Faults:

Coolant leaks, thermostat, suspension, gearbox whine, clutch, and the air con does not work.

General Comments:

White 2012 Insignia. Really nice looking car. Bigger 18 inch SRi alloy wheels, the car looks amazing. If it had an Audi or BMW badge on it, people would notice it more.

SRi is the spec to have, very nice seats and sharp suspension, and never sacrifices ride quality, except on the roughest of surfaces. Noise suppression is also pretty good.

Performance and economy from this 1.8 petrol engine is pretty poor. I get mid 30's mpg along with lackluster performance. Go for the diesels with more horse power, or the later turbo charged 1.4 petrol.

There is a reason people always say find a trusted independent garage for servicing and repairs - for one you will keep costs down, and two you do not have to go to Vauxhall with a car this age, they are usually pretty uninterested and expensive anyway.

Overall I really like this car, it just annoys me that it could have been so much better. Do not pay too much for a used one and keep an eye out for its common faults and you should be OK.

Faults:

Thermostat, expansion tank leak, general cooling problems.

Various sensors.

Gearbox failure (very expensive).

Plus the usual wear and tear (brakes, exhaust, etc)

Try to keep the car serviced on time and looked after. Done the cambelt as well.

General Comments:

The Insignia SRi is a really good looking and comfortable car, but that's about it. Everything else is average. And the car has had too many issues in my opinion. Just do an internet search for M32 gearbox, very common and expensive failure. Fitted to the Astra and some other cars as well, avoid cars with this gearbox if you can.

Shame really as the car is otherwise OK and a decent Ford Mondeo rival. Better than my previous Peugeot 407, but that wouldn't be too hard.

Want to like it more, but just not reliable.

Faults:

When I bought the car a lot of common expensive faults had been addressed; DPF replaced, injectors replaced. I would advise anyone buying a diesel to check these items. Mine is an automatic; if manual check the clutch and flywheel. Thankfully I have had no problems with the auto box.

In my ownership of one year I have replaced the brake pads and front discs, that is all, and it has had a service.

General Comments:

The Sports Tourer Insignia is just an estate car version of the more common hatchback. You get a lot more space, though I think other cars in this class are bigger, so if you carry a lot this still might not be big enough for you.

As a family car it does me fine; the car is nice to drive, performs OK and even with the auto transmission, the 2.0 turbo diesel engine still can manage close to around 50 mpg.

SE model is well equipped, the interior is comfortable and quiet to be in. Center console is a little fiddly at first but you get used to it.

Outside I think the car looks great, the Insignia is a very sharp looking car, best in darker colors, mine is a dark metallic brown (looks black in anything but direct sunlight) which is a pretty rare color.

In short if you are after a family car, you could do a lot worse than one of these. Used prices are as cheap as it gets.