Faults:

Oil leak, notchy gearbox, DMF rattle, usual mechanical faults for the age and miles.

Low oil pressure - oil seal pick up valve replaced.

Headlights gather condensation even with replacement units, very common fault, hard to seal them correctly. I have found leaving the rubber backing caps off the main headlights to let the air circulate better seems to work for the most part.

General Comments:

Grey 2011 Insignia, very common car and colour. Popular CDTi model.

The car is very, very smooth to drive and spacious. Huge car in this class. Comfort levels are top tier even though this is a very basic model (ES) which is actually one below the "Exclusiv" model. But the seats are very comfortable, the ride is super smooth, and the car still has electric windows and mirrors.

Pretty good to drive, gear change is OK despite being notchy sometimes. Acceleration is good and economy is around 45 mpg.

Good looking car, even with wheel trims and a basic model and colour.

Not quite as reliable or economical as my old Skoda Octavia, but the Insignia is a great car for the money. Watch out for the oil seal pick up valve failing, a very common fault on higher mileage diesels. I had mine fixed before it became a problem, but this is a £500 job. But it was worth it as my car was looked after (all services and timing has belt done also). So it should still last a long time despite being over a decade old and higher mileage now.

Buy a looked after Insignia with common faults attended to and you have one of the biggest and best driving cars on the market for the money!

Faults:

Water pump leak and cam-belt change.

Suspension struts.

Oil leak.

Coolant leak (pipe to radiator).

Turbo pipe split (easy cheap fix).

General Comments:

The 2011 Insignia has a relaxed drive and a punchy diesel engine. Good looking car inside and out, and very spacious. Silent on motorways.

Things I liked about this car were comfort and economy, and it's a very easy car to fix. There are a lot of known faults, but the car is so cheap to buy and run it almost doesn't matter.

2.0 CDTi has plenty power and still does around 45 - 50 mpg.

Seats are very nice and comfy even on this basic Exlcusiv spec.

Overall I liked it. Previous Ford Mondeo was more reliable, but this Insignia was actually better to drive and better in many other ways.

Faults:

Beyond changing the cam-belt and water pump and services I have had - Clutch, coolant leaks, exhaust, and so on, the usual stuff for age and miles. I have been advised my car is fitted with the "M32" manual gearbox which is known to fail early (early bearing whine), but mine seems OK for now and it has over 80K miles on it.

General Comments:

A stunning looking car for its age, the Insignia is a very nicely styled car. Vx Line trim adds a subtle body-kit on top of the already sharp looking SRi trim level. Best in darker colors.

Inside nice and stylish also, very comfortable seats. SRi has stiffer suspension, great handling in corners and the ride suffers a bit but not too much to make it uncomfortable; it is a very smooth car on the motorways. Gear change is slick and smooth also. Very spacious. Controls are good to use.

1.8 petrol performs OK on flat roads, up hills it is terrible however - this engine has zero torque and this car is way too heavy at 1.5 tonnes for this engine. Not that economical either - 33 mpg at very best in winter / short drives. Get on the motorway however and select 6th gear and cruise, then you can see an average of 38 mpg or a touch more, much better. It also prefers super unleaded rather than the standard E10 unleaded fuel. Expensive, but worth it for that extra kick of performance and economy. Bear in mind it will take a few tank fulls for the ECU to adjust to this fuel. Or you can try a shot of that RedEx fuel cleaner stuff now and then.

A large car and there is some blind spots when parking. Visibility is not great. But you get used to it.

Rear hatch opens up to a huge boot. Silly design however at corners - on a wet day rain water collects and drips into the boot area when opening!

Minor points aside the Insignia is a fine used car and there are plenty right now on the used market. Choose an engine / trim level that suits your needs best, there is plenty of choice. Try not to pay too much for one however - this generation (2008 - 2016) are getting on a bit now, and there is lots of overpriced cars out there. I'll likely go for the newer Insignia from 2017 onwards next, it looks like a very nice car.