Comfortable, spacious, reliable and a mile-muncher
Just general wear and tear.
Though the air conditioning failed very early.
Big - awkward in town.
Comfortable. Eats up the miles on long journeys.
As a 1.8 estate, it's not that economical.
But it's reliable, and just keeps on going...
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 8th August, 2021
Excellent motorway cruiser
Suspension springs.
Suspension link arms.
A/C condenser - replaced under warranty.
Cruise control - replaced under warranty.
Uneven tyre wear - 4 wheel alignment done to resolve.
I bought this car without even seeing it; at the time I was driving a Chevrolet Spark which caused me no end of issues. I got fed up with it and told the dealer that I wanted to trade it in for a bigger car. Luckily they had a Vectra in another branch and I ended up leaving a deposit and buying it that same day. The car was delivered few days later and it was a massive upgrade from the rubbish Chevrolet I was driving at the time.
Anyways, the car is an excellent long distance cruiser; I average 25k-30k a year and this car really makes the journeys easier. It is quiet at speed and the suspension is nicely balanced and soaks up the bumps nicely. Fuel economy is good too - 50 MPG, however I usually achieve less now due to having a roof rack on top - 45 MPG on average for me. The diesel engine is strong and pulls well in every gear.
It has been fairly reliable considering the mileage; most repair jobs are cheap and the Vauxhall dealers can be found almost everywhere, so servicing and repairs are very affordable. Long service intervals of 20k miles, and I usually ask my dealer to collect the car and drop it off at the end of the day once the work is done.
I still own the car now and I'm not planning to replace it any time soon.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 22nd May, 2017
Spacious, sporty family car
Nothing as of yet.
I bought this car after getting fed up of the reliability and comfort of my Vectra B, 2.2 DTi SRi, and it has been a real eye opener. This is massive improvement over the previous Vectra. I even like the controversial one touch indicators and wipers.
I went for the SRi variant for the sportier looks and handling, but this has compromised the ride quality a bit, but I was willing to sacrifice this for the looks.
The engine is the 1.8 VVT, the VVT gives an extra 20bhp over the normal 1.8, as well as better mpg.
For a 1.8, it does perform very well, especially with it being such a big car. It feels very lively, even low down the rev range.
Inside the car is nice and airy, but a sunroof would be nice.
The seats are very supporting and hugging, with them being the Recaro style ones.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 3rd February, 2011
Well, after having the car for 7 months now, I'm in a better position to review it.
The ride is a little harsh with it being the SRi variant, but I'm still willing to trade this for the looks.
There is a clunk coming from the steering wheel when moved slightly from side to side. From research, this seems to be the bearings in the top mounts. Approx £100 to fix, though I will be trying to get this fixed under warranty.
I've had the aircon regassed twice by Kwik Fit. The second time was free as it lost its efficiency. I'm waiting to see if it loses it again, to determine of there is a leak, or if they were at fault...
I did a round trip of 330 miles yesterday in the high winds that the North West has been experiencing, and the car performed really well, even up and over Scotch Corner.
The car returned an average of 42mpg with varying speeds / terrain.
Overall, I'm still very happy with the car.
Fast and practical for the family
So far nothing has gone wrong with this car; it drives much better than my previous LS 2.0 dDTi I had a few years back.
I wanted to ask, does anyone know why there are no air vents in the back anymore? And I am loving my new car.
I went to buy a year old SRi for 11k, but ended up getting a new Exclusiv for only 500 more. Does anyone think I did the right thing, and I got a new motor for just 500 more, and that's only because I added the Plus Pack.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Don't Know
Review Date: 11th May, 2008
Rear air vents are now only fitted to Vectra-Cs with semi-auto or full climate control.
I'm not certain whether this is part of the GM cost cutting programme (lots of other stuff was deleted, as you may have noticed) or was because the centre rear vents never worked that well anyway.
On my 2004 SRi the centre vents were near useless even on maximum fan speed. On the 2008 Design model (with vents) I tried recently they seemed to work much better, according to my unscientific test of putting my hand over the vent!
22nd May 2017, 21:27
Good review, I myself had a Vectra, a 90s model, which was not anywhere near as bad as the motoring press made it out to be. It was a decent car as well, and ate up motorway miles in comfort.
Never tried the 2002 - 2009 Vectra, but heard it was a good improvement. Got an Insignia now, a great car, and you should definitely try one of those next if you ever change your Vectra, and are looking for another motorway cruiser.