Tuesday 5th December 2006

Vauxhall offers punchier Signum

Big turbocharged car with big performance

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Vauxhall Signum

How much would you expect to pay for a 250bhp car, built in Germany and powered by a smooth and punchy 2.8-litre V6 engine? That's the question Vauxhall poses as it presents the new top-end Signum.

The 2.8-litre turbo, sold in Design or Elite trim, is available now from £23,050, and now comes with an uprated V6 powerplant, developing 250bhp and an 258lb-ft of torque. The new unit gives it a 0-60mph time of 6.8 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 155mph for the manual version.

Design models feed the power to the road through a six-speed manual gearbox, while the more luxury-oriented Elite comes with a six-speed automatic transmission with Active Select facility.

Both models come with ESP-Plus as standard, while the Design gets lowered and uprated sports suspension.

As with all Signum models, standard equipment includes colour satnav, 17-inch alloy wheels and electrically operated front and rear windows. The Design also has front fog lamps, dark-style head and tail lights, half-leather trim, automatic lighting control, rain-sensitive windscreen wipers and active head restraints, while Elite models get full leather trim and electronic climate control. To fit this equipment to some rivals would involve an expensive trip to the options list.

Alternatively, you could wait a year and pick one up for much less...

[PhantomPH]

The last comment is the most telling - Signums lose almost 50% in their first year.

Edited by PhantomPH on Tuesday 5th December 11:24

[timwatsham]

Great secondhand buy though - a colleague at work has just picked up a 1 year old diesel with all the toys for about £11k which appears to be a great deal of car for the money...

[mojocvh]

timwatsham said:

Great secondhand buy though - a colleague at work has just picked up a 1 year old diesel with all the toys for about £11k which appears to be a great deal of car for the money...

excellent deal dunno about the cars "dynamics"

[fatboy b]

PhantomPH said:

The last comment is the most telling - Signums lose almost 50% in their first year.

Edited by PhantomPH on Tuesday 5th December 11:24

Yep - you really have to question the intelligence of the people who buy these cars new!

[jackass]

I quite enjoyed driving my mate's 3.0 v6 Diesel. Amusingly he couldn't spec it with 19" wheels as that would stop it being Euro IV compliant.

[PhantomPH]

Thing is, if nobody bought them new, there would be no second hand ones for a bargain!

I think the reality is, is that almost all Signums are provided as 'fleet' from new. I understand just about every manager of every Vauxhall dealer's management vehicle was the Signum in 2004. Hence the TONNE of them on sale second hand after a year - all with fairly low mileages.

P~

[NDT]

Is it front wheel drive or proper wheel drive?

[baSkey]

NDT said:

Is it front wheel drive or proper wheel drive?

well it's an elongated vectra so what do you reckon..?

____________

Phantom - nobody does buy them new!

one of my dad's neighbours is an accountant for a main dealer and he has a new one every couple of months....

mind you at the moment he's gone for the other GM don't buy new model - the 9-5.

[britten_mark]

Blimey I didn't know they still made these let alone spent money facelifting it to the current corporate bland-a-like. Must have driven past hundreds and never noticed.

This must be the Edsel of the current motoring age, how many other recent cases are there of a manufacturer answering a question nobody asked??? The Renault Avantime??

[Road_Terrorist]

I guess one of these might make Shed of the week in 2010, should be about £1000 by then

[hendry]

britten_mark said:

Blimey I didn't know they still made these let alone spent money facelifting it to the current corporate bland-a-like. Must have driven past hundreds and never noticed.

This must be the Edsel of the current motoring age, how many other recent cases are there of a manufacturer answering a question nobody asked??? The Renault Avantime??

Well quite. This was the only way the mainstreamers though they coould compete at that ende of the market - they can't beat the 5-series and A6, so introduced massive hatchbacks. The Vel Satis is another, as is the new Croma. They are all bombing.

Would have been better off piling the same investment into SAAB.

[negative creep]

britten_mark said:

Blimey I didn't know they still made these let alone spent money facelifting it to the current corporate bland-a-like. Must have driven past hundreds and never noticed.

This must be the Edsel of the current motoring age, how many other recent cases are there of a manufacturer answering a question nobody asked??? The Renault Avantime??

you've driven past hundreds? Do you live in a Vauxhall factory? I can't even remember the last time I saw one

[Lord-Flasheart]

Or you could buy a proper car such as a 3 series.

[bennno]

I bought one a couple of months back, a low mileage minter, in the design (sports trim) and for just £8k.

I didnt bother test driving it as I thought it would be a shed and simply bought it as its precisely what I lost on a (discounted) new C180 Estate over a 12 month / 20k period.

In truth its a big flexible car, drives better than I expected and cost little.

At the 8k I paid for a late 2004 car, you could have perhaps scraped a basic 2000 5 Series or at the £23k (well £18.5k with 20% vauxhall discount) you could have the new 2.8L car for the same price as a 118i - hmm I can see why a few might elect for the luton product

bennno

[julianhj]

Am I right in thinking they are only 4-seaters?

[alphadog]

Lord-Flasheart said:

Or you could buy a proper car such as a 3 series.

Nope, I like to use my indicators when I'm driving

[Top banana]

just bought a 1 year old signum design (same spec as vectra SRi)

came with all the toys - satnav, xenons, parking sensors front and rear, 19" wheels, leather, climate + leccy sunroof, rain sensing wipers, headlights 'steer' around bends dependant on speed, etc

for a motorway mile muncher it's a bargain - got mine for 12k - cost 22k new

it drives very well for what it is, I was never expecting sportscar performance, but even with only the 150bhp diesel it shifts

trouble with the signum is it was pitched as an executive hatch - where as most executives want a BMW/MERC/AUDI. if you can ignore the vauxhall badge (removed mine and put a german spec 'opal' grill on !)it's a seriously practical big saloon alternative, and has bags of space/goodies for the money

also I like the fact that they are a rare sight on the uk roads,at least when stuck in jams i'm not looking at loads of other people sitting in identical cars to me !

regards - TB

[bennno]

julianhj said:

Am I right in thinking they are only 4-seaters?

no, they have 4 fully adjustable seats which slide and tilt, including in the rear (its poss the most spacious / most comfortable rear seats IO have experienced as a result).

It then has a small centre seat whch can be turned over and used as a drinks tray or as per mine fitted with a removable fridge.

Ha - removable fridge and tilt slide rear seats with acres of legroom in an 8k car!!

bennno

[ianrbt]

I wanted a Signum and went searching the Auctions for a 3.2 Elite.
What I got was a 3.2 elite Vectra 19000 mls still under warranty for £7,800 all the bells and whistles and boy does it shift!! I never tire of its ability and to buy any "badge" would have cost me another £20000.
In 12 months time I will be after another, Vectra or Signum I really dont mind ,either will give me fantastic value for money and a lovley v6 lump!! I reccomend them.

[alfaman]

baSkey said:

NDT said:

Is it front wheel drive or proper wheel drive?

well it's an elongated vectra so what do you reckon..?

____________

Phantom - nobody does buy them new!

.

my next door neighbour works for a vauxhall / alfa dealer, in a backroom/technical role ... he gets a new signum or vectra every 6 months ... for a peppercorn monthly rent , as do many Vauxhall staff and workers so I'm told.

These cars then get into the 2nd hand market at 6 months .... I guess GM do this to prop up the "new sales" figures (?)

BTW - he highly rates the 3.2l petrol V6 versions.