Vauxhall VX220 | PH Auction Block
A standard '220 is great, and even more so with a turbo - how about a supercharger?
What a great time the early 21st century must have felt at Vauxhall. If a car could be made silly, then it absolutely was: think Zafira, Meriva and Vectra VXR. If there was fun to be had, then Vauxhall did it: think British Touring Cars with champions racing wheel to wheel, rebadging Australian muscle cars, claiming Nurburgring records and so on. Having new GSEs is a step in the right direction, but there’s some way to go to be even close to those heady days of the 2000s. As it is for most manufacturers, in fairness.
Probably the peak of Vauxhall’s gloriously crazy years was the VX220, a car unlike anything else with the Griffin badge on it. Sure, the bones were Lotus - thanks to GM stepping in to help fund the S2 Elise - but there could be no accusations of merely rebadging. The VX220 and Opel Speedster had a design all of their own (a brilliant one, by all accounts), and offered up turbocharged torque for the platform way before there was a supercharged Elise. All for less money than the Lotus. It’s little wonder they were so loved.
And still are, of course. Because it doesn’t have the green and yellow badge and because it doesn’t offer an 8,000rpm engine option, the VX220 remains more affordable than the Elise, despite being very similar. Great news for anyone after a mid-engined, rear-drive, lightweight British sports car for not very much. There are mint VX220 Turbos around for £20k, and just one supercharged Elise at less than £25,000.
In an ideal world, you’d want the affordability of the Vauxhall with supercharged response and sound of the Lotus, especially given the turbo lag could play havoc with the VX’s handling. But that car doesn’t exist - apart from here. It’s a VX220 with the standard 2.2, albeit supercharged by marque specialists Type 116 motorsport to 250hp. When none left the factory with more than 220hp (the last of the line VXR220s), that’s a very exciting prospect.
There’s plenty to support the power too, from adjustable dampers to bigger brakes, a quicker steering rack to Lotus ABS. In fact there’s loads to make this VX220 even better on road and track than just the power, from upgrades like braided hoses and Carbon Lorraine pads to a cupholder, improved lights and protection for the fabric roof. However it’s going to be used, this Vauxhall looks absolutely ready for it; they were never everyday sports cars, obviously, so a few racy upgrades makes complete sense. Yet on the other hand, normal seats remain, as does a stereo, and there isn’t a cage, so it’s a (slightly) less extreme prospect than a Caterham or similar.
Let’s not ignore the fact, either, that this is a 40,000-mile example, so despite being a 2005 vintage this little Vaux looks almost as good as it would have years ago. There’s stacks of history with it, a flawless MOT until November, and the sort of condition that comes with modest use. It’s clearly been driven, but this isn’t some track hack. All of which makes for a VX even more appealing than the rest: more powerful, more capable, more thrilling, and with the money already spent. All a buyer needs to do is work out which track day they’re doing first…
Just can't imagine Vauxhall doing something like this now.
Just can't imagine Vauxhall doing something like this now.
Comparing to the S2 Elise, the VX comes out slightly less favourably. The naturally aspirated VX220 is a good 80kg heavier than a K-series powered S2 Elise (but similar to the Toyota powered cars), and Vauxhall made the wrong choice in going for equal diameter wheels (which they later corrected on the VXR variant, which used the Elise/Exige's staggered setup). Ultimately, weight differences aside, every Elise platform car can be made to handle pretty much like every other just by bolting on different parts.
The biggest problem as standard was the engine - there's nothing wrong with the Vauxhall 2.2 (which ironically, Lotus had a hand in developing) but it was never intended for a sports car so it wasn't the most free-reving of units. How the engine in this feels will obviously depend heavily on the modifications.
The other big problem is the brakes. Vauxhall wanted ABS but at the time Lotus wasn't interested in them for the S2 Elise so they so they fitted a primitive system which, frankly, didn't really work. Again I believe this can be fixed by fitting parts from a later Elise which had a proper four-channel ABS system.
I drove pretty much all of the Elise variants which were available at the time that I bought my Elise, including the naturally aspirated and turbocharged VX220s, and for my usage (as a daily driver/commuter) the VX was certainly better than the S1 Elise but it didn't really do anything better than the S2 111S I ultimately bought (except raw speed in the case of the turbo), and did several things appreciably worse. I still think the VX220 is a better looking car than the S2 Elise, though.
ETA: Ultimately we're talking about very fine margins. Everything based on the Elise platform (except the Tesla Roadster, by all accounts) drives more like everything else based on the Elise platform than like anything else, if that makes sense.
They are welcome at most of the Lotus car clubs & when ever one rocks up at a meeting everyone heads over to take a look.
Silver is one of the best colours imo as well.
They are welcome at most of the Lotus car clubs & when ever one rocks up at a meeting everyone heads over to take a look.
Silver is one of the best colours imo as well.
In the run up to buying mine, drove several Elises including the one to have apparently, the 111R, and the standard VX 2.2 I felt was better for me. Yep fine margins, but it is marginally more practical (larger boot), and I prefer the looks, especially the more geometric interior. And it is much rarer than the Elise which makes it much more special in my book. And apart from that one comment by the older gentleman, I have never had car which draws so much positive attention from the general public and other car enthusiasts who frequently wave, smile, and ask questions about it at garages etc.
They are welcome at most of the Lotus car clubs & when ever one rocks up at a meeting everyone heads over to take a look.
Silver is one of the best colours imo as well.
In the run up to buying mine, drove several Elises including the one to have apparently, the 111R, and the standard VX 2.2 I felt was better for me. Yep fine margins, but it is marginally more practical (larger boot), and I prefer the looks, especially the more geometric interior. And it is much rarer than the Elise which makes it much more special in my book. And apart from that one comment by the older gentleman, I have never had car which draws so much positive attention from the general public and other car enthusiasts who frequently wave, smile, and ask questions about it at garages etc.
The N/A and supercharged mods ain't a patch on the Turbo... from experience... I hate that gutless 2.2....
Oh and I rate them way more highly than the Elise on all fronts... Just more special to me.... and actually have performance
Stacked and centre-mounted pipes give this car a distinctive look.
More well-resolved, arguably, than one on each side. For a car of this size and shape.
Blasphemy on here, I mean, how dare it!
(so I've been told)
I happily admit to preferring the aesthetics of Vauxhall / Opel over the Lotus.
First year of production is now a quarter-century old. Therefore buyers over here (US) will be having a look. I wouldn't expect a stampede, but their numbers will grow.
Fun car. Affordable and sense of occasion.
I hated that with my garage along the sidewalk in a not to wide side Street, say a longer BMW Z3 (M) has a turning circle of 10,4 or 10.6 for the M models, those are easy to drive rearwards in my garage, the (by us called Opel Speedster and or Speedster Turbo) had to do double the maneuvers.
but... it was nimble (my Speedster Turbo) and felt fast/sporty only had the environment gas pedal which means, foot from the gas pedal but the rpm went way slower then normal, very frustrating.
but other then the 2 things mentioned above, its a nice car and most people did not know what it was, the last thing they would have guessed was a Opel (Vauxhall)
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