Recently, JOE’s Oisin Collins was out and about testing Opel’s all-new city car, the Adam. Here’s a look at how he got on.
Car tested: Opel Adam Jam 1.4L Petrol 16v VVTi – €17,810. Starting price: €14,995
So, first and foremost, who would drive the Opel Adam? There’s absolutely no denying that the Opel Adam is for a fun-loving younger driver who wants a car with as much personality as they have themselves and thanks to it’s nimble little physique the Adam is perfect for city dwellers. It also fares surprisingly well on motorways too, but you might want to take it handy on dodgy back roads. The entry-level model is also nice and cheap making it accessible to a lot more drivers.
The Drive
The Opel Adam is a fantastic little city car and if your daily commute consists of weaving in and out of narrow streets then you’ll definitely get your use out of the Adam. The Adam’s steering is quite light making it easy to manoeuvre around tight corners, but once you turn on the ‘City’ driving assist, the steering becomes even lighter again. While the Adam is a small and compact car there’s enough room in the cabin for a comfortable drive for both driver and passenger, but if you’re a tall bloke then you might find your rear seat passengers lacking some legroom.
For a small car our Adam did well at high speeds on the motorway thanks to it’s 1.4L 100hp four-cylinder petrol engine and it’s surprisingly quiet on the inside too, even when you’re tipping along at 120km/h. However, you would certainly want to take it handy on bumpy back roads, as high speed cornering isn’t exactly the Adam’s forte – but we won’t hold that against it. The engine range is a tad limited, but we’ve heard mumblings that there are more options on their way for 2014. So keep an eye out for that.
The Style
As far as style goes, you really can’t get a more stylish car. Compared to other models in it’s class the Adam certainly has a leg up in the style department as it is offered with thousands of combination possibilities for the exterior and interior. So finding two Adams that are exactly the same might prove a tad difficult, which is surely a good thing.
The Opel designers went back to the drawing board for the Adam as this is the first generation of the car, and it has to be said, they’ve done a smashing job. We tested the Opel Adam Jam, the entry level model with €2,800 worth of extras that included Opel’s extremely easy to use infotainment system called Intellilink, 18” Twister Alloy Wheels, Chrome Pack, White roof and the very cool (albeit a little distracting) Illuminated Headlining. The addition of the Intellilink system is refreshing as Opel’s previous infotainment system included an array of distracting buttons.
There are another two models you can choose from, the Glam and the Slam, which are the same car, but the Glam is edged towards a more style conscious driver (aka. the ladies) while the Slam is the Adam’s sporty version (aimed at us lads). Even the keys come colour coded with your chosen car colour, as you’ll see above.
Sex Appeal
The Adam is a sexy car, because that’s exactly what it was designed to be. It’s aimed at a younger audience, which is evident by the Adam’s ‘microsite’ as it’s filled with pictures of young beautiful people draped over the car. The fact that there are so many different style options available also adds to the sex appeal of this motor, but you can’t help shake the fact that a lot of people will think it’s a ‘girls car’. There are enough styling options and add-on packs to make it a lean mean manly machine, but you might have to spend a bit more to achieve that.
Some Stats
Price – €17,810
0-100kph – 11.5 seconds
Max Speed – 185 km/hour
CO2 – 119 g/km
Tax Band – A4 €200 p.a.
The Verdict
I have to say, I loved the little Adam. It was a fun little car that was easy on the fuel, even though I wasn’t driving with economy in mind, and it was a massive hit with the ladies – which is a bonus, no matter what way you look at it. However, the Adam did feel a little unsteady when driving on windy back roads at a decent speed, but the car certainly makes up for that in it’s overall handling ability.
For more info check out Opel.ie.
LISTEN: You Must Be Jokin’ with Aideen McQueen – Faith healers, Coolock craic and Gigging as Gaeilge
