I took delivery of my 2005 Gen 3.5 silver 1.6 coupe on Monday, having part ex'd my Honda civic 1.7 ctdi 2004.
I knew the 1.6 coupe is renowned for being gutless. My brother said "it couldn't pull the skin off a rice puddin".
On climbing into the low cockpit I immediatly noticed the large pointy wings running down the bonnet and got myself comfy, remembering where all the buttons and controls were.
And windscreen wipers on to turn right out of the forecourt. lol
I found the engine noise very quiet compared to my honda diesel and the car feels very sturdy and well built.
No creaks, rattles or annoying road noise. The only thing missing was the kick in the back from the turbo'd Honda.
But the coupe pulls away very smooth.
Yes, theres no power but its enjoyable and its nice to have revs for a change.
The Honda was revved out about 1500rpm in each gear.
My first journey was a 70 mile coast run to the North Yorkshire seaside.
With the boot packed with a surprising amount of holiday luggage , the daughter comfy in the back seat, I set off and filled the tank up. Approx £40 to full. (the salesman said he had also put £10 in) Stereo sounds great and the trip computer soon got sussed.
The car drives very smooth, sounds nice and looks great so who wants to drive fast everywhere?
The only lack of power I noticed was on a steep bank crawler lane where I had to drop it into 3rd to overtake. The revs went up, the noise increased but the speed stayed the same. Eventually about 5000rpm it started to move on.
The drive is lovely and smooth, not as harsh on suspension as I expected but I do have a set of 18" wheels to fit soon so I imagine that will change.
The seats are supportive and comfy and can adjust all ways.
The car feels wider than I think so i'm a bit cautious at the mo when doing 3 point turns and reversing, which is quite limited for all round vision. After half a tank of fuel, 130 miles, the trip is reading approx 260 miles to empty.
So approx 400 miles to a tank.
Up to now i'm a happy man.

Moved from General Motoring Discussion .... Macker

Good to see someone stick up for the 1.6, i also have one and dont think its anywhere near as bad as what its made out to be powerwise, does the job just fine.

Having fun in a car isnt all about power, okay you need some, but my point is its about how you use what you have got, the feeling of satisfaction when you take that corner just right, or have a blast down a mountain round.
And of course how the car makes you feel, and in the case of the coupe i have never enjoyed driving places so much, its a nice car to be in, and different from run-of-the-mill euroboxes like the astra,golf and so on.

i could make my gen1 1.6 move it just require keeping the revs high in all gear but the feul would be gulped, glad u have gotten rid of your old peeps mobile

Cant believe i nearly missed a chance to defend the 1.6!!! the 1.6 I think is great, its not a need for power but a want, the 1.6 is more then sufficent. My 1.6 is a beast and it pulls really nicely thru the rev rane! took it for a spirited drive last night along my fav twisty road and it def brought a smile to my face. yeah the V6 is better but the 1.6 is nothing to be ashamed of. (plus tax for a 2.7 here is more then drivers in the UK pay for an Aston Martin V12 Vantage!)

The no lights alarm is cos if u take out the key and open the drivers door the automatically turn off!best invention ever!every car should hav it!