Faults:

Nothing in my one year ownership. I bought the car last year with full history. Had a gearbox recondition and the famous oil seal issue on these engines attended to. Expensive for both, glad I didn't pay! But someone has cherished this car with no expense spared.

General Comments:

Love these Insignia's - good looking and great value.

Very nice to drive, punchy engine and always does around 45 mpg on diesel.

Exclusiv is a base spec, but the car still has plenty of electrics and a very comfortable seat and interior materials.

Dark grey, good looking. I added alloy wheels. The car looks amazing.

Massive amounts of space.

I got lucky though - most Insignia's of this age are ending up in the scrapheap (lots of rough examples on the used market), but find a nice looked after car and they provide amazing value. Cannot believe these cars came out over 15 years ago, mine feels as good as new and very modern!

Faults:

Engine management light illuminated, mid and rear exhaust section needed replaced, front shocks replaced, new discs and pads all round for the brakes at MOT time.

Air con will no longer work, and then the rear boot motor stopped working and jammed the hatch shut, a major pain but got it sorted for cheap.

I keep the car serviced on time with any oil/belt changes as scheduled. Cosmetically the car is in great shape for its age, inside and out.

General Comments:

A very smart looking modern car for 14 years old. Drives very well also. These early Insignia's can be bought for less than £3000 and are a good family/executive car.

Downside is they feel a bit cheap and nasty now, materials inside are nice enough but the car looks like a tonne of plastic was used everywhere. The seats on this SRi model are very comfortable however. Being a 2009 model I have a manual handbrake - much better than later electronic ones.

1.8 petrol engine is a bit dated, in fact I think it is much the same engine used in the Vectra in its last few years. Plodding performance and you only get 37 mpg which isn't really good enough by today's standard. Quite expensive to tax also. However insurance and repairs have been cheap enough. Vauxhall dealers are uninterested in cars of this age, I got a cold reception when going to my local dealer for service or repairs. Find a friendly back street garage at this age - much better and cheaper.

All in all it is an older car now, but I will keep it so long as it runs.

Faults:

The dreaded Diesel Particle Filter (DPF) light intermittently on and off - a common problem on most modern diesels and a real annoyance, seems to light up every now and then and go out on its own, even after "clearing out" with aggressive acceleration. Mechanic reckons it's just the sensor and does not need replaced yet, though will be expensive when the time comes.

General Comments:

A great car to drive and a huge improvement over the previous Vectra (though not as bad a car as people made out), the Insignia is an all new car designed from the ground up, now on par with the Ford Mondeo on overall ability (I can comment, I have owned both, to be honest there is little in it now, they are both good cars). I think Vauxhall really tried with this one and it shows, the car is nice to be in and the interior is comfortable, smooth driving experience and economical. Mine is a 2009 model; I bought when it was just a year old, which I'm glad at because I think after 2010 they made them all with the electronic handbrake which I do not like, I prefer the old levers. We were doing fine with them, and I hate the modern electronic E-brakes. Mind you, I might upgrade to a 2013 onwards model soon and live with the electronic brake; they have updated the front and rear end - it is one good looking car, and now even better looking. Black SRi models are the best lookers in my opinion.

Used values aren't as strong, as I'd like it to have held its value a bit better, but I got a good deal on this one to begin with. The 2.0 diesel is the one to go for in SRi spec (lovely alloy wheels) however should you see a petrol 1.8, consider it also as modern diesels have a reputation now for being expensive to repair (DPF/DMF/Injectors, etc), and that defeats the purpose of saving money on fuel. So the petrol ones on lower "Exclusiv" specs are worth considering, and you get decent equipment as standard anyway and a decent 1.8 engine.

Overall a good car and a great used buy now at bargain prices; choose one to suit your needs, and be very picky as there are lots out there on the used market now.