Tempted by an Omega, which engine should I choose?
Discussion
I had one 10 years ago and despite it being the poverty spec 2.0 select it had the lovely auto slushbox, great car.
I'm now tempted by another, the MV6 would be great but am I better off going for the V6 or 2.2 Diesel (Is the diesel still a BMW lump)? I also presume the tax will be a killer on the big petrol engines after 2001 as will the MPG on the 3.0/3.2?
I'm now tempted by another, the MV6 would be great but am I better off going for the V6 or 2.2 Diesel (Is the diesel still a BMW lump)? I also presume the tax will be a killer on the big petrol engines after 2001 as will the MPG on the 3.0/3.2?
These old Omega's are good old buses, well built.
We've had 2.0, 2.5 (manual) and 3.0, all petrol models.
The 3.0 is a huge improvement over the 2.5 v6 and gives the same or better mpg.
The 2.0 16v was a real surpise, went really well for a 2.0 auto and economy is so much better than the v6. You might see 30 mpg with a 2.0, the v6 is lucky to do 25...
We've had 2.0, 2.5 (manual) and 3.0, all petrol models.
The 3.0 is a huge improvement over the 2.5 v6 and gives the same or better mpg.
The 2.0 16v was a real surpise, went really well for a 2.0 auto and economy is so much better than the v6. You might see 30 mpg with a 2.0, the v6 is lucky to do 25...
spaceship said:
The old 2.5 TD was a BMW unit but the 2.2 is a Vx unit, DTi. Think it has 124 bhp with just over 200 lb-ft of torque. The 2.5 was about 128bhp but had less torque than the 2.2.
If economy is your thing, get a diesel. If not, the 3.2 V6 would be my choice.
The M51D25 (2.5 BMW lump) was 143bhp and 206lbs/ftIf economy is your thing, get a diesel. If not, the 3.2 V6 would be my choice.
I used to have a 3.0 Omega elite, great car, nice ride and decent performance. Dont bother with the smaller engines, the car is just too heavy for them, and the 2.5 diesel is unreliable (see omegaowners forum for details). My 3.0 would do 23 around town and low 30s on a run, the 3.2 isnt much difference and you have to watch the age of the car as the road tax can go up on the last made ones.
A friend of mine has been a senior mech at Vauxhall lookers for more years than I care to remember.
He reckoned the 2.5TD was the best engine assuming you get it remapped.
He strongly advised against the 2.2 as he said "the chains go on earlier ones" and instead recommended the 2.0.
He loved the V6 but complained it's perfomrmance couldn't justify it's thirst.
He also despised the Fiat built diesels but I'm not sure if that applies to the 2.2 DTI or it was just the 1.9. He claimed they were terribly built.
Personally I'd go for the MV6 if I liked a good thrape and 2.5TD beamer engine if I wanted a bit of eco fun.
It's all purely anecdotal of course.
Oh and ffs don't get a 2.0 Auto, I had one as a hire car a few years ago and it was horrendous.
ETA: I can see now you raved about the 2.0 spackerbox. Anything is better...
He reckoned the 2.5TD was the best engine assuming you get it remapped.
He strongly advised against the 2.2 as he said "the chains go on earlier ones" and instead recommended the 2.0.
He loved the V6 but complained it's perfomrmance couldn't justify it's thirst.
He also despised the Fiat built diesels but I'm not sure if that applies to the 2.2 DTI or it was just the 1.9. He claimed they were terribly built.
Personally I'd go for the MV6 if I liked a good thrape and 2.5TD beamer engine if I wanted a bit of eco fun.
It's all purely anecdotal of course.
Oh and ffs don't get a 2.0 Auto, I had one as a hire car a few years ago and it was horrendous.
ETA: I can see now you raved about the 2.0 spackerbox. Anything is better...
Edited by G_T on Wednesday 30th June 19:43
G_T said:
A friend of mine has been a senior mech at Vauxhall lookers for more years than I care to remember.
He reckoned the 2.5TD was the best engine assuming you get it remapped.
He strongly advised against the 2.2 as he said "the chains go on earlier ones" and instead recommended the 2.0.
He loved the V6 but complained it's perfomrmance couldn't justify it's thirst.
He also despised the Fiat built diesels but I'm not sure if that applies to the 2.2 DTI or it was just the 1.9. He claimed they were terribly built.
Personally I'd go for the MV6 if I liked a good thrape and 2.5TD beamer engine if I wanted a bit of eco fun.
It's all purely anecdotal of course.
Oh and ffs don't get a 2.0 Auto, I had one as a hire car a few years ago and it was horrendous.
ETA: I can see now you raved about the 2.0 spackerbox. Anything is better...
your senior mech mate must have been a floor sweeper at lookers . He reckoned the 2.5TD was the best engine assuming you get it remapped.
He strongly advised against the 2.2 as he said "the chains go on earlier ones" and instead recommended the 2.0.
He loved the V6 but complained it's perfomrmance couldn't justify it's thirst.
He also despised the Fiat built diesels but I'm not sure if that applies to the 2.2 DTI or it was just the 1.9. He claimed they were terribly built.
Personally I'd go for the MV6 if I liked a good thrape and 2.5TD beamer engine if I wanted a bit of eco fun.
It's all purely anecdotal of course.
Oh and ffs don't get a 2.0 Auto, I had one as a hire car a few years ago and it was horrendous.
ETA: I can see now you raved about the 2.0 spackerbox. Anything is better...
Edited by G_T on Wednesday 30th June 19:43
Ive spoken to a mate who works at a vauxhal dealer , and .. the 2.5td is not worth the effort , its not economical and goes wrong costing a fortune to put right thanks to bmw's wonderful part prices ,
the 2.2 diesel has over smooth bores leading to oil consumption like oliver read on a night out ,
the2.2 petrol has cambelt and needs to be changed along with the tensioners every 40k , surprisingly not that an expensive job as its all easy to access .
And the 1.9 fiat lumps are fantastic , ive ran 2 vectras with them and never had a single issue , the last went back with 114k and still pulled like a train , consumed no oil and would return well over 50mpg if i needed it to .
BTW im currently slumming it in a w plate 2.2 petrol cd estate , for a big ol barge its quite a laugh , drove down to rambouillet in france monday and it was one of the most comfortable cars ive driven , plus the wet roundabout at the end of my trip was huge fun
I had a 2.5v6 , now have a 3.0v6 Elite. Its an early final facelift model 2000 model year so leather, all the electric toys , dual climate etc. I got this rather than the 3.2 as it is in the old cheapo tax bracket. The later 3.2s have higher tax.
Its a great cruising barge but even with 215bhp its not that quick , its a heavy beast.
Get over to www.omegaowners.com for good advice.
register at autobahnstormers.com £20 and you get a vauxhall trade club card and parts are often <half price over retail.
the 2.5TD is detuned for a reason - the AR25 auto box cant handle more power. If you have it chipped back up to normal bmw power levels you'll have to replace the gearbox with an AR35
Its a great cruising barge but even with 215bhp its not that quick , its a heavy beast.
Get over to www.omegaowners.com for good advice.
register at autobahnstormers.com £20 and you get a vauxhall trade club card and parts are often <half price over retail.
the 2.5TD is detuned for a reason - the AR25 auto box cant handle more power. If you have it chipped back up to normal bmw power levels you'll have to replace the gearbox with an AR35
Did the Omega ever get the 1.9 diesels?
The 2.5 BMW TD was an old indirect injection, great in it's day but as has been mentioned, wouldn't compare with a direct injection unit in terms of economy. I see Wikipedia claims it got a direct injection version of the 2.5 BMW engine in 2001, but I don't remember those at all in the Omega.
After that, I thought the diesel options were 2.0 and 2.2 DTi, both Vauxhall's own units - the former only had about 100bhp, if I recall, but presumably would have been OK if you weren't tearing away from lights all the time.
The 2.5 BMW TD was an old indirect injection, great in it's day but as has been mentioned, wouldn't compare with a direct injection unit in terms of economy. I see Wikipedia claims it got a direct injection version of the 2.5 BMW engine in 2001, but I don't remember those at all in the Omega.
After that, I thought the diesel options were 2.0 and 2.2 DTi, both Vauxhall's own units - the former only had about 100bhp, if I recall, but presumably would have been OK if you weren't tearing away from lights all the time.
Edited by Citman on Wednesday 30th June 22:01
I've had my 3 litre MV6 for two weeks now, and it's awesome. I binned my 3 litre Elite estate a year ago, and just missed having an Omega too much. They are awesome cars. The cambelts need doing every 40K, and at 100K it will need new front wishbones. They can be heavy on brakes, but they are cheap to replace. In fact most parts cost peanuts really.
Cracking cars, I would definately recommend one. I wouldn't go near a diesel personally, V6 is the only engine to go for in my opinion.
Cracking cars, I would definately recommend one. I wouldn't go near a diesel personally, V6 is the only engine to go for in my opinion.
flakeypaul said:
The 2.5 V6 is worse on fuel than the 3.0 and 3.2 V6's - and has about 50bhp less. The cambelt is about £800 to change tho (on the 3.0).
Nearly bought a 2.5 V6 elite but having driven the father in laws 3.0 V6 Elite I decided not to bother!
Sorry,but you are talking tosh about £800 for a belt change. Even a stealer wouldnt charge half that! Plenty of omega specialists charge around 250 notes for a belt change inc new water pump while you are at it as the access is there anyways. I had mine done by a omega specialist mobile mechanic and it was £249 inc him coming to my home and doing the job, did a top job too.Nearly bought a 2.5 V6 elite but having driven the father in laws 3.0 V6 Elite I decided not to bother!
Cam covers are a weak point on the V6s too, need to use genuine VX parts and its about £150 fitted for those.
Its a cracking engine, its not the fastest car but smooth, likes to rev and makes a decent noise
DennisTheMenace said:
And the 1.9 fiat lumps are fantastic , ive ran 2 vectras with them and never had a single issue , the last went back with 114k and still pulled like a train , consumed no oil and would return well over 50mpg if i needed it to .
Ever been on the Vectra-C forum? I'm sure a few of them would have something to say about your comments on the 1.9. Very common for EGR faults, boost pipe issues, lack of power, flat spots, limp mode etc.Gassing Station | General Gassing [Archive] | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff