1990 Vauxhall Senator 2.5 petrol from UK and Ireland
Summary:
Elegant executive saloon from years gone by
Faults:
Cooling fan, radiator leak, brake booster, brake pipes corroded, etc.
Central locking developed a fault.
Leak in boot area.
Rust in final years leading to MOT failure.
General Comments:
My Senator was a classy upmarket sedan that was sold by Vauxhall in the 1980's and early 1990's as their executive offering along with the Carlton. Both were a lot of car for the money.
I bought this used in 1998, beautiful dark red metallic standard model with wheel trims, but still looked the part. "Chip cutter" grille was always considered ugly, but given how nowadays most cars have a massive grille, looking back it really does not look out of place at all. Mind you, it was better looking in CD spec with alloy wheels and a boot spoiler.
Inside this basic model still had very nice and comfortable seats, and electric windows and mirrors, luxury for the time. Great smooth ride, handled OK as well despite its size and weight.
The 2.5 was a basic six cylinder petrol engine however; not very fast nor economical either. I think it did less than 20 mpg if you drove fast, and about 25 mpg at best motorway cruising. Very relaxed drive with the auto box.
So the basic 2.5 model was not bad, and at sixteen years old and almost 140K on it, it was time to move on, bad rust killed it off so I scrapped the car, would love another but only a mint condition 1993/4 model CD spec 3.0 24v engine car. These early Senators are exceptionally rare even in their time. Most enthusiasts held onto top spec faster models.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 4th March, 2024
31st Jan 2006, 14:33
Yes, defiantly a very very fast car. With lots of comfort, and a superb dash at night. It should maybe have a warning speed limiter, as I constantly find myself doing over 100mph.