Vauxhall VECTRA CLUB RANGE
Club Editions Have Been A
Vauxhall Staple For Some Time. The Latest Vectra Range Is No Exception. Andy Enright Reports
Nature shows tend to follow a set formula. In order to generate a pat beginning, middle and end, many of them follow activities in some far-flung environment over the course of four seasons. Theres something grimly fascinating about those parts that show fish in a pond struggling for existence as said pond invariably dries to nothingness. Many industry observers reckon the class in which the Vauxhall Vectra Club traditionally competes is the motoring equivalent of that rapidly evaporating pool.
The figures seem to reinforce this assertion. The market share for upper medium cars has declined steadily from just over 25% of the total domestic market as recently as 1997 down to around 20% today. Either people are downsizing into superminis or family hatches, trading their car in for an MPV or opting for a beefy 4x4. In an attempt to halt the slide, Vauxhall have introduced the Vectra Club models, cars which have traditionally sold very well to private buyers as a result of their decent equipment levels, attractive financial support packages and keen pricing.
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If its still hard for you to reconcile the concepts of private buyer and
Vauxhall Vectra you may well be living in the past. Yes, the old Vectra was mostly driven by people who didnt have a great deal of say in their choice of wheels, but the way the company car market in particular has panned out, thats no longer the case. The Vectra needs to be as, if not more, attractive to the private buyer who wanders into a Vauxhall showroom than any corporate bean counter.
"If its still hard for you to reconcile the concepts of private buyer and Vauxhall Vectra you may well be living in the past."
Fortunately the latest generation car has got off to a good start. For a start it looks bang up to date. Although the original Vectra was a hugely different car to its predecessor, many buyers dismissed it as a facelifted Cavalier with pretty door mirrors. Kicking off at £15,435 in 1.
8 16v hatch, saloon or estate guise, the current Vectra Club looks a good package. Equipment counts are important in this subsector and the Vectra acquits itself well with air conditioning, six airbags, ABS and a reach and rake adjustable steering wheel. On top of that it gets cruise control, remote central locking, an alarm, a CD player, electric front windows and mirrors, rain sensing wipers and even a
BMW-style service interval indicator. Should you hanker after diesel power, theres a 2.
0-litre DTi version or 120 and 150bhp variations on the CDTi common-rail theme. The 1.8-litre petrol engine is largely carried over from the first generation Vectra line-up and is a sixteen-valve unit that puts out 122bhp, good enough, Vauxhall says, to take the car from rest to sixty in 10 seconds on the way to 129mph. What is different about this engine is the introduction of hi-tech drive-by-wire technology.
Depressing the throttle pedal sends a command to the ECM (Electronic Control Module) which then controls the engine. Throttle cables? Who needs them? Drive-by-wire is supposed to improve driveability, require a lower pedal pressure and improve emissions. This latter issue has been a thorny one for Vauxhall. Prior to the Vectras launch, their engineers were trumpeting that improved emissions had been achieved by the adoption of a close-coupled catalytic converter that warmed up more quickly.
It was therefore more efficient on the move and belched less smoke on start-up. All of this sounded great in theory but when it came to it in practice, there was the mainstream 2.2-litre petrol Vectra bottom of the class for CO2. Fortunately, this 1.
8-litre version fares much better, with an entirely reasonable 184g/km figure. The 99bhp 2.0-litre DTi 16v features direct injection and charge air-cooling. What it doesnt offer is the sort of common rail technology utilised by many market leading rivals.
That is left up to the CDTi units. In the Vectras DTi engines, a single overhead camshaft drives the sixteen valves, whilst a dual mass flywheel keeps vibration down during start up. Nevertheless, this budget 2.0-litre powerplant is a good example of its ilk, with a healthy torque showing of 230Nm at a super accessible 1,500rpm.
The 60mph benchmark is a respectable 12.5 seconds away and the top speed is an equally credible 120mph. Its emissions rating is 159g/km so-so for such a diesel. The 48.
3mpg average fuel economy figure will be ample recompense for those looking to cover big mileages. The CDTi units are much better. 0-60mph in 8.8 seconds is possible in the 150bhp version and the 120bhp unit is a little more tardy posting a 10.
5s time. Combined fuel consumption of 48.6mpg and 49.6mpg respectively make these powerplants fractionally more economical than the DTi but the real benefit comes in the form of big torque.
The 120 produces a maximum of 280Nm while the 150 tops that with 315Nm, this means plenty of power right through the rev range where you need it. Those looking to pay around £15,000 for a car have a number of diverting options that, in all likelihood, will have a stronger claim on their pound than a Vauxhall Vectra Club. This represents something of a shame. In their haste to convince us that wheels should be square, hexagonal or triangular, it can only be a matter of time before manufacturers come to realise that round was best.
With a product as well-rounded as the Vectra Club, Vauxhall just need to sit tight, weather the barren spell and watch sales pick up. At least thats what theyre hoping.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Vauxhall Vectra Club range
PRICES: £15,435-£18,685 on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 7
CO2 EMISSIONS: 159-184g/km
PERFORMANCE: [1.8] Max Speed 129mph / 0-60mph 10.0s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [1.8] (urban) 26.1mpg / (extra urban) 47.9 / (combined) 36.7mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, side and curtain airbags, ABS
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: length/width/heightmm 4596/1798/1460mm [4dr]
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