Skip advert
Advertisement

Vauxhall Astra VXR - Fast Fleet

The traffic message channel goes missing on Ev's satnav after his Vauxhall Astra VXR is relieved of its screw-in aerial

Someone was obviously feeling a little bit mischievous on their way back from a pub near me on a recent Saturday night, relieving both my neighbour’s car and our Vauxhall of their screw-in aerials.

For a short while I thought I could just live without one on the VXR. The satnav still worked fine, so it obviously doesn’t use it, and as our Astra’s radio isn’t of the digital variety I tend to listen to CDs rather than FM.

Advertisement - Article continues below

But upon popping up the satnav’s TMC (Traffic Message Channel) map the following Monday morning, I noticed that it was no longer overlaid with the usual rash of triangular symbols indicating where that morning’s A14 accidents were. Ah. Turns out that the TMC data piggybacks Classic FM’s broadcasts, and with no aerial… well, you know what they say about not appreciating something till it’s gone.

TMC is just one of the reasons why I’ve become something of a fan of KE55’s optional (£1250) CD 70 ‘infotainment’ system. OK, it lacks an oh-so-fashionable iPod connector, but it does an impressive job of playing MP3 discs through its seven speakers without sounding strained (SEAT take note) or artificially bassy when cranked up. And talking of cranking it up, it also has the added kudos of being the loudest stereo tested in the first series of Sky One’s Vroom Vroom…

The satnav, meanwhile, is intuitive and, aside from it not being possible to turn the spoken instructions down quiet enough, hard to fault. And when set to find the shortest route from A to B it’s great for finding new back-road routes. Handy for getting round those A14 snarl-ups.

Running Costs

Date acquiredFebruary 2006
Total mileage32,980
Costs this month£17.68 (aerial)
Mileage this month1,603
MPG this month28.6mpg
Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

Potential sale of McLaren Automotive imminent
McLaren for sale
News

Potential sale of McLaren Automotive imminent

McLaren’s Bahraini owners could sell to Abu Dhabi’s CYVN Holdings, which already has investments in Gordon Murray Technologies and Nio
29 Oct 2024
Aston Martin Vanquish 2024 review - Britain’s Ferrari 12 Cilindri rival
Aston Martin Vanquish – front
Reviews

Aston Martin Vanquish 2024 review - Britain’s Ferrari 12 Cilindri rival

The third-generation Aston Martin Vanquish is not only the best yet, it’s the best Aston Martin full stop
28 Oct 2024
The new Porsche 911 Carrera T is pared back, lightweight and manual-only
Porsche 911 992.2 Carrera T – front
News

The new Porsche 911 Carrera T is pared back, lightweight and manual-only

Porsche’s 992.2 Carrera T is a manual-only, lightweight 911 with bespoke chassis mods – could this be the sweet spot in the range?
29 Oct 2024