Gran Sporty Turismo

What we like:

Distinctive styling

Heaps of torque from low rpms

Good handling

Equipment

What we dislike:

Can feel a little unsettled at times

Driver safety systems chime way too much

Some cheapness in the door grab handles

Slow opening bootlid makes hydraulic lifters quite pointless

Under the hood, the insignia Grand Sport is powered by an East-West oriented 2.0 turbocharged four-cylinder engine, good for 260bhp and impressive maximum torque of 400Nm between 3,000 to 4,000rpm; and delivery of its power to the wheels, all four of them from the onset is actually disturbingly impressive, with the engine very eager to load on even more torque right after taking off. The Insignia Grand Sport hits 100km/h in just 7.3 seconds, and fuel economy figures are listed as a combined 11.6km/l.

Push the engine past the 4,000rpm mark though, and you will experience a little bit of flatness. Not really a bad thing, since most times, the engine will be running within low to mid-range rpms. Putting power to the wheels is through a new 8-speed automatic transmission. Gear ratios feel well-spaced, and the car feels decently smooth between gear changes.

While the Insignia Grand Sport does not feel as planted as a 2.0 litre Volkswagen Passat Sedan, which only drives its front wheels, the former does take to rather corners well, thanks to its four-wheel drive setup. In keeping the Insignia planted, the new “Twinster” Adaptive drive system utilises torque vectoring which distributes torque between the wheels, ensuring the right amount of torque goes to the right wheel at the right time.

With technology becoming more affordable, the Insignia Grand Sport is also equipped with an adaptive suspension, known in Opel talk as “FlexRide”. With the switching between “Tour” and “Sport” mode, the system is built to loosen up for a softer, more relaxed drive under the former and stiffens up in the latter drive mode for a more spirited drive. We found however, that allowing the car to adjust on its own, in Standard mode brings out the best in the drive experience. Leaving the suspension in “Sport” mode however, can get simply too jarring, especially with those low profile tyres.

The 2.0 Insignia Grand Sport feels a little less comfortable than the Volkswagen Passat. But at the price of $155,777*, it does have four driven wheels, and plenty of torque. The Skoda Superb Laurin & Klement Edition on the other hand may not have such good handling, but it is a larger car with more legroom at the rear, and also has on it, its own version of an adaptive suspension known as Dynamic Chassis Control (DCC) which does just about the same thing, and goes for less coin than the Opel.

Credits: