So there I am driving down Interstate 95 in Maine this afternoon. I pull into the rest stop, and notice an awesome little hot hatch. Definitely not anything I've ever seen before. Some googling later tells me it was a Vauxhall Astra VXR. Left hand drive, even...
Doubly odd, it had a euro-sized Maine plate on it. Maine numbers, Maine stickers, the works. Kinda looked home made, for sure. Of course, I didn't have my phone with me. The one time I leave it home, I see something cool.
My question is, how do you think the car got here? And how long till this joker and his fake plate get caught?
They were sold as Saturns.
>>15253739
it could of been a rebadged saturn astra with a body kit
>>15253756
This.
>Buy Saturn Astra
>import Vauxhall VXR parts
>?????
>Profit!
All it needs now is an LNF swap from the Cobalt SS Turbo sister car.
>>15253846
Wait, the Cobalt SS/TC is the same thing as the Astra VXR?
Neat.
>>15253756
I doubt it. It had euro bumpers, spoilers, lights, and that nifty center exhaust. I guess it's possible, but it looked way too nice for that kind of kludge-fest.
>>15253846
>getting an Astra
I would rather slit my wrists.
>>15253878
Not if I slit them first!
>>15253856
All that stuff can be shipped across the ocean quite easily, and it should all bolt right up.
>>15253853
Different engine family, but the Cobalt itself is the same thing underneath as the Astra VXR.
The Astra VXR's engine (pic related) is a 2.0L Turbo from Opel's family II 4 cylinder engine family, known for having a timing belt. A N/A variant of the engine was used in the American market Suzuki Reno and Forenza, as well as an SOHC 8V turbo variant in the old Pontiac Sunbird GT Turbo.
The Cobalt SS TC's engine is a different engine family, the ecotec engine designed to replace Opel's family II engine. So while it's also a 2.0L turbo making similar power, it's a completely different engine sharing nothing with the Opel engine.
The 2012+ Astra VXR does use an Ecotec 2.0L Turbo finally, and that's the Astra VXR Jeremy Clarkson preferred to the Ford Focus St and Renault Megane turbo thing.
>>15253878
Go to bed emo kid... or kill yourself. No one cares either way
>>15253930
Yeah, I meant the chassis/platform. So basically you could take any old Astra of that gen, bolt Cobalt SS bits into it, and blow people the fuck out in your boring grey shitmobile.
Welp, that's another to add to the "stupid ideas" list.
>>15253930
and for comparison, the Cobalt SS Turbo's engine.
Completely unrelated, but a better engine.
>>15253941
Yes and no. While it will all physically bolt on, the Opel was completely different electrically. Solve the electrical BCM issues and you could make a really cool sleeper. I've always loved how the 3 door Astra looked. The other thing is the US market Astra came only with the 1.8L family 2 engine which has virtually no aftermarket support so an engine swap is mandatory (preferably using the subframe from a Cobalt or Ion).
And it would give you an excuse to use the obvious joke.
Kiss my Astra
>>15253975
>Kiss my Astra
I laughed WAY too hard at that
>>15253975
That joke's made even better by the fact that the Astra actually has a pretty nice ass.
>>15253915
That seems like a much lamer story than illegally importing it somehow...
>>15253750
>kiss my astra
>>15254102
