Vauxhall are a brand that stands for functionality, reliability and occasionally a pretty good ride quality. With that in mind, it is hard to imagine my face when confronted with the Vauxhall Insignia; a car that may be one of the best looking commercially-available road cars I have ever witnessed. To say I was astounded would be a huge understatement and one that would do the Insignia's impression on me a great injustice.
Firstly, the last badge you expect to see on the front is the familiar Vauxhall griffin. If I hadn't already known about the cars existence I would probably have assumed that it was a new BMW, Audi or even Mercedes model. It simply oozes class. Secondly, because of this abundance of beauty, you naturally expect a heftily-inflated price-tag. With Insignia models starting from around 15,000, Vauxhall are obviously on to something which is going to sell extremely well.
The Vauxhall Insignia is a vast departure from the Vectra, which was in some ways one of the worst cars I have ever driven. It was clunky, ugly and had barely any redeemable features to prevent me from slating it. When the announcement came from Vauxhall that they were bringing out a new executive car, I understandably baulked at the mere thought of test driving it. Thankfully, my lack of faith in Vauxhall's ability to develop a great car was misplaced and I couldn't wait to get in this sleek and beautiful new car.
To say the Vauxhall Insignia was a perfect drive would perhaps be over-selling it somewhat, but compared to many of the competition in this price range (Ford Mondeo through to the BMW 3 Series) it feels comfy, sturdy and very assured. Occasionally, whilst driving, I continued to forget I was in a Vauxhall, such is the improvement over the Vectra. I would recommend this car as a perfect addition to any company car fleet as it is inexpensive, reliable and gives off all the right impressions.
