MOTORS: Vauxhall Insignia Sport Tourer VXR - Power To The People

FOR most people the regular cars we drive on a daily basis do the job perfectly. Sometimes though the idea of a more sporting alternative springs to mind. Vauxhall are aware of this and have taken the basic Insignia and made something that's rather more exciting.

Now, I like to think of myself as an honest person but when it came to handing back this fire-breathing Insignia VXR I thought of ‘accidentally misplacing’  it because, at just £31,000, this car is a steal. That’s how much I liked it.

Inside, the VXR has pretty much the same interior as the excellent convertible Cascada which we'll feature at another time, but with a sporty twist. The Recaro sports seats have plenty of adjustment and are supremely comfortable with the added bonus of an extendable squab on the front of the seat to enable more taller front occupants to arrange their lanky lower limbs easily.

For the most part Vauxhall should be congratulated for the overall design and ergonomics. VXR adds a sporting steering wheel and six-speed gearshift in crisp manual as driven, or auto. The VXR logos are thankfully discreet and there’s plenty of room for all despite VXR’s all-wheel drive system.

The Tourer has an enormous boot. With 540 litres at minimum (1530L with the rear seats down), it matches the best in class and improves upon that of the prestige German rivals. There’s a touch of class too from the powered tailgate. The touchscreen/navigation is fine, if not of the first rank, but the sound system is good with the now expected connectivity and Bluetooth.

The VXR Estate can be driven in a Normal mode, which is what you get on start-up and it’s brisk and fine for everyday driving. When in the mood there’s a Sport button which tightens things up generally or, when you want to get serious, there’s the VXR button. Press this and the big estate turns from a purring power-cruiser into a snarling beast. Jekyll and Hyde.

With the wick turned right up this car is shockingly quick. Top speed is limited to 155mph and drivers with only a tenuous grip on their licences should be advised that it comes up fast (so I‘ve heard). Everything seems sharper and the steering a little weightier. It’s not however the mode you want to be in amongst traffic. The throttle response is so sensitive that it can make crawling a lurching nightmare. It’s a simple matter to switch back to the Normal setting; That is until the road opens out again.

The VXR’s drivetrain is, as mentioned 4WD, including a Haldex clutch to control the torque split front to rear and a ‘torque vectoring’ differential that distributes torque between the rear wheels. This system is aided by up-rated front suspension, the VXR getting new struts ( the Vauxhall ‘HiPerStrut’ system) that help to reduce torque steer plus stiffer springs.

On the gorgeous optional 20” alloys fitted the 4WD lays down the grip totally, giving the driver immense confidence on twisting B roads where the agility belies the size. Surprisingly the big wheels don’t have any adverse effect on the ride comfort, which is by the way, excellent in all modes.

I think that this Sports Tourer is the best looking of the Insignia range. It looks subtly aggressive with 'tiger claw' air intakes on the chunky front bumper and there's a small spoiler at the top of the tailgate to enhance the aero additions. The overall result is sleek and eye-catching without any overt ‘look-at-me’ additions. It’s a safe car too, with many airbags, five Euro-NCAP stars, electronic stability control and the like.

Running costs will be higher; that’s a given. Emissions of 249g/km are probably to be expected from the 2.8L turbo V6 and of course consumables will wear out more quickly given the performance - as indeed will the fuel.

In the mixed driving that normal people do, Vauxhall say that 26.9mpg is possible, although that seems optimistic. Putting the car fully through its paces as I am required by law to do I achieved a less encouraging 21.9mpg but if you choose to buy a car like this what else can you expect? If you want more miles for your money then buy an Astra. (Hint: they do a VXR in that too).

I would hope by now that we have all got past badge snobbery although sadly that‘s probably wishful thinking. The Vauxhall Insignia VXR Sports Tourer costs around half that of the prestige German alternatives and does everything they can do and is also faster than most of them. Sure, you would probably expect that the more expensive cars have more luxury and state-of-the-art kit and that’s true enough; but the fact remains that our car as tested was well made, fully featured, comfortable, practical and blisteringly fast. You can’t say fairer than that. I want it back.

Geoff Maxted
www.drivewrite.co.uk