Vauxhall Vectra 2.0 DTi LS Review

Good Points
Comfort... and thats about it!

Bad Points
So many to list, details below.

General Comments
I brought my 1998 Vectra DTi two years ago for about 3k, this was a bit more than most Vectra's of the same age were going for but it had decent mileage for age and type of car (only 70k) and was a diesel, I also got a years warranty thrown in which I hoped I wouldn't need! I wanted a diesel for all the obvious reasons, and for some reason at the time liked the looks of the Vectra.



In the two years I have owned mine the following has happened:

- Turbo blew up (some warning but not enough to do anything about it) this ended up costing me £1200 (+ 400 the warranty company agreed to pay) as I not only needed a new Turbo I needed a full exhaust and a few other oil effected parts to go with it!

- Mass Airflow Sensor, the car was never a good starter (see below) but one morning when trying to fire her up this sensor decided enough was enough and cost me £250

- Steering Rack (I think) she is currently in the garage at the moment having the rack checked as it just leaks power steering fluid everywhere, nice!



Other problems I have had with the Vectra include:

- Front windows, first the passenger side, then driver side too, both have the same problem (not fully investigated) the window just falls into the door, I guess there are runner or motors or something that's given up!

- Starting, the car just doesn't want to start if you leave it for over 24 hours. Eventually it does start but not until you've nearly killed the battery trying to turn her over, god knows what the problem is, I have a little trick to kick her up so I haven't got it checked.



When driving this car round i find it doesn't pull properly from 3500rpm onwards, after the turbo has done a bit it jerks a lot and doesn't feel at all smooth, two services and this is still an issue, no one at Vauxhall had a clue.



You probably by now think I've got a bit of a downer on my Vectra, you'd be right, I can honestly say this car has been the worst I have ever brought, and I've had some rubbish in my time. Everything that car goes wrong it costs a fortune to get fixed, the overall quality and build of the car doesn't seem to bad, but things just like to break and tick me off!



Please take my advise and stay well clear of these Diesel Vectra's, maybe the newer ones are OK but anything a few years older just don't do it! (unless you see mine for sale, then please buy it)



Off this weekend to buy a BMW to say sorry to myself for this awful awful purchase!



Oh also worth mentioning I've never had a good experience with a Vauxhall Dealership, they have always been rude, unhelpful and very slow in response and turn around times Two different dealers, maybe others are OK but in my area they were shocking!