Astra rear lights miswired

Hi all. I have purchased a Vauxhall Astra from Vauxhall. I only noticed today that something seemed funny with the reverse light. The year of the car is 2009 and the reverse light is on the right and...

Unused car

I have been given the chance to buy, from an elderly lady neighbour who is giving up driving, a Vauxhall Astra 1.6 115 Elite and I should like to know whether it would be a good buy, and, if so, what would...

Chip panned

We have an 18-month old normally aspirated Astra 1.6 petrol, which is rather slow to accelerate. Would it be worth having the engine "chipped" to improve performance and who would you recommend?

Timing belt replacement

I have just found out from my local independent garage that the timing chain needs replacing on my Zafira. In Feb 2010 the main Vauxhall dealership in York replaced the Timing kit under warranty. Having...

Vectra gearbox failure at 37,700 miles

I bought a Vectra 1.9 CDTi Estate in April 2009. Recently, while on holiday in Cornwall, the gearbox lost 5th & 6th gears and there is a whining noise in 1st gear. On return from holiday I rang the Vauxhall...

Meriva electric handbrake issue

Purchased a Vauxhall Meriva from new Aug 2010. Drove for 6 months with no problem. Soon after that the car developed a terrifying intermittent fault where the electronic handbrake deploys with no warning...

How is the fuel economy calculated for the Vauxhall Ampera hybrid?

I registered last year as an e-Pioneer with Vauxhall and paid my £150. A month or two ago I got to drive an Ampera at the Motor Expo in Canary Wharf and even had a chance to chat with Quentin Wilson who...

Consumed by consumer

How meaningful are the published Official Fuel Consumption Figures? A friend of mine has a 9-month-old Vauxhall Astra. He has run three tests, over a distance of 180 miles, mainly on motorways, visiting...

Why has the Vauxhall Insignia, which suffers DMF and clutch faults, been selected as 'Car of the Year'?

Can anyone explain to me why the Insignia was awarded the 2009 "Car of the Year Award"? The more I read about faulty Vauxhall DMFs and clutches, the more I despair. A pity the senior management didn’t...

Buying a decent looking family car

I've spent years driving MPVs (very functional but...) - Xsara Picasso, Grand Scenic etc. I'd really like to drive something a bit more car-like but that's still got a decent amount of boot space (don't...