Aaand double post, how shocking. Well, it's for a good cause, because:
One Vector off the family tree: 2003 Opel/Vauxhall Vectra 3.2 V6
Ah, gentleman, welcome. Here I am, with another edition of GT6’s COTW. Where jokes get overused, cars get abused, and people get shocked after knowing that Arcana Heart 3 actually got a European release.
(No really, I was shocked. I never even thought that a Japanese fighting game such as Arcana Heart would actually get another Euro release. And it was launched here last November. What the hell, Atlus?)
Ahem, sorry about that. Anyway, I have a good story for you today. It’s the story about a car that doesn’t really interest me, a car that was pretty nice to drive, and a Lexus. And no, it’s not the same car for all three roles.
Center City, USA. 29-05-2014. A young boy approaches a computer, with a Skype call waiting.
“Hey, Hugo? Can you hear me?”
“Yes, Joey, I can hear ya.”
“Have you arrived in Ronda yet?”
“I just did, why?”
“I just received a mail from Brad; he has this week’s COTW ready for you.”
“Ah yes, the car which fate was to be determined by Sauber’s latest F1 result… What about it?”
“Well, Brad just told me something about it. The car isn’t…
Opel Vectra 3.2 V6. Codename: Cleland 010
“Good? I can tell that much, Joey.”
Yep, welcome to the 2003 Opel/Vauxhall Vectra. A car that never really had a high place in my consideration list. It’s a car that means very little to me. And the only good memories I have of one are usually tied to BTCC races, John Cleland, the whole lot. TOCA 2 and its sequels have portrayed the Vectra as a very competent racing car, one that had much success tied to its name. But sadly, the road versions left much to be desired. And this Vectra is not even the worst Vectra I’ve seen. Its ancestor, the Vectra B, was an unreliable, ungainly and terrible hunk of German junk that hardly ignited any proper car fan’s interest. And that includes yours truly, of course.
But let’s get back to the Vectra C, the car that is currently in my hands at this moment. As the predecessor of the Vectra B, the C had a lot of ground to cover. It had to be somewhat decent, if it wanted to shake off the horrible ghost that haunted both Vauxhall and Opel. Unfortunately, it never quite did such a thing, but we’ll get to that later. This specific Vectra is the top version that does not have the letters O, P and C attached to it; the 3.2 V6. And would you just look at it, huh? There’s hardly anything exciting about it. It’s mostly sharp, straight lines, and a neat little chromed line on the rear. I can’t really say much more about it, really.
But hopefully the track should redeem the Vectra, maybe it hides some amazing potential that I have never seen before. Maybe it is an intrepid touring car, much like its racing counterparts. And you know where you must test a German car like this, correct?
“Indianapolis?”
Silly Joey, no, it’s not Indianapolis. To the Nurburgring!
Author’s note: All cars tested for this review were driven in their stock guise. No aids other than ABS were allowed, and all cars had three laps to set their best lap. Comfort Soft tires, the stock tires for all three cars, were the tire used. A DS3 controller pad was used by me, the player.
So, the GP/F layout of the ‘Ring awaits our three contestants. As you know, I always want to pick the cars closest to the current COTW’s PP rating. And sure enough, we have three cars that are very similar in many ways. But first, let’s get to the Vectra.
With 208 hp and 1,510 kg, the Vectra is hardly what you’d call a balanced diet. And the weight distribution? A cringe-inducing 63:37 ratio. Ouch. So, we have all the ingredients to one poorly-cooked German sausage, in an average-looking package.
But surprisingly, the Vectra didn’t do that badly. Out of the three cars I tested, it stood right in the middle, in 2nd place. But here’s the thing; it’s just average. The car never really impressed me during the three laps I had with it, as it was mostly body roll coupled with understeer and tire screeching. Sure enough, the car shows that it made sacrifices in the name of comfort, and that it was never intended to be driven like a BTCC car. Sure enough, it does not understeer like a bar of soap slipping down a curved ramp, like its horrendous weight distribution ratio would lead you to believe.
But once you push the car to its limits, you realize that the Vectra will not go much further in a track environment. Once the tire screeching starts, and the nose begins to understeer, you will know that it’s time to slow down and just steer instead of trying to give it more power. The V6 engine does its job, but it never offers much acceleration or top speed in a track such as the ‘Ring. The spaced out gearbox does not help in the slightest, only offering just enough to keep the car going at a leisurely pace. It’s hardly Cleland-level of excitement, and it shows. The Vectra is just that; average. It’s time was 2.40.434 minutes. And who are the other competitors?
Citroen C5 Executive. Codename: Plain Rims
Ah, ze French arrive, with their Chevron-mobile. The C5 Executive (how politely elegant is that name, huh?), in many aspects, is similar to the Vectra. With a PP rating of 392, it only loses two points to the Vectra. And with 207 hp pumping out of its 2.5 V6 engine, as well as a 1540 kg curb weight, it only loses 1 hp and 30 kg to the Vectra. However, it was enough to make the C5 the slowest of the trio, with a time of 2.42.779 minutes. The reason for such a time? It’s the fact that the C5 has even stronger pretensions of comfort than the Vectra. The engine/gearbox duo is even slower than the Opel, despite the similar horsepower ratings.
Mind you, that does not mean that the C5 is a worst car to drive than its German rival. On the contrary, I personally enjoyed driving the C5 more than the Vectra. I cannot quite put my finger in it, but it may be related to that “driving feel” that Citroen prides itself on so much. The C5 just felt smoother, even when it was being so slow. When I got in the so-called “groove”, I just wanted to take my time with the corners. Brake, slow down and then just carefully manage the car’s weight around the corner with only steering inputs. While the Vectra felt looser, the C5 felt more planted and comfortable. In other words, it was perhaps not trying excessively hard to be sporty. It’s hardly fast, and the power delivery may as well be nicknamed “Ze Escargot”, but the C5 was strangely attractive in my eyes.
Finally, the last car. If you actually paid attention and read the review up to this point, you have realized that the third car of my group was indeed the fastest around the GP/F layout of the ‘Ring. And who is this mysterious car? Who was the speedy mice that made the big European cats look like city pussies?
Lexus IS200. Codename: Modern-day Trueno
Yep, the car that is solely known as the Lexus IS200. Or, if you know your Japanese car names well, the Toyota Altezza. Indeed, the Lexus outran both the Citroen and the Opel around the track, and won the whole contest. But why? Two simple letters, my friends:
FR. Or, if you prefer, rear wheel drive.
Indeed, the Lexus does not mind losing a bit of comfort, in exchange for more driving feel, more handling prowess and, in the end, more sportiness. After driving the C5 and the Vectra, the Lexus felt like a go-kart. It was just a far more exciting drive, because I could always kick the tail around a bit after exiting a corner. Do you think that could be possible with the Euro businessmen? Nope. And then there’s the engine; the venerable BEAMS 3S-GE. My god is this engine something. It just keeps on revving, far after both the C5 and the Vectra have lost their spark. And the gearbox helps by keeping the car close to the top part of the rev line. And since it is a naturally aspirated car, the Lexus has the added bonus of being one wild trip, as you climb up the revs the only a NA car can. And to top it all off, it’s the weakest engine of all, with only 206 hp! Not to mention that it does not use a V setup, which only makes the IS a more impressive car. The handling shouldn’t really need much explaining; it is by far the liveliest of all three sedans, always eager to get the tail sideways. Nothing else should really be expected from the same team who had their hands dirty with the famous Corolla AE86, the IS/Altezza is all fun, all the time. But you must be wondering; “Oh yeah, that is awesome and all, but I bet it’s the most expensive of the three”. Oh, my dear friends, no need to be worried. Because the Altezza is indeed CHEAPER than the Vectra, by almost half the Vectra’s price! At 24,000 credits, the IS gives you more thrills for less money. And that, in the end, is just the icing on a very good Japanese cake.
But back to the Vectra; in the end, the Vectra failed. Much like it failed in real-life. Both the C5 and the IS still live on, albeit in different guises. The Vectra? Not so much, as the C marked the end of the Vectra dynasty. And probably for good reasons. It never really stood out in the immense market of sedans, and it wasn’t good enough to overthrow the eternal Ford Mondeo from its throne as the best-selling sedan in England, much less in Europe. And in GT6, the Vectra also falls short of expectations. When you get outpaced by a Toyota sedan with fewer horses, you do not really have a chance of being called a sleeper. If this Vectra was an OPC, perhaps things could have gone differently. But as it stands, my reasons to dislike the Vectra still stand tall. If you want a sporty German sedan, buy a BMW 320i. If you want a sporty Opel/Vauxhall, get a Speedster. If you want a sporty Vectra, play TOCA 2…
Lexus:
Anata ga nanika dekiru koto wa, watashi wa yoriyoi okonau koto ga dekimasu. Mono wa, watashi wa anata yori mo yoi okonau koto ga dekimasu. (Anything you can do, I can do better. Anything, I can do better than you.)
Opel:
Oh, nur den Mund halten... (Oh, just shut up...)
Pros:
- Er, the Vauxhall has a decent colour choice?
- And I guess it doesn't look too offensive...
- V6 engine offers decent grunt;
Cons:
- You can have far better perfomance by spending only 24,000 credits on a Lexus IS200;
- Awful weight distribution;
- Top Gear memories (Both because the show as we know has ended forever, and because they showed how much the Vectra was hated)
- It worked better in BTCC racing...
