Vauxhall Insignia variants
Total price
Monthly payment

Finance representative example (PCP)

Total cash price £12,999. Borrowing £11,699 with a £1,300 deposit at a representative APR of 10.9%.

48 monthly payments
£196.04
Fixed interest rate
10.9%
Total amount payable
£16,853.72
Cost of credit
£3,854.72
Optional final payment
£6,144.00
Purchase fee
£10.00
Annual mileage limit
6000 miles

Vauxhall Insignia buying guide

Vauxhall Insignias were sold through to 2022, so are now only available as used cars. You'll come across a selection of engines and trim choices, which we'll take a closer look at here.

What Vauxhall Insignia trim levels are there?

Entry-level Design trim gets 17-inch alloy wheels, air conditioning, cruise control, automatic emergency braking and lane keep assist. You also get a touchscreen infotainment system with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Design Nav cars add a built-in sat nav. Design was renamed to SE in 2020.

Tech Line Nav sits just above Design with all-round parking sensors and built-in sat nav.

SRi adds climate control, sports pedals and a rear spoiler – and also comes with or without the 'Nav' upgrade.

SRi VX-Line Nav gets built-in GPS guidance as standard as well as a sportier steering wheel, larger alloys and a meaner-looking body kit.

Elite Nav is near the top of the range, gaining even larger wheels and a larger infotainment screen, plus leather upholstery, heated front seats, a wireless phone charger and upgraded LED headlights. This was briefly renamed to Ultimate Nav through 2020.

GSi rules the roost and is only available with the top engine option. You get perforated leather upholstery, heated front and back seats, a heated steering wheel and sports pedals. Outside, there's a unique GSi body kit, a sports exhaust and lowered suspension. If you can find one, that is.

Newer models built after 2020 have seen the equipment selection slimmed down to just two models. SE Edition gets the larger screen as standard with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and built-in sat nav, plus automatic lights and wipers, heated front seats, cruise control, climate control, automatic emergency braking, lane keep assist and automatic high beams.

Then, SRi Premium adds a wireless phone charger, heated steering wheel, Alcantara upholstery, 20-inch alloys and a sporty body kit, along with keyless entry and starting.

Vauxhall Insignia interior and technology

Most of the Insignia's cabin styling will be familiar to anyone who's sat in a Vauxhall Astra or Vauxhall Grandland X of the same era. There's quite a lot of dark black plastic trim and the seven-inch infotainment screen on older models looks quite dated by today's standards, but there's still a pleasant, sweeping quality to the dashboard that emphasises the Insignia's wider, more spacious cabin. Some of the switchgear looks a little cheap under close inspection, but everything's easy to use and find at a glance.

As mentioned, older cars used a seven-inch touchscreen that looks small and old-fashioned compared to newer rivals. That said, it does at least include Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard, so you don't need to upgrade to one of the 'Nav' trims to get sat nav through the screen. The upgraded eight-inch screen, which comes as standard on cars built from 2021 onwards, fills the space better, has sharper graphics and a clearer overall layout.

The Insignia – as a roughly saloon-shaped car – belongs to a class that most mainstream brands have now left. Still, it represents decent value as a used buy against the likes of the Peugeot 508 or BMW 3 Series. Passenger space in the back seats is mostly good, although very tall occupants might find their head brushing against the slightly curved roofline. Cargo space is also strong and access is made easier by the fact the car is has a hatchback-style boot lid that lifts up with the rear window.

Vauxhall Insignia engine range explained

The Insignia's engine lineup has been gradually slimmed down to just the most popular units.

Vauxhall Insignia 1.5 Turbo 140/165 petrol

This is the entry-level petrol engine for the Insignia. Basic models have 140hp and a 9.3-second 0-62mph time – this is probably enough performance for most buyers. You can upgrade this to a 165hp version that trims a second off the 0-62mph dash and feels a bit more relaxed at higher speeds.

Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 Turbo 200 petrol

A more powerful petrol engine that's only been offered on recent Insignia models. Its meaty 200hp output brings the 0-62mph dash down to 7.2 seconds – not far behind what you'd expect from a hot hatch. Economy takes a hit, however, with a 33mpg claimed average.

Vauxhall Insignia GSi 2.0 Turbo 230 petrol

This engine was offered for a brief period through 2020. It boosts the output of the 2.0-litre turbo engine up to 230hp. You only save 0.2 seconds on the 0-62mph time, however, because the GSi includes four-wheel drive as standard for better all-weather grip.

Vauxhall Insignia 1.6 Turbo D 110/136 diesel

The older entry-level diesel engine for the Insignia is a 1.6-litre unit with either 110 or 136hp. With a 0-62mph time of more than 11 seconds, the lesser engine feels a little underpowered, so it might be worth jumping up to the 136hp version, which completes the benchmark in less than 10 seconds. Either version should return more than 50mpg in daily usage.

Vauxhall Insignia 1.5 Turbo D 122 diesel

This engine arrived to replace the older 1.6-litre in 2020. It's available in just one output – 122hp – and can hit 62mph from rest in a shade under 11 seconds. More than 50mpg should be possible in normal driving.

Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 Turbo D 170/174 diesel

If you want strong economy with more power under your foot, the 2.0-litre diesel option turns the Insignia into a easy long-distance cruiser. A 0-62mph time in the eight-second range is not to be sniffed at, nor is average economy that hovers around 47mpg. This engine was later upgraded to a 174hp version.

Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 BiTurbo D 210 diesel

This was the 'king-of-the-hill' diesel engine in the Insignia lineup before 2020, reserved for top-level GSi trim. Outfitted with two turbos and four-wheel drive, this model can dash from 0-62mph in 7.4 seconds while still being capable of mpg figures in the high 30s if you can resist putting your foot down.

Vauxhall Insignia FAQs

You'll encounter the Insignia in two main forms on the used market. Most are five-door, five-seat saloons hiding a hatchback-style boot lid for better cargo access.

There's also the Insignia Sports Tourer estate with a larger boot and more rear-seat headroom.

Vauxhall facelifted the Insignia during 2020, giving it slightly sharper headlights, a reshaped front grille and upgrading the standard equipment to include a larger infotainment touchscreen.

The Insignia saloon is just under 4.9 metres long, while the Sports Tourer estate is just shy of five metres. That means they're quite large, so will be a little more challenging to park than smaller cars. For this reason, we'd avoid the entry-level Design model, which misses out on parking sensors.

Passenger space is strong, however, by virtue of the car's big body. There's a lot of rear legroom for passengers to stretch out in, plus a large, useful boot. The only slight blot on the copybook is a sloping rear roofline that robs a spot of rear-passenger headroom.

The majority of Insignia models are offered with diesel engines and these are probably the best fit providing you're doing the occasional longer journey to avoid any DPF issues. These engines also have lots of low-down torque to make light work of the car when its loaded up with passengers and cargo.

That said, we'd avoid the most basic 110hp 1.6-litre version, as it feels a little gutless if you venture into the outside lane of the motorway.

Reliability surveys haven't revealed any underlying issues with the Insignia but you should make sure you keep on top of the car's maintenance to give it the best chance of a long service life.

You can protect yourself from the cost of unexpected mechanical and electrical failures by purchasing an extended warranty when you buy the car.

It's a little tricky to justify the Insignia when compared against the likes of the Peugeot 508 – the Vauxhall feels a little more dated and bland inside, and doesn't excel so greatly in any other area to truly carve out its own identity.

However, all those flowery concerns melt away when you consider how cheap the Insignia is as a used car. It typically undercuts direct rivals like the 508 and Ford Mondeo by several thousand pounds, sometimes coming in even less expensive than smaller cars in the class below. As a result, if you need lots of passenger and cargo space on a budget, the Insignia offers a very tempting package for the price.