Opel puts some class into people-carrier

ROADTEST OPEL ZAFIRA TOURER:DESPITE OUR monumental success in taming this rocky planet, several things continue to confound: black holes; the chemical origins of life; and making a family car that doesn't feel like a minibus.

Great minds work away on the first two but the latter remains an insurmountable obstacle. Ford has come close, with its S-Max and C-Max, but there’s no escaping the boxy look.

Opel has done masterful work inside its people carriers, creating flexible seating that even the most child-addled mind can cope with, but in the past, car fans walking towards the Zafira couldn’t help but feel their hearts sink. Whatever ambitions they had for a motoring life populated by BMW M5s and sports cars went up in smoke with the arrival of that third offspring. The GM-owned brand did try to spice things up with an OPC performance version of the Zafira but, for all the fun behind the wheel, a pair of alloys and bright blue paint could never cover up its origins.

Now Opel is trying to soften the blow with an addition to its family car range. The Zafira Tourer will be sold alongside the current model, for the interim at least, as a more premium offering for the family buyer. In a nod to the current economy, Opel has opted to retain the older Zafira as the value proposition.

We’ve always had a soft spot for the Zafira, partly because it drives well but mostly because it’s so easy to live with. The third row of seats pops up and down without requiring a talent for origami. Members of my wider family have taken the plunge and all sing its praises for practicality, if not for fun.

Previously, people carriers with a third row of seats allowed you to remove them. But what then? At home it meant they sat in the garage, a second home to the family pets. And you could hardly leave them in the supermarket car park in the hope they would be there when you returned. Opel came up with the ingenious flip-and-fold system, storing them in the boot floor. As testimony to its ingenuity, it’s one of those features that makes engineers wonder why they didn’t think of it themselves.

But the Zafira was starting to show its age, particularly in comparison with other Opel models. It’s more of a family Astra than a progeny of the same line as the smart Insignia.

That’s where the new model comes in. Externally, the minibus lines have been softened, but inside, the car starts to shine. The controls, switchgear and overall setting in the Tourer version are more akin to the cabin of the Insignia. That’s a boon for buyers in that the tactile feel of the plastics evokes quality – but it suffers the same fate as the Opel saloon in that the firm’s ergonomic engineers seem to lack confidence in their own system. Controls are duplicated between the central knob and menu system and a plethora of buttons. The end result is a cockpit that’s too busy for flustered family motorists, trying to prevent a war in the back.

Space has also been increased, with extra width giving the car a better stance on the road and the results can be felt in corners where, despite relatively high sides, the car feels composed. That’s an impressive trick for a car of its scale and it’s cutting close to the best-in-class Ford S-Max in this regard.

In terms of the third row, the new Zafira requires less force to flip the seats than it does to open the boot. The second-row bench has been swapped with three independent seats that slide forward and back, for a trade-off between legroom and bootspace. Opel has clearly been listening to its customers, many of whom use the car as a five-seater with a big boot, and has given them more flexibility.

Yet not all the news is good. The Zafira Tourer disappointed in terms of legroom. Having spent many trips to family functions in the third row, I’m intimately acquainted with the legroom of the regular Zafira. In this, however, it was a struggle to fit and retain some semblance of blood flow. If you want to avoid amputation, the second-row seats need to be pushed too close to the front seats to be practical. School runs won’t be a problem, but family tours with six or seven adults will.

In keeping with the move up the value chain, the Tourer also comes with larger engines. The one to attract Irish buyers is the 2-litre diesel, offered in a range of power options: 110bhp, 130bhp and 165bhp. We previously tested the 165bhp version for a short drive but this time we had the 130bhp to properly put to the test. With a price difference of €1,500, I suspect buyers would be better off going for the 130bhp and using the money elsewhere, for example in moving to a higher specification. The 130bhp version is fine in this car, able to power overtaking manoeuvres and cruise along on the motorway without complaint. I suspect the same could not be said of the 110bhp version, though we haven’t had a chance to test it. For buyers with only the budget for this, the regular Zafira is probably a better buy.

There’s slightly better news in terms of bootspace, with an extra 70 litres in five-seat format, bringing it up to 710 litres, but with all seven seats in use it shrinks back to supermini size. That’s where these 5+2 people carriers show their limitations and the likes of the Ford Galaxy or Renault Espace come into their own.

The Tourer’s pricing is in line with competitors, particularly when you consider improvements to the cabin fit and finish. It’s not the luxury lounge sales staff will lead you to believe, but it brings comfort to an otherwise practical car. Ford has set the standard for people-carrier over the last few years but Opel is giving chase and this Tourer version is worth a test drive for those who must accept the sacrifices of family life while the great minds of humankind continue to work on making a coupé sports car that seats seven – and the accompanying luggage.

FACTFILE

Engine1,956cc four-cylinder turbocharged diesel putting out 130bhp @ 4,000rpm and 300Nm of torque @ 1,750rpm

Performance0-100km/h in 11.4 seconds (top speed 193km/h)

Economy4.5 L/100km (62.7mpg)

Emissions119g/km (Band A – €160 tax)

Features17" steel wheels; ESP stability control; front and rear parking sensors; air-con; roof rails; front passenger underseat storage. Options include Bluetooth (€357); LED tail lamps (€325); sat-nav (€1,214)

Price€30,495 (prices start at €28,495 for 2-litre 110bhp diesel S version)

RivalsFord S-Max 2.0 140bhp TDCi Zetec – €35,160 (tax: €330); Citroën Grand C4 Picasso – ; Peugeot 5008 1.6 HDi 112bhp Active – €29,615 (tax: €225); Toyota Verso D-4D Luna – €30,995 (tax: €481)

Our rating7/10 – family-friendly transport, now with that touch of class