Have you had a chance to digest the details of Vauxhall’s new Insignia?

They are worth a few moments of your time. But I’ll paraphrase for you: reduced prices (some £3k off the P11D price) in a revised and slimmed down range with CO2 emissions down to 99g/km.

Yes, you read that correctly – 99g/km. Astonishing.

Not so long ago we were marvelling at the ability of mainstream family hatchbacks to hit 99g/km.

A full-sized company car in the Mondeo/Passat class taking emissions down to 99g/km without the aid of hybridisation.

But now we have this: a full-sized company car in the Mondeo/Passat class taking emissions down to 99g/km without the aid of hybridisation.

The 99g is available from a revised 2.0-litre diesel engine with power outputs of 120PS and 140PS. But there doesn’t seem to be any lack of drivability – there’s 300-350Nm torque available.

It suddenly makes the Insignia incredibly relevant to company car drivers that may have considered moving down a size in car to limit exposure to benefit in kind increases.

A Peugeot 308 5 Door 1.6 e-HDi Active 112 6-spd Stop and Start, with a P11D value of £18,810 has a benefit in kind of £3,386.

The new Vauxhall Insignia Design 2.0CDTi 16v (120PS) ecoFLEX Stop and Start, with a P11D value of £18,690 has a benefit in kind of £2,616.

That’s a huge saving, making the Insignia a compelling consideration for anyone looking at a new company car.

It’s a saving that’s also important to fleet managers, because it means the running costs for your fleet are reduced: there is less to pay for National Insurance Contributions because the benefit in kind is lower, and the whole life cost of the new Insignia is also dramatically reduced.

And it’s with Whole Life Costs that managers can make savings on their fleets.

We use Whole Life Costs all the time at Fleet Alliance. It is the only way to provide a clear picture of the total cost of a vehicle over the lease period – rather than just the monthly cost of the lease.

The new Vauxhall Insignia offers fleet managers significant savings: some £5,000 over the old Insignia and up to £3,500 against rivals in its sector, such as the Ford Mondeo and Volkswagen Passat.

These are significant. And demonstrate the benefits of using Whole Life Cost evaluations. It’s all part of our Fleet 360 consultancy and support service to give you a better perspective on the right cars for your fleet.

And that perspective has just changed with the new Vauxhall Insignia.

New Insignia challenges whole life cost picture

Have you had a chance to digest the details of Vauxhall’s new Insignia? They are worth a few moments of your time. But I’ll paraphrase for you: reduced prices (some £3k off the P11D price) in a revised and slimmed down range with CO2 emissions down to 99g/km. Yes, you read that correctly – 99g/km. … Continued

Five cars for onesie lovers

You’re probably aware that, here at Fleet Alliance, we do a fair amount for our chosen charities. Recently we joined in National Onsie day – which thankfully was held on a Friday. If you’re not familiar, a ‘onesie’ is a relaxed all-in-one romper suit originally designed for babies, but which are now proving popular with … Continued

Six top soft-tops

One of the most famous cabriolets is about to go on sale. It’s an Audi Cabriolet from the early nineties. Now at the time, Audi Cabriolets weren’t that famous – until Princess Diana, made it her car of choice that is. Now the very same green 1994 Audi Cabriolet 2.3 E ( with a glorious … Continued

Number games

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Are we the best company or what?

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The networked car

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It’s a team effort

Those of you who read this blog regularly will know that me and technology are not the closest of bedfellows.I can push the buttons on my phone and call people, but anything after that becomes, shall we say – erm…Tricky? OK, so you do know me… Inevitably I have to rely on those around me … Continued

Safe in the city

OK, so perhaps road safety isn’t quite as ‘exciting’ as an episode of Sex in the City, but staying alive in an accident is always quite high up my agenda. In fact, keeping other people alive in an accident is also right up there. According to the number crunchers, if you drive regularly in city … Continued

Beer tax drop to fuel cars…

Thank you Mr Osborne. I’m off down the pub to fill up my car with beer. The 3p fuel duty rise due in September may have been scrapped, but the tax on beer has gone down. Impressive. “Landlord! I’ll have eight gallons of your finest ‘heavy’. And one for yourself.” Well, if the Chancellor can … Continued

Five cars that won’t fit your company car park

The Geneva Motor Show started last week and kicked off the European season of new car debuts. Geneva is always a great shop window on what we can expect to be seeing on fleets over the next year. But what really caught my attention was not the fuel sipping, low CO2 embracing cars – of … Continued