2002 Vauxhall Zafira Elegance 2.0 DTI from UK and Ireland

Summary:

A brilliant family car

Faults:

I have had no real problems with the car.

The only minor fault was that one of the rear doors needed a hard push to close it properly.

General Comments:

I have found this car to be extremely versatile. With the rear seats folded down it is a roomy estate car with a large load carrying space. Great for transporting my son to and from university.

The rear seats fold out of the floor to provide room for seven adults when needed, but at the expense of any load carrying space.

The velor seats are firm, but comfortable, but tend to act like a clothes brush and get covered in fluff and pet hairs.

The diesel engine is economical, has reasonable acceleration and cruises nicely at motorway speeds. I have got over 40 mpg doing school runs and short trips to work.

The one criticism that I do have is that the engine is very rattly for a modern diesel. It has taken a while to get used to the noise at low speed after being used to petrol engines.

I like the high driving position, and the lumbar support makes it very comfortable on long runs.

I have been very pleased with it and would recommend it to anyone wanting a sensible family car.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 27th September, 2002

2002 Vauxhall Zafira Elegance 1.8 from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Nice at first, but not sure now

Faults:

Engine noisy under load since 2500 miles. Symptoms similar to too lean fuel mixture or ignition timing incorrect. Engine Management Warning light has not come on, but a motorway drive at around 3500 revs / 70mph is not as quiet as it used to be!I've tried different petrol stations, driving it carefully; revving it hard; adding fuel injector cleaner to a tank of petrol etc, but the noise remains. It can also be heard at slower speeds around town when pulling away etc - a rough, "throatiness" from somewhere deep in the engine. Why has this occurred? Has anyone got an idea?

General Comments:

The radio doesn't hold stations as well as my Ford Ka did. Medium Wave(AM) is useless too, all I hear is the electronics from the engine!

1.8 is OK, but would've like a bit more power and should have opted for the 2.2 version.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No

Review Date: 2nd August, 2002

3rd Aug 2002, 01:11

Vauxhall seemed to have altered the gear ratios on recent models. My Dad has just bought a 1.6 8v Astra, it's the same, noisy at speed. We checked the gear ratios and found out why! I will be buying a Zafira soon, but will opt for the 2.2 engine as this is lower revving. Why have Vauxhalls done this? Surely a higher revving engine will wear out quicker, is this their aim?

2002 Vauxhall Zafira Elegance 2.0 TDI from UK and Ireland

Summary:

Very good car

Faults:

Engine uses oil.

General Comments:

I own an import Vauxhall Zafira Elegance 2.0 TDI

I am very pleased with the car; it is comfortable, very good on fuel and has lots of little refinements built in.

However, there is one problem. The engine uses oil.

I was nearly caught out by this, but have always regularly checked the oil levels on my cars.

I have owned Nissans, Fords, and classic cars that have not used oil, but my new Vauxhall has used 2 litres of oil in 3000 miles.

The car has been checked for oil consumption over a 500-mile period and the dealer stated that approximately 0.3 litres of oil use was acceptable.

I do not think so!

This oil usage is supposedly only on the Turbo Diesel engine and the dealer has assured me that it will improve as the engine runs in.

Has anyone else had this type of problem?

I have since heard reports of engine seizures as a result of oil loss.

Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes

Review Date: 22nd July, 2002

15th Aug 2002, 06:33

Yep, same problem with mine. See "Nice engine management light" review on this site.

Vauxhall still say that this amount of oil usage is OK, I don't think so, I can't believe that they designed the engine to do this.

11th Sep 2002, 18:57

It looks as if the oil problem is common on the turbo diesel, something to do with the polished bores!

My dealer assured me that the oil consumption would improve and it does seem to be better now after completing 5000 miles.