Buying a Daewoo
Daewoo are a popular and well known brand in the UK and have been established for some time. Daewoos are widely available either new, or second hand. This guide to buying a Daewoo intends to outline some company history, popular models, maintaining a Daewoo and some price guidelines.

Company History
GM Daewoo Auto & Technology (also known as GM Daewoo/GMDAT) was established in 1937, first named as National Motor, in South Korea. Later, in the 1960s, the company underwent some name reshuffling changing first to Saenara Motor then to Shinjin Motor, having been bought by Shinjin Industrial and collaborated with Toyota, already a car manufacturing giant at the time. But Toyota withdrew in the early 1970s and it was up to Shinjin to find another partner which they found in General Motors under the name General Motors Korea. As the success of Daewoo models grew a battle for ownership began which was initiated in the 1980s and the name changed again to Daewoo Motor. Daewoo held onto the company until 2001 when bigger company General Motors decided to buy up most of Daewoo's assets and form a new company called GM Daewoo. They began operations in 2002 with General Motor's partners Suzuki and SAIC as GM now held the controlling interest. As a result of all the changes to the company name and ownership, combined with overseas expansion over the years, many of the cars made by this company are not sold under the same name. Indeed in some countries it is quite possible to buy the same model under several different names.

In Europe, the Daewoo Racer and Lemans were the first to make the name impact in 1987. These models were sold worldwide as a sub-compact and proved to be popular in a number of countries. As a direct result of this an entire Daewoo range of models was brought out including a mid-size car (a four door sedan) in the middle price range called the Daewoo Royale and a luxury mid-size car called the Daewoo Prince.

In the 1990s Daewoo continued to produce a range of replacements as some of the models appeared outdated. The Daewoo Lanos sub-compact car, the Nubira compact car and the mid-size Leganza all replaced the earlier equivalent models. However during the 1990s this established pattern was set to change as expansion into Russia failed and the development of the brand at the Russian TagAZ factory proved to be costly. This weakened the company financially allowing General Motors to move in with their takeover bid.

Post 2000 the Daewoo Kalos and Matiz ( a micro car) showed a break in the established pattern of models. GM also re- badged and sold other models made by Daewoo under different marques. The Lancetti was sold as the Chevrolet Optra, for example in several countries. GM were delighted as this strategy proved to be very successful in India, Canada, China and Israel. In some parts of Europe the name did not take, so some models retained their original model name whereas others were given a partial re-naming such as the Chevrolet Corvette which was soon known simply and had to be branded thus, the Corvette. There was also some collaboration with Italian engine design company VM Moteri to produce the Chevrolet Captiva SUV. Later projects were more ambitious as the range was even more greatly expanded and later in 2008 the Chevrolet T2X will be introduced as a 'sport-coup� SUV' concept car.

Maintaining a Daewoo
Buying a Daewoo second hand may involve some maintenance and potential faults like with any second hand car. The Espero might be a good low price option as it is an older car but there are often less pitfalls with this car than with some newer cars. You can usually pick up on some of these when taking the Espero for a test drive, looking under the bonnet, checking for rust around the vehicle (especially near the exhaust) and checking the paperwork recording its service history. A particular thing to listen for with the Espero is to see if it starts or hesitates somewhat when driving, which could be an indicator of clogged ER valves. The Nubira, on the other hand, is more likely to have problems involving the suspension and if a knocking sound is heard when driving this car it could be that the anti-roll ban link needs replacing. The Tacuma is a more recent model yet it could still be problematic and as a new car the signs may be subtle. One important detail to consider is the engine management light, which may seem like an insignificant detail, can hide a myriad of faults if it does not work or may simply mean the light has burnt out. If the light stays on for longer than a few seconds when the engine is started or misfires this suggests possible minor wiring faults. All these faults cost around �100 to fix so it is best to have the car owner fix these before you buy or ask for a discount so that you can have the car fixed if you do want to buy it. Car prices for Daewoo are in line with similar models and you can expect to pay as little as �500 for an older, well used model and around �3-4,000 for a newer model in great condition.

Choosing a Daewoo
You can usually choose a Daewoo by looking for the type of model of car you are interested in such as a compact or mid size car. However the Daewoo Matiz is the most popular model from the range and there is a club to join, a variety of shops with spare parts and many positive reviews to support and maintain the popularity of the car. While it is not worth a significant amount of money currently- who knows- in years to come it could be listed in classic car magazine for five times the money paid for a brand new model.

The Matiz is a small, light car which is reasonably safe and suited to the city. It is an ideal run-around with a small engine of only around 800cc and can be a great first car. It is easy to drive as it has power steering and fairly easy to maintain. It is not so suited to those who wish to career down the motorway in the right hand lane at 110 miles an hour at break neck speed as sadly the car will only do a maximum of 90 miles an hour. However, concerned parents may well see this as a plus as buying the Matiz as a first car for a child will ensure the high speeds cannot happen. The Matiz is subject to the usual pitfalls such as ensuring the Cam belt is changed at 40/60,000 miles to prevent having to replace the entire engine and checking the exhaust for rust and changing to a newer model of tyres to ensure a better grip of the road , particularly on turns. Other than this the Matiz is an attractive car having won 'Most Beautiful Automobile' in Milan, 'Best Small Car' in the UK and found a way into the Guinness Book of records as the most fuel efficient car.
This Daewoo classifieds guide should give a rough guide as to what a Daewoo car can offer, the prices you should expect to pay or negotiate and the maintenance needed, whether you buy the popular Matiz or another model.
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04 December 2008
2001 Daewoo Matiz Se. Tax and Mot until April 09. ..
2001/y reg daewoo matiz se. 5 doors, hatchback. 796cc. petrol, manual. 33,700 miles, very careful woman driver. folding rear seats. metallic silver. power steering. immobiliser. driver and passenger airbags. service history. comes with thule roof . .
£1,595
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