Help! I bought a Vectra!

Mar 14, 2005
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Just bought a 2002 Vectra SRI 150 Estate (2.2 petrol manual box) to relace our tired old Volvo 740 (2.0 non turbo). Bought it from our neighbour who is a dealer. He had been looking out for a Mondeo or Passat for us but the Vectra came up at a good price so we bought it but we had to make a quick decision before he sold it on. I have just read the previous postings on Vectras and I am now worried that they are not a good tow car. We only have a small 2 berth (about all the old Volvo can manage) but we want to upgrade to a 4/5 berth so we can take the grandchildren and the dogs. Does anyone have a Vectra? Are they any good? It doesnt have a towbar so I may not bother to fit one and just sell it if it wont do the job! What is a reasonable maximum towing weight? I have heard 1500kg quoted, does that sound about right?

Thanks, Jim.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Jim, calm yoursef, I own a 51 vectra 2.2dti diesel estate, it tows a pageant imperial, as if it was not there.

Max tow weight is 1400kg, lots of vans fall into this category.

often find myself at 70mph after overtaking lorries, but the car and van remain completly stable, before returning to the correct lane speed.

some people moan about front wheel spin, This can happen on any front wheel drive, where the load is on the rear axle. I myself have never experienced this with the vectra.

If i owned the latest model the only moan would be the stupid spacesaver wheel, which is supplied.

Royston
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Jim, calm yoursef, I own a 51 vectra 2.2dti diesel estate, it tows a pageant imperial, as if it was not there.

Max tow weight is 1400kg, lots of vans fall into this category.

often find myself at 70mph after overtaking lorries, but the car and van remain completly stable, before returning to the correct lane speed.

some people moan about front wheel spin, This can happen on any front wheel drive, where the load is on the rear axle. I myself have never experienced this with the vectra.

If i owned the latest model the only moan would be the stupid spacesaver wheel, which is supplied.

Royston
Thanks for your comments Royston. Reading the other postings again it does seem to boil down to one faulty car and one complaint of wheel spin. Mine is a 2.2 petrol so the fuel economy will be worse than yours but I wont be doing a high mileage and mostly longer trips so it shouldnt make too much difference.

Jim.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hello Jim,

My sources suggest that the 2.2 petrol manual 5 door (not estate) has a max towing capacity of 1500Kg. That sounds pretty reasonable to me, You would need to check with Vauxhall the max towing capacity of the Estate, as the extra metal work of the car body may rob some capacity but my guess is that it will be between 1400 and 1500Kg.

with 150 bhp available it should have plenty of power to cope with towing - just watch that you have a proper tow bar fitted for the SRI model, I believe the car has lower suspension than the standard model thus the tow hitch may be a special to give the correct ball height.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hello Jim,

My sources suggest that the 2.2 petrol manual 5 door (not estate) has a max towing capacity of 1500Kg. That sounds pretty reasonable to me, You would need to check with Vauxhall the max towing capacity of the Estate, as the extra metal work of the car body may rob some capacity but my guess is that it will be between 1400 and 1500Kg.

with 150 bhp available it should have plenty of power to cope with towing - just watch that you have a proper tow bar fitted for the SRI model, I believe the car has lower suspension than the standard model thus the tow hitch may be a special to give the correct ball height.
Thanks John L, useful info, I will check that point.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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The old shape Vectra 2.2 (Z22SE) petrol estate has a maximum permissible towload of 1400kg. The current model, also with a 2.2 engine (Z22YH), has a 1600kg limit.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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The old shape Vectra 2.2 (Z22SE) petrol estate has a maximum permissible towload of 1400kg. The current model, also with a 2.2 engine (Z22YH), has a 1600kg limit.
Thanks Lutz, that confirms what the other replies have said.
 
Mar 14, 2005
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As long as you stick to 85% it should tow very well. I have a 1.8 Vectra hatch (2001) and tow my caravan at about a 96% ratio, and as long as the van is correctly loaded and the tyre pressures are correct, it really is remarkably stable. Suspension is a bit soft on mine, but the SRI has harder sports suspension; and mine is underpowered, but the 2.2 should be better, if not brilliant. Kerbweight is about 1450kg. Should be infinately better than a 2.0 Volvo 760.

Cheers

James
 
Mar 14, 2005
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As long as you stick to 85% it should tow very well. I have a 1.8 Vectra hatch (2001) and tow my caravan at about a 96% ratio, and as long as the van is correctly loaded and the tyre pressures are correct, it really is remarkably stable. Suspension is a bit soft on mine, but the SRI has harder sports suspension; and mine is underpowered, but the 2.2 should be better, if not brilliant. Kerbweight is about 1450kg. Should be infinately better than a 2.0 Volvo 760.

Cheers

James
Another encouraging response! Thanks for that James. John L has raised the question of the towball height so I must look in to that but it seems the Vectra aint so bad after all.
 
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Hello Jim,

My sources suggest that the 2.2 petrol manual 5 door (not estate) has a max towing capacity of 1500Kg. That sounds pretty reasonable to me, You would need to check with Vauxhall the max towing capacity of the Estate, as the extra metal work of the car body may rob some capacity but my guess is that it will be between 1400 and 1500Kg.

with 150 bhp available it should have plenty of power to cope with towing - just watch that you have a proper tow bar fitted for the SRI model, I believe the car has lower suspension than the standard model thus the tow hitch may be a special to give the correct ball height.
I had a 2.6 sri and with the lowered suspension, the towbar is different to a standard vectra.I got my towbar fitted at a company called Indespension and the towball height was as it should be.I paid around
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Hi Jim,

The Vectra 2.2Diesel is the very best towcar we have ever had and we have been caravanning for over 30years we in fact have got th Sxi Dti 2.2dti its a brilliant car for comfort, economy, and towing power.You won,t regret buying one we get 51mpg solo and 34mpg towing and thats no bull.Good Luck and happy caravanning.Jim
 
May 18, 2005
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Hi Jim,

I have a 2001 Vectra 2.2 petrol estate and it tows a Abbey Aventura 316 5 berth 1350kg laden with no trouble whatsoever it has plenty of power and torque and returns 27mpg [ towing ] if you don`t go daft.The front wheel spin is limited by the traction control as fitted standard. The only minor niggle i have with mine is 1st gear is a little high which can make setting off on steep hills difficult. regards Andrew.
 
Mar 16, 2005
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Hi Jim,

The Vectra 2.2Diesel is the very best towcar we have ever had and we have been caravanning for over 30years we in fact have got th Sxi Dti 2.2dti its a brilliant car for comfort, economy, and towing power.You won,t regret buying one we get 51mpg solo and 34mpg towing and thats no bull.Good Luck and happy caravanning.Jim

these figures you give, not off the trip computer by anychance?
 
Mar 14, 2005
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Thanks guys for all your comments. The car is now on our drive and we are keen to sort the insurance out so we can use it, though I dont think we will be out with the van this weekend! All your comments have been very positive and my wife has been to her dog training club tonight and found 6 people there, all with Vectras and all pleased with them so that is encouraging.
 
Jul 26, 2005
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Jim,

Sorry late with this but away in the van - I have a Vectra Estate SRI too, a 2000 with the 2.0 140 engine. I have actually stopped using it for towing as It could not tow a 1330kg van up from the farm where I kept it due to wheel spin - it was also a pig on wet grass.

However, you have 10 more BHP than me and should not find any problems on normal roads, towing up to 1400kg. Watch out for those slopey fields though and don't be fooled by the traction control as I found that this tends to stall the engine during low speed towing as it works by braking the slipping wheels. Shame really as apart from that it is a stylish, roomy, fast and comfortable car.

If yours is a old model Veccy (as I think it is) the Haynes manual gives a very good wiring diagram for the tow hook ( I discarded the Vaux plug and used "connecting stip") - the Vectra owners club (VCCOM)also give an excellent "how to" on their website which includes jumping the brake light warning, I used a Towequipe bar from E-bay - cheap and with all the relays for about
 
Mar 14, 2005
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these figures you give, not off the trip computer by anychance?
Giovanni,

The figures I gave were my own calculations,NOT guesswork,genuine figures,and No they weren,t off a trip meter.

If I have got the wrong angle of your question then I do apologise.Jim
 
May 18, 2005
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Jim,

Sorry late with this but away in the van - I have a Vectra Estate SRI too, a 2000 with the 2.0 140 engine. I have actually stopped using it for towing as It could not tow a 1330kg van up from the farm where I kept it due to wheel spin - it was also a pig on wet grass.

However, you have 10 more BHP than me and should not find any problems on normal roads, towing up to 1400kg. Watch out for those slopey fields though and don't be fooled by the traction control as I found that this tends to stall the engine during low speed towing as it works by braking the slipping wheels. Shame really as apart from that it is a stylish, roomy, fast and comfortable car.

If yours is a old model Veccy (as I think it is) the Haynes manual gives a very good wiring diagram for the tow hook ( I discarded the Vaux plug and used "connecting stip") - the Vectra owners club (VCCOM)also give an excellent "how to" on their website which includes jumping the brake light warning, I used a Towequipe bar from E-bay - cheap and with all the relays for about
 

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