The British cars of that era weren’t exactly wonderful that’s why Japan took over the world. My current Skoda bears no relation to my first one, a Estelle 105 LS but I still get the typical Skoda jibes mainly from those who can recall the 1970-80 motors.

 

[Dustydog]

Hello Clive and Dusty

No I can't show you detail you ask for, however I have had or my family have had a number of different makes of vehicle including PSA and Renault. In fact I still have W registered Renault Espace which makes a fine tow car , but it has not been especially reliable, with things like gear shift cables failing, cabin radiator leaking, Central door locking failing, Glow plugs failing, throttle linkage seizing, door seals failing, Door hinges dropping, water leaks through window seals, courtesy lights, and so on, and its only done 85K miles!. But I keep it as it does tow well, and despite being a MPV, it actually drives quite nicely, and being galvanised and plastic, Its not rotting away.

My daughter had a 106, which was constantly breaking down. It also had very thin metal panesl, lean on them and you bend the car.

The owner of the independent garage I use (who is not brand related) has an acronym based on the leading letters of Citroen Renault And Peugeot. A friend who worked for a Vauxhall garage, but almost as soon as PSA took over he told me of a raft of cost cutting policies, and impending changes to vehicle specs, which in his view were detrimental to the vehicles. He has since got a position with a Mercedes dealer.

Obviously experiences can vary from car to car, but compared to other makes, I have had the French models were less reliable, and especially the electrics seem much more prone to failures.

Other makes I have owned have been Vauxhall Opel, Saab VW, but through work and clientele the same pattern was displayed.

I have no doubt that some PSA cars may well have good towing credentials, but that does not necessarily make them equally reliable or durable as other makes.

I fully expect that some people will have had better experiences.

I won’t try and counter your examples as we, friends and neighbours have had good experiences with French cars. However I would say that the examples you give aren’t exactly current. The British cars of that era weren’t exactly wonderful that’s why Japan took over the world. My current Skoda bears no relation to my first one, a Estelle 105 LS but I still get the typical Skoda jibes mainly from those who can recall the 1970-80 motors.

Aha Clive B)
Why do Skodas have heated rear Windows? To keep your hands warm whilst pushing
In the event of noisy engines increase radio volume
How do you double the value of a Skoda? Fill,it with fuel

 

[Lutz]

Over the last 50 years I have owned 22 Vauxhalls/Opels and driven a good many more as company cars. None have let me down and only a handful ever went back to a dealer for anything other than a regular service. Even the few that did go back to the dealer normally did so more on the grounds of a recall than for a repair.

I only drive a BMW now, and the Lexus before that, because there is no Vauxhall/Opel heavy enough to pull my 1800kg caravan.

 

[otherclive]

Hello Clive and Dusty

No I can't show you detail you ask for, however I have had or my family have had a number of different makes of vehicle including PSA and Renault. In fact I still have W registered Renault Espace which makes a fine tow car , but it has not been especially reliable, with things like gear shift cables failing, cabin radiator leaking, Central door locking failing, Glow plugs failing, throttle linkage seizing, door seals failing, Door hinges dropping, water leaks through window seals, courtesy lights, and so on, and its only done 85K miles!. But I keep it as it does tow well, and despite being a MPV, it actually drives quite nicely, and being galvanised and plastic, Its not rotting away.

My daughter had a 106, which was constantly breaking down. It also had very thin metal panesl, lean on them and you bend the car.

The owner of the independent garage I use (who is not brand related) has an acronym based on the leading letters of Citroen Renault And Peugeot. A friend who worked for a Vauxhall garage, but almost as soon as PSA took over he told me of a raft of cost cutting policies, and impending changes to vehicle specs, which in his view were detrimental to the vehicles. He has since got a position with a Mercedes dealer.

Obviously experiences can vary from car to car, but compared to other makes, I have had the French models were less reliable, and especially the electrics seem much more prone to failures.

Other makes I have owned have been Vauxhall Opel, Saab VW, but through work and clientele the same pattern was displayed.

I have no doubt that some PSA cars may well have good towing credentials, but that does not necessarily make them equally reliable or durable as other makes.

I fully expect that some people will have had better experiences.

I won’t try and counter your examples as we, friends and neighbours have had good experiences with French cars. However I would say that the examples you give aren’t exactly current. The British cars of that era weren’t exactly wonderful that’s why Japan took over the world. My current Skoda bears no relation to my first one, a Estelle 105 LS but I still get the typical Skoda jibes mainly from those who can recall the 1970-80 motors.

Aha Clive B)
Why do Skodas have heated rear Windows? To keep your hands warm whilst pushing
In the event of noisy engines increase radio volume
How do you double the value of a Skoda? Fill,it with fuel

Heard them b4. Even when I had a Volvo 245 Estate (built in Belgium) which was a heap I wore a Barbour and Hunter wellies. The normal pun was “What’s the difference between a Volvo and a cow”. I won’t finish it as the Moderator will ban me. But suffice to say I sold the Volvo for cash to a dealer and with a big sigh of relief got a Citroen BX 16 Estate. It did sterling service, moved on to be our second car and then sold it to our next door neighbour.

 

[Dustydog]

Hedge hopping a bit.
The best tugs / cars for me.
Austin 1800. Land Crab.
Renault 16 TX
Renault 20 T'S
Vauxhall Omega 2.5
Vauxhall Cavalier 2.00 SRI
since then boring 4x4s

 

[Dodger524]

The only Vauxhall I ever had the misfortune to own was a Viva. Nominally white but it used to turn brown in damp weather. French cars owned or driven six without a hint of trouble, one for 240,000 miles.

 

[Craigyoung]

I had this Vauxhall Corsa limited edition car from 2oo1 (51plate) up un till 2o13 and it did not give me any problems at all up until the last 12 months of having it which is then when I got rid of it but to this day now I still see it running around , not looking as good as how i kept it though .

 

[Hutch]

Hedge hopping a bit.
The best tugs / cars for me.
Austin 1800. Land Crab.
Renault 16 TX
Renault 20 T'S
Vauxhall Omega 2.5
Vauxhall Cavalier 2.00 SRI
since then boring 4x4s

Rover 3.5 liter coupe.
Vectra Mk1 2.0 diesel
Vectra, Mk 2 2.2 litre,
Vectra Mk 2 facelift 3.0 V6 diesel.
Hyundai 2.2 Santa Fe.
And a Great New Holland 2.5 4x4 Tractor . That would pull almost anything. But slowly.

 

[colin-yorkshire]

I think Vauxhall make dam good cars no matter who actually owns them. had several over years and not had a bad one. the last being the Meriva probably the best one. although 12years old [until being wrote off] it was 100% reliable covered 120k without issue. didn't have a single spot of rust anywhere on it and passed every MOT since new without even an advisory.
it's replacement. "best I could get with the payout" the Citroen Picasso is well different it's not as well built does no where near the same MPG and feels a lot bigger than it is, and according to the service record has failed most of it's MOT's since being 4yo last one cost me an arm and half leg to get through including some welding. it's only 8yo and covered under 80k.
although the air con and cruise control are nice.
although similar being a MPV. 5.door. same sized diesel engine. with similar weight and towing capacity the comparison is like chalk and cheese. the Vaxhaul wins hands down. IMHO if the new owners stop producing cars like they were and just make rebadged french models there won't be a like vauxhall anymore.

 

[Martin24]

I'm sure they only say that they have been a British brand for that length of time and don't mention being a British car maker.

Perfectly happy with the 1999 Vectra 2.0 CDX and the 2001 2.5 Omega Estate CDX that followed it. Lady Therapy loves her little 1.2 2016 Corsa. The friend that bought the Omega from me, only sold it last year.

 

[Craigyoung]

My friend used to have the Vauxhall Omegas and Senitors back in the days, they were like luxury back then ! Grat cars .

 

[ProfJohnL]

I think Vauxhall make dam good cars no matter who actually owns them.

Hello Colin,
Historically I'd tend to agree with you, probably on a par with Ford, and in most respects better than Austin Morris /Leyland mass produced cars, but my concern is raised for its future under PSA ownership. I can't see GM allowing PSA to tap into GM's parts bins for new models, nor will they be allowed access to GM's proprietary technology. That's the reason that Saab was closed rather than sold to the Chinese.
Ironically GM have just posted an 800M Dollar profit for the first time in many years, was this the price of GM Europe?

 

[Lutz]

While Vauxhall/Opel are winding up their engineering obligations to GM, centres of competence are being established with PSA. These will have engineering and development responsibility across the board for the whole organisation. The first ones are already defined, with PSA responsible for engine design and development and Vauxhall/Opel for fuel systems, most of the electronics, seats, chassis set-up, manual transmissions, etc. This will involve quite considerable changes at PSA, too, as they start using components out of the Vauxhall/Opel bin.