Signums..

[_Jake]

Just had a nice tax rebate come through so im thinking about buying a signum, surprisingly i can insure a 2.0t elite for £1300 fully comp and im only 18 :eek: The ones i will be looking at are the Signum 2.0 16V Turbo elite ones, which have the Z20NET Engines. are these engines any good or absolute crap? also has anyone had any experiences with signums at all? common faults? things to look out for when veiwing? i know ideally i should sign up to a signum forum but i thought i'd ask here first :)

[Asa-James]

pretty much a big vectra C from what i can make out, and as they never seemed to take off you can get a lot of car for very little money. anything i know about them will be from the Fiat Croma (same car underneath the skin) and the diesel engines, so i'm not much use i'm afraid

[Mieran]

My mate has the 2.8 turbo, its shockingly slow!

[Novasport]

Z20NET is a SAAB engine isn't it?

[_Jake]

pretty much a big vectra C from what i can make out, and as they never seemed to take off you can get a lot of car for very little money. anything i know about them will be from the Fiat Croma (same car underneath the skin) and the diesel engines, so i'm not much use i'm afraid
Yeah thats why im looking at them, next best thing for me in that insurance range would be a 1.4 corsa sport lol not really interested in diesel though as petrols cheaper at the moment


Z20NET is a SAAB engine isn't it?
i think so, although i've read a few things about people swapping the td04 turbos from saab engines onto the z20's so ima bit confused lol

[Jack]

Had one as a hire car once, hated everything about it

[_Jake]

Had one as a hire car once, hated everything about it
Go on..

[TeddyThom]

Yeah thats why im looking at them, next best thing for me in that insurance range would be a 1.4 corsa sport lol not really interested in diesel though as petrols cheaper at the moment


i think so, although i've read a few things about people swapping the td04 turbos from saab engines onto the z20's so ima bit confused lol

Diesel goes further, hence the price :thumb:

[Jack]

Aye, price per mile is cheaper by a long shot


Go on..
No really, everything lol

The seats were uncomfortable, it floated around all over the road, there was no feedback from the pedals or steering wheel, it was slow, it was big on the outside and tiny on the inside (t'was an estate too), and visibility all round was only marginally better than having a paper bag on your head. And its fuel economy was crap!

I'd even go so far as to say I'd rather have the Vectra C estate I had as a works pool car a few years back, and I hated that too lol Mind you, the Vectra was replaced with a Avensis estate thing and that pounded both the Vectra and the Signum in the backside in pretty much every way. And the indicators were on the correct side too lol

[Mieran]

Sigum estate? wtf?

[Trivs_Tom]

Jake you're better off checking migweb ;)

[Southie]

Some of this maybe worth a read regarding common faults CLICKYME (http://www.usedcarexpert.co.uk/cars/vauxhall/signum/fault-guides/)

[Stuart]

Considered one..... dropped it for a PD130 Passat.

I'd really not go for one, even though its a 2.0 Terbo its still gonna be 'slow' and drink more than that footballer bloke who had liver failure.

[paul080803]

My old man had one, 3.0 v6 diesel. It was pretty quick for what it was and did the job.

However far better cars out there, strange choice of car for an 18 year old too. 2.0 turbo signum are gutless and drink the fuel.

[Stuart]

He was brave getting the V6 derv and its droopy liners

[Jack]

Sigum estate? wtf?
Ohhhhhhh me getting them confused with Insignias lol

Still, GM tat, its all the same lol The signum is the fat version of the Vectra C isn't it then? If so, sod it, the C is crap enough, get an Avensis lol

[Stuart]

The veccy C is a great car tbh... Dans rinsed my VX lol

[Edd]

I think there cracking cars for the money

Im looking into getting the 2.2

Test drove a few waiting for the right one really

The Irmscher kits that come on some are awesome

[Stuart]

You really hate petrol that much you want to kill it ALL in a 2.2 signum lol
Jim on here has/had a 2.2 ..... fuely and a pain in the ass for maintenance wasn't the word. Even though the 2.2 is 'great' in the VX, maybe it suits a lighter car.

[Edd]

There the cheapest tho

Plus you try driving a astra f estate every day lol

[Stuart]

there are better things to drive than a 2.2 Signum, especially for the money

[Old man Jimbo]

Get a 2.8 v6 and get it mapped 300bhp 400ft/lb.

[Southie]

^ surely insurance will be scandalous on an 18 year on a modded one though?

What car tax is one of those as well??

[_Jake]

However far better cars out there, strange choice of car for an 18 year old too. 2.0 turbo signum are gutless and drink the fuel.

Fair shout but at my age i have to go off insurance prices more than the price of the car, similar things to insure for that money would be a 1.4 16v corsa sport... i want something comftable as i commute out of the county twice a week for college & Do a fair amount of motorway miles for my age anyway. Been wanting to go to different things like pvs etc but cant because i dont really want to do distance in a 4speed mk1 1.2 nova lol


I think there cracking cars for the money

Im looking into getting the 2.2

Test drove a few waiting for the right one really

The Irmscher kits that come on some are awesome

Agreed on the irmscher kits. are the 2.2's a vx engine? turns out the 2.0 is a saaaaaaaaaaaab b207 motor

EDIT: Yes i have concidered a Veccy c but to get one the same spec as an signum elite it would cost pretty much double that of a signum.. :(

[Old man Jimbo]

^ surely insurance will be scandalous on an 18 year on a modded one though?

What car tax is one of those as well??

I think there is a cut off on a 56 reg (I'm not 100% sure) when the tax went from £245 a year to £445 a year or there abouts.

If he can get insured for a 2litre turbo I would think he could get insured for a 2.8. Same engine as the Vectra VXR near enough but with old man insurance.

All pure speculation of course...

[burgo]

i've been looking at signums as opposed to a vectra c estate, still think im going to go for an estate though

[mowgli]

jake, i used to regularly do 70 mile commutes in my 1.2 4speed. it was fine.

[Jack]

IIRC Tom came all the way from Europeland to billing last year in a 1.0 lol

[Keif]

O.K. I have a Signum 2.0T. So ignore all the above. lol

It's based on the same Vectra C Chassis as the Estate, but has more rear leg room than the estate. However the rear seats slide forward to give the same boot space as the estate, so it's win/win. IMO

Yes the Z20NET engine is the same as a B207L Saab engine. (I have Saab hoses in my engine bay)
It virtually bullet proof, the only issue you may get is a noisy timing chain or Coil pack failure (it has 4 single units, so can just replace the faulty one). Other than that, regular oil changes and it's happy.

The Z20NET uses the same block as the Z22SE but has a shorter throw crank. Standard it sits at 170bhp/195Ib/ft and it's far from slow. Standard it runs at 8psi and will hit just under 60 in second.
Early 2.0T Signums had a garrett Turbo, these were replaced with a better Mitsubishi unit in the later models. I believe the Saab turbo is stronger than the Mitsi unit and cheaper to replace, that's why they're fitted in Vauxhalls.

As for things to look out for, the usual turbo smoke on cold start up, any engine rattle and check the clutch isn't noisy when released (Duel Mass Flywheel)
Then there's the standard Vectra C things. Suspension Springs, they WILL snap if they're standard. Easier to fit a set of after market springs (I have a set of PI 35mm/25mm drop spring, they had a life time warranty so decided to fit them)

http://i71.photobucket.com/albums/i124/Keif_1974/Cars/Signum/DSCF3166.jpg

Vectra C /Signum handbrakes are crap, they have no adjustment on the cable and "self adjust". Check the handbrake, if the car rocks when you release the foot brake (with the handbrake on) one of your rear callipers has a seized piston. Not a huge job, but a hassle.

Interior wise, they're not bad but the handles and doorcards are covered with a rubbery cover. this does wear in time and come off. TBH one day i'll remove all of mine to save it getting caught.