Omega Owners Forum
Chat Area => General Car Chat => Topic started by: Auto Addict on 10 October 2011, 08:59:36
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Thinking of swapping the gas guzzler for on of these VAUXHALL VECTRA 1.9 litre CDTi.
Need something powerful enough to tow the van, and save me a fortune on fuel.
Considering an auto estate.
Any thoughts welcomed.
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Main thought is why? ::) ::) ::)
My comments would be:
- It's Wrong Wheel Drive
- It's a smelly oil burner
- I didn't find the seats in mine that comfortable, although it was a 53 plate
Obviously I can understand the running costs thing but, like I said, I found mine a bit bland (mine was a 2.0 DTi not the 1.9CDTi) and uncomfortable, but it was only LS spec.
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Vectra estate is very roomy, the 1.9 CDTi engine is a very good engine, has a few problems but no more than any other diesel to be honest. Make sure you get the 1.9 150 and not the 120, the 120 seems a bit underpowered for the Vectra as it's a big heavy car.
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It would be the 150, preferably an estate.
Done a lot of towing in my time, but never with a front wheel drive car.
Need to go and road test one, I suppose :-\
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Looking for something like this http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201131408156290/sort/priceasc/usedcars/fuel-type/diesel/engine-size-cars/1-7l_to_1-9l/price-from/500/transmission/automatic/model/vectra/make/vauxhall/page/1/radius/30/postcode/b235yl?logcode=p
In no hurry though.
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Don't see how it will save you money...
Basic sums, Omega is worth say £2k? That Veccy costs £6k - Its going to take you a very long time to recoupe £4,000 in fuel savings. My £700 DIY LPG conversion took around 8,000 miles to repay, which I did in 6 months.
Your looking at at least 30,000 miles before you have broken even, not to mention having to take it to a dealer and not DIY service or OOF services.
Add into that depreciation as well...... you might as well stick your money in a food blender ;)
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What Tunnie said!how does spending another 4k help?
Gas yours?
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What he said ^
In addition, you get to drive 30,000 miles in a nasty, understeery FWD car. ;)
IIRC you had problems with fuel consumption. Did this ever get any better when the Lambdas were finally sorted?
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What he said ^
In addition, you get to drive 30,000 miles in a nasty, understeery FWD car. ;)
IIRC you had problems with fuel consumption. Did this ever get any better when the Lambdas were finally sorted?
No :(
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what are you getting to the gallon then?
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Not keen on gas, as you lose boot space.
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what are you getting to the gallon then?
At the best, 22. :(
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What he said ^
In addition, you get to drive 30,000 miles in a nasty, understeery FWD car. ;)
IIRC you had problems with fuel consumption. Did this ever get any better when the Lambdas were finally sorted?
No :(
But ISTR that someone had been for a ride with you and managed to explain the economy straight away :-X :-X ::) ::)
Seems the 45mph in the middle lane rule only applied to his Desmond :-X :-X ;D ;D
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Not keen on gas, as you lose boot space.
4k worth of boot space? It's not that good. :)
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what are you getting to the gallon then?
At the best, 22. :(
Motorway or town? ....or with burger van?
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what are you getting to the gallon then?
At the best, 22. :(
Thats a bit rubbish, motherT's 3.0 auto estate gets more than that, 25-27mpg on average.
Heck I get 24-27mpg on gas! - Sell yours, get a 3.2, gas it. Be a lot cheaper!
RE Boot space - Fit donut tank - 250 mile range. Or fit standard 80L tank and get a roof box...
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I didn't say I was buying that one, only quoted it as an example.
The earliest I would think of changing is spring next year.
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Not keen on gas, as you lose boot space.
4k worth of boot space? It's not that good. :)
Plus, you already have a pikey hook... How often do you need all the boot? I reckon you could hire a trailer for the few times it was needed and still be quids in ;)
IMHO, LPG is a no brainer on a car that you intend to keep and use ;)
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what are you getting to the gallon then?
At the best, 22. :(
Motorway or town? ....or with burger van?
Down to about 18 with the van, can achieve high 20's on a long run (motorway).
My 2.2 used to tow and average 22. :(
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I didn't say I was buying that one, only quoted it as an example.
The earliest I would think of changing is spring next year.
I'm sure a test drive will put you right on that decision. ;)
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what are you getting to the gallon then?
At the best, 22. :(
Motorway or town? ....or with burger van?
Down to about 18 with the van, can achieve high 20's on a long run (motorway).
My 2.2 used to tow and average 22. :(
....you,ve been ragging it haven't you? ;D
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Heck I get 24-27mpg on gas! - Sell yours, get a 3.2, gas it. Be a lot cheaper!
For the record, I get about 22-23mpg around town in my 3.2, 28mpg on a run if it's a long distance 70mph with no traffic.. obviously gassing it helps the 'mpg' but from what I see here, the older 2.5/3.0 engines are much more economical..
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Heck I get 24-27mpg on gas! - Sell yours, get a 3.2, gas it. Be a lot cheaper!
For the record, I get about 22-23mpg around town in my 3.2, 28mpg on a run if it's a long distance 70mph with no traffic.. obviously gassing it helps the 'mpg' but from what I see here, the older 2.5/3.0 engines are much more economical..
Slightly, not really much IMO (having owned a 3.0 and a 3.2 Back to Back). That said... I can't seem to get much more than 25 from my 3.2 on a run unless SWMBO drives :-X ::)
I do have an underlying issue with running temperature though... Possibly a slightly sticking Stat as sometimes it's fine, others it seems to run too cool... I must get around to changing it :-X ::)
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I do have an underlying issue with running temperature though... Possibly a slightly sticking Stat as sometimes it's fine, others it seems to run too cool... I must get around to changing it :-X ::)
In the 3.2, by any chance? <slight drift warning> I find mine runs at ~90C around town, but on the motorway drops down to 85C when you're doing 70.. I always thought that was odd and needed fixing, though it could just be that the rad is age expired (as soon as you're stationary it'll go up high enough for the fans to kick in on low).. similar to yours, at all?
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Yes, you dont hang about....noticed on the test drive at Newent putting your foot down heavily ;D
I average 22-23 around town in the 3.2, mainly short trips, again, up to about 28 on a steady run.
My exhaust is totally shot though, which doesnt help.
Looking at the LPG route very soon.
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When I used to run it on petrol, my 3.2 used to do 34/35 MPG in flat cap mode on a motorway run (65/70MPH on cruise, no more).
Probably about 30/31 MPG at a more typical motorway cruise (80 +/- 10).
26MPG average mixed commuting (some urban, some A roads).
I would need to be quite heavy-footed to get it down to 22. Hypothetically ::) :-X
In fact, IIRC it averaged about 21/22 on the Autobahn (cruise set to 120).
22MPG does sound thirsty, although if your driving is significantly more "urban" then it might be reasonable. You should be able to get 30+ on a motorway run, if speed is sensible, IMHO.
Then again, I've heard it said by others that the 2.6 is a bit disappointing with regard to fuel consumption. It probably has all the same internal losses as the 3.2 engine yet it's geared to rev higher at a given speed.
I do have an underlying issue with running temperature though... Possibly a slightly sticking Stat as sometimes it's fine, others it seems to run too cool... I must get around to changing it :-X ::)
Does it sit at around 80C, unless in traffic, and bounce around a couple of times before stabilising during warm-up? Mine used to do that. It is around 85/90 on the gauge now and warms up a bit quicker. Can't say I've noticed any fuel consumption improvement for the pain of having changed it, but it switches to gas quicker. Probably better for the vapouriser having more heat to boil off the heavy ends too.
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Yes, you dont hang about....noticed on the test drive at Newent putting your foot down heavily ;D
I average 22-23 around town in the 3.2, mainly short trips, again, up to about 28 on a steady run.
My exhaust is totally shot though, which doesnt help.
Looking at the LPG route very soon.
Well he's not denying it so must be cloggy feet. ;)
Although they(2.6) do have a 4.2 diff I believe.
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I do have an underlying issue with running temperature though... Possibly a slightly sticking Stat as sometimes it's fine, others it seems to run too cool... I must get around to changing it :-X ::)
In the 3.2, by any chance? <slight drift warning> I find mine runs at ~90C around town, but on the motorway drops down to 85C when you're doing 70.. I always thought that was odd and needed fixing, though it could just be that the rad is age expired (as soon as you're stationary it'll go up high enough for the fans to kick in on low).. similar to yours, at all?
That sounds like a case of TADTS. The engine throws out quite a lot of heat, so it doesn't take long in traffic before it starts to rely on fans.
As long as it doesn't drop below 85 indicated and it warms up quickly I'd say the 'stat is fine.
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I do have an underlying issue with running temperature though... Possibly a slightly sticking Stat as sometimes it's fine, others it seems to run too cool... I must get around to changing it :-X ::)
Does it sit at around 80C, unless in traffic, and bounce around a couple of times before stabilising during warm-up? Mine used to do that. It is around 85/90 on the gauge now and warms up a bit quicker. Can't say I've noticed any fuel consumption improvement for the pain of having changed it, but it switches to gas quicker. Probably better for the vapouriser having more heat to boil off the heavy ends too.
Yep... Was running too hot all the time. Changed the rad which has cured that but it tends to drop to 80 or so lately, sits bang on 85 on a run and rarely goes above it, even stationary, unless it's warm out.
I'm fairly sure it's just an age thing with the stat... It's definitely closed and opening by the feel of the hoses on cold warm up but may just be getting a little tired. It's on the list to be done but not urgent ::) It switched to LPG fine, normally by the end of my road in the current weather, certainly within a mile at the most on a cold morning :y We'll have to see what happens over the winter, although I doubt it will see much use TBH
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I do have an underlying issue with running temperature though... Possibly a slightly sticking Stat as sometimes it's fine, others it seems to run too cool... I must get around to changing it :-X ::)
In the 3.2, by any chance? <slight drift warning> I find mine runs at ~90C around town, but on the motorway drops down to 85C when you're doing 70.. I always thought that was odd and needed fixing, though it could just be that the rad is age expired (as soon as you're stationary it'll go up high enough for the fans to kick in on low).. similar to yours, at all?
That sounds like a case of TADTS. The engine throws out quite a lot of heat, so it doesn't take long in traffic before it starts to rely on fans.
As long as it doesn't drop below 85 indicated and it warms up quickly I'd say the 'stat is fine.
Good to know ;) I'll keep an eye on it as the ambient temperature plummets (I hear we're going to see -20C? Allegedly..) and if it starts cruising along at <85 then I'll worry.. for now I'll just keep the new stat as a spare :)
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IMHO, LPG is a no brainer on a car that you intend to keep and use ;)
in your opinion ...... ;)
I knew I'd be keeping my car for a while when I bought it, but never ever considered lpg due to lack of boot. :y
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IMHO, LPG is a no brainer on a car that you intend to keep and use ;)
in your opinion ...... ;)
I knew I'd be keeping my car for a while when I bought it, but never ever considered lpg due to lack of boot. :y
Agreed... That's why I put IMHO ;) ;)
I was concerned about the loss of boot space when I converted my saloon but I rarely missed it ;) After all, even with the tank in the boot was still bigger than many hatchbacks ;D
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since converting mine, in about 18 monts since, there has only ever been one time I wished I had the full boot.
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since converting mine, in about 18 monts since, there has only ever been one time I wished I had the full boot.
Lol, you dont do enough then!
There is no way I could live with a compromised boot ;D
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Question is, does AA do enough? :)
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since converting mine, in about 18 monts since, there has only ever been one time I wished I had the full boot.
Lol, you dont do enough then!
There is no way I could live with a compromised boot ;D
Quite possible, but I did move into my flat with compromised boot. But then again I did steal borrow mother T's estate.
But if that option was not available, i would have hired a van for very few times I've needed it.
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since converting mine, in about 18 monts since, there has only ever been one time I wished I had the full boot.
Lol, you dont do enough then!
There is no way I could live with a compromised boot ;D
But you've got a wife and kids ;) ;)
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since converting mine, in about 18 monts since, there has only ever been one time I wished I had the full boot.
Lol, you dont do enough then!
There is no way I could live with a compromised boot ;D
But you've got a wife and kids ;) ;
A wife, a kid, a garden, a house which gets regular DIY, a stupidly large hobby, a proper tool kit ;D ;D :y
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since converting mine, in about 18 monts since, there has only ever been one time I wished I had the full boot.
Lol, you dont do enough then!
There is no way I could live with a compromised boot ;D
But you've got a wife and kids ;) ;
A wife, a kid, a garden, a house which gets regular DIY, a stupidly large hobby, a proper tool kit ;D ;D :y
TBH, I could cope with the saloon purely because I could always use the back seats if I needed to (which wasn't very often)
Plus I had access to an Estate car/trailer if needed ;)
That's one of the reasons the replacement was an estate though... Can cope with the 3" of height I've lost from the boot much more easily :y
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but never ever considered lpg due to lack of boot. :y
Me too (well, slightly different, I considered it around 7yrs ago, and dismissed it for the same reason as you).
It just damned on me one day, I need the full boot probably 4 times a year at most (have the Rover for lugging big stuff like White goods and wood around), yet not getting access to cheap fuel the rest of the time. So I just bought a pikey box for those 4 times a year I need a bigger boot.
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your personal requirements will decide before you..
as an example I was having serious parking problems and high fuel costs..
as I hate diesels (with any of their expensive parts prices here, you can buy a miggy in UK ) and
fed up of lpg services incompetence (had an lpg car in the past and visited them frequently), I buy a small car with low fuel consumption for daily use.. and I kept miggy..
both without lpg.. (have various reasons I wont go in detail here but not for boot space)..
now for your decision; if your yearly mileage is high your budget requires some low cost car..
either diesel or lpg.. in my opinion the diesel must be low mileage if you dont want to spend extra for repairs after you buy it..which means you will pay your 2-3 years fuel costs just at the beginning.. lpg decision depends your and friends mechanical abilites in which you are surrounded by oofers so you are not alone.. but I cant say lpg installation will be flawless.. anyway you/friends will spend some time for it..and lastly I must say lpg installation must be done on a healthy car otherwise lpg will magnify/complicate the problems and you will be stressed..