Opel is set to launch the second generation Agila and the wait will be worth it if you like Tardis-like cars.
The once very ugly and boxy car has matured into a prettier vehicle that no longer screams ‘boring’. The littlest Opel is a sister car of the Suzuki Splash and the economies of scale from the German-Japanese alliance have delivered impressive results.
But why would anybody want an Agila over, say, an Opel Corsa? Well, the new Agila is a very economical ‘one-box’ MPV that features a high driving position and the same number of seats as found in the Corsa, namely five in a cheekier package.
The exterior sits lower than the old car and the proportions are now far more appealing. A very young German design team was used and there are nice touches all over the car that let you know it is clearly part of the new generation of Opels (eg the bonnet centre crease and corporate front end).
The less-than-successful ‘Smart’ car that sadly was overpriced for the Irish market has to my mind heavily influenced the design team with a standalone ‘rev counter’ sitting on the dash and funky colourful trim options now available.
On the road the Agila has a wide track so it sits securely and is even fun to drive on twisty roads. The speed sensitive power steering is direct but offers little in the way of feedback. Visibility is excellent. There is limited body roll despite the high driving position. It is easy to find a comfortable position behind the wheel and all the controls are light to use and close to hand. The dash-mounted gear lever complements a more youthful look and experience inside.
Engines include a 12 valve 1.0 litre (65bhp) and a 16 valve 1.2 litre (86bhp) petrol and a 1.3 CDTi (75bhp/190nm) diesel. All run on the promise of fuel and are as green as Minister John Gormley’s wellingtons. An automatic is available too. Agila is predictable and sure-footed about town and on the open road. Storage is enhanced with a hidden sub floor in the boot when the spare wheel would normally be found. The boot has 225 litres of space and with the rear seats down there is 1050 litres of cargo area when you fill to the roof.
Expression, Club and Design are the trim options and all models come with ABS, engine immobiliser, space saver spare wheel and two airbags (as opposed to one in the original).
Opel is openly targeting the Agila at women, which is a little surprising in this day and age of gender and political correctness but nonetheless I found the Agila made a lot of sense as it promises to be cheap and economical to run while immensely versatile for a small car. The only glaring omission is the lack of an iPod/MP3 connector to the stereo! This may change soon as I gave one of the design team a good talking to at my recent UK test drive.
Michael Sheridan
