Top Gear Metro review

[Blitz]

Only a couple years old and there rotten

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[rh306]

sh*t heap

[leeparkes]

Check the ginger lions mane at 6 minutes

[parkin10]

put so many front wings and front panels on metros in the day
they were never better than minis

[pacerpete]

put so many front wings and front panels on metros in the day
they were never better than minis

Sh1t, I didn't think they were that bad, as in not better than the sorry spastic mini !

[parkin10]

well minis rusted just as badly i know i did loads of them too
but i will give the mini a break as it was designed in the late 1950s
the metro was designed in the 70s and then shelved when BL got desperate for a mini replacement in the 80s they just got it back out and thought it will have to do
i realy dont think the metro was a better design than a fiesta or a nova and best of all the mini out lived it

[Andyboy]

Better than the Fiesta which was a horrid, harsh little shitbox with a gruff engine and a poor ride. But the Nona, Renault 5 (series 2), Uno and 205 were all way ahead. The Metro wasn't a bad car when it was new but they didn't age well.

[parkin10]

Better than the Fiesta which was a horrid, harsh little shitbox with a gruff engine and a poor ride. But the Nona, Renault 5 (series 2), Uno and 205 were all way ahead. The Metro wasn't a bad car when it was new but they didn't age well.

ok i will go with you on this

[Andyboy]

Better than the Fiesta which was a horrid, harsh little shitbox with a gruff engine and a poor ride. But the Nona, Renault 5 (series 2), Uno and 205 were all way ahead. The Metro wasn't a bad car when it was new but they didn't age well.

ok i will go with you on this

?

[parkin10]

i agree
i only ever owned 1 fiesta and it was harsh and gruff as you put it
i always thought that 205 gti 1.9 was tasty little car

[Andyboy]

I agree with Quentin. They were shit.

I used to buy and sell these turds 20 odd years ago, and you'd almost guarantee fitting a new wing to anything more than 4-5 years aold. But they were about 12 quid for a decent pattern one and a piece of piss to bolt on. If you were lucky, the radius arms had been greased and the gearbox didn't rattle in 4th gear (mainshaft bearing).
The best one I ever had was a W plate 1.0, SLO172W - it was absolutely mint and original. The worst was the last one I did, an F plater which had th thinnest coat of paint known to man - it was just rubbish and I ended up backing it to the sales. The 3 door Nova was so vastly better that they just made silly money at the sales.

[bss325i]

No way in hell is a metro a better car overall than a fiesta. Never.

[harry_p]

I will agree with everyone, the original a-series metros were utter turds. They sort of did their job though, mini mechanicals but vastly more interior space, massively more practical, a lot quieter and more comfortable. Still handled in a pretty similar way, just blighted by the prehistoric engine.

The face lifted cars with the k-series engines were massively better in every way ( apart from weirdly the rear arches )
Longer wheelbase, double wishbone front suspension and an engine that was smoother, quieter and more refined than anything else in its class.

Too little too late as the new breed of superminis were just around the corner. Pug 106, saxo, mk4 fiesta, fiat punto, Clio etc etc made them look very very silly. God knows why they bothered with the even later r100 facelift

[Andyboy]

No way in hell is a metro a better car overall than a fiesta. Never.

They were both poorly made shitheaps. As a new car, the Metro went better, was a lot more refined (the A plus was a much quieter at idle), had a much better ride, more interior space and it cornered well. It was also vastly more economical to the tune of 10 mpg more.
The old 950/1100 Fiestas were just nasty horrid things and unbelievably harsh. They were mechanically more rugged but rusted just as badly - probably worse.

Apparently there's a following for the Mark 1 XR2 - Christ knows why.

[bss325i]

Fiestas mk1 and 2 may have rusted almost as bad but no where near as quickly. Yes the OHV engines were coarse but very reliable and the fiesta suspension again was more reliable down to its simplicity.

As for handling, both the shopping fiestas and metros were shit, they are shopping trolleys.

Now, move up a bit to MG metro vs Mk2 XR2, there is no contest.

[bss325i]

+ metros a fugly!

[Andyboy]

Nothing wrong with the old A Plus engine. A million years old but they were a solid old plodder. The 1.0 was the better of the two. Festers were known for shagged cams leading to the Fester death rattle - that'd be adjusting the tappets the day you sold it or p/x'd it. Metro gearboxes were known for the mainshaft bearing failure leading to the rattle in 4th gear. Shagged radius arms were due to lack of greasing, Hydragas pipes just rusted and burst. The Fester (particularly the cheaper ones) had an electric fan which ran constantly so they never warmed up properly.

The Mark 2 XR2 wasn't a bad little tram, but not a patch on a 205GTi or a Nova GTE. The Fiesta was just a nothing car, completely characterless and a typical 'just about good enough' Ford product.

[B7]

Have to agree with Barry here Andy. I'd have taken a fiesta over a spaz chariot metro any day of the week. Much more modern (despite being introduced 3 years before the horible little shit box Metro) and nicer to drive.

The Metro was a bit like the Marina when it came on the scene. Old fashioned and out of date before it hit the Earls Court stands. Classic BL British car industry mentality which used old technology rather than invest in new ideas (=ing the end in many ways).

And the Mk1 Festa did't rot as bad as the Metro. But the 87-88 era Mk2's did (along with the Sierras and Escorts it was sold alongside). F*ck me they rotted like an out of date curry left in the sun! Something to do with Spanish steel or something?

But over all, the Fiesta was a nice little car. I was sat in an 89 Mk2 Ghia down the breakers the other day (just for old times sake like) and a jolly nice place to be it was as well.

[pacerpete]

But over all, the Fiesta was a nice little car. I was sat in an 89 Mk2 Ghia down the breakers the other day (just for old times sake like) and a jolly nice place to be it was as well.

Wow,sicko alert ! next thing you will be telling us how nice the steering wheel smelled / tasted !

[adit]

my work colleague of many years ago (Elvira (sp), a taffy lass and a right beauty) bought one brand new, she was well proud of it.
i've owned a couple, not your common-or-garden ones obviously, but the top-of-the-range Vanden Plas of course





i don't remember any old Fiesta interior ever looking like this

[Andyboy]

I was sat in an 89 Mk2 Ghia down the breakers the other day

Best place for it. Nasty little shitbox.

[B7]

But over all, the Fiesta was a nice little car. I was sat in an 89 Mk2 Ghia down the breakers the other day (just for old times sake like) and a jolly nice place to be it was as well.

Wow,sicko alert ! next thing you will be telling us how nice the steering wheel smelled / tasted !

Sorry but Mo wasn't with me but I can check next time I'm down there.

[B7]

i don't remember any old Fiesta interior ever looking like this

Thank god!!!

[B7]

I was sat in an 89 Mk2 Ghia down the breakers the other day

Best place for it. Nasty little shitbox.

Andy, Pete and I discussed your "views" last night, on the Fiesta vs Metro, over dinner. We both agreed you are a f*cking wrongun of epic proportions!

[pacerpete]

my work colleague of many years ago (Elvira (sp), a taffy lass and a right beauty) bought one brand new, she was well proud of it.
i've owned a couple, not your common-or-garden ones obviously, but the top-of-the-range Vanden Plas of course





i don't remember any old Fiesta interior ever looking like this

Neither did yours unless it was a VP 500 , they also had electric windows and only came in black, so Andyboy tells me

[DanThe]

They are both utterly hideous forms of transport, id rather pedal! The metro interior was very nasty, yes they could bullshit them up with crap seat coverings etc but the seating position was horrible the pedals steering and everything was just noddy like, you'd get better build quality from tomy. The jap interiors were bad but at least you could sit in a rice burner and feel like you were in a driving position
Fiesta was very basic but at least it stayed together a bit longer, the OHV engines were just dangerous you could actually pedal away from a junction alongside one and be at least 10 car lengths in front by the time it was out and into the lane!
Ive bodged up many metros in my college days and they were just flid chariots but driving a peasant spec fiesta is a very very degrading task...

[capri_rob]

I've never owned anything that small - wouldnt want to either.

I learned to drive in Metro's - my instructor had a beige F plate 1.3 and a beige D plate 1.0. Even with no frame of reference both were shockingly bad.

After passing my test my first car was a rusty 1.3 Mk1 Golf which was a far superior turd in every way.

Back in the day the cheap first car of choice was a metro or mk1 or mk2 fiesta - I knew people who had them and just remember the metro being whiney, slow and bouncy and the fiesta being slow and rattly - even the Mk2 XR2 was slow, rusty, rattly and smoky. Nasty turds.

After a few years driving we inherited my Grandads E plate Micra - which was brilliant in comparison to any of the other cheap small cars I'd driven - it handled well, so easy to drive you could drive it in your sleep and it went quite well too. Always started as well. Much as I dislike Jap stuff that was a good little car.

[B7]

Who could ever say this:


By b7tmw at 2011-12-06

was even in the same league as this:


By b7tmw at 2011-12-06



and that This (despite still being a Mk1):


By b7tmw at 2011-12-06

is not a nicer car than this:


By b7tmw at 2011-12-06

I rebuilt a 1986 one the same as that Black Turbo, in 1994. And what an archaic peice of shite it was. And it was truly a shocking rotten pear.

[capri_rob]

If you HAD to have one you'd go with the fezza thats a given - but personally I wouldnt buy either.

Some cars from that era I have no problem remembering with rose tinted glasses as being a lot better than they really were - the bigger Fords in particular - but small cars ? No. They were always sh1t.

Too many memories of Mk1 1.1 Fiestas screaming around at 20mph with pepperpot wheels, ass on the floor, front up in the air and the tappets fighting to get out

The VW polo was a world apart from mass market Ford/BL/Vauxhall stuff - a much better motor but then it was a lot more expensive - you get what you pay for.

[DanThe]

The Polo was and still is one of the best cars in the small/second hand car market.
I had a Polo Coupe-S on a C plate, in black, 1300cc 4 speed. It was a cracking car, I fitted a Mk3 5 speed box and a 1.0 cylinder head with elec ignition and it would fly what it was
Unfortunately I hit a deer and then another car head on which was the end

[bss325i]

even the Mk2 XR2 was slow, rusty, rattly and smoky.

I wouldn't go as far to say they were slow. A nice condition one with the right carb (later ones had a shit carb but the types elude me) was a nippy car that would bite at the heels of more powerful hot hatches.

I've had three of them, one a complete dog (kiwi green8O) , one and average condition one (diamond white) and a minter than mint 1 granddad owner one (mercury grey).

Yes there were ones with no sills under kit, worn cams and lifters valve stem seals but there were still plenty of nice ones about 10-12 years ago when i had them and they weren't f*cked when they were new.

[capri_rob]

Maybe I've just never been in a good one. I've driven a few and they just felt naff. The interiors were rubbish too - the so-called sports seats were pants, the dash was horrible and the door cards were about as cheap as you could get. The only OK thing about the XR2 interior was the steering wheel.

I had a G Plate Black XR3i which was pretty much mint - totally standard and unmolested, low miles with the later EFi setup and cosworth style wheels but even that didnt feel as pokey as it should have.


Anyway back on topic - metros - SHYTE !

[bss325i]

I had a G Plate Black XR3i which was pretty much mint - totally standard and unmolested, low miles with the later EFi setup and cosworth style wheels but even that didnt feel as pokey as it should have.

The last of the line EFi mk4's had 118bhp, 3 bhp over the MFI XR3's with Bosch K jetronic but they always felt flat in comparison to the earlier ones.

The quickest XR3i's were the german built Mk3's with MFi.

The black B reg one i had with 54k was a rocket in comparison to the G reg mercury grey EFI one with 70k.

That B reg one was the fastest out of the 10 mk3/4 XR3i's i had and the 5 Orion 1.6i Ghias.

It went up in flames!

[Low_E30]

A Mk2 XR2 with a turbo lump was an absolute weapon....

Once you chipped and cam'd that lot it all got a little silly.....

I remember one in particular that i had the pleasure of sitting in, torque steer was a joke....

Saying that, Iv always had a soft spot for the MK2 XR2.....

[bss325i]

A Mk2 XR2 with a turbo lump was an absolute weapon....

Once you chipped and cam'd that lot it all got a little silly.....

I remember one in particular that i had the pleasure of sitting in, torque steer was a joke....

Saying that, Iv always had a soft spot for the MK2 XR2.....

A friend of mine had a mk2 XR2 with an American 1.9 CVH short block (before the days of ZVH conversions), stage 3 head and cam with a decent twin choke webber and that thing shifted.