Faults:
Battery failed at c.87000.
Instrument back-light temperamental.
Some interior trim quality problems.
Fr OS TCA and A/R bar bushes replaced to cure wandering and 'crashing'.
Possible air-con issues, see below.
Exhaust replaced.
General Comments:
I have been very happy with this car, it was bought without too much thought, though I have always liked the look of the Omega, in Elite spec. I have no ambition to replace it at the present time.
Costs can be a bit higher than ideal, but it must be expected on car like this, it ain't designed for economy! Insurance is about £600/yr which I don't think is too bad.
Not many problems, battery went as mentioned above, but a car with this sort of electrical load is bound to throttle a battery and it was the original. Recently had the exhaust replaced with a custom stainless system from Ascar in Sheffield which is superb, nice throatiness from the V6 but nowhere near intrusive. Again it was the original. Back-light on the speedometer is temperamental, but I've heard these are expensive to have replaced on Vauxhalls so it'll wait a bit. Some front suspension done to cure age problems, mush better now. Air-con utterly useless on 'ECO' mode, but don't have a manual so don't know if I'm using it right. If I use it EVER, the windscreen clouds up in an instant. Hmmmm. If anyone can offer any advice on this, please contact me, hamish@hbp.co.uk. Having read the stuff on headlight performance, I can agree, has anyone any experience on changing to the later spec Xenon system, is it worth it and who might do it? Some plastic parts are not seating correctly which surprised me a bit for a 30 grand car.
Quick enough though I may get some work done, Courtenay do a tuning program for the engine so may look into that. Auto box superb, first auto I've had and no issues, relaxed and smooth in normal, and mush more alert in sport mode. Handling fine, RWD quite good fun, enough power to break traction in the blink of an eye, but TC system brilliant, catches it early every time. Was a bit uncertain to begin with, but getting the loose TCA sorted tightened it right up.
Some rust appearing on rear doors, but think I'm right in saying this is trait of Vauxhalls...? Will get it sorted soon, it is a 7-odd year old car.
4th Jun 2010, 06:42
Just got me a N reg 2.0 tourer estate, what a motor, returns me about 34 mpg.
The stuff you can put in these estates beggars belief.
The 2 ltr motor is no slouch, and will cruise happily at motorway speeds. I should imagine the V6s are a more pokier motor, but the amount of fuel stops will be pretty frequent.
I know I will probably upgrade to the V6 eventually, but the 2 ltr will do just fine for now.