Astra 06-09'ish - 1.9CDTI buying advice..

[JimmyB88]

Hi there guys..

I'm still in the hunt for a car after the wife stole my last one! Not literally of course.

I'm having a look at the moment at Astra's between the 06-09 plate.. Only SRi models, and only the 1.9CDTI engines/150BHP.

I noticed there seems to be a lot of variation in prices.. So what should I be on the lookout for?

I have seen that Courtney offer a remap to around 180BHP, are there any optional extras to look out for? General bits too look out for? And what repairs should I be budgeting for regularly?

I'm having to go sensible and tell every bone in my body that the diesel is the right option, and not a more appealing (too me) VXR! Maybe I'll have to save a quick car for my midlife crisis..

Thanks for your help.

[randomman]

That diesel engine in particular has a lot of horror stories about it online. Might have to be the VXR after all mate.

[BckFlash]

I had a 2009 SRi - in the 5 years I owned it, the worst thing that happened was that it needed a new gearbox after 32k miles. From what I've read online it's quite a common fault - thankfully, I had extended the warranty so was covered!

Only other slight issue was the engine management / emissions light coming on sporadically.

As always, there are horror stories online about every car. Saying that, the 1.9 CDTi engine does have a LOT of them... SAAB and Alfa used the engine too, same issues across the board with EGR valve and swirl flaps mainly!