Faults:

Problems with the AdBlue system. The urea tank becomes deformed or the sensor fails, causing engine fault alerts and a risk of the engine not starting.

Faults in the electric parking brake, parking sensors, navigation system and radio.

Starting system failures and the electric fan remaining on after the engine is turned off.

The diesel particulate filter should be checked carefully, especially when it is used a lot in the city.

General Comments:

After owning the car for almost 6 years, having bought it relatively new, well cared for and with low mileage, I can say that, so far, it is by far the best car I have ever owned.

At first, I was one of those who thought a big car with a small engine wouldn't work (it's only a 1.6). I was coming from a 2.0L Mondeo TDCi with 130 hp, and it was pretty good. I found this one by chance when I went to see and test drive a 2.0L, 130 hp Insignia automatic. When I saw it, it was love at first sight; the car is beautiful, damn it. Well, after talking to the salesman and telling him I liked it but that the engine wouldn't be enough, he encouraged me to test drive it, and so I did. I was quite surprised that I didn't even bother test driving the one I had gone to see; I bought it.

Well, after almost 120,000 kilometers I'm quite happy. It's a spacious, comfortable, quiet car, with the necessary extras without many luxuries, very, very low fuel consumption, and the engine is usable from very low rpm.

On the other hand, I have to say that the gearbox isn't one of the best I've tried, not because it doesn't work well, but because it's so slow to shift gears. If you pull away slowly, it's fine; it's even pleasant to feel it shift. But if you want to accelerate quickly from an intersection, it struggles to shift from first to second; it loses a lot of time. It's just a matter of getting used to it. In manual mode, using the paddle shifters, it's even fun. Sport mode always shifts above 2000 rpm and makes better use of the engine. I tested it on a mountain road, and it works quite well.

The start-stop system works so smoothly that I only realized I had it because the tachometer needle dropped, and I thought something had broken down. It's quiet and fast; with the radio on, I didn't even notice the first few times. You just take your foot off the brake, and it's already accelerating again. It's also well-designed; if I have the air conditioning on, the lights on, or if it's made a lot of stops, it stops automatically. I think that's to conserve battery power. I have to say, I've never liked this system. I don't think it's right that an engine, especially a turbo, stops without letting it idle for a few seconds, or better yet, a few minutes, and accelerating right after starting doesn't appeal to me either. But apparently, they're designed to work that way.

My conclusion is that, for me, it isn't overpowered, but I don't miss having more power either. If I could change the gearbox now, I'd choose the automatic over the automated manual.

Otherwise, I think it's a great car, with a small but very powerful engine and incredibly low fuel consumption, plus it's quite reliable. At the time, it was an expensive car, but nowadays you can find them at very low prices, so for me, it's worth having one.

Faults:

Oil leak, interior trim breakage, exhaust, ABS sensors, suspension struts, etc all the expected wear and tear of age and mileage. Biggest expense was the clutch failing, but it had around 120,000 on it at this point, so I think that's fair.

General Comments:

If you use a modern diesel for what its intended for (high mileage) you will find them to be cost effective and less troublesome. I am writing this review as my Peugeot 508 diesel has been used as a taxi most of its life and I was always hearing about how unreliable it was. Well to be fair my car has had its fair share of parts replaced, but most was down to wear - never any actual breakdowns.

The 508 is a huge improvement over the old 407. I love the look of this car even after all these years. My car is black with alloy wheels. Active is an OK spec, plenty of features inside.

Boot space is huge. Interior has comfortable (if a little too soft) seats and all electric features. Passengers always comment on how smooth the car rides.

It's well insulated on motorways and a great car to cruise long distance. The 2.0 HDi (if serviced correctly) is economical and reliable. I have little to no issues with it, and get a genuine 50 mpg most of the time. The car is very cheap to run, low tax, good MPG, reasonable repair costs. The only oddity is it is a bit expensive to insure. It's in a higher than average group for some reason. Still, I have had this soo long now without accident so my premium is pretty low now anyways.

All in all, a fantastic big French car that does not deserve its dull unreliable image, it is as easily as good as any car in this class. My car however will not last much longer, but I think that's OK at nearly 15 years old and approaching the big 200,000 mile mark! Good going for any car.