Opel Adam driven
In this day and age, small cars are not the basic, entry level carriages they once were. As society generally became more affluent and roads became more congested, size began to matter and while accepting the practicality of downsized transport as a virtue, standing out from the crowd became an issue. Superminis emerged, offering many of the creature comforts of bigger models in the particular brand’s range at a premium price, of course to create a market niche with very distinct appeal. Arriving a little late on the scene is a new contender from a reborn Adam Opel AG. Named after the company’s founding father (in 1862), the Adam may be a laat lammetjie but Opel’s first ‘New German’ has arrived with a very personable character.
On the face of it there are just three models base, Jam and Glam but a profusion of feature options allow customers to create a specification tailor made to their personality and preferences, from small detail items like a colour-keyed key fob to an LED-powered ‘stars at night’ headliner. But all this customising capability is of little value if the basic car is lacking in spirit, an aspect the launch drive put to the test.
For starters, the Adam is a good-looker with a couple of styling elements that are a little familiar from rivals but without being an obvious crib of other designs. Overall, this two-door four-seat hatchback is distinctive enough with proportions that are just about spot on, avoiding a supermini tendency of appearing slightly dumpy. There is refreshingly little in the way of bling â the shape’s flowing curves sufficient to provide the attraction.
The base model is powered by a 74kW/130Nm 1.4-litre four-pot mated with a five-speed manual gearbox there is no auto version in the pipeline and on the road the powertrain proved to be adequate rather than exciting. Gearing suggests a leaning towards economy rather than performance as grunt in the top two ratios is sluggish but the gearshift is a delight, so dropping down a couple of cogs to bring up the revs is no hardship.
By comparison, the new turbocharged three-cylinder 1.0-litre ecoflex motor is a delight. Approach the rev counter’s red line and that charismatic ‘triple thrum’ can be stirred to tickle the senses. A six-speed box helps with maintaining momentum and the package is certainly entertaining. Stop/start is standard with this engine and helps in providing a marginally better overall fuel economy figure than the 1.4 5.1/100km versus 5.3.
On the road all of the Adams offer precise, fail-safe handling but I detected a slight difference in ride comfort due perhaps to different footwear the base car rides on 195/50 R15s, Jam on 195/55 R16s and Glam on 215/45 R17s. The bigger wheels provide a firmer and slightly noisier ride than with the 15-inchers. ESP is standard on all derivatives along with ABS with EBD, six airbags, City Mode power steering and Hill Start Assist. Advanced Parking Aid and Side Blind Zone Alert are fitted to Jam and Glam.
Up front the cabin is spacious with plenty of room and adjustment to comfortably accommodate my 1.9-metre frame. Leg- and headroom in the back are not surprisingly less generous and the seats are quite hard. The ergonomics and tactile quality of the interior is top notch. All models have a radio/CD front loader and Bluetooth/USB/MP3/Aux input while Jam and Glam boast the full Monty of a smartphone compatible 7-inch touchscreen Intellilink infotainment system that incorporates Stitcher (which streams podcasts and radio shows), TuneIn Internet radio, BringGo navigation and support for Siri when an Apple iPhone is connected.
Included in the pricing are a 5-year/120000km warranty and roadside assistance plan and a 3-year/60000km service plan service intervals are 1-year/15000km. First impressions of the Adam are highly favourable. Opel is successfully rejuvenating itself and with the introduction of this car to be joined shortly by some other new models â the brand looks set for a prosperous second lease of life.
NEED TO KNOW
OPEL ADAM 1.4 ECOTEC
PRICE R189900
ENGINE 1398cc, 4-cyl petrol, 74kW @ 6000rpm, 130Nm @ 4000rpm
TRANSMISSION 5-speed manual, front-wheel drive
SUSPENSION MacPherson strut front, compound link/torsion tube rear
LENGTH/WIDTH/HEIGHT
3747/1966/1807mm
WEIGHT 1135kg
PERFORMANCE 11.5secs 0-100kph, 185kph top speed, 5.3/100km, 125g/km
ON SALE Now
OPEL ADAM JAM 1.0T ECOFLEX
PRICE R209900
ENGINE 999cc, 3-cyl petrol turbocharged, 85kW @ 5000-6000rpm, 170Nm @ 1800-4500rpm
TRANSMISSION 6-speed manual, front-wheel drive
SUSPENSION MacPherson strut front, compound link/torsion tube rear
LENGTH/WIDTH/HEIGHT
3747/1966/1807mm
WEIGHT 1156kg
PERFORMANCE 9.9secs 0-100kph, 196kph top speed, 5.3/100km, 119g/km
ON SALE Now
OPEL ADAM GLAM 1.0T ECOFLEX
PRICE R232900
ENGINE 999cc, 3-cyl petrol turbocharged, 85kW @ 5000-6000rpm, 170Nm @ 1800-4500rpm
TRANSMISSION 6-speed manual, front-wheel drive
SUSPENSION MacPherson strut front, compound link/torsion tube rear
LENGTH/WIDTH/HEIGHT
3747/1966/1807mm
WEIGHT 1156kg
PERFORMANCE 9.9secs 0-100kph, 196kph top speed, 5.3/100km, 119g/km
ON SALE Now
