2004 Vauxhall Astra Bertone Coupe 1.6 16v

This my Astra Coupe 1.6 16v owned for 11 years, while I admit it isn’t the quickest, it certainly isn’t the slowest.. but it tells a story.
When purchased a lot of people didn’t believe or didn’t know she existed, the Coupe was released as a 1.8, 2.0t and a 2.2.. the convertible was the only one with a 1.6 (4 stud hubs).
I didn’t know any different I struggled to get insurance initially because it came back convertible.
After talking with Vauxhall directly, they confirmed it was real, someone hadn’t decided to downgrade the engine.. however it was the end of build line.. a limited number were released with 1.6 16v engines (non convertible). they came out the factory on the same running set up and spec (by that I mean trim) as the 1.8..
so cruise control, heated seats were all pre wired, it had 5 stud hubs etc.. and a nice surprise for some reason 308mm brakes upfront…
So it’s not a rare car as such, but it’s a rare Combo, one that I have had a long love affair with.

For a number of years I have worked on all sorts with my Dad helping me. In August 2017 she was stolen from my drive while I slept..(they broke in and stole the keys) heart breaking wasn’t the word, it later recovered, the suspension collapsed, the wheels buckled, no tyres left, one was wrapped up in the wheel arch, the front end was mashed, all the audio had been ripped and pulled out of the car.. the interior trim had been snapped and broken (presumably to get to the audio cable) and the seats had been slashed..
The only thing left was the Dash cam, hidden up behind the rear view mirror, sadly we saw the route they took, heard their voices, watched as they smashed the car around, but the power gave up when they started pulling at the wires.

When it was finally back in my possession, I had to think hard about what I wanted to do, but my dad and I set about rebuilding her 2 and a half years on she’s back on the road and looking better than ever.

Hope you like it..