Faults:

Pretty much everything. Engine leaked oil, then the head gasket blew.

Gearbox noisy.

Various other mechanical noise.

Interior plastics made out of low quality material were always breaking.

Door seals peeling away.

Rust, paint fade.

The list goes on, and this was all when the car was only six years old with around 60K when I was few up with it and traded it.

General Comments:

Like many back in the 1990s, I was taken by Daewoo's adverts of having a good new/nearly new hatchback car with some options for a very nice price. Dealer was pleasant to deal with and I got an amazing deal in early 1997 when the car was barely two years old.

As the years went on however, it was obvious I should have bought something else, and obvious why the car was soo cheap - it was nasty quality. I looked after it well but it still fell apart. Very very poor build quality. Apparently it was based on a 1980s Vauxhall Astra, and just had a modern look put over it. Parts were cheap, but just as well - there was always something needing fixing.

It was not too bad to drive. Seats were OK. But general comfort levels were poor even on this GLXi model.

1.5 engine was not very fast nor economical. 33 - 35 mpg at best. Not even that good at the time.

Very dull in dark green, this was a popular color for some reason on these cars.

Was glad to be rid of it, easily one of the worst cars I ever had! Why am I writing a review about it all these years later? Well generally I have had lots of cars and write positively about most of them, but for some reason today as I sit on this lovely early summers morning in 2024, I am reminded of how bad this car was and had to rant. I was sure I saw one the other day out on road - there must be very few in numbers now in the UK. The company basically does not make cars anymore (though Daewoo still exist in electronics and other products I think) but the cars are hardly remembered at all by anyone here in the UK. Certainly not in a fond way anyway!

Faults:

Nothing in the year I owned it until the clutch went. This made it uneconomical for repair.

General Comments:

This car was end of life when I bought it. It was a stop gap until I decided what I wanted to invest in.

The air con was deceased, but all else worked fine.

Quite nippy, but I think it would have been better with a bigger lump. Sadly someone had taken to the metallic graphite with something abrasive, so it didn't win any beauty points.

It wasn't particularly good on fuel, but not terrible either.

Very comfortable.

Whilst it was OK for the £300 I paid for it, I think if I'd have had it new, I'd have been a bit disappointed by performance, but then it probably drove a lot better when newer. It had a hard act to follow, as I remember the hype in its original guise as a Vauxhall Astra MK2, which had excellent performance for the era.

I doubt I'd buy another, but then it wasn't a choice purchase to begin with.