VXRonline.co.uk
16th December 2005, 04:36 PM
www.channel4.com/4cars
Date: 2005
By: Gavin Conway
The Targa Florio
Two of the most overused words in marketing-speak have - as we always knew they would - found their way into the Vauxhall script. You really are nowhere today if you can't describe your company's warmer offerings as being imbued with "emotion" and "passion".
So to launch the latest VXR models, Vauxhall brought us to Sicily and the Targa Florio - which is a very emotional place, with loads of passion in it, too.
The Targa Florio, for those of you not steeped in motorsport's grand history, was a race held over some of the most challenging switchback roads in a setting of almost oppressive romance and beauty. It started back in 1906 and ran till 1977, when fatalities among drivers and spectators brought the whole, glorious spectacle to a halt.
The VXR range - passion, emotion, performance, the whole nine yards - was created in order that each Vauxhall model range could benefit from a "halo" model. That is, a high performance version of what might otherwise be viewed as rental-car fodder or the company car you have to put up with until you make 5-Series rank.
Oiky Tailpipes
So by the end of next year, the only Vauxhall that won't have a VXR model will be the Tigra (it's not quite the right sort of thing for VXR treatment, apparently). Even the miniscule Meriva will have a fire-breathing VXR derivative, which will probably make it the funniest one of the lot, currently a position occupied by the totally bonkers Zafira VXR - more on that in a later edition of 4Car.
But first, the Vectra VXR, which can be specified in five-door hatch or estate guise. From the front, you get bad-guy graphics with a deep, deep airdam, foglights and mesh-alike grille. Side on, you get the ground-hugging stance courtesy of a lower ride height and body-coloured sills. But it's when you go round back that things get seriously amusing.
If I was 12 years old again, this is exactly what I'd do to a Vectra. I'd cut two big chunks out of the bumper to allow for two quite large exhaust pipes. Then I'd make them stick out a bit so that following cars couldn't ever possibly mistake my Vectra for anything other than the snortiest one on offer. Most of the assembled journos took a public line, to whit "Now that's just silly". But - and this is a bit like not admitting to a certain fondness for (some of) Phil Collins efforts - I did take quite a shine to the Vectra's oiky tailpipe treatment.
Butt-hugging seats
Inside, you'll be greeted by the most absurdly butt-hugging seats I've ever encountered in a car not FIA-approved. No, really, these bucket seats totally live up to the name. Initially, it feels like you just sat backwards into a large-ish bucket. Once settled, though, they're quite comfortable and the lateral support they offer is just terrific.
Which is good, because this is the most powerful Vectra ever to smoke a front tyre. The turbocharged V6 pumps out 250bhp at 5,500rpm, and 262lb ft of torque between 1,800 and 4,500rpm. There's a standard-fit six-speed gearbox, which we found a bit vague and too easy to baulk, especially going from third to second gear - which you do an awful lot of on the Targa Florio.
Initially, this car didn't feel nearly as swift as the numbers would suggest, they being 0-62mph in 6.5secs and a top whack of 161mph.
Not long into our drive, though, we got a "check engine" light, followed by a "service engine" light, followed by a damper icon with an exclamation mark beside it, followed by a traction control icon that was similarly surprised. Rebooting the engine didn't help, so we went to ask Vauxhall for another Vectra. We got a car they'd been using as a very swift camera-crew taxi for the last couple of weeks over the Targa Florio.
We were informed that this particular car had been absolutely caned as well as being "yumped" for the cameras. Also, one bright spark had attempted to move off on a hill in third gear, only giving up the game when his view forward became obscured by clutch smoke. And the blackened alloys testified to the fact that the brakes hadn't gotten off lightly, either.
Covering ground swiftly
This treatment must be the best way to break a car in, then, because the gear shift was smooth and unbaulked and the engine sweet as a nut. Acceleration in the higher reaches was remarkable, too, particularly beyond 80mph in fourth gear. Torque steer is well controlled, too, but not entirely eliminated. But then, that's a big ask for a 250bhp front-driver.
The other surprise is just how refined this 2.8-litre V6 is: it sounds quite woofly under part throttle, too.
The Targa Florio offers some of the most rewarding roads I've ever encountered, the sort that make you want to go a bit faster, a bit longer. But after a good 30-minute workout in the Vectra, I felt that I had merely covered ground swiftly. This car just isn't as involving as you'd like, from the slightly inert steering to the grip-and-push front end dynamics. A Subaru Impreza WRX, for example, would leave you buzzing for hours after such a run.
At £23,995, this is one expensive Vectra, too. A lot more than the aforementioned Subaru, for example, and more even than prestige numbers like the Audi A4 2.0 Turbo. Sure, it's considerably more powerful than the obvious competitors, but it doesn't do anything terribly inspiring with that power.
Love those tailpipes, though.
Date: 2005
By: Gavin Conway
The Targa Florio
Two of the most overused words in marketing-speak have - as we always knew they would - found their way into the Vauxhall script. You really are nowhere today if you can't describe your company's warmer offerings as being imbued with "emotion" and "passion".
So to launch the latest VXR models, Vauxhall brought us to Sicily and the Targa Florio - which is a very emotional place, with loads of passion in it, too.
The Targa Florio, for those of you not steeped in motorsport's grand history, was a race held over some of the most challenging switchback roads in a setting of almost oppressive romance and beauty. It started back in 1906 and ran till 1977, when fatalities among drivers and spectators brought the whole, glorious spectacle to a halt.
The VXR range - passion, emotion, performance, the whole nine yards - was created in order that each Vauxhall model range could benefit from a "halo" model. That is, a high performance version of what might otherwise be viewed as rental-car fodder or the company car you have to put up with until you make 5-Series rank.
Oiky Tailpipes
So by the end of next year, the only Vauxhall that won't have a VXR model will be the Tigra (it's not quite the right sort of thing for VXR treatment, apparently). Even the miniscule Meriva will have a fire-breathing VXR derivative, which will probably make it the funniest one of the lot, currently a position occupied by the totally bonkers Zafira VXR - more on that in a later edition of 4Car.
But first, the Vectra VXR, which can be specified in five-door hatch or estate guise. From the front, you get bad-guy graphics with a deep, deep airdam, foglights and mesh-alike grille. Side on, you get the ground-hugging stance courtesy of a lower ride height and body-coloured sills. But it's when you go round back that things get seriously amusing.
If I was 12 years old again, this is exactly what I'd do to a Vectra. I'd cut two big chunks out of the bumper to allow for two quite large exhaust pipes. Then I'd make them stick out a bit so that following cars couldn't ever possibly mistake my Vectra for anything other than the snortiest one on offer. Most of the assembled journos took a public line, to whit "Now that's just silly". But - and this is a bit like not admitting to a certain fondness for (some of) Phil Collins efforts - I did take quite a shine to the Vectra's oiky tailpipe treatment.
Butt-hugging seats
Inside, you'll be greeted by the most absurdly butt-hugging seats I've ever encountered in a car not FIA-approved. No, really, these bucket seats totally live up to the name. Initially, it feels like you just sat backwards into a large-ish bucket. Once settled, though, they're quite comfortable and the lateral support they offer is just terrific.
Which is good, because this is the most powerful Vectra ever to smoke a front tyre. The turbocharged V6 pumps out 250bhp at 5,500rpm, and 262lb ft of torque between 1,800 and 4,500rpm. There's a standard-fit six-speed gearbox, which we found a bit vague and too easy to baulk, especially going from third to second gear - which you do an awful lot of on the Targa Florio.
Initially, this car didn't feel nearly as swift as the numbers would suggest, they being 0-62mph in 6.5secs and a top whack of 161mph.
Not long into our drive, though, we got a "check engine" light, followed by a "service engine" light, followed by a damper icon with an exclamation mark beside it, followed by a traction control icon that was similarly surprised. Rebooting the engine didn't help, so we went to ask Vauxhall for another Vectra. We got a car they'd been using as a very swift camera-crew taxi for the last couple of weeks over the Targa Florio.
We were informed that this particular car had been absolutely caned as well as being "yumped" for the cameras. Also, one bright spark had attempted to move off on a hill in third gear, only giving up the game when his view forward became obscured by clutch smoke. And the blackened alloys testified to the fact that the brakes hadn't gotten off lightly, either.
Covering ground swiftly
This treatment must be the best way to break a car in, then, because the gear shift was smooth and unbaulked and the engine sweet as a nut. Acceleration in the higher reaches was remarkable, too, particularly beyond 80mph in fourth gear. Torque steer is well controlled, too, but not entirely eliminated. But then, that's a big ask for a 250bhp front-driver.
The other surprise is just how refined this 2.8-litre V6 is: it sounds quite woofly under part throttle, too.
The Targa Florio offers some of the most rewarding roads I've ever encountered, the sort that make you want to go a bit faster, a bit longer. But after a good 30-minute workout in the Vectra, I felt that I had merely covered ground swiftly. This car just isn't as involving as you'd like, from the slightly inert steering to the grip-and-push front end dynamics. A Subaru Impreza WRX, for example, would leave you buzzing for hours after such a run.
At £23,995, this is one expensive Vectra, too. A lot more than the aforementioned Subaru, for example, and more even than prestige numbers like the Audi A4 2.0 Turbo. Sure, it's considerably more powerful than the obvious competitors, but it doesn't do anything terribly inspiring with that power.
Love those tailpipes, though.