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Wed 1 Sep 2021 12:25

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - JonnyH88

In brief, we bought a 87k miles Insignia from a Vauxhall Drive garage last June, we have driven 7k miles in it so far and had a full service from a independent garage 1k miles ago. Since then the car broke down, and after paying a good chunk of money towing it about, and having to pay Vauxhall for an engine inspection, they have concluded the Aux belt has snapped, been sucked onto the engine and killed the engine.

The last service we did confirmed and noted that the belt would need replacing at 100k miles, so wasn't necessary due to age or miles at 93k.

The local Vauxhall garage who inspected the car have backed our case that although the belt should be replaced soon, it wasn't necessary, and the engine sucking in the belt is something they have never seen on the model engine, and have said its a manufacturing defect as it shouldn't have been possible. Vauxhall head office has said they will contribute 15% to the cost of the engine replacement.

The cost for the engine replacement is quoted at £6/7k(before discount) and they can't source a reconditioned one themselves so needs to be a new engine. The car cost us £6500 when we bought it so I'm unsure what to do.

Am I best just paying for the engine replacement through Vauxhall? At least then it will be fitted with experience and it's a new engine so should be reliable.

Or am I best going elsewhere and fitting a refurbished one(or new if that's possible)?

Part of me is so annoyed I'm considering writing it off and buying a Mondeo and scrapping through car entirely

Edited by JonnyH88 on 01/09/2021 at 12:43

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 13:50

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - Andrew-T

I would have thought that as the car is well into middle age, you should look for a middle-aged engine. There must be one somewhere near. Cost of fitting will not be negligible of course, but if the car won't go, it will be scrap otherwise.

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 14:56

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - sammy1

What was the value of the car before the engine failed. Is it petrol or diesel? If you spend the money with Vauxhall and it is still only worth the value it is now, probably best to start again as you suggest. If the garage start the job and find other things such as the car needing a new clutch say the price will go up! The second hand car engine market is a bit of a lottery if you go there

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 15:21

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - JonnyH88

It's a 2l diesel.

Thr value is around 6/7k. A reconditioned engine worries me a bit, as its such a large chunk of money to potentially waste if it goes wrong!

It's just gutted me that a car that cost me 6.5k, lasted me a year, and has been fully serviced etc is currently scrap unless we pay for repairs that cost as much as the car did.

Benefits of the engine replacement are the long term reliability of the engine itself, hopefully extending the life of the car itself. And getting a Mondeo that is similar spec is around £8/9k, so will cost more than the repair, and would come with 80/90k miles on it anyway.

It's a bit of a nightmare to be honest!

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 17:47

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - Andrew-T

At bottom it is simple - is your glass half-full or half empty ? As Sammy says, other problems may be found, but that is always the case. And a recon engine is a worry too - but you didn't worry about your previous engine, and it failed. It's just life, sometimes unpredictable.

I think at the very least you should get an estimate for finding and fitting a used engine, shouldn't cost. Whatever you do won't be cheap, sadly.

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 18:03

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - elekie&a/c doctor

Vauxhall dealer will only fit a new engine . Why does it need a new engine ? It’s possible that a good mechanic , experienced with these fiat engines , may be able to repair it more economically.

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 18:38

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - RT

There are occasions when Vauxhall dealers rebuild an engine AND Vauxhall contribute significantly to the cost - back in the '90s, Vauxhall changed the cambelt interval on 2.0 16v petrol engines from 80,000 to 40,000 miles but didn't inform existing owners - my Cavalier's cambelt failed at 50,000 wrecking the cylinder head - I got a reconditioned bare head and the Vauxhall dealer rebuilt the engine, with Vauxhall paying all their labour.

Manufacturer goodwill contributions come down to whether the vehicle has been fully serviced by their franchised dealers.

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Wed 1 Sep 2021 20:58

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - Rerepo

Assuming its the A20DTH Diesel engine you could get a used engine supplied and fitted for around £1500. Once the job is done drive it straight to 'We Buy Any Car' - get what you can for it (should be a lot more than the £1500 spent) and go buy yourself something else...

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Thu 2 Sep 2021 09:18

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - SLO76

Another unfortunate example of why you shouldn’t buy a high mileage used diesel (in fact I wouldn’t recommend any used diesel these days) especially one with a Fiat designed engine and a reminder not to scrimp on belt replacement, always do the ancillary and timing belt (where fitted) early. I personally wouldn’t fork out for a new engine here, the cost is far more than the trade value of the car. I’d scrap it or possibly look for a reputable (rare) used engine supplier and get it running again then I’d flog it but with nearly 100,000 miles up an Insignia is next to worthless. You hugely overpaid for it. It’s a painful loss but I’d bin it and buy a cheaper older Japanese petrol engined car to replace it in a private sale and try to recoup some of the cost via the greatly reduced depreciation.

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Thu 2 Sep 2021 11:14

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - galileo

"they have concluded the Aux belt has snapped, been sucked onto the engine and killed the engine."

What puzzles me is how bits of a failed aux belt could get "sucked into the engine" in the first place.

Most cars have had some kind of filter on the air intake for the last 100 years.

Or was it not the auxiliary belt that failed, but the cam belt, possibly disrupted by the aux belt?

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Thu 2 Sep 2021 11:38

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - SLO76

“ Or was it not the auxiliary belt that failed, but the cam belt, possibly disrupted by the aux belt?”

Most likely. It’s a weakness on numerous models including my wife’s Volvo XC60. A work colleague has recently had to replace the engine on his 2015 Vauxhall Astra 1.6 Diesel (another Fiat motor) after this happened.

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Wed 8 Sep 2021 10:33

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - edlithgow

"they have concluded the Aux belt has snapped, been sucked onto the engine and killed the engine."

FSD on the BSometer needle for that one.

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Wed 8 Sep 2021 14:46

Vauxhall Insignia - Vauxhall Insignia engine replacement - Lee Power

Auxiliary drive belt failing then being drawn in to the timing gear around the bottom pulley is known to cause timing belt failures.

I suspect that's what's caused this one.

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