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ecoFLEXibility. Image by Kyle Fortune.

ecoFLEXibility
Vauxhall's ecoFLEX Insignia does everything its 2.0-litre CDTi relative does, but while using less fuel.

   



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| First Drive | Reading, UK | Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX |

There's a Porsche Cayman S sitting in the car park and a devil sitting on my shoulder. "Go on. Just take it", he says. As much as I love the Cayman S - just ask my colleagues - there's also a Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX I need to drive. I've a near 200-mile round trip to do in a day and the Vauxhall should breeze it - and use a thimbleful of fuel to boot. When I turn the key and the diesel engine erupts tractor-like before quietening down to a slightly more refined idle, all I can do it remind myself of its official combined mpg figure of 54.7mpg as the Cayman S shrinks in my rear-view mirror.

In the Metal

The Insignia is big - as I found trying to squeeze it into a parking space in a multi-storey. Looking little different from the rest of the Insignia range, the only hint at its fuel-sipping ability is the ecoFLEX badge on the boot - which in typical odd Vauxhall style is in two different fonts. If you're really clued up you might notice the 10mm drop in ride height and spot the Michelin low rolling resistance tyres, though you'll have to get it up on a ramp to see the additional under-floor aerodynamic cladding that smoothes the airflow underneath the Insignia.

It looks just like an Insignia hatchback then (or saloon or estate depending on your choice), with an extra badge on the boot. Whether that's a good thing or not depends on your views on the Insignia's styling - we're still not sure here, it looking heavy from some angles and forgettable from others. Inside there are no changes either, which means you get a huge steering wheel, comfortable seats and a smartly finished dashboard.

What you get for your Money

In Exclusiv (sic) Nav trim the Insignia comes with satellite navigation included in its £20,980 price tag. What's significant though is that ecoFLEX badge, it bringing the CO2 emissions down to 136g/km (in both hatch and saloon), which in turn means business drivers will pay 18 percent company car tax instead of the 21 percent with the standard 2.0-litre CDTi. You also get a handy improvement in economy to 54.7mpg, which is around 10 percent better than the regular Insignia. So it's a case of why wouldn't you want it, especially as this green-leaning machine doesn't lose any power in its transformation. Under the bonnet is a 2.0-litre turbodiesel that produces 158bhp and 258lb.ft of torque (280lb.ft on overboost) and a six-speed manual gearbox, while the car features all the comfort and equipment (though oddly you have to pay more for Bluetooth phone connection) that you'd expect in a car that's fighting hard for fleet managers' money.

Driving it

Along with the under-body panelling to improve airflow, the ecoFLEX comes with slightly revised gear ratios on first and second, as well as a higher final drive ratio - in a bid to achieve its improved economy and emissions figures. Driving much the same as its non-ecoFLEX relatives, the differences are very slight, though it's a bit easier to stall when pulling away from low revs in first gear. That's something you quickly adapt to, though. Performance is respectable too, the ecoFLEX managing 135mph where allowed and reaching 62mph in 8.9 seconds. Not that you'd drive it like that with an eye on economy.

We reset the trip meter prior to a circa 200-mile trip and achieved an average fuel economy figure of 50.1mpg, with an average speed of 49mph (trip meter figures). As that speed suggests it wasn't driven with any mind to economy, making that average figure very respectable indeed. Like all Insignias it excelled at the type of driving we needed to do in it, the sort of driving people who buy Insignias will expect it to do every day. Drive it sensibly and you can stretch a full tank of fuel to over 840 miles.

Worth Noting

Opt for the ecoFLEX estate and you'll end up emitting a little more CO2, but it still slips into the 18 percent tax band. Choose that load-lugger and you'll take 0.4 seconds longer to get to 62mph too, though it's the best looker of all the Insignias. Not that you're short of boot space in the hatchback - it's vast.

Summary

The ecoFLEX model is a greener Insignia without any compromise. Quite why you'd buy the standard car is a mystery, especially with the drop in tax bands for company car buyers - who make up a big proportion of Insignia buyers. It'll cost you £500 more, but the tax and fuel savings you'll make will quickly close that gap. It might not be exciting, but it's a good car.

Kyle Fortune - 2 Oct 2009



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2009 Vauxhall Insignia specifications: (Exclusiv Nav 2.0 CDTi ecoFLEX five-door)
Price: £20,980 on-the-road (test car featured optional extras).
0-62mph: 8.9 seconds
Top speed: 137mph
Combined economy: 54.7mpg
Emissions: 136g/km
Kerb weight: 1538kg

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.



2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 

2009 Vauxhall Insignia ecoFLEX. Image by Kyle Fortune.
 






 

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