TOP OF THE CLASS
We get behind the wheel of Vauxhall Heritage Collection’s own Cavalier to see how it won the battle to become Britain’s Eighties fleet favourite
Driving a MkII Cavalier is an absolute revelation. You’d never think so given its oh-so conservative styling but a MkII can be thrown around like a dirty great GTI where a MkI needs guiding and positioning with skill, with deference to its (admittedly tidy) rear-wheel-drive handling.
The MkII looks neat – anonymous, even – next to a MkI even in CD spec and sitting on handsome 14-inch lattice alloy wheels. Given its huge ubiquity, even as recently as 15 years ago, it’s now quite a shock seeing on out on the road. Where did they all go?
Jump in and you can see the result of six years’ worth of progress. The seats and driving position feel familar but the bulky and impressively ergonomic dashboard is far nicer to sit behind. It’s roomy, too, with bags of rearward travel in the front seat and a higher, slightly more friendly driving position than the MkI. It’s airy inside, and has great visibility, and although it’s no longer than the older car, it’s certainly roomier in the rear.
Fire it up, and the Family II four-pot zings into life, ready and willing for a good caning. Our CD is powered by the 1.8-litre version, boasting fuel injection and 115bhp. The outside lane warriors would have had a riot in this, even if the three-speed automatic gearbox fitted to Vauxhall Heritage’s mint example is rather less playful than the standard five-speed manual.
Snick it into ‘D’ and you’ll absolutely love the way it accelerates with alacrity. The MkI felt torquey, if slightly breathless at revs, but the MkII positively loves forays towards the redline. This one is fitted with power-assisted steering that was usually an optional extra in more humble versions. No way would you plump for the money-saving option of not specifying it when new – the system makes the car feel light on its feet and hugely responsive when the bends get tighter.
It feels stable at all times when braking for the corners and incisive and a lot of fun in the bends once you’ve worked out that it’s best not to be too rough when dialling understeer out. If only that auto transmission was a bit more responsive…
With the B-road fun out of the way, we settle down and discover that the Cavalier MkII is refined and stable at motorway speeds. The automatic works well here although this car’s ride quality isn’t quite as settled as we’d have liked. But the MkII is an excellent tool as a hack for covering miles – and proof that company car drivers really did have it good back in the 1980s.