Latest news

Many readers will immediately recognise Mark McClelland’s Astra GTE Mk. I as A 641 SPO won third prize at the 2016 Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show “Pride of Ownership”. Incredibly, ‘I had entered by mistake. A few months previously I had entered Pride of Ownership at the Manchester Classic show. This was only to gain entry as a private entrant and be given a show spot.  I then was told by a fellow classic car owner that the NEC Show did similar, so I sent off an application to gain a private entry, and this was accepted’.

However, ‘about a week or so before the show final instructions were received and the penny dropped I had mistakenly entered a “best in show type” competition. I was extremely nervous, and I was going to withdraw my entry as I felt my car was not good enough for such a high profile main show sponsor display. Anyway, my friends convinced me to go, and I did’. Those who attended the NEC that year will recall how many visitors were drawn to the white Vauxhall. ‘The show was such a blur with crowds around the car from opening until the finish. You would think that an Mk. I GTE had never been there before by the reaction’.

Such a reception was expected as the GTE was – and is – a vehicle of quite incredible charisma and it also marked a watershed in the history of one of Britain’s most famous car marques. Back in 1982, Ford introduced a model that took Vauxhall unawares. The Escort XR3i immediately became the car of choice for all estate agents who kept a Filofax in the glove compartment and who appreciated the beauty of the mullet hairstyle. Luton’s nearest equivalent was the Astra SR – a highly agreeable machine but not entirely on a par with the car from Essex.

Vauxhall’s riposte to Ford debuted in spring 1983, and today Mark is the justifiably proud owner of one of the finest “Hot Hatchbacks” in Europe – and the marque’s original FWD high-performance car. The GTE was powered by the Cavalier SRi’s 1,796cc fuel-injected engine combined with modified suspension from the Astra SR. Mark points out that ‘early reports complain of slow acceleration’ and Autocar grumbled about the lack of mid-range performance due to the ‘high overall gearing’. However, Vauxhall addressed this issue ‘by changing the gearbox from the Cavalier SRi’s WR five-speed box to a close-ratio GTE five-speed box’.

Thirty-seven years ago, any visitor to a Vauxhall showroom could immediately recognise the GTE by its silver alloy wheels, sill and arch extensions and – if you specified a “Polar White” Astra - colour-coded bumpers. The other choices of finish were black, the optional metallic silver or the very “1980s” Carmine Red. The price was £6,412, making the Vauxhall £261 more expensive than the XR3i but nearly £400 cheaper than the VW Golf GTi.

Ian Wearing of Hot Car described the GTE’s styling as ‘restrained extrovert’ although he also thought the GTE’s frontal treatment too low key. ‘Come up behind a Cortina in the fast lane, and he sees just another Astra – and he’s not going to move over for that’. However, the Vauxhall owner was probably far too self-assured to battle with second-hand 1972 GT Mk. III’s on the M27. The flagship Astra was a compact sports saloon for the motorist who might one day aspire to a BMW 323i or a Saab 900 Turbo.

Naturally, Vauxhall’s publicity made much of the GTE’s top speed of 115 mph -

also employing the slightly cringe-worthy phrase ‘Nought to naughty in 8.5 seconds’. Motor of the 30th April 1983 was ‘mightily impressed’ with the Vauxhall and although Autocar made those complaints about the transmission they were taken with the ‘commendable handling, ride and road holding’. Furthermore, the Astra offered a keen driver ‘excellent mechanical refinement, a high top speed and good straight line acceleration from rest’.

Meanwhile, in December 1983, Mike Cotton asked readers of Motor Sport ‘Would the GTE be a disappointment? Would it be flabby, breathless and softly suspended, as we remembered previous Vauxhalls with sporting pretensions to be?’. His answer was ‘No, no and no!’ for this was ‘a surprisingly good Vauxhall product, one we could easily live with, having a dual personality to suit the terrain’.

The Astra Mk.II replaced the original model replaced the original version in October 1984, and when Mark came across SPO it had been ‘stood idle in a garage since the 1990s’. Despite that, ‘she was in surprisingly good condition; the previous owner had used it as a modified show car himself during the ‘90s’. However, the GTE had undergone a “Max Power” style modification – ‘after-market alloy wheels, a stereo system, amps, speakers, subs, spoiler, aero fuel cap, car ‘phone, engine upgrades, brake upgrades and the like’.

Mr. McClelland then set about the recommissioning of the Astra, removing ‘many of the period modifications and returning the car to a more original sort of look. This involved some mechanical repairs or replacements, cosmetic paint repairs, replacement tyres, belts, engine servicing etc. to get it into the useable condition you now see today’. He regards the engine as one of the GTE’s strongpoints – ‘for its era, it’s very very reliable and loves to be highly revved’.

Further benefits of ownership included Recaro seats that are ‘highly comfortable and supportive’ plus its appearance. ‘The looks, in my opinion, have aged well - the boxy shape and colour coding suit it and it is highly recognisable’. Mark also notes the Astra’s ‘usability in the modern era;  it is still a car you could use every day in modern traffic although with the close-ratio gearbox it is high revving at motorway speeds’. As for the bad points – ‘the brakes are poor, but with this in mind, you compensate for it by increasing braking distances’.

Mark believes that attitudes to the first-generation Astra GTE have altered over the past decade, especially ‘with those of a certain age - 30s to 50s’. That said, he still finds ‘some older classic enthusiasts still see them as too new a car to be considered “real classics” even though they are over 36 years old now’. As for the general public reaction to SPO, ‘it is amazing, be it in a petrol station fuelling up, driving through town or at a classic car show. Everyone of a certain age remembers them very fondly, and all have a story to tell, whether it be one of their first cars, their parent or neighbour had one, or it was a car they lusted after in their youth’.

This respect and affection for the original Astra GTE was undoubtedly demonstrated by SPO’s first visit to the Lancaster Insurance Classic Motor Show. ‘I am not a trophy hunter, and I was genuinely “gobsmacked” at the public reaction to the car’. Mark drives his Vauxhall to every event, and the trip to Birmingham represented its longest journey. ‘It came through the snow when others on the stand had been trailered there. I think the public liked that fact, for me driving to and from a show’.

And the McClelland Astra ‘was voted one of the best cars by the public on the Pride of Ownership stand ahead of stalwart classics like an E-Type Jaguar and Austin-Healey and received a much to my surprise trophy from “Wheeler Dealer” Ant Anstead’. Mark was further delighted when in 2019 he was ‘asked back to represent the year 1984 for the show’s 35th anniversary on a special display stand’. We look forward to seeing SPO again, for it really does epitomise Vauxhall’s claims of a car ‘built to make your heart beat faster’.

With Thanks To  - Mark McClelland and the Mk. I Astra Group - https://www.facebook.com/groups/42121696656

Why choose Lancaster Insurance?

Here at Lancaster, we love classic cars as much as you do and we understand what it takes to protect them for future generations.

We have links with some of the top classic car clubs around the country and some of our policies even offer discounts of up to 25% for club members.

Other benefits of classic car insurance through Lancaster can include:

• Historic rally cover
• Static show cover
• Limited mileage discounts
• Choice of repairer
• 24-hour claims helpline

Give your classic the protection it deserves and get a quote for your Vauxhall today.