| Wow! What a comeback! |
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| Thursday, 08 September 2011 10:08 |
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Ok, so it wasn’t one of the best cars ever made, but it did sell really well for Vauxhall back then. Many people over the years have said that it was woeful to drive, and was nothing short of rubbish, although I have to disagree to a certain extent, because It was a budget motor for people who did not have thousands of pounds to spend on top of the range goods from that era. As far as I can see, the little Vectra did the job it was designed to do. Ok, it was not the best handling car, and used prices have fallen over the last few years. I did a quick internet search, and I could pick up a 51plate Vectra for less than £500, this to me is a bargain if you’re on a budget. Did you know that there is also a Vauxhall Vectra owners club? I didn’t until I googled it. I also remember the Signum. I loved this car, and I still do. A friend of mine still has one and it’s done over 200,000 miles, and it’s still as tight as a drum. I recently borrowed it to move some furniture, because my little Fiat was only capable of carrying a shopping bag in the boot let alone a table and chairs. But the Signum had no problem at all with this task. My point is this; Vauxhall have always been good when it comes to designing cars with great load carrying capabilities, and the Zafira is another perfect example. It has seven seats, and if you drop all the rear seats in an absurd amount of ways, there is enough room to fit in an entire football team. Also, most of the emails I get for car buying advice come from people wanting a modern car that can ferry them around in comfort, with the least amount of hassle - but can still be turned into a load lugger for the whole family experience. Is there such a car like this then? Well actually this brings me right at the doorstep of what I think fits the bill perfectly. The Vauxhall Insignia Sports Tourer Sri VX-Line Nav 2.0 CDTi. First impressions of the Insignia are all good; it’s a fantastic looking car, and more importantly is its carrying capacity which is second to none. Don’t think for a minute that this is like the old Vectra or Signum, because it’s nothing like any of these. The Vauxhall Insignia is aimed at buyers who need a reliable family estate that has bags of space and plenty of kit for your money. For the first time in ages, Vauxhall has the Insignia right where it needs to be in the current market. Buyers now understand that Vauxhall is now able to offer all the style and quality that is needed for a family estate. Performance, My test car was fitted with the 160PS 2.0-litre Diesel engine; it’s gutsy performance along with a modest 132mph top speed and the 9.3 second 0-60mph figures is more than enough to keep you happy. As well as plenty of low down torque, a healthy 50.4mpg combined - and CO2 emissions of 139g/km. You wont be visiting the pumps much either, because it returned an urban fuel consumption figure of 40.6mpg while I was on test. Now that’s really impressive. If you do decide to see what it can really do, then you could get that up to 58.9mpg (extra urban)
The main instrumentation clocks and gauges are all lavished with chrome, with the speedometer and tachometer pods angled inwards towards the driver; it sort of gives it a sportier feel. I see that Vauxhall have also used a very good technique that a lot of other manufacturers are now using, it’s called ‘Ambient lighting’ this enhances the feeling of quality in the cabin. It’s also very well screwed together. The feeling of cabin space and depth inside is very good; it really does feel like you could fit a family of five in here with their entire luggage - and anything else really you fancy cramming in. The level of kit on my test car was nothing short of amazing. There is front, side and curtain airbags as standard. Including, Air conditioning, electric parking brake, cruise control, satellite navigation, sports suspension, remote control security alarm, Flexride, 17-inch structure wheels. The list is huge. Don’t forget the Electronic Stability Programme-plus (ESP-plus) and Anti-lock braking system (ABS). I also like the electric tailgate. It’s a fantastic bit of kit, gone are the days of you struggling to open the boot with a hand full of shopping bags. Just press the button, and it will open or close by itself. For me, this was a nice option - but it will cost you an extra £370. The choices won't stop there, though, because there are several engines to choose from, with a wide range of petrol and diesel units, including some 'green' Ecoflex units. You can even get four-wheel-drive models.
Vauxhall’s new lifetime Warranty, How does it work? Lots of people over the last few months have asked me how the new ‘lifetime’ warranties from Vauxhall work. I have asked about, and have come up with the information that should help anybody who wants to know what this lifetime idea is all about. Year 1, All new Vauxhall passenger cars are covered by a one-year unlimited mileage manufacturer’s warranty with qualifying repairs at no cost to you. Vauxhall Insignia Sports Tourer Sri VX-Line Nav 2.0 CDTi. Price: £27,930 OTR Worth Checking - Motoring news - Road Tests
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