I have a dilema, 2 cars, neither of them suitable!

[tsp]

Afternoon all

Now I have a bit of a dilema, I've got 2 cars, very different cars at that yet neither of them are really any good for what I need.

So I am turning to the RR community for some guidance and suggestions. ;D

Car 1, the retroist of the 2



1981 mk1 Astra 1300.

Damn she's fine ;D 35k, uprated steels, uprated brakes and pretty clean. Just not so great every day.

Car 2, not really retro but a brilliant car all the same


(not actually my car, mine's the same though)

1998 Civic vti Aerodeck.

90k, bloody quick, well equipped, roomy and so well built. Just a bit juicy.

So that's the cars, this is the problem.......

I work 25 miles from home and the Civic is a bit juicy for my commute at 30mpg. The Astra wouldn't be suitable for the commute as part of it is at motorway speeds.

Now to the other half of my dilema, my dad agreed to run the Astra for me for a few months until I had the funds to take it on as a second car. Turns out he's a big wimp and misses his air con and squishy comfort. So he wants a W123 (he's a retro nut too.) Sooo I have nowhere to keep the Astra

Now I'm attatched to the Astra and I really appreciate the Civic's qualities but short of putting the 1300 Astra engine in the Civic 2 wrong cars don't make 1 right one

Here's the question, shall I just get rid of both of them and buy a car/van more suitable for my needs? I love the retro feeling of a car so maybe a K11 (?) Micra might be worth a look? Maybe a mk1 mx5? (Not sure if they give decent MPG?)

Or do I wait on, keep an eye on the for sale/swaps section in the hope someone is after a retro ride at the expense of their newer ride?

There must be an answer in here somewhere, I just can't figure it out ;D

Thanks all

[tsp]

I forgot to say, after past episodes, I just don't want another Pug, Renault, Citroen

[Soopahfly]

I'm pretty sure they had motorways in 1981 with a 70mph limit.

I can't see why the Astra wouldn't be suitable. I just wouldn't want to crash it.

[ironmighty07]

....or put a diesel engine in the astra, smooth and lower the Civic plus lots of negative camber and also buy a K11.....

[Deleted]

Find a different route to work, enjoy the Astra. It's what I'd do.

[SamR380]

My mk1 MX5 does 28mpg. You may get better, but they're never going to be much of an improvement on 30mpg.

Sorry I can't help further.

[craig1010cc]

snap, my MX never bettered 31MPG and on the motorways they rev quite high.

Other option would be drop a 1600 into the Astra, should handle the miles no probs (that said the 1300 should be more than up to it).

My mk2 golf GTi 8v used to do high 30's on a run.

A K11 should be cheap enough to run, but would have thought it would feel pretty similar to the astra on the motorway

[Brian Damaged]

Give yourself an extra 15 minutes for your daily commute, sit in Astra at 65mph on motorway. A 1300 GM, even with a 4-speed bolted to it, will lap up work like that and probably do 35-40mpg as well.

I did 35 miles a day for weeks in a mechanically-stock twin-pot Citroen Dyane, including loads of 60-70mph motorway work. It'll be fine.

[Rob M]

Jan 22, 2012 15:52:02 GMT Soopahfly said:

I'm pretty sure they had motorways in 1981 with a 70mph limit.

I can't see why the Astra wouldn't be suitable. I just wouldn't want to crash it.

^^WHS^^
Motorways, in this country, have been around for over 50 years, the idea that a 1970s designed car wont cut it on the Motorway is utter farce.
That Astra will do all that you need it to do, as an everyday driver, just as my 1300 Estate did back in the very late 1980s where i covered over 20,000 miles in it with nothing worse than a failed water pump. It did 45 mile round trip commute every day and did a memorable journey, sat at, an indicated, 85mph all the way from S.E Essex to Blackpool seafront and back again without missing a beat.
It was as competent around town as it was on a Motorway and a I wouldnt hesitate to put a half decent one into daily service.
With the greatest of respect, the only dilema you really have is whether you have the bottle to use a car thats nearly thirty years old as a daily and only you know the answer to that, right?

[ianc]

can you not just fit a 5 speed box in the astra.. job done.. cheers ian..

[tsp]

I'm not saying the Astra isn't up to it, it's just not a very relaxing place to be... Plus as you have said, not sure I'd want to crash in it.

It takes me an hour and a quarter to get to work every day, I would just like something with power steering and a heater that works.

Thanks for the mx5 info, that definately wont work as you've said. I spend £150 a month on fuel as it is

Thanks for the help everyone

[drifterdom]

Sell both cars and get a retro Merc, it seems as if you already know you don't want either of the cars you have, so get rid of them and get what you want.

[omega]

keep both cars and find a job nearer to home

[TurboDieselWeasel]

Jan 22, 2012 17:17:22 GMT drifterdom said:

Sell both cars and get a retro Merc, it seems as if you already know you don't want either of the cars you have, so get rid of them and get what you want.

That's what I did (46 miles commute) But it does 33MPG at the very most ;D (200 series W124). Five speed would maybe get a bit more...

[Jizmondo Scrotmondo]

Why not use the Astra? I don't see the issue as long as you maintain it and look after it. If you've got your heart set on getting rid though, I'd go for an elderly VAG TDI for the commute.

[p1RATE]

fit the civic with lpg.

[Soopahfly]

Or put a 1.7 Isuzu engine in the Astra.

[akku]

Jan 22, 2012 18:04:43 GMT p1RATE said:

fit the civic with lpg.

Some Honda engines don't work well with LPG. I'd check this out carefully before spending money.

[Deleted]

wow, i knew those VTI Civic's were a bit thirsty, i was looking at getting one a couple of years back. But man i'm getting a bit better than you are from a 1.5 Ton 2.4 Volvo!

How about get rid of the Civic, for a smaller engined Civic? We have a 1996, 3 door 1.4, it's not as powerful, But tax is cheaper, it's a bucket of fun to drive, very trashable and ours never returns less than 42mpg, up as high as 50 sometimes!

I can see your point in the Astra, it's such a nice car to be putting those miles on, and putting those miles on your "Fun" car takes away the fun bit!

[akku]

Jan 22, 2012 15:52:02 GMT Soopahfly said:

I can't see why the Astra wouldn't be suitable. I just wouldn't want to crash it.

I wouldn't advocate crashing any car really....

However back in the day I did my college work experience at a university who had an automotive engineering department. One of the things they had was a crashworthyness index of common current cars. In the days before NCAP this was split into 5 basic groups. The Mk1 Astra was in the top group for crash safety. The only other cars I remember being in that group were the S Class Mercs.

Also back in the day a mate of mine wrote off a Landrover by hitting it with a Mk1 Astra. Made a right mess of the Landy and the Astra lived to fight another day.

So if were going to crash any 1981 car an Astra would be high on my list.