June Neary gives you the lowdown on Vauxhall's new flexible friend, the ADAM, from the family perspective.
WILL IT SUIT ME?
I'm always suspicious when a carmaker claims to have produced a car especially aimed at someone like me. After all, how exactly do they know what "someone like me" might like? They don't, of course, assuming in the case of the Vauxhall ADAM I've been looking at this week that my preferences lie in the bespoke personalisation of my chosen wheels to fit my exact lifestyle.
To be fair, that's not too far off the mark. I am one of those people who likes their car to reflect their personality. I'm not overly bothered about 0-60 times and newton metres of torque. And I don't need enough space to accommodate the von Trapp family in the back.
I would, on the other hand, very much like a compact runabout that, at low cost, I could spec to look like nothing else on the road. So who knows, I may very well be the target market for the Griffin brand's latest little tiddler. On that basis, I was keen to try one.
PRACTICALITIES
As long as you accept the compromise here that you pay supermini (Fiesta and Corsa) money but get a smaller city car (Ka and Fiat 500) shape, you won't be disappointed.
As in a Fiat 500, the high roof gives a spacious feel, something that here is further underlined by the greater width and glass area. But all the smoke and mirrors in the world can't create space within the restrictions of the city-car remit. To be fair, it's virtually impossible for a car this short to properly seat two adults in the back, something most ADAM owners will rarely want to do anyway. But for those occasions when friends do need transport, they'll feel less claustrophobic here than in just about any other small lifestyle runabout I can think of. It's certainly much nicer back there than it would be in a MINI, a rear-seat proposition that even kids object to.
And at the wheel? Well, as a buyer you'll have used the enormous trim choice range to complete a decor finish that's either restrained, wilfully extrovert or more likely, as in this case, a feel that's somewhere between the two. This aside, curiously enough, it does feel quite MINI-like, a feeling engendered mainly by provision of the same kind of over-sized, chunky steering wheel which actually rather adds to the feeling of impending fun as you wait to pull away.
BEHIND THE WHEEL
It's based on a Corsa. Aside from that, I don't need to know very much more. Except for the fact that, as well as only being able to specify three doors, you can't have a diesel engine. Vauxhall says there's no need in this segment – but that doesn't seem to have put MINI and Fiat off.
As for which of the three petrol engines you should choose, I'd probably avoid the entry-level 1.2 in favour of one of the 1.4s, an 87PS unit that manages 62mph in 12.5 seconds on the way to 109mphn or a 100PS engine that improves things further to 11.5 seconds and 115mph. Ask for something a little more high-tech and the designers will point to the three-cylinder 1.0-litre petrol unit also developed for this car.
As with most models of this kind, while you'll be quite comfortable attempting a motorway trip of a few hours, you will notice at and around the legal limit that refinement isn't quite as good as you first thought. This is partly due to the lack of a six-speed manual gearbox across mainstream variants. They are all much happier around town where a neat CITY button can lighten the steering for easy wheel-twirling that'll get you into the tightest parking space – exactly what you'll require from a car like this.
VALUE FOR MONEY
What would you expect to have to pay for a car with more bespoke personalisation opportunities than a Rolls-Royce? If I were to tell you that the price range, in rough terms, means you'll be forking out £11,500 to £14,500, which is about what you'd pay for an ordinary (albeit slightly larger) Corsa supermini, then I think you'd be quite pleased. Of course, Vauxhall is banking on you being tempted to spend quite a lot more than that on the lengthy options list – something you may very well do.
There's a choice of JAM, SLAM and GLAM trim levels, but if you'd take my advice, I'd just get a basic JAM and bespoke add-in your own favoured extras. You can start outside with the bodywork and the roof, which can be painted the same way or in contrasting colours, all bearing flamboyant names like James Blonde, Papa Don't Peach, Men in Brown, White my Fire or, my personal favourite, I'll be Black. If you want, you can jazz up the chosen paint colour with special decal packs – Splat for the JAM, Fly for the GLAM and Stripes' for the SLAM. Many of these decals are also included in a bold selection of option packs designed to take your fashion statement to the next level, the main choice between a simple two-tone Black or White approach or the bolder Twisted or Extreme packages. That only leaves wheels, with a choice between 16in to 18in alloy rims with interchangeable colour clips that you can click on or off as the fancy or the season takes you.
That whole idea of interchangeable fashion is carried on inside. As with the wheel clips, fascia decor and door surround panels come in a huge range of bold colours (some are even backlit by glowing LEDs) and can be clipped on and off to suit your changing tastes – or those of subsequent owners. So should you decide to go a bit extreme, it'll be safe in the knowledge that it won't necessarily leave your car completely unsaleable come trade-in time.
COULD I LIVE WITH ONE?
I rather think so. The ADAM's look isn't as instantly eye-catching as a MINI or a Fiat 500 but I have to say that it's growing on me. And it's certainly possible to create a car that's far more to your own personal taste.
CONTACT DETAILS
For further details on the ADAM, call Pentagon Vauxhall in Derby on 01332 644213 or visit its Pentagon Island site (DE21 6HB).
