I CAN HAZ NEW CHOD. (No epic collection thread,it was 400 yards away)

[Spiny Norman]

Well, I'd been looking for some new wheels for a few days and nothing was jumping out at me, and the search was compounded by my inherent lazybastard-itis and general reluctance to go too far to look for a snotter, so this afternoon when I was wandering up the road to get some bits from the local shop I took a detour to my tame chod-fettling emporium, remembering that they often have a couple of old cars for sale that they've fixed up.

 

It was a long shot, they may not have had anything in today, and always going to be a take-it-or-leave it affair, but when I was greeted by this prime slice of Autoshite gold in the yard I knew I had to have it.

 

Covered in months worth of cack and bird poo, full of shit inside and a dashboard so think with muck you could have planted spuds on it, but under it all I could see it was in pretty good order. A set of trade plates was produced, the keys were dropped into my sweaty palms and a quick blast up the road confirmed it could do the start, stop and steer stuff just fine.
On my return, a bit of haggling was done, a paltry sum was exchanged and off I went....
It's got a year's ticket, drives just fine and after £10 worth of finest #4 Mini-valet at the local Kosovo car wash it now looks like this.

Are you ready?.....

 

 

BEHOLD THE MAGNIFICENCE!!!

 

 

The bodywork's a bit scuffed up but there's not a spot of rust on it, and the interior has come up a treat. I've got some leather feeder I used on the old Merc which should bring the seats up a bit better and I'll go round it again with a cloth and clean off the shiney bits of steering wheel that these guys always leave when they spray their jizz everywhere but it all seems to work, The aircon blows cold and all the leccy bits I've tried so far seem to work. It even has FSH and a big folder of bills to wade though later.

IZ I A WINNAH OR IZ I A WINNAH?
 

[Mr_Bo11ox]

Looks great man. Defo a serious 2-litre beater shite contender. I'd love one of these.

[outlaw118]

That is quite horrible.

 

WANTAGE LEVEL 93%.

[cms206]

FUCKING NORAH! THAT IS SPUNKTACULAR!!!

[Jim Bergerac]

I really like these for some reason. I see a T reg trundling round the manor quite often. Well bought.

 

Think I've mentioned it before, but I'm fairly sure when they first came out Auto Distress tested it against the Peugeot 406 petrol in a twin test and had it come first. Probably says more about that rag than the Leganza itself, mind.

[burraston2006]

Looks spanking! What leather cleaner/feed did you use on your merc? I've got one but the leather is stiff and needs a good feed. I've tried Autoglym before but I don't rate it that highly.

[HillmanImp]

The interior does not look half as shit as I was expecting, you could almost pretend you were driving something nicer. 

[eddyramrod]

[Spiny Norman]

The interior does not look half as shit as I was expecting, you could almost pretend you were driving something nicer. 

 

It really is quite decent inside, I think the seats are covered in some kind of Korean spec cow* that possibly had a penchant for chasing it's own tail and Kennomeat because it's a bit firm and 'cardboard-y' feeling but I can't complain.

It also has some of the least convincing Wood-U-like I've ever seen in a car, which also makes me vary happy.

 

 

I just use cheapo Turtle Wax Leather cleaner & restorer I'm far too tight to go for any of these fancy AutoGlym brews, but it's worked well on the two cars I've used it on, my old Rover 600 and the Merc.

[Cavcraft]

Fuck me, vicar, that is proper class. How much was it?

[Guest Breadvan72]

I still WANTZ a 400 yard epic collection  thread.   Write and demand that a pez station be built at the 200 yard point for the obligatory money shot.

[eddyramrod]

Well, I'd been looking for some new wheels for a few days and nothing was jumping out at me,

 

 

Ahem...

But you are almost forgiven.  An auto Leganza must make you some kind of minor royalty round here, surely?

[wuvvum]

I had one of those - manual rather than auto, but otherwise quite similar.  It was a pleasant enough thing to tool around in, and didn't feel as cheap as I'd expected, although it was rather gutless for a 2-litre.  Bloody comfy on the motorway though.

[cort16]

I like these too! Leganza sounds like the name of a 70's love boat cruise ship. We met on the dance floor of the leganza and I slipped it to her on the shag pile of the lanos suite.

[brickwall]

Hows the  autobox on this? Car looks "posh bland" which is a positive.

[ProgRocker]

Nicely bought, Studebaker!

 

I really like the dashboard design and that fake walnut trim.

 

Are the indicators on the left stalk or the right??

[Pillock]

Aye, that looks proper class. I do like the coke-addict grille on these.

Is 02 an especially late one? Looks "wrong" with that plate.

[rml2345]

Wow, that's literally some car! There will be queues at the next Scotoshite meet to have a poke about at it.

[garethj]

Amazing to think that car was pretty much thrown away by it's previous owner and almost worthless. Yet it's an 02 plate which is still newer than any of my cars, and obviously a usable motah.

 

Good catch!

[dollywobbler]

Lovely. In an Autoshite kind of way. I was terribly gutted when an abandoned Leganza got scrapped and taken away from the Shitefest '14 car park not long after I booked the event. I complained bitterly to the management. 

[gordonbennet]

I carried these by the hundred when they were new, and then defleets, they had them on Avis if i recall correctly.

 

I really liked 'em, lovely engine and a peachy autobox and comfy as old slippers inside.

[eddyramrod]

I had a test drive in one at launch (sadly with a learner box) and thought it was a damned fine effort.  These days?  Definitely would, especially auto and especially in that lovely rich metallic green they had.

[Spiny Norman]

Ahem...

100_4232.jpg

But you are almost forgiven.  An auto Leganza must make you some kind of minor royalty round here, surely?

 

Eddy, I really fancied your Toymota but the insurance said no.

Continuing their barsteward-ness, they wanted another £70 to change from the Volvo for 7 months cover. Cnuts.

 

I had one of those - manual rather than auto, but otherwise quite similar.  It was a pleasant enough thing to tool around in, and didn't feel as cheap as I'd expected, although it was rather gutless for a 2-litre.  Bloody comfy on the motorway though.

 

It's nice inside, but very Jap/US feeling. The steering is almost Fiat Punto City button light in town although it seems to stiffen up a bit when you get a shift on.....Which does indeed demand some serious poking with the loud pedal, I'm not sure of the power output, I guess 120-ish bhp but I was quite surprised to discover it weighs nearly a ton and a half.

 

Hows the  autobox on this? Car looks "posh bland" which is a positive.

 

Box seems OK, it's a ZF 4 speed apparently. It's got quite a smart step-off from rest, which caught me out the first couple of times....

 

Nicely bought, Studebaker!

 

I really like the dashboard design and that fake walnut trim.

 

Are the indicators on the left stalk or the right??

 

Stalks are the correct way round, indicators on the left, wipers on the right.

 

Amazing to think that car was pretty much thrown away by it's previous owner and almost worthless. Yet it's an 02 plate which is still newer than any of my cars, and obviously a usable motah.

 

Good catch!

 

As an 02 plate it's the second newest car I've ever owned.

 

 

 

Took it for a quick blast up the dual carriageway earlier since I'd only been peddling it round the block getting it fuelled and washed, and it moves OK at 60-70 too. Very comfy but a bit wallowy and there's a fair bit of road noise but it's way quieter than the old 240 so it's all good.

 

Tomorrow I'll have a root about under the bonnet and check all the levels and try and figure out the electronic aircon controls and fiddly Sony stereo, but all I'm going after that is run it for a few weeks and see what goes bang or falls off.

[Ratdat]

Top shiteing.  I'm amazed at how respectable that interior looks. I always assumed these to contain a sea of creaky, rock hard grey plastic. These have a GM engine presumably?

[Spiny Norman]

Pass.

I remember Daewoos being launched in 1996 or whenever it was and the event generated no interest in my world whatsoever, and I'm not sure owing one's going to do anything to change that.

 

I do remember some of them being closely related to GM cars of the day. There was one that looked just like a Mk2 Astra/Belmont wasn't there?

[michael t]

It looks as dull as fuck on the outside but that interior looks like a very pleasant place to be, nice purchase sir!

[Noel Tidybeard]

seemingly its a holden supplied eco tec ii

[Spiny Norman]

Prompted by my total ignorance on them, I have unearthed two facts that will make me sleep more soundly in my bed tonight.

 

1 - It was penned by none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro, originally as an exercise for Jaguar, so it's a DESIGN CLASSIC.

 

2 - The suspension was designed by Lotus, so any wallow I may have previously alluded to was in fact carefully designed to allow the chassis to track the uneven road surfaces of west Glasgow more effectively.

 

Fuck me, it's basically a 4 door Esprit!

[Noel Tidybeard]

^^^ thats an autoshite phact

[ProgRocker]

Prompted by my total ignorance on them, I have unearthed two facts that will make me sleep more soundly in my bed tonight.

 

1 - It was penned by none other than Giorgetto Giugiaro, originally as an exercise for Jaguar, so it's a DESIGN CLASSIC.

 

2 - The suspension was designed by Lotus, so any wallow I may have previously alluded to was in fact carefully designed to allow the chassis to track the uneven road surfaces of west Glasgow more effectively.

 

Fuck me, it's basically a 4 door Esprit!

 

The future value of it can only appreciate - just like an Escort Mexico!

 

I do remember some of them being closely related to GM cars of the day. There was one that looked just like a Mk2 Astra/Belmont wasn't there?

 

In 1995 Daewoo came to the UK market with Nexia (Astra based) and Espero (GM 'J Car' based). These 'classics' were canned in 1998 in favour of the more modern looking but more forgettable Lanos and Nubira. About the same time the Leganza was introduced - no doubt as a challenger to the Hyundai Sonata.

 

I completely forgot that the Leganza was Guigiaro (spl?) designed. It certainly looks nicer styled than the Nubira and Lanos. In 1999 came the Matiz, which I believe was also Guigiaro styled. The design of which was rejected by Fiat years previously as their proposal for the 'Cinquecento'.