Are Fords really much better than Vauxhalls?

[Bezza1969]

Been puzzling me for a while how the motoring press love Fords, especially the Mondeo which tops the "family car" league year in year out, but Vauxhalls are unloved. Take the Insignia. Is it really that much inferior to a Mondeo? I mean you can buy a 3 year old 160 BHP diesel Insignia SRI for just over 6 grand on autotrader, which seems like a bargain, whereas the cheapest equivalent 163 BHP Mondeo diesel on Autotrader just now, is getting on for 10 grand. Doesnt add up. They are both volume cars and whilst I know Fords are famed for driving well, is a Mondeo really worth 3 grand more than an equivalent year Insignia? Any owners of both care to give an opinion? Im particularly interested in the Insignia, simply because it appears to represent a cracking buy for someone wanting a cheap newish family car...

[Mr Wolf]

More recently, i.e. in the last 10 years Ford have got their act together and I believe are far more reliable, stylish and better to drive that Vauxhalls

Vauxhall have always had issues with engine reliability

Both brands are pretty boring though imho

[ajb85]

Buy British. Buy British Leyland.

[StefanVXR8]

Yes, buy British, buy a Vauxhall VXR8!

Ah wait, no, hang on........................

[smartphone hater]

Simple answer.. No, Fords aren't really much better than Vauxhalls IMO.

[900T-R]

Indeed. It's just that Ford seems to have much better PR in some quarters (cough Autocar cough).

[Slobberchops]

What are the Vauxhall engine issues?

[Pablo16v]

I would say yes. In the past couple of years I've been in quite a few Ford and Opel hire cars (Insignias, Astras, Mondeos and Focus’) and the Fords have always been the better cars to be in and to drive.

[cerb4.5lee]

I love fords but I have always preferred vauxhalls engines for some reason, fords have been strong overall cars since they launched the mondeo in 1993 & focus was great in 1998 & the latest fiesta is also highly rated.

Vauxhalls just seem to slip under most people's radar I wouldn't say no to a nice Carlton Gsi 3000 though!

[budgie smuggler]

Personally I do think so having owned a Fiesta and Focus and hired a Corsa, Zafira and Astra.

I find the steering too light in Vauxhalls and the brakes feel too assisted. Plus that stupid indicator setup gets on my teats. (If you saw someone driving down the A127 last July manically flashing the indicators on boths sides, it was me trying to turn them off after Enterprise sent me out in the Zafira without mentioning them.)

I also don't like the dashboards in Vauxhalls but I guess this is rather moot since Ford appears to be copying them now in the newest Fiesta and Focus models at least. SHINY BUTTONS EVERYWHERE! MOAR BUTTONS!!!1

[ajb85]

Go back 15 years and Vauxhalls did't rot like Fords did.

[ajb85]

budgie smuggler said:

Plus that stupid indicator setup gets on my teats. (If you saw someone driving down the A127 last July manically flashing the indicators on boths sides, it was me trying to turn them off after Enterprise sent me out in the Zafira without mentioning them.).

Oh come on, the one-touch indicators aren't THAT hard to grasp! Needless to say they've gone more conventional now.

[SWoll]

Yes.

Can't comment befote the late 90's but every Ford I have driven since has been a far better to drive, better built and just a nicer place to spend time.

You get bthe feeling that when Ford design a car they are actually thinking about the driver, unlike Vauxhall who you sense are just thinking "where can we save money?"

[billzeebub]

In my opinion, definitely

[Rawwr]

I think, overall, Ford have the whole dynamics thing sussed a bit better than Vauxhall. When Ford try to make a fun car or a fast car or a super car, they're more than capable of doing it.

[Dr Interceptor]

Fords to me actually feel like they've been designed by a human being - they have that organic element which makes them a nicer place to sit and drive.

Vauxhall/Opels just feel like a bunch of credentials were fed into a computer, and voila, a new model is produced.

[telecat]

Not driven that many lately but the Vauxhall Cockpit does seem a nicer place up to the newest Focus which seems to copy it. Personally I prefer the "look" of the Astra to the Focus whereas the Insignia is a bit blobby next to the Mondeo. I was not that impressed by the 2.5T Mondeo Titanium I drove. It felt a little "sloppy" and the cockpit a bit tacky. I also find that below the Mondeo I do not "fit" Ford's that well. I cannot get the clutch to seat length sorted properly leaving me a bit cramped. If it comes down to it though I choose the one that I like driving best and feel most comfortable in.

[HustleRussell]

They aren't worlds apart (the used Mondeo isn't going to be £4k better than the Insignia), but yes in my experience Fords are just a bit better all 'round- engines, gear shifts, steering, pedals, handling etc.

[kambites]

Fords tend to drive marginally better, but I don't think there is a significant difference in reliability between any of the modern western mainstream car manufacturers. There is certainly nothing fundamentally wrong with most of the cars produced by either manufacturer.

[Scuffers]

fords engines have got much better since they start using engines designed in Japan!

(this comes from somebody that has never owned a Ford or Vauxhall ever!)