Model tested: Vauxhall Vectra VXR Estate
Price as tested: £25,775 (£24,875 - £25,775)
Insurance group as tested: 18E (18E)
CO2 emissions as tested: 252g/km (Band G, £400)
Range CO2 emissions: 250-271g/km
Company car tax %: 35%
EuroNCAP result: ****
Date tested: May 2008
Road tester: Stuart Milne
Auto Trader Ten Point Test rating: 75%
There are few cars which can break the 160mph barrier, and even fewer which cost just £25,000. But the Vauxhall Vectra VXR is such a car.
And being a Vectra means it's spacious and there's no shortage of places to buy or service one. Stuart Milne took to the road to find out if it really is a hard charging supersaloon.
View more pictures of the Vauxhall Vectra VXR
Looks | Looks Inside | Practicality | Ride and Handling | Performance
Running Costs | Reliability | Safety | Equipment | X-Factor
1. Looks
The Vauxhall Vectra isn't the most interesting car to start with, so the designers responsible for the VXR model had their work cut out to make it stand alongside the company's previous fast saloons. And while it looks aggressive, it doesn't shout too loudly – as long as it isn't in VXR's trademark Flame Red or Arden Blue hues. The front features a deeper front bumper with racy honeycombe mesh and a body-coloured 'V' grille, rather than the chrome treatment the standard models receive. The rear also gets a unique bumper and there's a trapezoidal exhaust poking out each side. The Vectra VXR comes with 18-inch alloys, although 19s are available as an £600 option.
7/10
2. Looks inside
Time hasn't been kind to the Vectra's cabin – its rivals have raised the game since 2002 when the second-generation model was introduced. The VXR gets some extra sporty trinkets such as some comfortable and supportive Recaro sports seats, chunky leather trimmed steering wheel with a VXR logo, an oversized VXR-branded gearknob and door sill covers with yet more branding. Despite the effort, it still feels like sitting in a car several years old.
7/10
3. Practicality
The Vauxhall Vectra is a large car and can seat five without too much trouble. The hatchback's boot measures a massive 500-litres, but the estate version offers an extra 300 litres. But drop the back seats and the hatchback grows to 1,050 litres while the estate explodes into a van-like vastness and can swallow 1,850 litres of luggage. There's a useful amount of space in the cabin too.
9/10
4. Ride and Handling
The standard Vauxhall Vectra is a superb long-distance cruiser, managing to eat motorway miles with ease. But show it a corner and it becomes flustered, hampered by vague steering. The Vectra VXR is more of the same, just much, much faster. There's a huge amount of torquesteer, meaning the car tries to snake up the road when under hard acceleration, and when turning a corner at high speed, the front washes wide into understeer. On the plus side, the ride is firm, but not at the expense of comfort.
7/10
5. Performance
There's no denying the Vectra VXR's straight line performance. It is simply devastating, and few other sub-£30,000 four doors this side of a Subaru Impreza can keep up. The 276bhp, 2.8-litre turbocharged V6 saloon will reach 62mph in just 6.1 seconds, with the estate reaching the same speed 0.2 seconds later. Top speed is 161mph for the saloon and 158mph for the estate. It makes a nice V6 rumble through those two big exhausts too. However, the power is delivered so smoothly there's no real feeling of speed.
8/10
6. Running Costs
The Vauxhall Vectra VXR is a performance bargain, if going fast in a straight line is all you're interested in. It is, however, a lot of money for a Vectra. And it suffers with heinous depreciation; expect to recoup just 30 per cent of the car's new price after three years/36,000 miles. Group 18 insurance will hurt, as will band G road tax – currently £400 a year. And then there's the fuel bills – it'll cover an average of 26.9mpg, although exploit that performance and it'll be well below 20mpg.
6/10
7. Reliability
The Vauxhall Vectra has been around for many years, despite a facelift in 2005, so most problems should have been ironed out by now. The V6 engine has been fitted in various Saabs and Cadillacs, albeit in a detuned guise.
8/10
8. Safety
The Vauxhall Vectra VXR features an advanced version of Vauxhall's Interactive Driving System, IDS2-plus. This links safety kit such as electronic stability control, ABS, brake assist, continuous damping control, traction control and understeer logic control. This means all the systems can work in unison to improve braking, traction and roadholding. Additionally, the Vectra VXR has huge 345mm brake discs. Should the worst happen, the Vectra is equipped with whiplash-reducing active head restraints, six airbags and collapsible pedals to avoid leg injuries.
8/10
9. Equipment
As well as the comprehensive bodykit and interior trims, the Vectra VXR also features air-con, cruise control, bright xenon headlamps, a digital radio and CD player, rain-sensing wipers and an automatically dimming rear view mirror as standard. Common options include climate control (£275), sat-nav (£800) tinted rear windows (£100) and roof rails (£100).
8/10
10. X-Factor
The Vauxhall Vectra VXR falls between two stalls. Drivers looking for a high speed cruiser might be better served by a standard 3-litre V6 Vectra – or a similar car from another manufacturer; while performance junkies will probably want to seek out something of the Subaru Impreza's ilk.
7/10
