Last Chance Saloon - Or Is It?

Advantages: Great read, real page turner
Disadvantages: Took a few chapters to get in to

...Last Chance Saloon follows the story of Tara, Fintan & Katherine who have been friends since the 80s. Tara believes that having a man is definitely better than being alone, even if he is not necessarily Mr. Right or even Mr. Could Be Right. Katherine believes that not having a man is definitely better than being with somebody who wants to monopolise on your time. Fintan so far is the only one of the gang who seems to have found true love but that could all be swept away from him... This book follows them in their early thirties, living in London. Without spoiling the book completely Fintan becomes ill and both girls have to rally together to help him come through it. Katherine just might find a man who can steal her away from the remote control & her very ordered lifestyle & Tara realises that life is definitely too short...

katyeverett 25.03.2009 · Read review
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Review of Last Chance Saloon - Marian Keyes

Last Chance Saloon

Advantages: Frothy, light-hearted, good holiday-read, touches on serious subjects
Disadvantages: Maybe a bit light-hearted for some?

...I know chick-lit is frowned upon, but I love it - frothy and mindless, doesn't tax the brain too much. I always used to love Wendy Holden, but I've discovered Marian Keyes! So far, I've read Rachel's Holiday, Angels, Sushi For Beginners and this is the latest one, Last Chance Saloon. --- TARA: The sweet, but fluffy main character, who's obsessed with not being in the 'Last Chance Saloon' and finding the 'One', the One being an indelible lipstick. Stuck in a dead-end relationship with a tight-fisted Geography teacher called Thomas. KATHERINE: Nicknamed Ice-queen for her iciness with men. She doesn't let guys go anywhere near her, for reasons which are later revealed in the book. She's an accountant - very organised, calm and tidy. FINTAN: The flamboyantly gay (think a mix of Jack from Will and Grace and Ricardo from...

jeszikca 15.04.2003 · Read review
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Review of Last Chance Saloon - Marian Keyes

Toyota Avensis T4 Spirit Auto 1.8 saloon

Advantages: Great value for money, reliable, looks good, very safe car, loads of gizmos
Disadvantages: no rear wash/wipe, no MP3 dock, not brill on MPG, expensive parts

...I have the 4 door saloon from 2002, bought ex-dem at £16,000. List price at the time was £21,000 I think. Mine has done 45,000 miles and has cost little to service and look after, It is a beautiful shade of dark metallic blue. Lovely! I used to have an E class Mercedes and it hard to move away from a car like that but I couldn't afford another one and mine was getting old and unreliable. The Toyota was the only other car I found with a such a big boot. I can get a big pushchair, a pile of random junk, a week's shopping and baby paraphernalia in it with no problem. I think it looks great - though the boot does stick out. It is one of the safest cars on the market - it got top marks for in-car passenger and driver safety according to Which (5 stars), though only slightly below average marks for pedestrian safety if you hit one. I...

sadoldbag 23.01.2008 · Read review
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Review of Toyota Avensis 1.8 VVT-i Saloon

1996 (P) 2.5 V6 CDX Auto Saloon

Advantages: power, comfy cruiser, space
Disadvantages: fuel consumption, electrical problems

...the lights but will cruise comfortably at high speeds on the motorway with the engine very realxed. It apparently (not that i've tested it) has a top speed of 146mph which for a family size saloon is pretty good indeed. Now comes the down side... In exchange for that power of the V6 growling away, it will require copious amounts of unleaded. With a large 60 litre tank which with todays prices is about £60 to fill up. This depending on my driving style will get me about 400 miles, or more if i use a feather light touch on the throttle pedal. So not overly fuel economic! The X25XE engine along with most of Vauxhall's are prone to electronic problems. There a large number of sensors under the bonnet. A few of these are quite troublesome. Air sensors, Throttle position sensors and knock sensors to name a couple. Some of these can be repaired...

md-uk 04.11.2005 · Read review
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Review of Vauxhall Vectra 2.5 V6 24V Saloon

Stinking hot saloon!

Advantages: Quick and reliable
Disadvantages: Expensive

...This has to be the definative salooon around. Apart from the huge air intake for the turbo on the front bonnet, no one would be able to guess that under the skin lies a ferocious monster. They look rather plain without any fancy body kits and llok like a standard car. That is apart from the WRC spoiler on the back that some of them have or the bonnet as mentioned before. If you have ever played Gran tourismo you will recognise this car as one of the "family car" types that are in the game. They make an estate of this car that lloks like the sort of thing that grandad would take to the shops. Believe me, Grandad would need to be glued to the seat with some pretty strong glue because this is one mean car, built for driving and is truly a drivers car. It has all of the finesse of a saloon but the heart of fire breathing beast, built...

andycharger 24.08.2000 · Read review
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Review of Subaru Impreza 2.0

Ford Focus Ghia 2ltr saloon. (Update 22nd May 05)

Advantages: Good all round visibility, responsive acceleration, on board computer, fold-down rear seats.
Disadvantages: difficult removal of rear headrests

...I have always loved Ford Escorts and tended to go for the mid-range sporty machines - a very Zen-like, middle-of-the-road attitude - (1.6 early types, and later the XR3i and finally the 1.8 si). I would probably still be driving one now if Ford hadn't replaced it with the Focus. As far as I was concerned, if it aint broke, don't fix it so I was a little timid when it came to this new model. "Haven't you got any Escorts?" I asked the saleman. He looked at me as if I had just landed from another galaxy and then proceeded to show me this light blue metallic Focus Saloon Ghia. "This is Ford's flagship," he assured me and due to the fact that the rear seats fold down, there is probably more room in there than in your Escort." He was right - the boot was surprisingly roomy and the car a good bit longer. I was beginning to get well...

derek-j-a 28.04.2005 (22.05.2005) · Read review
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Review of Ford Focus 2.0

The best compact 4 door saloon on the road???

Advantages: Affordable premium car with some excellent quality a quick engine!
Disadvantages: Unfortunatly not all the power can be unleashed because of handling!!

...Test model Volkswagen Bora TDI 150 Sport Reg No. FA03 FUM UK model RHD Mileage 45,000 Actual 0-60: 8.5 Obtained MPH: 142mph Volkswagens answer to the four door saloon based on the Golf Mk4 came in the guise of the Bora in 1998. Although this is not the first time that VW have tried the smaller 4 door saloon, see the Vento and Jetta (Bora's worldwide name). The model I purchased is a 2003 03 plated model which had 42,800 miles when I bought it and is metallic black. I have to say the Bora isn't the best looking car on the road but if you want a foor door golf saloon with a bigger boot then it is just what you are looking for. I bought this car for £9995, which with the generous spec and mileage was good. It was bought from Black Horse Car sales who actually own the cars and they are used as company cars or short...

170driver 23.11.2005 (19.01.2008) · Read review
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Review of Volkswagen Bora 1.9 S TDI

The Drive of Your Life ?

Advantages: Great Specification as standard, looks amazing, good size, easy to drive
Disadvantages: Requires frequent replacement of wear and tear parts, poor front and rear visibility

...and the office was in Basildon so the 207 simply wasn't going to cut it. I'm 6'5" and needed something more suited for motorways and I'd felt that I had outgrown hatchbacks in more than just a physical way. My wife was reluctant for me to make a purchase with my heart rather than my head so the caveat was that we would have to look at other saloons as well as the 407. My criteria was that the car needs to be very big, well equipped, reliable and under £15,000 Volkswagen Jetta - Nice size but not the right price (virtually no depreciation on these models unluckily for the second hand buyer) Alfa Romeo 156 - In the words of Terry Tibbs "Beautiful Car, Beautiful" but not known for their reliability Renault Laguna - Did not like the look of these at all There were of course many others but these are the only ones I can remember...

aidy1982 13.05.2009 · Read review
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Review of Peugeot 407 Saloon SE

Fast Family Saloon.

Advantages: Fast, reliable car
Disadvantages: Hard to park

...fast, it looks executive and anyone would feel good driving it. The only drawback is, this is a big car and it can be hard to park it, especially when you just want to pop down to the shops. This car is probably more suited to someone who does a lot of motorway driving, maybe a rep. I’ve owned my Citroen for a year now, and in that time, I’ve found it to be a very reliable car. Some people may be put off by the suspension, the cars suspension rises when you start the engine, and you can adjust it to go over high ground, but don’t, you don’t even realise it’s there. I would recommend this car to anyone who is thinking of buying a large family saloon...

mandyco 09.03.2001 · Read review
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Review of Citroen Xantia 1.8

Superb Saloon Car

Advantages: Great Engine, Great Body, Great Car
Disadvantages: Slightly soft suspension.

...pair of front tyres at 30,000 being the full running costs. Petrol consumption has been great for such a large, powerful car, and despite 'enthusiastic' driving I was able to average 30 mpg. Depreciation of VW's is supposed to be very good, but falling new car prices have hit its second hand value. List price for the car when new was £21,000 (including optional Electric Sunroof and Xenon lights), but it's resale value was only £9,975 after two years, due in part to the high mileage. Assuming that the company probably paid much less than list for it, then I guess that the depreciation was probably around 20 to 25% per annum. The Passat has to be considered by anyone who wants a quality, reliable saloon car at a reasonable price. Alternative offerings from Ford, Vauxhall and others don't offer quite the same value, despite their...

astraugh 16.04.2001 · Read review
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Review of Volkswagen Passat 1.8T 20V