We say An excellent load lugger and a practical car with lots of room for passengers and a wide range of enginesPerformance Choose the turbodiesels for the mid-range pull, ignore the V6 - it'll cost you the Earth - and ignore the VXR. Why would you want a hot estate?Emissions Emissions and fuel economy figures are poor on the Vectra estate and sit at around 50mpg which isn’t great when compared to some rivals on the market. One of the leading units is the 1.9-litre CDTi 118bhp unit which returns 48mpg and emits 157g/km in CO2 as well as returning decent performance figures.Driving For a large-ish estate, the Vectra handles well on the motorway where its soft suspension setup and smooth drive make it ideal for cruising. It’s also ok on smaller roads and about town but its sheer size counts against it on more demanding roads and where more agile movements are demanded of it.Feel As mentioned, the Vectra estate is a brilliant motorway cruiser and load lugger. Sri versions have stiffer suspension which makes it more alert on smaller roads but it can become a little uncomfortable over bumps. Overall it’s refined and smooth.Space The estate comes with masses of space - the Vectra's absolutely huge with a 530-litre boot and plenty of space for passengers in the front and rear.Equipment Air conditioning, cruise control, a CD player and front electric windows are standard.Price Ignore the V6 and VXRs and the Vectra's good value for money and cheap to run. Pricing ranges from around £16,000 to £29,000.Quality Inside the Vectra estate is boring but solid and simple. Some people prefer that and in truth it doesn’t offend, it’s just not particularly inspiring.Safety Six airbags including side curtains are standard, active head restraints ABS are also.Pros Good load-lugger and oodles of space make it a brilliant choice for a large family car. Its ride and handling make it ideally suited to motorway driving.Cons Small and large engines should be avoided which leaves you with a limited choice when it comes to powertrains. The interior is dull but not quite as dull as the interior.Alternatives Ford Mondeo Estate, Mazda6 Estate, Renault Megane Estate
