If you type BRAVA into Google, you will come up with quite a few sites referring to breast enhancement before you find vehicles! I wonder if Vauxhall tried this before the naming ceremony?
Vauxhall Brava - Oh, just a couple of small points, Oops! another boob, Sorry. Made me titter, Oops, sorry again! Seriously, I just mean that this is not actually a Vauxhall at all, it is a joint venture, with Isuzu providing the vehicle, and Vauxhall providing the badges for the UK versions.I will explain that this is also sold in Austrailia and many other parts of the world. Production of these vehicles ended In March 2002.
Vauxhall - The Vauxhall company celebrated its Centenary in 2003. They have been making cars and vans for a considerable amount of time, and have also gained a vast amount of experience of commercial vehicles, more than Isuzu in fact.
The AA (Automobile Association, not the other one) used hundreds of these, all with their own custom bodies. They were also used by HM Coastguard and many more large organisations.
4x2 - let me just explain what this means, the vehicle has four wheels, and two of them, in this case the rear ones, are driven. A 4x4 version would be four wheel drive of course.
Double cab - I will expain this, it has two rows of seats, one in front of the other, just like a saloon car, with the main luggage area behind. This area can be left exposed, or be covered up by a fibre glass Truckman top. - There are enough seats for five. This double cab was officially called the S cab.
The engine is an Isuzu Diesel unit, easy to do level checks on, and there does appear to be lots of room to work on it. Gearbox is not the best I have ever used, five gears, equally spaced, but they do seem to be too far apart. Tyres are good, they seem the right size, 195mm, although only fourteen inch.. The suspension could be better, it depends on the weight carried. The exhaust is rather noisy, I suppose it is of little importance on these type of vehicles. There is a lot of different types of noise, it comes from all over the place, and distance driving is a bit of a pain to be honest. As for the build quality, hmm, could be better, it would be if it was a proper Vauxhall. Economy is not bad for a vehicle of this weight. Visability is good, with a high driving position and good mirrors. These vehicles have a lot of uses, and you may need to opt for the four wheel drive model, expecially if you intend doing a lot of site work or off road driving. It is an easy vehicle to drive, even with heavy boots on, and there is nothing flimsy about the controls either, it is a rugged vehicle. The ground clearance is very good, considering that this is not specifically designed as an off road vehicle. There is a good amount of space in the back of the cab. For carrying equipment the rear load area is pretty good, and you may want to go for the Truckman top option, this gives you more security, but less flexibility when it comes to loading (you may want to load or unload with a crane or HIAB, and the top would get in the way) the tailgate is solid enough to carry part of a load, and there are restraint securing eyes fitted to the floor. Roadholding is good, but they can be a little light on the rear end, causing the tail to break free. They make a good towing vehicle, as long as there is some weight in the back.
While these had power steering, there was no automatic version, which is a shame. The engines were direct injection turbo charged 2.5 litre Diesel engines. The Brava weighed just under a tonne and a half, and could carry 1.1 tonnes, which is pretty good.
Website http://www.vauxhall.co.uk The price of these varied depending which engine, configuration, cab etc. .You will be looking for second hand ones so check Parkers guide prices.
Contact details are as follows:- Head office Griffin House Osborne Road Luton Bedfordshire LU1 3YT
Tel: 01582 721122 Fax: 01582 427400
All in all, even though I would like to have seen the Vauxhall version, I still recommend these vehicles for anyone requiring a good solid no frills workhorse. You can still find ex AA Bravas in good condition, at bargain prices. .
More details
Purchase Price
N/A
Reliability
Good
Spaciousness
Good
Customer service
Good
Features
Satisfactory
Fuel consumption
Good
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