Nova vs Corsa Track Car

[sweeny]

Bit of a newbie on here, im after a bit of info/advice.

Im looking to buy a cheap track car in the next few weeks and dont know wether to go for a Nova 2L 16v or Corsa 2L 16v.

What are the pro's and cons of each one on track, i.e. handling etc.

I have around the 2k mark to spend, so looks like i can get either. I would prefer to get one all done, seam welded, roll cage, suspension, brakes etc. so if anyone knows of any dedent ones already done then let me know. Ive seen a few on here but wanted to know which to go for, Corsa or Nova.

Cheers.

James.

[James B]

id say nova. but so will most people i guess, look what site your on!

there have been issues raised about the handling of an XE nova - i cannot personally comment on a corsa as iv never been in or driven one.

james

[sweeny]

look what site your on!


Did you not think ive noticed :roll: , just thought there might be a few unbiased people on here :wink: .

Im not really into Nova's or Corsa's to be honest, i just want a cheap track car that will hold together with a bit of abuse. And a Nova or Corsa seems to fit the bill nicely :D .

[Ricks]

personally i dont like the way the corsa handles and i wunt dare drive a 2l corsa so id say a nova and thts not a biassed comment.ive drove alot of corsa and i dint like goin round corners in it the nova is alot smother

[scott.parker]

Well if your affter a track car,try a nova with higly tuned 1.6 8v e16se engine or a1.6 16v c16xe in it,you will find the handling is not quite all there in a 2tr i should know,i learnt the hard way :wink:

so stick to the smaler lumps for better all round handling.

Scott

[Jack]

I'd vote nova too. An XE nova should be within your budget, where as a decent Corsa one will probably be more...

[sweeny]

Well if your affter a track car,try a nova with higly tuned 1.6 8v e16se engine or a1.6 16v c16xe in it,you will find the handling is not quite all there in a 2tr i should know,i learnt the hard way :wink:

so stick to the smaler lumps for better all round handling.

Scott

Cheers for the comments fella, but a few on other forums have said the above aswell. But its gonner be hard to find a fresh C16XE now.

I dont know wether to compromise the performance of a 2L for the handling of a 1.6? Not sure :? .

[James B]

Cheers for the comments fella, but a few on other forums have said the above aswell. But its gonner be hard to find a fresh C16XE now.

I dont know wether to compromise the performance of a 2L for the handling of a 1.6? Not sure :? .


a lad on here called olly has a 1.6 corsa gsi in his nova running on TB's and that gave scotts a run for its money on the straights and its not even set up properly yet.

[sweeny]

But to get a 1.6 to keep up with a 2L would take quite a bit of money, i.e. TB's etc. where as a 2L would just be there without any mods, and they are pretty cheap nowadays.

[MARTIN KELSON]

Personally i would go for Nova.
To my knowledge the Nova is also a fair bit lighter than the Corsa. Power to weight your better off with a Nova. Only down side is trying to find a good un as the youngest ones are now about 12yrs old and 2k aint alot of dosh for a decent track car.

[sweeny]

Personally i would go for Nova.
To my knowledge the Nova is also a fair bit lighter than the Corsa. Power to weight your better off with a Nova. Only down side is trying to find a good un as the youngest ones are now about 12yrs old and 2k aint alot of dosh for a decent track car.

Cheers martin, i think ive met u, have you got like a plum coloured Nova with a mint, big f*uck off shiney roll cage?

[Jack]

To my knowledge the Nova is also a fair bit lighter than the Corsa
But then the Corsa has a lot more "toys" that add weight...

Anybody have any details on the weight of both Nova and Corsa shells, fully stipped down the shell and chassis (no interior at all, no engine, etc)?

[sweeny]

Personally i would go for Nova.
To my knowledge the Nova is also a fair bit lighter than the Corsa. Power to weight your better off with a Nova. Only down side is trying to find a good un as the youngest ones are now about 12yrs old and 2k aint alot of dosh for a decent track car.

Cheers martin, i think ive met u, have you got like a plum coloured Nova with a mint, big f*uck off shiney roll cage?

Yep, its you mate, just seen your car in the gallery bit. I dont think you'll remember me but ive got a GTi-R and Andy Chan introduced us at Pod last year. I was admiring you car lol.

[MARTIN KELSON]

Remember speaking to Andy and his mates at pod back end of last year.
Cant remember which one you are though. Sorry.

[sweeny]

Remember speaking to Andy and his mates at pod back end of last year.
Cant remember which one you are though. Sorry.

Didn't think you would lol, we were the ones flying about on the mini moto crosser :lol: .

[benji]

i'd say go for a nova, it's lighter and cheaper, when you bash it, it will be cheaper to repair. get a standard 1600 8v engine in it and spend the cash you have on good suspension, big brakes, a cage, a diff and some sticky tyres. you will be competetive with most 2l 16v's, but you will still struggle with ones that have been well set-up. get the engine when a 1.6 16v comes up cheap

[sweeny]

Cheers for all the replies peeps, looks like im leaning towards a 2L Nova :wink: .

[Dar]

I had this decision when I was looking at building a trackday car. I went for the Nova obviously. The advice I was given was that a corsa has a wider track so you could potentally make it handle better but the Nova was alot lighter.

However when it comes to engine choice alot of people including SBD motorsport lean towards the 1.6l 16v engine. Which (again) according to SBD is more tuneable than the 2l 16v. Its also lighter (Engine and box by about 40kg I think) so there IS a handling benifit.

I went for the 2l 16v just because you can get 200bhp out of them and do nothing to the internals other than putting in ARP big end bolts. As for the handling disadvantage of the 2l 16v I have yet to see it, there is a difference im just not convinced on how big it is though. Plus on trackdays your not allowed to overtake on the bends ;) therefore getting through them faster is not going to be as big an advantage as having the bigger power down the straight where you can pass.

[jamie gsi16v]

i have had 4 novas since i passed and one corsa, i wrapped the corsa up and neva had troubles with my novas thats why i have gone back to them so i would say nova

[sweeny]

I had this decision when I was looking at building a trackday car. I went for the Nova obviously. The advice I was given was that a corsa has a wider track so you could potentally make it handle better but the Nova was alot lighter.

However when it comes to engine choice alot of people including SBD motorsport lean towards the 1.6l 16v engine. Which (again) according to SBD is more tuneable than the 2l 16v. Its also lighter (Engine and box by about 40kg I think) so there IS a handling benifit.

I went for the 2l 16v just because you can get 200bhp out of them and do nothing to the internals other than putting in ARP big end bolts. As for the handling disadvantage of the 2l 16v I have yet to see it, there is a difference im just not convinced on how big it is though. Plus on trackdays your not allowed to overtake on the bends ;) therefore getting through them faster is not going to be as big an advantage as having the bigger power down the straight where you can pass.

It was the vid in your gallery bit that persuaded me to go for the 2l 16v mate, and i dont think it will cost me a great deal to get it to a similar spec to yours, bar suspension and TB's.

Ive been looking at a few, and a few SRI's and merits have been converted, but i'd rather go for a GSI conversion, or does it not really matter.

Cheers.

[Philsutton]

corsa's are a bit lardy but you would be able to find a corsa in better condition as they are newer

[Dar]

I think my car started life as something else (not a GTE or GSI). Not sure what though. So I suppose to a large degree is doesn't really matter. However I seem to remember on here someone saying that the lower models of Nova where slightly different 'strength wise' than the high spec ones. Thats a bit vague I know but I didn't pay much attention to it. But if you want the GSI or GTE bumpers and trim then its best to get one because it saves you having to source them.

If your doing the conversion yourself then get one with injection, so that you don't have to get a different fuel tank. I put the bigger break servo on mine from a higher spec Nova just for better breaks. I did also put the big breaks on as well.

One thing I cannot reccomend enough for a trackday car is a LSD honestly they transform the car, but are pricey to buy.

So thinking about it if you get a GSI you will have the bigger break servo and the injection tank. Thats if you can find one. It took me months to find my Nova.

[Philsutton]

I think my car started life as something else (not a GTE or GSI). Not sure what though. So I suppose to a large degree is doesn't really matter.
well mine started out as 1.2i 5 door lol, i dont think it really matters.


One thing I cannot reccomend enough for a trackday car is a LSD honestly they transform the car, but are pricey to buy.


ive just fitted my lsd about 3 hours ago, all i can say is wow it really does change the way the car drives. When going into a corner you can just boot it an it'll pull you round when compared to the old one. I look forward to trying it on the track.

[Dar]

Yup WOW they are great! I found that I was over compensting on the road. But once you get used to it, it just feels soooo right.

:D SMILES PER MILES :D

[scott.parker]

I must get my self a diff,you can see what happens if you dont have one from my sig pics :lol:

Scott

[sweeny]

I think my car started life as something else (not a GTE or GSI). Not sure what though. So I suppose to a large degree is doesn't really matter. However I seem to remember on here someone saying that the lower models of Nova where slightly different 'strength wise' than the high spec ones. Thats a bit vague I know but I didn't pay much attention to it. But if you want the GSI or GTE bumpers and trim then its best to get one because it saves you having to source them.

If your doing the conversion yourself then get one with injection, so that you don't have to get a different fuel tank. I put the bigger break servo on mine from a higher spec Nova just for better breaks. I did also put the big breaks on as well.

One thing I cannot reccomend enough for a trackday car is a LSD honestly they transform the car, but are pricey to buy.

So thinking about it if you get a GSI you will have the bigger break servo and the injection tank. Thats if you can find one. It took me months to find my Nova.

Ok cool, im gonner buy one already done as i cant be arsed with the hastle of it, and i'll try find a GSI with coilovers, uprated brakes and LSD etc. Im not in a rush to find one, but would pay out upto 2.5k if it had everything and i didnt need to fork out much on it to get it to the spec i want.

If you know of any or hear of any give me a shout as i'll be getting one soon.

Cheers.

[Jack]

On autotrader at the moment:

http://atsearch.autotrader.co.uk/WWW/cars_search.asp?modelexact=1&lid=search_used_cars_full&make=VAUXHALL&model=NOVA&variant=16v&keywords=&min_pr=75&max_pr=&mileage=&agerange=&postcode=ba213ap&miles=1500&max_records=200&source=0&photo=1&sort=3&ukcarsearch_full=SEARCH

[scott.parker]

http://pictures.autotrader.co.uk/ATD_web/servlet/media?id=157226033

now i like that,smat mk1 that is..

Scott

[sweeny]

Cheers for the link mate, yeah that grey one looks ok and it aint a bad price either, the red one seems good too.

[Jack]

I remember the days when Autotrader was FULL of Novas... now there's none within 40 miles, and only 5 in 60 miles from me :o

Either people are hanging onto them, or they really are starting to die out...