Driving 950 miles in one day to buy a weird Mk3 Astra 

Kenzo’s sitting there with not a care in the world,thinking to himself “fuel economy aint my problem pal” 😂

I've got loads of stuff I should be getting on with but I'm watching an increasingly irate Scotsman drive the length of the country to buy a shit 96 plate Astra estate. Thanks for the entertainment, Dougie. Love it.

What a road trip, loved the positive attitude (😂) on collecting the astra, to then have management light on in minutes. Sarcasm all the way home 😂 great vid guys 👍

Those seats are loverly mate never seen those and fairplay for driving all that way

Fair play for travelling that far. Love the seats in the Astra, stupidly rare now. I remember seeing one in the scrap yard in 2007-8, I really wanted the seats for my Nova at the time.

I drove an old Rover from Kent to Glasgow freezing, the next day I figured out that the two outer vents were fresh air only and the middle ones which I'd left shut were for hot air...

Well worth the trip to get an estate with heated leather seats 👍. Looks like the bodywork benefitted from the mild winters down South.

Did anyone else laugh out loud when Dougie was leaving the services and a foreign artic started reversing ? The way he said Christ was comical

Stumbled upon the Channel a while ago and ever since I’ve been hooked, really enjoying the videos.

The interior reminds me of the south african 200ts

Nothing more satisfying picking up a banger miles away from home hoping it'll get back great video mate 👍

I really enjoyed riding with you and Kenzo on your road trip lol!!, that is total dedication to the cause, travelling so far to collect a new addition to the fleet😊.

Felt sorry for you driving up the road with no heat. Kenzo looked super happy lol.😂 Shame about the vectras fuel economy. The Astra body looks ok nice one really liked this episode. Appart from the no heat.👍🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

You sir are a trooper! Travelling all that way in one day for an astra! Keep up the good videos though and saving the old vauxhalls :)

Lol you really did make me laugh when you were trying to reverse out of that space at the services 😂😂🤣🤣🤣

Almost the same thing happened to me just before NYE when I picked my Senny up from Aberdeen! Cold as hell outside and I had no interior lights, no radio and the coolant temp was dead cold constantly, with no heating. All I had was the heated seat and the windows kept misting up. When it's 2am and you're 8 hours from home (near London), you just want to pull over and give the car a good kicking 🤣

I have a 5 door hatch cdx with leather same colour lovely car to drive

Great video Dougie and great little road trip. Astra does not look too bad, that leather interior looks well smart in the Astra.

I don’t envy you doing that journey in a day 😳 at least with a tacho we’re forced to park up 😃

felt your pain, but it was compelling watching. What a road trip!

Dougie, there’s a nice black Vectra SRI Auto for sale in shotts just now you should get your hands on! I would but the wife’s just made me get an 11 plate insignia as it’s ‘something reliable’.

Proper Road Trip. The Vectra did good despite the fuel consumption. Have a soft spot for the only Vauxhall I owned, the ex Avis Rental Mk3 Astra which I owned from 15,000 miles to 77,000 miles. Great car. Remember to stay well ahead of Kenso on the motorway. You pair of boys will make contact yet. Haven't been on the motorway much lately but glad to see that there are still normal cars out there so that we are not staring at the tailgate of Qashqais, Kugas and Rav4s all the time. Great videos you Mad men.

Great vid, what a shame about the mpg. I know what its like when little things like this eat away at you a ruin the trip. Also seeing the nice warm temp gauge on the astra while you were freezing. At least you got it home and you seem happy with it. With the mileage you do, you need a good diesel.

Dougie mate, I’ve just farted as you uploaded the video.

Great video lads, Kenzo in the passenger seat with the Tech2 on monitoring duties 😆 Classic motorway rants, pure gold.. 👌🏻

Aha you chose one of the best named petrol stations when you stopped in Preston. Good old Tickled Trout! The Astra looks like it has potential to be great. Getting you home without breakng down is a great start

Your dedication to the cause knows no bounds my friend. What’s a bit of frostbite on feet between some old GM shyte 😂. The basics of the car look good though. Look forward to seeing the improvements you make on it.

20mpg 😞 my 4.6 V8 Range Rover gets 23mpg on the motorway. My other car is a Volvo V70 T5 ex demonstrator and is loaded to the hilt. I've done so many heater matrix on my Vauxhall Caltons, cavilers, and omega's. Book said dash out, never took a dash out to change one. Simply drop one side of the engine and extract it from the engine bay. Nice estate purchase, and a keeper, in my opinion. 👍😎👍 m-E-m

What an awesome car, love that interior never seen an estate with leather. Some much rarity in an Astra- heated leather, cdx estate, ac. Love it. Might be worth unplugging the amp at the aerial remember way back this caused an issue.

Nice find! Y'know, when I was watching those dark bits when the interior light wasn't working I thought "Ya camera's night-mode is making you look a bit odd", then I realised it was fingerprints on my phone screen... 😁👉📱

Excellent purchase! Nice to see it join the fleet. Shame about the Vectra misbehaving though!

15:12 Kenzo breaks the 4th wall and stares into your soul.

Iv had a 1.8 16v about 13 years ago that did over 30 mpg and I had 2.5 v6 Sri saloon with a gsi kit on it about 7 years ago that did 26 mpg

Nice one Dougie always the way when going on a long journey the car plays silly buggers nice astra too I bet it was freezing hope you get the vwctra fixed and the astra 👍

Looking forward to this one

I've always liked the look of Vauxhall sports interiors, I've had a few in my time. They do make my arse go square after about 400 miles on a long trip though😅 The MK3 is pretty handsome for an estate, I like it :) I hope you get the Vectra fuel economy issue fixed, I cannot fathom what must be drawing all that fuel 🤷‍♂️

Takes ma back that road trip dougy we used to do things like that way back in the 90s. Only it was with p6 rovers. Great video though dougy. Good luck with the new astra.

Bloody good video, that. More entertaining than anything on tv at the mo, that’s for sure 👍🏼

What a journey! That part of the M25 is as well you know a ball ache at the best of times so the fact it was moving at 18:30 on a wet miserable night surely is a win, the Astra should I hope be a good steed and a wee bit better on the juice than the Omega, look forward to the next video Thank you

Yes the Astra got Bob's seal of approval 😅

Putting thus here too, own experience with a stuttering Ecotec. Try your engine in 2. gear with full throttle at some 1500 rpm. If it stutters, say goodbye to your coil pack. You will get no management light but it will stutter. You will get the EM light and a fault code if you try a full throttle at 55-60 mph in 5 gear. If it then stutters, insist a few more seconds and the management light goes on. But it probably means limp mode too.

Utterly amazing vid dougie, very entertaining.....i do like the CDX, nicely rare, sad about the side bolster but that always go. And why oh why didnt they fit leccy rear windows....it's a CDX FFS.....i had a Belmont CD back in the day and it pee'd me off why that didn't have leccy rears...it was a CD, top of the range, with manual rear windows!

Oxygen sensor, possibly not working making it run rich or lean, see what it's reading, love the video from a training mechanic 🧰

Nice to see it’s not just me with a tad of road rage Dougie😂 there’s some right whoppers on these roads. My mum and work mate had an N reg 1.6 16v Astra, not a bad car but CHRIST did it like a drink…..of oil. Literally put about a litre a week in it….no leaks! Did that thing shift though 🤣 Nice spec that Astra estate Dougie, a mates parents had one and surprisingly spacious for small estate. Looking forward to the next vid 🤞🏻 the CDX doesn’t cause too many headaches.

I'm surprised the Astra window didn't fog up, that was a mammoth drive for you.

Did kenzo ever say anything all the way to the south coast ? 😂

I thought my mums old Astra was rare but this is something else She had an N reg 2lt CDX in graphite grey. Was a nice car until she hit a lamp post with it, then the water pump seized and a week later the fuel pump wiring caught fire melting all the wiring together 🤦🏻‍♂️😂

To cover that same distance in the next few months will only be possible if you are a Sheikh

Next month I'll have a mk3 gsi astra for sale She's need a bit of love but nothing to much Maybe you need a mk3 gsi

Love the way he looks after Kenzo,a true pal forever.

same colour as my astra saloon, mines got the 1.6 16v engine too but mines manual, really smooth running engines. i do envy that interior though, mine just has the standard cloth with added cigarette burns!

Good effort mate, enjoyed the episode.

Looks like you got a good car there....I know it must have been annoying about the heater, but the car seemed to make the trip easily. Score!!

Great video , good content , what a road trip that’s a lot in a day and a bit 😂 must be a good car to do that trip straight off will be nice once sorted good job 👍

Dougie I’ve had the same expression on my face, it normally happens when my car fks up when on holiday

If you have an air leak the fuel trims will not be able to compensate for it when you demand power so it will be lean at that point in time. Makes sense in my head anyway Dougie haha

You must of been feckin freezing in that car, a really good clean inside and out a roof lining and the cars a gooden.

love the video and your neighbours must love you a recovery truck and all those cars

Hell of a drive lads congrats on the car love the interior would look great in my gsi !

Great video, I live in Brighton I know where a barn find nova is, wish I'd known you were down haha

EN - JOY ,, Mk3 Vauxhall Astra , thats the 1 afta the old Mk2 and the 1 before the Mk4

Dougie I hope you get to work on this one quite quickly cus I am really looking forward to seeing how this one turns out? I think your gonna have a good car there once you've fixed all the problems it's got? But let's see, only time will tell!!! Good luck on this one Dougie lad, not that you'll need it...😉

That guy you bought it from would have been delighted to send the Astra to the opposite end of the country 😂

Drove loads of those Vectras in the late 90s mainly 1.8 and 2.0l great mile munchers! Just don't see them now.

That sports leather interior must have been a very big and very expensive option box to tick on an Astra mk3 CDX estate...

When you dodged that big puddle on the way home i thought you were driving right into McMeekins yard. Brilliant stuff tho. What a blast from the past. I had they wheels on a few on my astras. They were hardly rare but they will be now. And the xe engine as you know can develop some bhp. Will make an interesting project vehicle.

My first car 4 years ago was a champagne gold 97 mk3, same spec, sold iy but still have the colour wing mirror

Nice video Dougie! Very interesting Astra that’s for sure, it’s a shame that the Vectra is using so much fuel I hope you find out what it is soon as I said on IG check the fuel trims they should long term wants to sit at near 0 +or - 5 is acceptable the short term will jump around but should be close to 0 there are some good videos on here that explains what to look out for and are a very good diagnostic tool especially in a case like yours. Cheers.

Beside the leather seats I don't recall ever seeing a mk3 with a passenger airbag?

That astras interior is sweet 👌

Hi Dougie,the Astra estate looks a tudy example,especially the interior is rare to see.I hope you can sort out the Vectra petrol issue.😔

Looks a nice car and practical estate too

Like that. Just the type of thing I've been looking for looking for, same idea too, estate/fuel economy. Auto's are pretty built proof, had a few, my 6 pot is one. Dont' know what the final drive will be like, know on 1.8 16v you''ll just be doing 70 at 3k. Old 2.0ne was like 90.

Hopefully it's lived down that way (although maybe not on the coast) for most of its life, always find motors from down that way to be much less crispy.

I've got a 97 Mk3 golf GTI 8v and I always run it on super unleaded , but recently I put 20 litres of E10 in and the performance dropped right off , its pinging and its gone from 34 to 28 MPG. I'm guessing it's the fuel as there's no error code on the OBD.

It's a shame you didn't know about CPC FARNELL Components in Preston to help fix the temp meter. You where very close to it at that Petrol Station. 🙂

He’s going to a good part of the country yeah ☺️

Weird how this came up, I'm planning on picking up an astra estate next week, but I've only got about 45 miles each way.

Dougie, have you seen the Vectra 2.5 estate that Baxenden car breakers have in think it is a P-R reg looks in good nickthey are near Accrington.👍👍

2015 Astra diesel 1.6 about 48mpg one mostly town driving and over 60 on a long run. Had Astra F, Vectra B (favourite) and 2 Vectra C's but come on do a long run in a diesel! Lol sorry just my thoughts

There very rare with that leather option. My bother had a 2.0 sri with leather M. 94 mk3.In canary yell.went like hell.

Well done mission accomplished. Now the work starts. 😉

Nice the guy didn't tell you about the Astras issues, not as if you are driving up the road

Dougie you should have A framed the vectra, back home it would have saved you some money...good video though, interesting 🤔

Wow loved that.....but 475 miles no radio and heater the basics for a long distance trip in cold weather......i felt your pain. Mr tesla was probably being a dick with his instant electric torque...... What a long trip though. You showed no signs of tiredness or fatigue.maybe the cold kept yiu sharp ??? That is one long trip for an old astra. hope youre pleased with it. The trip down didnt look like fun either with the roadside repairs. How much did it cost?

Poor Kenzo, listening to all the fuel economy whining. And shitting himself because mad Dougie is doing 70 reading a code reader.

Looks lovely. I hoped the engine had another 200cc.

Dougie lad that is a real nice little Astra you've just brought yourself there and even though it's got a few niggle little problems I have no doubt you will fix everything that needs doing on it and once it's all done I think your gonna have a real cracker on your hands. 🙂🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

Was it £445 on petrol to do that trip? wow I have 160000 miles on the clock (notice yours is at 91000) and I have a 1.8 petrol and I can't even hit 25mpg I have never thought of looking at air temps what made you think that this would increase fuel consumption would it be to heat the engine up quicker ? my spark plugs are also fine and have done a full service but still terrible mpg. E10 makes my engine management light stay on permanently and mpg goes down too, Any info is appreciated.

I'm curiousto know why you don't get a manual turbo diesel. If you want fuel economy that would be the way to go. As for the vectra. Did it have enough coolant? If the level 9s to low it will have no flow through the heater core. The thermostat could also cause low heater performance and could also cause high fuel consumption. There probably will also be a coolant temp sensor that supplies a signal to the ECU. If that is reading faulty or if it's broken it might make the ECU 'think' that the engine is still cold and based on that it will start dumping fuel in. ANYWAY, nice Astra, i like it!

Good drive mate! Can you still pull on the light switch to bring interior lights on ? Used to on early models but you probably know that 🤣👍

Loving the videos mate - is it ever above freezing in Scotland? I bought a Omega Estate, sight unseen on ebay and so far it seems half decent

Great road trip vid,😄

I can't feel my left foot.or my right one either 😂😂😂😂😂😂.

I best not tell you about the Mk2 Astra Automatic on Autotrader then LOL its only £850 and in rust free condition too , I was tempted but i think a Mechanic would be best buying it lol

Well done it is me daniel

Might be a cracked exhaust manifold, causing the code to appear?

Rare now but back in the day that was a common Motability Spec mate

Dougie, what do the long term and short term fuel trims say? I had a similar problem on my Vectra c 2.8 v6 turbo. The rear manifold link pipe cracked, causing air to be sucked into the exhaust system and the wideband oxygen sensor detects this extra air and assumes the system is running lean and so it adds fuel until the mixture is correct or what it assumes is correct. In fact the mixture is mega rich. On the ME9.6 ecu if it gets to +25% on the long term fuel trims it puts the system into limp mode, so no boost and no power. Also it logs a fault code thinking the system is really learn when in fact its mega rich.

As a workaday car, I'd keep the 1.6 and even the auto TBH - relax and just churn the miles!