Vauxhall Antara SUV (2007-2015) - MPG, running costs & CO2

The Vauxhall Antara is one of the heaviest SUVs in its class and this, coupled with an engine that isn't the most efficient, means the model is far from being the greenest SUV on sale.

It's also one of the more expensive SUVs to insure, while its warranty cover lasts for a very average three years or 60,000 miles. Servicing costs should be the same as other similar brands. The Antara loses money quite quickly, with a three-year-old example being worth just 40% of its new price, compared with more desirable rivals that are worth around 48% of their original value..

Vauxhall Antara MPG & CO2

Vauxhall has discontinued the 163bhp 2.4-litre petrol. It returned just 32.1mpg and cost £285 to tax, so we originally recommended that buyers avoided it. Having also deleted the more powerful of the two diesel engines, the Antara now comes with only one engine.

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That engine is the 159bhp 2.2-litre diesel with a manual gearbox and two-wheel drive. With start-stop engine technology, itl returns 44.1mpg and costs £205 a year to tax.

However, as an example of how far rival SUVs have come, the 171bhp Mazda CX-5 2.2-litre four-wheel drive diesel will do 54.3mpg and costs £130 a year to tax.

Insurance group

Depending on the exact model, the Antara occupies insurance groups 20 to 28 (there are 50 groups in total), so don't expect cover to be cheap. Even premium rivals, including the Land Rover Freelander and Volkswagen Tiguan, are slightly lower down the table. The Kia Sportage, which occupies groups 10 to 20, looks the most attractive, at least in insurance terms.

Warranty

The Antara's three-year/60,000-mile warranty is average for the industry but a bit underwhelming next to Kia’s seven-year offering. However, since many new cars are bought on three-year finance deals, this isn’t likely to be an issue for everyone. Warranty extensions offering cover up to 100,000 miles are available from Vauxhall.

Servicing

To help you budget for servicing, Vauxhall operates a fixed-price servicing scheme and a service plan that allows you to pay a monthly instalment to cover routine maintenance. There's also a service club offering discounts on maintenance that vary according to the age of your car.