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[anV6]

Is there an Omega Buyers Guide somewhere? I checked here and the FAQ are pretty good and can be used as a buyer's guide of sorts, at least for the engine. But I didn't find an actual buyer's guide. Google also didn't turn up anything. Autobahnstormers has a model guide but not a buying guide.

As luck would have it, a couple of cars turned up which I'm really interested and a buyer's guide would be very useful.

[ted_one]

A lot of the do's and don'ts and watch out for,have been covered on and off over the years on here,I think it will depend on what you are going to use the car for,i.e a stop gap daily driver until something else comes along or perhaps a better conditioned car to be kept as a weekender etc. So for me....as mine are keepers then it's body work which will include rear wheel arches,door bottoms,sills which are covered by factory covers and general under body rust, as these items can be costly when outsourced for repairs.Mechanically I've had no major problems other than a top end refresh at 220k miles on my 3.2 Elite as it was puffing out a very small amount of blue smoke on cold start ups,but resolved quickly by Serek at SOS Auto Motive who is a member on here.Cambelt history is an important point when buying the Omega as they have to be changed at 40k or every 4 years whichever comes sooner,so it's worth trying to get proof of the history as it's going to cost you around £250 to get it done by someone on here if you are not able to do it yourself.Suspension i.e wishbones/droplinks/track rods/wheel bearings etc all need looking at for wear as the Omega does need these items to be in good condition to drive properly.This short run through is based on the things that would be important to me initially,but other members will be along to add their own thoughts about their own criteria for buying an Omega.And finally any warning lights that don't go out on start up need to be investigated as sellers will tell you things like that the light has been on for a year but doesn't affect the running of the car .....could be 02 sensors could be ...?

[anV6]

Sure all the needed information may be scattered around the forum. But a buying guide would be very useful to anybody looking for one of these cars. If I was knowledgeable enough about them I would put one together and post as a thread.

Is changing the cambelt kit a hard task or is it an easy DIY job?

I'm going to look at a car which has had it done 25000 miles ago. So it has another 15000 to go. But I don't know when it was done or if it has provenance. So in case it comes down to buy it to do the cambelt or not buy it I wanted to know if this is something I can do myself.

It supposedly has no rust according to the owner and it looks good in the pictures.

[Doctor Gollum]

As Ken says, it's all covered in the guides...

And all depends on asking price, budget, repair budget, your approach/mindset, how much you're prepared to do (or not) and ultimately gut feeling.

Omegas only have a handful of common faults and these are well documented.

Any Omega, regardless of purchase price is likely to need around a grand spent on it in the first year, and that's just suspension, brakes, cambelt and geometry and assumes that you do the work yourself. Even a half decent service will cost £120 in bits.

Basically, if you like the look of the car, buy it. Any doubts, don't.

If you really like the car, you might wish to remove the sill covers and empty the boot out/remove rear seat base and pull rear carpet forward... Just to be sure...

Just remember, any decision is made using YOUR subjectivity, and anything we say is largely immaterial in this regard

[anV6]

I see what you mean.


I just came back from looking at a car. Finally got to drive a 3.0 manual. I have to say I'm a bit surprised and not sure if in a good way. It felt a bit, I don't know. I'm not sure sluggish is the right word. But it didn't feel tight. The gas pedal has a very peculiar feeling. Kind of reminds me of the W124 Mercedes. It has that feeling that it has a massive block of wood bolted to the bottom. I'm not sure it is supposed to feel that way or not as this is the only 3.0 I have driven so far. To make matters worse the power steering pump is not working properly, so the steering was a bit funny. All together it was not a very useful test drive to judge the car by.

Besides the power steering pump, which the seller is giving a new one with the car to be exchanged, it has a few problems which on their own seem little but all together it seems would be a lot of time to get the car to perfect condition. Big dent on the door but seller will give another door of the same color, windscreen has a 20cm crack near the corner, although not through on either side. GPS screen has a malfunction. If you press on it it can work, but normally not. So it seems the radio also won't. Then there are a few bits in the internal trim that needs replacement. Like the gear knob is loose and it needs a new one and a few other bits here and there.

Rust I didn't see anything. Only a very small, thump tip sized bust on the top of the rear arch.

Mechanically the engine seems to pull ok, if the weird feeling at the pedal is normal. But it was hard to judge the driving because of the faulty power steering pump. To maneuver in the parking lot it makes all sorts of noises and is heavy. During driving I had the impression the steering wheel was shaking. But it's hard to say if it's the faulty pump or something worse.

I didn't get too much time with the car. And I doubt I would be able to do things like remove the sill covers, remove rear seat base and pull rear carpet forward before I buy. But I guess taking it to a mechanic should not be a problem.

All together I got a bit of cold feet. But it's hard to judge without having a reference point. Maybe this is just how a 3.0 is supposed to drive.
 

[Doctor Gollum]

Those in depth points were purely to ascertain the condition of the shell where the sills join the floor/wheel arches.

Sounds a bit of a dog... Steering shudder is almost certainly not pump related. Note that the V6s have servotronic steering which affects the amount of effort according to road speed

[anV6]

I see. Thanks.

 So it was indeed a total waste of time to test drive the car with the faulty pump. I have no idea why he wouldn't replace the pump before selling if he has one. It probably changes the whole feeling of the car. I mean he wants to sell the car. Why not maximize his chances? It makes no sense.

What about the feeling at the gas pedal I describe? Does that sound normal? Is that how they all feel?

[YZ250]

....
Maybe this is just how a 3.0 is supposed to drive.

Although modern engines are quicker, even smaller engines, the 3.0 should still have impressive mid range pulling power that will hold a lot of other cars at bay. I can't speak for a manual as both of mine have been autos but it should still make you smile when you floor it when it's rolling.
My other car will piss my 3.2 off the mark, mid range and top end but I'm not dissing the 3.2 as I'm more than happy with how that goes. It pulls strongly once it's rolling and just keeps pulling to quite a high speed. 
It most certainly should not feel flat. I agree with Al that the steering shudder is not pump related. 

[anV6]

....
Maybe this is just how a 3.0 is supposed to drive.

Although modern engines are quicker, even smaller engines, the 3.0 should still have impressive mid range pulling power that will hold a lot of other cars at bay. I can't speak for a manual as both of mine have been autos but it should still make you smile when you floor it when it's rolling.
My other car will piss my 3.2 off the mark, mid range and top end but I'm not dissing the 3.2 as I'm more than happy with how that goes. It pulls strongly once it's rolling and just keeps pulling to quite a high speed. 
It most certainly should not feel flat. I agree with Al that the steering shudder is not pump related. 

It's hard to describe. But if you have driven a W124 I think you understand. It seems to have a sort of delay from when you floor it till when it actually reacts. It pulls ok and has some grunt. But it seems delayed or I don't know. It's hard to explain.

[Doctor Gollum]

Pulls ok as in makes a 1.6 Golf feel slow, or opps me, for a two tonne car this shifts?

If the former, then either the multirams aren't working or it's broken, and if the latter then that's fine...

I suspect from your tone, that it's the first one should rev cleanly to nearly 6K rpm, and should pull like a train through the gears and pull from about 30 kph in top. If it doesn't then any number of things could be wrong with it.

Try as many Omegas as are conveniently local regardless of engine, gearbox age and mileage and you'll get a good grip of the mechanical health... The sorted cars, even 2.2 autos, will stand out from the dogs.

Once you have found a car that fits your instinct, buy it

Obviously allow for all of my earlier post and allow a good margin for subjectivity...

[anV6]

The problem is not that it is slow. It isn't. On the motorway when I stepped on it it went quite ok from 100 to 160. It's just the reaction to the pedal which is odd.

The steering wheel, it's not that it's vibrating like crazy. It's more that it doesn't feel precise or tight. Has that feeling that it is floating on your hands or something. Feels rubbery kinda. Or lazy. Hard to explain. It was also heavy. Maybe it's all due to the power steering pump not working. But it feels very different from other Opels. I drive an Astra G estate and Astra H estate at work quite often and the steering feels totally different. Feels more precise.

But you are totally right about trying as many Omegas as possible regardless of engine.

I already scheduled to try another one tomorrow even though I know I won't buy it since it's a 4 cylinder diesel. I will drive by the dealer in the afternoon. I'm realizing without a good reference it will be difficult to judge. I thought my prior experience with other Opels and other RWD cars would be useful. But it doesn't seem so.

[Doctor Gollum]

Like I said, drive other Omegas and use this car as a benchmark...

Astras obviously are very different so don't count. And also consider that with a cabled throttle, pick up should be almost instant as the throttle body is physically attached to the pedal.

Also, like I said, the feel of any given car is subjective.

[anV6]

Yes, I will drive as many as I can get my hands on.

This was a 2000 FL so it has a cabled throttle. But pick up was definitely not almost instant.

Maybe it is indeed shot then.

[YZ250]

When you are used to a car with tight, immediate response at the steering wheel the Omega steering can appear vague. The brake pedal can also seem to have a fair bit of travel compared to some cars, although the brakes work fine. You get used to these traits and they are not a problem but somebody used to a tighter handling car will notice these things. 

[anV6]

When you are used to a car with tight, immediate response at the steering wheel the Omega steering can appear vague. The brake pedal can also seem to have a fair bit of travel compared to some cars, although the brakes work fine. You get used to these traits and they are not a problem but somebody used to a tighter handling car will notice these things. 

Then it could be this. I guess vague is a good word. Although because it was heavy since the power steering pump isn't working, I'm sure that added to the strange feeling.

I read these cars are prone to have problems with the wishbones, droplinks, track rods, wheel bearings etc. So I was also wondering if the strange feeling could have something to do with it.

But since you mentioned the vague steering, maybe that is the best explanation.