2014 Vauxhall Insignia preview
The Vauxhall Insignia has never been the most exciting car on the market but it’s always been a popular choice with fleet managers and company car drivers. With the latest face lift there are even more reasons why this is a car you can buy with your heart and your head.
Not that looks are the biggest factor but the new design is an improvement over the old model. It’s also more aerodynamic and therefore better on fuel, but we shall come back to that a bit later. Now not everyone who buys an Insignia is a salesman but if you are and you need to lug around lots of leaflets and samples and sales tools then the size of this boot should satisfy your needs just fine.
Furthermore the load lip is quite low and the opening is large making your job that much easier. And when it comes to doing the Saturday tip run, the back seats fold down giving you even more room. Taking the family out for the day should not be a drag either, well that does depend on the behaviour of the children but if you have two teenagers they won’t be complaining about space because there’s plenty of leg room and plenty of headroom. Nor will they moan about somewhere to charge their smartphone with the handy socket to hand.
Back to work mode, the Insignia is perfectly adapted to manage motorway miles thanks to an abundance of storage slots to help you cope with your busy schedule including large door bins, and space to hold your coffee cup. Changes over the old model include a more stylish centre console and better quality dash board. Models can be fitted with an optional 8”TFT instrument cluster and interlink system which allows you to control the cars functions using a clever little touchpad.
All cars come with 16” alloy wheels and DAB digital radio, Bluetooth and cruise control. Whilst top specs come with leather seats, sat nav and larger alloy wheels. Things have improved in terms of running costs as well. The 2 litre diesel comes in 2 guises – 118bhp and 138bhp, both promising leading fuel consumption figures of over 75 miles to the gallon beating both the Volkswagen Passat and the Ford Mondeo which results in low company car tax and rock bottom fuel costs. Amazingly the theoretical range of this car is 1100 miles which is the same from London to Budapest on a single tank of diesel.
The redesigned suspension provides a comfortable and stable ride, however the Insignia is susceptible to the size of wheels you choose. The larger 18”wheels on the top spec models provide the most control without compromising ride comfort. The manual gearbox is quite good and makes the Insignia feel quite responsive, although it’s not quite as fun to drive as a Mazda 6. And although the steering is precise its varying weight feels a little artificial. And the engine might be good on the move but around town it’s still a bit cumbersome. Having said that those small minuses shouldn’t be enough to put you off. It’s cheaper to buy, run and insure than ever before and for those reasons make it a very likely proposition. It’s a very competitive market though with plenty of choice so be sure to check out the Mazda 6 and the Ford Mondeo too. Feel free to take a look at some 2014 Insignias, click here.
