Vauxhall Carlton Saloon 1986-
  • Economy

    Value

    4 out of 5 4.0

    Lots of metal for your money.

    Costs

    3 out of 5 3.0

    Fuel economy is not great. Averages 28 MPG, maybe stretching to 30 on longer runs. Cheap in all other respects.

  • On the road

    Driving

    4 out of 5 4.0

    For such a big car, it's great fun to drive. Solid, safe, but still slightly sporty. No other large-ish cars I've driven (Mondeos, Vectras, Primeras etc) feel anywhere near as nice.

    Performance

    4 out of 5 4.0

    Not a rocket off the line, but adequate and gets stronger at faster speeds.

  • Living with it

    Reliability

    5 out of 5 5.0

    Bought the car with 75,000 miles on the clock. Has now done 135,000 and is still going strong. In 60,000 miles, I've replaced an exhaust, changed the tyres, and changed the oil a couple of times. Unbeatable.

    Image

    2 out of 5 2.0

    Who cares? :O)

    Comfort

    5 out of 5 5.0

    Big, comfortable, supportive seats, lots of legroom front and rear, and a good ride. Some reports say the ride is firm, but I don't understand where they get that from.

  • Security and Service

    Security

    3 out of 5 3.0

    Deadlocked central locking, so a theif putting the window through still won't get in - nice touch.

  • Problems and Ownership

    Problems

    Engine

    Oil leak from distributor. Fixed with a 20p washer.

    Other

    Cruise control stopped working about 100,000 miles. Didn't bother investigating.

    Ownership

    Did you buy the car new?

    Used

    Would you buy the same model again?

    Yes

    Did you buy from the same manufacturer again?

    Yes