With four-wheel drive, almost 200hp, returning more than 50mpg and a huge boot, Vauxhall’s Insignia BiTurbo 4×4 Sports Tourer should be an impressive all-rounder.
And it is … up to a point.
Vauxhall has done a good job of coming up with a car that performs well in every category and is hard to fault.
It’s handsome, albeit in an unmemorable way, and this range-topping version comes with nice touches including sharp alloy wheels and chrome detailing.
Its two-litre, twin-turbocharged 195hp four-cylinder diesel engine is fast and frugal.
Zero to 62mph comes up in just 8.6 seconds and, according to official figures anyway, 50mpg is achievable.
In the real world, you’re looking at 40mpg but that’s still a good figure for a car this big and fast. And there’s four-wheel drive.
Pulling out from my office’s awkward, off-camber junction on to the main road on a sleety night, the big Vauxhall nicked into a gap in traffic with grippy sure-footedness, shooting up to the 40mph limit on a warm draught of acceleration.
The engine has plenty of power from the very bottom of the range and, for a diesel, is surprisingly revvy.
There’s a choice of Sport, Tour and Normal modes to try Normal is good enough for most situations but if you’re on the motorway for a long stretch it’s worth switching over to Tour.
Sport comes into its own on the backroads where the extra grip from the 4×4 makes the car an engaging drive.
Legroom in the back isn’t as good as rivals such as the Mondeo but it’s good enough for all but tall adults.
The 540-litre boot will swallow a family’s bags for a weekend away: fold the rear seats down and there’s enough room for a fridge freezer, as I can attest.
All new Vauxhall cars now come with the firm’s “Lifetime Warranty” which covers the car for 100,000 miles but with no time limit.
It can’t be transferred to new owners so it won’t boost the resale value of your three-year-old Insignia but if the engine or gearbox fail when the car is eight years and 90,000 miles old, Vauxhall will fix it. So although it’s not quite as good as Kia’s seven-year warranty (which can be transferred between owners) it still offers considerable peace of mind.
Standard equipment on the £32,390 Sri version I drove included automatic headlights, sports seats, cruise control, climate control and sports suspension.
A raft of optional extras among them a £1,200 sat nav and ‘infotainment’ system, £1,145 leather seats/electric front seats package, £750 front camera system and £890 adaptive forward lighting brought the total price of the car I drove to £37,985.
That’s an eye-watering amount to pay for a Vauxhall. At the end of the day, price is the only real criticism that can be levelled at this car but it is a big one.
For £38,000 you could have a well equipped Audi A4 Allroad. And £27,600 gets you the 2.0 TDI Skoda Superb Estate in 4×4 Outdoor guise. With 25hp less carrying a heavier body, however, it’s slower than the Insignia and less economical.
If you want a high-end estate that does everything well and you’re not a badge snob, the Insignia 4×4 BiTurbo is worth checking out.