Omega Owners Forum

Chat Area => General Car Chat => Topic started by: russ0205 on 18 February 2011, 16:44:50

Title: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: russ0205 on 18 February 2011, 16:44:50
Well at last the wife has got her way and i have decided to change the good old ford puma. just bought a vectra sri 150 on an 02 plate fsh 2 owners 67k on the clock, having never had one whats the general idea, ????? :-?
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: TheBoy on 18 February 2011, 17:00:26
Vectra-B or Vectra-C

If the latter, fortunately yours isn't that powerful, as the chassis is appalling - a colleague has a 3.2 GSi, OK in a straight line (if you can get the power down), but really cannot do corners...
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: tonyyeb on 18 February 2011, 18:25:08
Owned a 2001 Vectra B SRI 150 until last November.

TBH, it's a bad car. Quite quick, but you never feel like extending it into a corner because the chassis and the steering communicate nothing confidence-inducing back to the driver. Ride is rock hard too, and when the car is as undynamic as this one is, that just becomes annoying. They chew rear suspension bushes at an alarming rate, and unless the 2.2 has had the updated tensioners fitted, they'll become starved of lubrication and will eventually throw the cam-belt.
Despite moderate mileage, my drivers seat failed too - have heard of other owners who've had this.
Sorry to be unenthusiastic, but they're a bit rubbish, IMO.
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: russ0205 on 18 February 2011, 21:14:58
Thanks for the feedback guys,not too worried about speed as its swmbos car,but i have had a look in its history file and its got a camchain and that was replaced in 09,But to be honoust it was worth £800 i think :'(
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 21:18:21
Yeh, 2.2 16v, good power plant actually but, its got a chain so MAKE SURE YOU CHANGE THE OIL AND FILTER REGULARLY.

The Vec B and C chassis handle 150 ok, not great with much more than that though
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Lazydocker on 18 February 2011, 21:20:38
I had a Veccy-C... Was pretty uninspiring TBH :(

It's the only wrong wheel drive car I've manage to get the back end out on consistently without using the handbrake ::) ::)

Also found the ride and seat rather uncomfortable, especially compared to the Omega ::)

Oh... And if driven hard they eat tyres :-X ::) ;)
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 21:27:43
Quote
I had a Veccy-C... Was pretty uninspiring TBH :(

It's the only wrong wheel drive car I've manage to get the back end out on consistently without using the handbrake ::) ::)

Also found the ride and seat rather uncomfortable, especially compared to the Omega ::)

Oh... And if driven hard they eat tyres :-X ::) ;)

The C was bound to be dull, it was designed by the same team that did the Passat!  ;D ;D
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Lazydocker on 18 February 2011, 21:37:03
Quote
Quote
I had a Veccy-C... Was pretty uninspiring TBH :(

It's the only wrong wheel drive car I've manage to get the back end out on consistently without using the handbrake ::) ::)

Also found the ride and seat rather uncomfortable, especially compared to the Omega ::)

Oh... And if driven hard they eat tyres :-X ::) ;)

The C was bound to be dull, it was designed by the same team that did the Passat!  ;D ;D

Wouldn't say it was completely dull... Back end was amusing, for a WWD car :-X ::) :D
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 21:38:09
Hugely adjsutable geo on those front and back.
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Lazydocker on 18 February 2011, 21:41:48
Quote
Hugely adjsutable geo on those front and back.

Probably why I could do a set of tyres in 4k then :-X It was Vauxhall serviced it's entire life ::)

Did me well though... I had the DTi and did 50k in 20 months ;)
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 21:42:49
Quote
Quote
Hugely adjsutable geo on those front and back.

Probably why I could do a set of tyres in 4k then :-X It was Vauxhall serviced it's entire life ::)

Did me well though... I had the DTi and did 50k in 20 months ;)

Vec C's are pretty well screwed together and reliable lumps....just dull
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: omegabsw on 18 February 2011, 21:44:06
A 02 2.2 will not have the problem that the earlier 2.2's had where the ones where the oil jets blocked up due to the paper filter breaking down and snapping the cam chain.

They still need regular oil changes but it should go on ok.

Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 21:46:00
Quote
A 02 2.2 will not have the problem that the earlier 2.2's had where the ones where the oil jets blocked up due to the paper filter breaking down and snapping the cam chain.

They still need regular oil changes but it should go on ok.


Small chain lubricator orrifices was the key issue.....all were recalled, not all got fixed....
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: omegabsw on 18 February 2011, 21:58:24
Quote
Quote
A 02 2.2 will not have the problem that the earlier 2.2's had where the ones where the oil jets blocked up due to the paper filter breaking down and snapping the cam chain.

They still need regular oil changes but it should go on ok.


Small chain lubricator orrifices was the key issue.....all were recalled, not all got fixed....

Yep but I think that only the very early engines were recalled and by 2002 they had rectified the oil jets in the cars that were being sold. Still worth getting checked out tho
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 22:19:27
The op says the cam chain has just been done, hopefuly they did the jet, tensioner and guides at the same time (most do because the kit is cheaper than the chain alone).
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: omegabsw on 18 February 2011, 22:28:09
Quote
The op says the cam chain has just been done, hopefuly they did the jet, tensioner and guides at the same time (most do because the kit is cheaper than the chain alone).

You would hope so!

Vauxhall will be able to tell you if

A. The car was ever part of the recall and if it was then
B. Did the work ever get done as part of the recall by Vauxhall itself

Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Marks DTM Calib on 18 February 2011, 22:36:48
I can see that info... :-X
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Brikhead on 20 February 2011, 12:07:44
Quote
Yeh, 2.2 16v, good power plant actually but, its got a chain so MAKE SURE YOU CHANGE THE OIL AND FILTER REGULARLY.

Good advice.
A friend has just had a new timing chain kit fitted to his 2006, 30,000 mile Signum, the old one was rattling so much it sounded like an old diesel engine.
Turns out he'd had the car for around 4 years and only had it serviced once in all that time, in novemeber last year. (Looked to me like the filter had NEVER been replaced though).

Not all bad though as he got a new Vx. chain kit, fitted by a Vx. trained technician, for £325. Takes around 2.5 hours to do the job, not 5-6 like Vx. say...
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: russ0205 on 20 February 2011, 16:38:03
Have been looking through the history file and found the cost of the camchain kit, It had a full service,camchain kit,front brake pads,service filter pack (whatever that is ) tail light bulb.screen wash,
semi synth oil,
spark plugs,
air freshener, :-[
2 x front tyres.
And wait for it £866.54p

And then had the cheek to say advice new rear pads in appx 6k miles, ;D
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: TheBoy on 20 February 2011, 17:15:49
Quote
fitted by a Vx. trained technician

Why are alarm bells ringing in my head when I hear that ;D
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: russ0205 on 20 February 2011, 17:28:57
Yep got the invoice here from forest gate vauxhall kettering.
can't understand why people pay those prices or have tyres fitted at the main dealer,Good news for me was that was who offered him £800 on a p/x, I bought it from him for that so he had no p/x and they didn't give him any discount on his new insignia,
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: Brikhead on 20 February 2011, 18:08:03
Quote
Quote
fitted by a Vx. trained technician
Why are alarm bells ringing in my head when I hear that ;D
I agree, normally Vauxhall training would be a bad thing, however this chap seems to be a good mechanic despite their best efforts.
He probably could have completed the job in 2 hours but he kept stopping to explain stuff to the cars owner, like the importance of regular oil changes!
 I'm a fairly competent d.i.y. mechanic with a near full set of tools and I have always managed to keep my own old bangers on the road without having to pay others to fix them, I was going to replace the chain on my friends Signum for him but considering the cost of the chain, and how long it was likely to have taken me to do the job (also the 'Renault incident' had knocked my confidence a little!), we decided to try some-one else...

Quote
Have been looking through the history file and found the cost of the camchain kit, It had a full service,camchain kit,front brake pads,service filter pack (whatever that is ) tail light bulb.screen wash,
semi synth oil,
spark plugs,
air freshener, :-[
2 x front tyres.
And wait for it £866.54p
I'd say the invoice was a good few years out of date, that seems cheap.
Title: Re: VECTRA SRI 02 model any good ??
Post by: russ0205 on 20 February 2011, 21:33:59
Work done Feb 09, :y