While nothing is entirely set in concrete just yet, the very fact that Stellantis has what sounds like a concrete proposal for a future without its Luton factory is clearly upsetting for all involved. The official Stellantis press release, which leads on its intention to invest more money in Ellesmere Port as a result of it consolidating production in the UK, promises attractive packages for relocation, retraining and even new employment opportunities in the Luton area with third parties - all well and good, but a secure future for a plant inextricably associated with Vauxhall would obviously be preferable for its employees. And while it still might not happen the very fact that plans exist and the wheels appear to be turning doesn’t exactly bode well.
Though it’s becoming all too familiar to use the word ‘inconceivable’ when it comes to developments in an unprecedented time for the car industry, a Vauxhall without Luton - indeed, a Luton without Vauxhall - is hard to countenance. There’s been a Vauxhall presence there for more than a century; even longer than Ford at Dagenham or Bentley at Crewe, it’s home for a British brand in a way that nowhere else can be.
So let’s hope there’s a future for Luton yet. We know the ZEV mandate is currently being reassessed in the face of mounting criticism, and political about-faces have become remarkably commonplace in recent years. But until it is, there’s nothing like the comfy retreat of the old days to bring a bit of fleeting happiness.
The Cavalier lives on as one of the best Luton-built Vauxhalls; apparently there was never a strike at the factory in the seven years of Mk3 production from 1988 to 1995, so that’s something. With the production of every era taking place there, it’s hard not to hark back to that time when everybody had a traditional family car, it was a Ford or a Vauxhall (which also decided your touring car alliance), and you knew if Dad had made it if the car had a sunroof.
We all have a Sierra or Cavalier story, right? My old man had an H-reg SRI; it’s the first car I remember him having in the mid-'90s, and red pinstripes with a big exhaust were so exciting to an impressionable kid. So when a Cavalier Mk3 of any description comes up for sale, it’s hard not to be intrigued. Especially in light of recent developments.
This one isn’t an SRI, but is about as basic as a Cavalier gets: a 1.6-litre L, complete with wind-up windows, wheels trims and just a fuel gauge instead of a revcounter. Not the kind of Cav you’d have wanted to arrive at school in, but a fascinating old Vauxhall all these years later. Registered in May 1990, it’s covered fewer than 33,000 miles since, and looks to have been cared for wonderfully well. Even the buttons on the standard radio cassette haven’t worn out. While the MOT has recently expired, there’s nothing in the recent past to suggest that a new test should be any problem at all, and it could be a handy negotiating point for a new owner. Certainly a Cavalier this good looks set to guarantee favourable attention, in Luton or anywhere, for another 35 years at least.
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