A few weeks back Cathy and I had an interesting idea: what sort of driving experience and comfort can you expect when hiring a European car? As I am an ex-pat living in Britain, I was pretty intrigued to investigate this thought. It sounded like the perfect opportunity to discover more about European Automotives. Because I’m still novice with car technical aspects I partnered with my boyfriend Lewis, who works in the automotive industry as a product management engineer. At least I didn’t have to twist his arm too hard on this request!
For our first experience we decided to investigate Black Country in the West Midlands, the birthplace of the industrial revolution; an idyllic setting with a European automotive.
Enterprise gave us a gorgeous, sleek black Vauxhall Insignia hatchback with luxurious curves and polished to perfection rims. The seating felt spacious and I melted easily into its mixed leather/cloth passenger seat. Even with the executive-looking interior I was pleasantly surprised by our weekend price: about £35 with unlimited mileage! We got lucky with a free upgrade, as they didn’t have the other rental car originally booked. Score!
Lewis thought the Insignia a definite improvement over its bland predecessors; perhaps not jaw dropping, but good. We were also shocked over the length of the Insignia! The car looks normal, but some cleverly placed design lines really improved its dimensions.
Finally, we set off! We began in Leamington Spa and drove on the A425. Once we hit the motorway I began to admire the Insignia’s roominess. I noticed a slight decrease in headspace for rear seats passengers, but there was still plenty of legroom all around. The dials along the dashboard were also quite attractive changing from red to white when pressed. We also took advantage of the iPhone connector to play road-trip music. However, the sound system was a bit of a let down. Although it had DAB (Digital Audio Broadcast) radio the sound quality lacked bass and overall sounded mediocre across the spectrum.
Lewis had similar thoughts about the sound system as I did, but a completely different take on the interior. He felt the interior looked plush at first glance but after a while really began to show its true, cheaper, colors. He felt the plastics were thin with the switches rocking in the car. In addition, the cruise control switch rocks with the cancel button raised. Overall, he wasn’t so impressed.
Once we reached Ironbridge we stopped to view the first ever Ironbridge built in the world. We dined at Truffles Café, a lively café on the main road by the bridge. I ate a delicious chunky vegetable soup with homemade bread and orange-flavored hot chocolate. Lewis loved his fruit sundae, with cream, and black coffee. After enjoying the gorgeous sunshine we drove back through Birmingham and kept accessing the Insignia.
Our Analysis:
The Vauxhall Insignia does offer a sophisticated look and drive. But to us, the biggest surprise was its complete lack of performance! It really only offers average ride and handling, which is better at low to medium speeds. Overall, there was absolutely little to no torque; it felt severely underpowered and slow. Lewis felt the car was great if you want to drive from Point A to Point B, but to really get the best performance from the Insignia the engine should be at around 5000 RPM. The handling felt pretty bland overall, too.
Despite the performance cons I personally thought the ride was smooth and comfortable as a passenger. However as a driver, it might not be the best option, especially for someone looking to hire a European car that performs well on twisty British country lanes. This is a better car to drive through towns, or at cruising speeds on the motorway.