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Hi Gareth,

The Insignia is a good car, and very nice to drive, but even though it has higher mileage, we’d lean towards the Kia. It’s still on its original factory warranty, and should be more reliable overall.

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Hi Ray,

If you fancy a hybrid, then the best current model is the Toyota Prius. Its looks may divide opinion, but it is exceptionally economical, even on a long motorway run, and it has a roomy, comfortable cabin. Read our Toyota Prius review here.

If you fancy something a little more prestigious, then how about the Lexus IS 300h? Not quite as spacious as the Opel you have, but with exceptional build quality, decent economy and terrific refinement. Read our Lexus IS 300h review here.

BMW”s 330e plugin hybrid is another good contender, as is Volkswagen’s Passat GTE, but they’re both quite pricey and work better in downtown than they do on the open road. As far as hybrid SUVs go, Toyota’s C-HR is lovely, but rather small inside, so it may be worth waiting for Honda to launch its new CR-V hybrid next year. More reviews for you:

BMW 330e review

Volkswagen Passat GTE review

Toyota C-HR Hybrid review

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Hi Noel,

It's a belt, not a chain, and while Opel says that it needs changing only every ten years or 160,000km, we'd recommend having it at least inspected more frequently than that. 

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Hi Barry,

As a trade-in, it’s going to be worth in the region of €8-10,000.

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Hi Tony,

To be honest, we've never heard any major horror stories about the Insignia, and in general it seems to be a mostly reliable car. There are reported issues with the central locking and alarm system, and persistent leaks in the boot, but aside from that, as long as you buy one with a full service history, you should be fine. 

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Hi Michael,

There are no major reported issues for the SEAT Exeo (and SEATs tend to be pretty solidly reliable) and the Insignia generally only suffers from minor electrical issues (usually in the central locking and alarm system) and the boot seals (which can leak and let in water). Of the two, we’d go for the Insignia - it’s roomier, it’s nicer to drive and looks and feels a bit more prestigious.

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Hi Ciaran,

No major glaring problems. They can develop electrical gremlins, especially with the central locking and alarm systems, and the boot seals can leak, letting in water, but as long as you buy one with a full service history you shouldn’t have too much to worry about.

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Hi Bridie,

It depends what you mean by ‘the engine’, but we’ll assume for now that you mean the most commonly-sold Insignia, the 2.0-litre CDTi. As far as our research goes, these are reasonably robust units and only have three common areas for faults – the diesel particulate filter, which, as with any diesel engine, can get clogged up if you don’t do regular long journeys; the turbocharger, which can fail; and the dual-mass flywheel,  which can also fail.

Now, fair enough, turbo or dual-mass flywheel problems can be very expensive, but the Insignia is far from alone in suffering from those issues, and it doesn’t seem to be that the problems are endemic, nor even all that common.

When you say reviews, do you mean comments on internet articles? Not the same thing I’m afraid – someone who can be bothered to comment online generally already has a problem with their car, so you don’t get to hear from those who’ve had faultless miles of service. It’s called confirmation bias.

Instead of ruling out a given make/model, it's best to take a close look at examples that are offered for sale.

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Hi Brendan,

Should be worth around €17-18,000 as a trade-in.

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Hi Bridie,

Yes, it’s true. Early Insignias did have a habit of developing some electrical gremlins, especially with the central locking and alarm systems. They do seem to have been sorted out now though, as it’s very rarely reported.