1997 Vauxhall Vectra LX review from UK and Ireland

Universal joint at the bottom of the steering column (near the floor) had to be replaced 3 times while I had the car - caused clonking noise when cornering.

Brake light switch failed - took local Vauxhall dealer in Hemel Hempstead a week to get the part. This car was made in Luton 10 miles away.

Sudden loss of power - a vacuum pipe leading to the turbo had melted through as it was lying on the exhaust manifold. This happened immediately after a 'service'.

When going down a steep hill and braking hard the engine management light would come on. Braking hard on the level would not cause this to happen. Needless to say, the Vauxhall garage was never able to fix this.

The digital radio/clock display had a mind of it's own. - one of my colleagues had this replaced on his Vectra then had nothing but trouble with air con not working and other things - obviously caused by the garage replacing it. So I left mine not working properly.

This was a company car.

The 2 litre diesel engine was superb for both economy and power.

It was generally good to drive, but not quite as good as the Mondeo. I think however, that the Vectra was a better car to 'be in'. It certainly has a more solid feel.

Anyone considering a Vectra to buy should avoid all petrol engined versions. Most of my colleagues had the 1.8 or 2 litre petrol and nearly every one had probs with the engine cutting out at random or revving at full throttle when it should be idling. Couple this with the expense and ineptitude at the vauxhall dealer and it will be a costly mistake. These were company cars and we were not personally responsible for the repair bills.

As far as my experience goes the Isuzu 1.7 or the Opel 2.0 diesel engines do not have these problems.