How are corrados like to live with?

[Danny Ess 0]

hello everyone, first post so sorry if its in the wrong section, dont know where to put a question like this on here.

 

I put a topic up on ED38 asking the same question and was told to come on here as id probably get a better response.

 

Anyway i want a corrado for my next car. Ive had a mk2, currently selling my mk1 and am looking for something a tad 'newer' :D

 

Only problem is im stuck with which one to go for. ive ideally been looking at the 16vs for insurance purposes (21, 1yrs ncb) so this kind of factors in which i can get. Did a few quotes on confused to get a few ideas and the cheapest was about £1000 for a 2.0 16v and then only about £1100 for a g60. thats a standard one though. I think VR6' are a little out of my price range plus could be more thirsty on the petrol wallet.

 

Ok onto my question. How are they like to live with daily? it will be my daily car, i wont be doing mega miles on it but im just worried about the mpg really and rinsing through it very quickly :D

 

so i was going with the 16v as may be easier to live with, guess its got decent power. but then i wanted a g60. obviously a little faster but then i was thinking of how much hassle(i dont think thats the right word here but couldnt think of anything eles :D) the charger could become with servicing it/it going kaput etc or am i making a mountain out of a molehill and the charger isnt that big a deal? obviously if looked after it will work quite well.

 

and what are the prices of 16v and g60'. i dont know how much il have yet as it may be a few months till i get one but i wont have bundles of cash to buy one. just a sensible amount.

 

so can anyone give me advice on each of them? i know people have different opinions but any advice is good advice. Just dont say 'sod the 16 and g60 get a vr' because i wont be getting of them :D

 

Thanks.

[vwdeviant 0]

Personally get the best 2.0 16v you can afford... insurance isn't much between them all TBH.. all group 18-19...

 

But the 2.0 9a's the best daily car as an introduction .. all in my humble, 9a owning, opinion though! :lol:

[Danny Ess 0]

i may do end up getting a 2.0 16v.

 

and why do all the cars for sale seem to be red? i dont want another red car :D

[Jim Bowen 1]

i think its the same with any old car with high miles, you spend money replacing the little things that seem to cause "annoying" problems, i've had no major issues in 2yrs of driving mine, i've been using my VR to do about 300-350 miles a week, every week.

 

all the things that have gone wrong are things that get old, rubber pipes, worn bits in suspension, plastic engine parts cracking etc

 

But the way i see it is that most people are willing to part with £9kish for a second hand ford focus or something similar as a daily drive and generally have trouble free motoring, but their cars are common, boring and dull, plus they already spent 3 or 4 times as much buying it.

 

i like replacing things, at least you know whats new on your car.

 

Parts are expensive and some hard to get hold of, but that makes you feel special :lol:

[Danny Ess 0]

anyone else with some info for corrado noob :D

[Toad 0]

Don't write the 1.8 16v off. Group 15 insurance, and the fueling is the less complicated K-Jet system.

 

They aren't cheap to run, they can be a pain in the arse, ut they will make you smile. :)

[yeti 0]

i may do end up getting a 2.0 16v.

 

and why do all the cars for sale seem to be red? i dont want another red car :D

 

reds the new cammo vinyl dude, everyone will want one next year! :lol:

 

Rados are a cruel mistress, for the brief moments of pure ectasy you have to put up with an occasionally high maintinence queen with a drinking problem... but shes worth it!!

 

depends how much driving you do and what you want out of it? if you do alot of miles then the 2.08v's give 40ish mpg on a good run, vr's and 16v's do between 25-35 mpg, serviceings relitively cheap, same as golf and it makes me smile much more than my old golf!

[ProdigalSon 1]

Only owned G60s, but a well looked-after/tuned engine will easily do 30+mpg on 'commuter' runs (my last three tanks have averaged 33ish), and have plenty of poke for when you want to stretch her legs :norty:

 

Knowing when and who last did the supercharger rebuild is essential, or just budget £400 for peace of mind for the next 4 years/40k miles. :salute:

 

I hear good things about 16Vs from the 'daily driver' angle, and they can always be turbo'd later... :nuts:

 

As with any car that's in its late teens, lots of the 'perishable' bits will be on their way out, but if you are handy with a screwdriver and spanner you can replace them without the cost of garage labour :grin:

 

Hope that helps :wink:

[Danny Ess 0]

i may do end up getting a 2.0 16v.

 

and why do all the cars for sale seem to be red? i dont want another red car :D

 

reds the new cammo vinyl dude, everyone will want one next year! :lol:

 

Rados are a cruel mistress, for the brief moments of pure ectasy you have to put up with an occasionally high maintinence queen with a drinking problem... but shes worth it!!

 

depends how much driving you do and what you want out of it? if you do alot of miles then the 2.08v's give 40ish mpg on a good run, vr's and 16v's do between 25-35 mpg, serviceings relitively cheap, same as golf and it makes me smile much more than my old golf![/quote:ai3sfagm]

 

i want to try a different colour :D my mk2 was red, my mk1 was red. I dont think il be doing loads of miles besides when going to shows etc or going out for the day. may mainly be town mileage.

 

I want something with abit of grunt (VR is out :D) as i had a 1.6 driver then a 1.6 gti. Im hoping for a g60 really. if i can get 30mpg ish then shouldnt be too bad. pretty much what i was getting with both other cars.

[VR6 0]

They aren't cheap to run, they can be a pain in the arse, ut they will make you smile. :)

 

Kind of like a woman. Except the smiling part.

[Toad 0]

They aren't cheap to run, they can be a pain in the arse, ut they will make you smile. :)

 

Kind of like a woman. Except the smiling part.

 

Indeed. :)

[ProdigalSon 1]

Oh, and my G60 has the SNS chip and a 68mm pulley, so although it does 30+ mpg, it probably has about 190bhp and in first and second gears it fights the brakes at idle if I leave the car in gear when slowing at junctions etc, so plenty of torque from low down :wink:

 

The 8V engines are better a low end grunt, and the supercharger certainly accentuates that! :wave:

 

Only downer is sitting in traffic and/or lots of speed changes, which tend to hurt the economy badly :( Otherwise just put her in 5th at 30mph and cruise through town, stall-free :grin:

[CazzaVR 0]

Sod the 16v and G60, get a VR! :lol: Seriously, it may be worth getting an insurance quote- they are only one insurance group higher than the 2.016v and the G60... If you get one of the others, you will almost certainly want a VR one day anyway!

 

The 2.0 8v is the one to go for if you want reliability and fuel economy. It's the slowest of the bunch, but is a tad underrated. Worth a test drive. Other than that, I would get the newest (1994/5) 2.0 16v you can. It's gonna be 4-5 years newer than a G60.

 

At the end of the day, you will have to spend money on whichever one you choose. Any Corrado can end up being a money pit, whatever engine/derivative you choose. I've had 7 Corrados now, and the most reliable was my last VR6. It cost me around £800 in bills over two years. This included everything that needed doing to it, no expense spared, including 2X service/MOT. Not bad at all. Fuel economy wasn't too bad either- regularly over 30mpg, even on short trips. Best fuel economy was my first two 2.0 16v. My G60 (bought off Mr Prod, above /\ ) was also pretty good on the fuel (except in traffic), but ended up being a bit of a money pit.

[Guest]

My advice would be the same as i gave on E38 :grin: Get yourself a nice G60 as you will regret not having more power/want more power after a short amount of time and with the G60 its far more achievable and easier to do with simple bolt on parts/chip etc, even without any serious engine work you can get them upto 200-220 bhp

 

also a mildly tuned G60 is virtually the same bhp as a VR6 (slightly different power band/delivery) but without the extra fuel bill and the weight of the 6 cylinder engine up front, the only real thing i miss about my VR6 (golf) is the engine note :grin: the G60 sounds awesome too though, just a different sound with the charger noise :grin:

 

like i said on E38, the corrado engines are all pretty much mk2 & mk3 golf/passat, as are a lot of other parts on them, so theres no real horrors, just avoid a car thats battered, as panels can be hard to get and are rocking horse poop new!, a lot of trim parts can only be had 2nd hand, but judging by how many of these great cars get broken up (just on here) there is always a supply

[n3p 3]

Considering your age and NCB, i'd say a 1.8 16v. Group 15 compared to a much higher 2.0 insurance group. Oh, and comparing 2 factory examples - the 1.8 is slightly quicker 8)

[Adz The Rat 0]

Just go drive a few and see which you love the most, sod the insurance, money isnt everything haha

 

Like I said on E38 come to NWVAG and I'll take you for a VR spin

[skinnyman9000 0]

I will say this:

 

Have a backup car

[Danny Ess 0]

so are they really that bad?

 

my mk1 was a little temperamental so i want something i know wont break down all the time. love the look of corrados so really want one but quite a few bad opinions are not doing me any favours :(

[VR6 0]

Depends what you buy really.

 

I've had mine around 6 years and it has never left me stranded. Ok, so the wipers stopped working, the headlights are awful and I need a new ignition switch etc etc but I've not had to do much more than routine maintenance over the years.

[skinnyman9000 0]

I think its mainly lucky of the draw to be honest, some people's are constantly breaking down, some people have years and years of trouble free motoring.

 

I'd suggest buying one from a well respected member on here, making sure its well looked after

[Guest]

:roll: I bought mine off someone i never even met through a mate, if you look at the car, drive it, check everything works and satisfy yourself its a good car, like any 2nd hand motor really :wink:

 

its not rocket science and you have to accept any 10+ year old car will need some parts replacing, dont be put off by the people on here who have paid a pittance for a corrado only to find out why it was cheap 1/2 hour after they nearly got home!!

[snattrass 0]

I have owned a 16v and now a VR6.

 

 

When I owned the 1.8 16v I loved driving it especially round country lanes and roundabouts where almost no matter how hard I pushed it through the corners it would still behave impeccably maintaining perfectly neutral line with very little understear or oversteer either way.

 

 

However, I always thought the VR6 being so much swifter would be so much better and everyone always raved on about them being the model of choice. Now that have owned a nice VR for a year or so I have to say as a driving experience I am beginning to prefer my old valver. Sure the VR is faster straight line and sounds beastie when revved but try to put it through it's paces on the same corners and bends and the front end just slides completley away (I have Koni struts, PI springs and 215's on 17 inch split rims). Maybe I have yet to get used to it's handling so that I can properly put it through it's paces (I have just recently changed the suspension etc and started sporty driving it) but I would say through a tight twisty road a valver would see off a VR no problem.

 

 

All of which leaves me to ask you guys which model do we think is the best mix of handling and performance? Is it the lighter G60? How much would it cost to make the lighter G60 upto a similar BHP to the VR? What would need doing? Can the G60 house 16valves or is that silly? I know the G60 is faster at lower revs and the valver faster at higher revs. It's all a bit confusing really and I feel that although my VR looks the part and sounds the part and is the part in a straight line it is not the part on the corners where the valver was so much impeccable fun to drive all of which is making me seriously consider swapping my VR for a different model maybe another 16ver or a G60. I've probaly forgotten how much slower my valver was esp in overtaking etc but when it was warmed up it used to really purr on the motorway and willingly accelerate in 5th gear over the limit.

 

 

Advice please?

 

 

Simon

[Dec 1]

I know kinda know what you're saying! I've only owned Corrados (8-9 of them now) in valver form unfortunately, and after driving Golfs and Ventos in Vr6 form I'd say there is no competition in sheer "chuckability" form. But yes....obviously for straight line speed and noise there is no presence like a Vr6 (and I do really need to try out a Vr6 rado).

 

Also I think the KR engine is Very underrated, I've never had a single prob of any sort with any of mine with all the thousands and thousands of miles I've put on them, and they are amongst the oldest of rado engines. They always got about 35mpg average, cost almost nothing to service...I put a few hundred miles on one with very little oil in it (not my fault), and it didn't complain at all! and they also sound quite nice once let them get past 4k Rpm.

 

But on the other hand, my old Scirocco GT Mk2, was soooooo much more fun to drive than any of the Corrados I've owned (after I had rebuilt the suspension, driveline components etc). It weighed practically nothing, and you could throw it into any sort of corner and it would behave impeccably, but the engine was also completely gutless. Other downside was that I dropped the front so far that when we took it on a tear up/down the Col de Turini the wheels tore the crap out of the plastic wheel arches on every hairpin. :roll:

 

So I guess it'd really a balance between forward weight vs power.......so I nee to try out someones G60, or get my 16vt running really! :tongue:

[MonkeyVR6 0]

They are expensive (in VR6 form) in my own experience, but I think its worth it. Awesome car, awesome reliability (bar the sunroof!) and obviously very good performance and handling.

[Walesy 0]

I have owned a 16v and now a VR6.

 

 

When I owned the 1.8 16v I loved driving it especially round country lanes and roundabouts where almost no matter how hard I pushed it through the corners it would still behave impeccably maintaining perfectly neutral line with very little understear or oversteer either way.

 

 

However, I always thought the VR6 being so much swifter would be so much better and everyone always raved on about them being the model of choice. Now that have owned a nice VR for a year or so I have to say as a driving experience I am beginning to prefer my old valver. Sure the VR is faster straight line and sounds beastie when revved but try to put it through it's paces on the same corners and bends and the front end just slides completley away (I have Koni struts, PI springs and 215's on 17 inch split rims). Maybe I have yet to get used to it's handling so that I can properly put it through it's paces (I have just recently changed the suspension etc and started sporty driving it) but I would say through a tight twisty road a valver would see off a VR no problem.

 

 

All of which leaves me to ask you guys which model do we think is the best mix of handling and performance? Is it the lighter G60? How much would it cost to make the lighter G60 upto a similar BHP to the VR? What would need doing? Can the G60 house 16valves or is that silly? I know the G60 is faster at lower revs and the valver faster at higher revs. It's all a bit confusing really and I feel that although my VR looks the part and sounds the part and is the part in a straight line it is not the part on the corners where the valver was so much impeccable fun to drive all of which is making me seriously consider swapping my VR for a different model maybe another 16ver or a G60. I've probaly forgotten how much slower my valver was esp in overtaking etc but when it was warmed up it used to really purr on the motorway and willingly accelerate in 5th gear over the limit.

 

 

Advice please?

 

 

Simon

 

I'd definitely say try a G60 out, a well sorted one is absolutely the right balance.

 

I love driving VR6's, especially on the motorway and I like the refined drive the large engine gives, they sound awesome and the engine does seem well suited to the chassis - but overall i'd say I much prefer G60's, the only downside is that none of them came with the late interior. They can be tuned up to and over the same power as a stock VR6 very cheaply, the gearbox is definitely worth looking into as that's what lets them down a bit but with a smaller pulley and chip they're a complete pleasure to throw around twisty roads and have a really unique sound - a completely different experience to a VR6 IMO, a lot more raw and drivable.