Vauxhall VX220 Turbo

We've struggled to see the bright side of life with our VX220 Turbo over the past few weeks. Nothing to do with the car itself, you understand - more the person who pulled out of a side turning without looking, walloped the passenger side of the Vauxhall and left us with some very unsightly bodywork.
The tough aluminium chassis came away unscathed, so we've been driving the car as normal while we try to sort out insurance - and this has proved a nightmare, because the offending party wasn't covered. So it looks as if our own policy is going to have to cough up for the costly repairs.
Mind you, getting a quote was tricky enough. I had to take the car to five Surrey Vauxhall dealers before finding one which was authorised to repair the VX. Phoenix Motors of Wimbledon estimated the work would cost around £1,200 - this on top of bills already incurred for new brakes and tyres.
The shunt also put the boot out of action. For the past few months, the lid release has been getting sloppy and awkward - now it won't pop open at all, meaning all luggage has to be stowed on the passenger seat. That's not a problem if you're by yourself - until you want to park up. With minimal hidden storage in the cabin, you're compelled to carry your belongings with you, because the VX's canvas roof is simply too vulnerable to attacks.
And not only by knives: two weekends ago, another colleague came out of his house to find the roof covered in scrawls from an indelible marker pen. Despite scrubbing until pins and needles set in, I haven't been able to get rid of them - although I did use the time to think up some colourful new terms for the people who'd do such a thing!
Neither is that the end to our catalogue of disasters with the hot Vauxhall. The other night I was heading to a friend's birthday party, so I hopped in the VX, started the engine, then remembered I had left her card on the hall table. I nipped back into the house having left the engine running - and when I came out, the door was fastened shut.
It's the third time we've locked ourselves out, and it's due to weak door barrels. If you remove the key quickly when unlocking, it sometimes turns as you pull, so as you shut the door it latches and you're left stuck out in the cold. Of course, I missed the party and had to wait in the pouring rain for an hour until the AA came and broke into KE03 HKX for me.
These setbacks have taken the shine off our year-long VX220 Turbo experience. It's a joy at the right time, but it's not easy to live with. In our current sunshine-and-showers weather, the roof is a pain. When on, the black canvas makes the cabin too warm (while the heater is utterly ineffective), so you take it off, only to spot a dark cloud looming.
The Vauxhall also accumulates dirt like its going out of fashion. Washing the compact bodywork is no problem - although it does show exactly how many paint chips and car park dents the VX220 is now carrying - yet the air vents suck dirt from the road and hurl it into the cabin.
However, once repaired, we've no doubt the car will continue to shine. Although there is a plethora of squeaks and rattles, you simply can't buy a faster model for less money, nor a better-handling one; as with the Lotus Elise, it's a stunning road machine.
And let's not pretend that the Vauxhall has been expensive to run for such an involving motor. The 10,000-mile service was £324, which included a new wiper plus rear brake pads and tyres, and it regularly returns more than 32mpg - that's 10mpg better than either our Mazda RX-8 or Chrysler Crossfire long-termers. We've had an unfortunate summer with the VX220 Turbo - hopefully our run of bad luck has now come to an end.