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Vauxhall’s Revamped Insignia Is Not Such A Drag

Topics: Vauxhall Insignia

Vauxhall’s Revamped Insignia Is Not Such A Drag

Geoff Maxted
DriveWrite
August 15, 2013

The Vauxhall Insignia at launch was so much better than the previous offerings from the Company that it has done well on the sales front. It’s a roomy and comfortable vehicle; OK, it doesn’t exactly set the world on fire but most owners seem satisfied. Now though, Vauxhall have obviously decided that the time has come for a change - enter, with appropriate fanfare, the new Insignia.

All car manufacturers have worked hard to reduce the emissions and running costs of their products. This time, given that it’s a big car, Vauxhall have spent some time in the wind tunnel to ensure that the Insignia is as slippery as possible through the air. To this end they have achieved the lowest drag coefficient in this sector with a Cd rating of under 0.25. New extended under-body covers, wider front spoiler lips, tail lamp housings designed to enhance airflow separation and an integrated rear deck lid spoiler contribute to the new Insignia's slippery shape.

These numbers probably don’t mean much to the layman but they are important. It’s another weapon in the armoury of clean, fuel-saving technology and means that, with the 2.0L CDTi ecoFLEX engine and start/stop technology the Insignia can achieve class-leading CO2 emissions of 99g/km and 76.3mpg on the combined cycle. This gives the ecoFLEX a range of up to 1175 miles, meaning that an average UK driver covering 8,200 miles, would only have to refill with diesel seven times per year. Or put another way, according to the company, the car could travel from London to Budapest on one tank of fuel. Budapest is a lovely city incidentally, in case you fancy a run out but it isn‘t essential that you drive that far to prove the claim.

As usual the Vauxhall Insignia comes with all the usual goodies that we’ve come to expect and, on the whole, we like this new design. Thirty years ago Audi led the way in trying to reduce drag coefficient and, at the time, there was a sense that the science would result in uniform looking vehicles. With the technology today however, as demonstrated in Formula 1 for example, there are many clever ways to reduce the Cd figures.

Available as a five-door Hatch, four-door Saloon and Sports Tourer, the new range now starts at just £16,279; that’s nearly £2,000 less than entry into the outgoing line-up. And as with all new Vauxhalls, the new Insignia comes with a Lifetime Warranty that gives first owners peace of mind as long as they own the car.