1960 Vauxhall Velox PA 2.2
Summary:
Every journey puts a smile on your face - you will not find more fun pound for pound
Faults:
I've owned this beauty for over 20 years. Every so often I decide she has to be sold (only covered 26k in 23 years! Done more than that in the last 2 years in my diesel Astra!) But lets face it, it's the best looking, most stylish car ever to come out of this country.
Does a good 30mpg, will cruise at 80mph (towing my boat or not), gets looks wherever we go (getting fuel can be a nightmare when in a hurry - everyone wants to talk about the car), and a bench front seat - can't be beaten for those romantic autumn evenings miles from anywhere. No, I can't sell her.
A couple of re-bores and a replacement gearbox is a small price to pay - just look at the shape, it outweighs ANY other shortcomings. Don't forget that bench seat...!
General Comments:
Parts take ages to locate - don't use this as your main vehicle.
Once located, parts are generally quite inexpensive.
When you roll up somewhere for a repair, you will have a queue of people wanting to help out!
Don't overrev the engine. Vibration can dislodge the oilfeed pickup in the sump. The 2nd rebore was down to that.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 29th October, 2004
8th Feb 2008, 10:18
I owned a 1962 Velox from 1966 to 1971. It was the best car I ever owned in England. It had the three speed steering column gear change and multi coloured speedo readings. It was reliable and good looking. I now drive a Lincoln Town Car which us bigger and faster, but nothing can replace the old Vauxhall in my memory.
17th Aug 2012, 04:20
I too own a 1960 PA Vauxhall Velox, and I wish I had your MPG and cruise speed, as my MPG is approx 20-25, and cruising speed is approximately 55-60 mph. Maybe you have overdrive?
2nd May 2015, 12:04
I had a 62 PA VELOX. Loved the car, except for the rust. MPG was always 21-22, no matter how I drove it, and the engine was always smooth, even at high revs, and it had good torque from 800 revs up to 5500 revs. I never took it higher than that.
It would sit on 70 - 80 mph all day in comfort with good road manners. A very nice looking car.
16th Aug 2015, 09:09
Hi there. I too had a 62 PA Velox, and loved it except for the rust. Owned it about 5 years, sold it in 1979. It always gave 21-22 MPG, no matter how I drove it. It had a very torquey motor from very low revs to high revs, and was very, very smooth all the way to 6000 revs; that was its limit. It always had good road manners and handled far better than any Holden until the IRS HZ Holden.
Would I have another one; in a heartbeat if the body was stronger in the back end.
3rd Feb 2008, 02:25
An absolutely awesome car! Six families that I know of owned one model or another of the PA series ('58 to '62), although most of them had been modified in one way or another with the later "PB" series engines that would turn an already feisty performer into a veritable rocket!
Once either a 2.6 or 3.3ltr engine was fitted, you should really start feeling sorry for the running gear. Gearboxes didn't last long if driven hard with the larger engine, fitting an overdrive gearbox is a great idea if not required for heavy duty service, especially with the larger engine with its' abundance of power and torque but beware... all that extra mumbo is gonna play havoc with the suspension!