... I negotiate the Meriva round the first bend, there is a smile on my face, my wife has a smile on her face, Klaudia can barely hide her enthusiasm for Vauxhall's mini-MPV.
My wife catches my smile, "Why hasn't our Omega got as good an air conditioning system in it as this? Why does this ... Read review
Advantages: Very practical, superb driving position, great fun to drive. Disadvantages: A little pricey bearing in mind standard kit. Visability may be compromised.
...a rattle from it either. Vauxhall have thought of everything in here, the kids can even listen to a CD in the back while the adults listen to radio in the front, or of course visa versa.
The instruments are outstandingly clear, all other manufacturers could learn from the stunningly clear central head up display for the clock / radio and infotainment system. Just a few further details, the backs of the front seats have fold down airline ... ...picknic, whilst the rear seats both slide fore and aft, move in towards the centre and - remarkably - even recline.
By the time we reached home 45 minutes after setting out, I had come to the definite conclusion that this car makes the £6000 more expensive Signum completely redundant. In terms of interior packaging it offers 5 seats against the Signum's 4, yet on the car we drove also had the Signum's (pretty useless) "Travel ... more
Picture the scene if you will, it is the hottest day of the year and we have just collected my beloved Omega from the garage following some exhaust manifold repair work, 30 minutes later at 6.05p.m. we are sitting outside a garden centre 10 miles away and the car will not start.
My wife and I have her 9 year old sister, Klaudia with us. She is Polish and speaks not a word of English.
At this time of day I reckon it's a slim hope getting hold of the service manager, but I press the button on my mobile and find myself speaking to an old mate, the General Manager. He says "get the car back up here any way you can, there is a silver Meriva demonstrator parked outside the showroom, with the key on top of the rear offside wheel."
My wife (and her sister) is so fed up that her only comment is "I don't care what he's left us to drive home in providing it has air conditioning!" (We had been driving a base Corsa service loan car for the day - naturallly sans air-con! Klaudia's only comment on the Corsa was "ale grat" - translation "what a heap!")
Having managed to fire up the Omega, albeit on three cylinders, we limp back to the garage.
Apologies - I know most of you have already clicked the "off subject" icon but bear with me please...........
.........This was the first Meriva that I had seen, it having only been launched a couple of weeks previously and to be honest knowing that it was based on the decidedly lack lustre Corsa we were not expecting much of it at all.
I had to stifle a grimace as I opened the drivers door, in chromed letters, on the door, it said "Enjoy" - what?
We took our belongings from the Omega, CD for the single slot CD player, child seat for Klaudia - completely unnecessary in the Meriva - and off we go.
It has been an extremely hard day, all we want to do is drive the 20 miles home. I negotiate the Meriva round the first bend, there is a smile on my face, my wife has a smile on her face, Klaudia can barely hide her enthusiasm for Vauxhall's mini-MPV.
My wife catches my smile, "Why hasn't our Omega got as good an air conditioning system in it as this? Why does this CD sound better than it ever has before? My goodness I'm seeing scenery that I've never seen before too!"
I'm too busy enjoying the drive, yes I had noticed that for the first time all day I was comfortably cool, it was 28 degrees outside the very glassy cabin, inside it was a relaxed 20. No the CD had not caught my attention, but the handling certainly had.
Our little passenger in the back found, before we moved off, that the multi-adjustable rear seat sat her more than high enough not to require her booster seat. For the first time, in any car, she was travelling high up enough to see out, enjoy the view and not feel at all car sick. If you have children then on this score alone Klaudia and I would thoroughly recommend the Meriva.
In my experience cars that handle well usually have a decent ride quality too. This in the Meriva's case is a remarkable achievement, with it's quite short wheelbase and high centre of gravity, it was expected to handle like a stuck pig and pitch around all over the place. The fact that dynamically it is vastly superior to the Corsa is a real surprise.
The seats are very comfortable up front, a good range of adjustment means that if you are patient and spend a little time experimenting you can set up a driving position that, having driven literally dozens of cars over the last decade, I'd say is second to none.
My only moan on that first drive was that visibility, a major safety factor, is, as with all MPV configuration cars, compromised by windscreen pillars which sweep away from you towards the base of the 'screen. This you particularly notice when approaching "Y" junctions or joining a motorway from the slip road, a car can easily be hiding behind that thick pillar if it is travelling at the same speed as you.
So far I had no idea what engine was under the bonnet and driving the front wheels. With 2.4 of us on board it was only just powerful enough, fun to drive through the very slick gearbox and admirably smooth and quiet too, but not what you could describe as rapid.
This engine does suit the rest of the car though, the Meriva has a very positive affect on you as a driver and other road users as it is in no way agressive or competitive looking. It is the kind of car that people tend to let you out of side streets in, completely the opposite to an Escort XR3i I had many years ago!
The Meriva is quite heavy, weighing in at around 1350kg, from a middle powered (it turned out on raising the bonnet to be a 1.6 16 valve petrol engine) 100bhp not only is it going to struggle to keep up with motorway traffic with four adults aboard but it will use a fair bit more fuel than you would expect. I drove it for about 200 miles and got about 30mpg out of it.
It is inside where the Meriva is a true revalation though. The new Doctor Who should drive one of these because in reality it's the closest to a Tardis that you are going to find. As well as true versitility from the seating arrangements, interior trim fit and finish standards are excellent, unlike in my new Honda Accord, there is not a rattle from it either. Vauxhall have thought of everything in here, the kids can even listen to a CD in the back while the adults listen to radio in the front, or of course visa versa.
The instruments are outstandingly clear, all other manufacturers could learn from the stunningly clear central head up display for the clock / radio and infotainment system. Just a few further details, the backs of the front seats have fold down airline style tables - great for the kids or a rainy picknic, whilst the rear seats both slide fore and aft, move in towards the centre and - remarkably - even recline.
By the time we reached home 45 minutes after setting out, I had come to the definite conclusion that this car makes the £6000 more expensive Signum completely redundant. In terms of interior packaging it offers 5 seats against the Signum's 4, yet on the car we drove also had the Signum's (pretty useless) "Travel Assistant" box - a kind of large refridgerated rear glove box. More imortantly from the drivers point of view it is far more fun to drive than the larger car, easier to park and much, much better from a child's point of view.
After three days we were loath to give the Meriva back. I would have quite happily traded it for the Omega. It made a very good job of cruising at speed, it is the perfect town car due to the driving position and above all else is the first car that I have truly enjoyed driving in a very long time.
Being very picky if I were to take my own recommendation my own Meriva would probably be specified with the latest 1.7 CDTi diesel engine. Restricted visibility apart, this would answer my only substantial criticism of this car, the performance / economy balance would be much improved.
What would be really good would be for all of those school run mums in their big Japanese 4X4's to test drive a Meriva. It has the "command" driving position that makes them feel so secure and yet would be so much more useful to park, not to mention much kinder on the environment. From my experience their kids would thank them too!
Advantages: very spacious and easy to drive. Disadvantages: small glove compartment.
...I went to the vauxhall garage in great bridge and looked at them. I really liked the meriva design which costs around £15,000. That one had two sun-roofs, trays on the back of the front seats which would be ideal for my son, a light in the back for him and other nice additions to it. I knew I wouldn't be able to afford that, even on finance so I had to look at used cars. I found a car that I liked on finance. It was a blue/green coloured, 05 reg ... ...I do think that because vauxhall is such a popular car brand, getting the parts for it is really easy and isn't something to worry about. I feel very safe in the car with my children, the car has an airbag for me and a passenger airbag which meant my son couldn't sit in the front but that wasn't a problem because my daughter prefers to sit in the front and he isn't bothered where he sits as long as he has his dinosaurs with him. The car also has ...
rawwrjem 29.06.2009
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Vauxhall Meriva 1.6i 16v
...should definitely look at the Vauxhall Meriva. I found out about this car by accident so here is how I found out about and what I think about it, looking from a females point of view, as I found my partner was looking at things I would not have looked at.
I was on a look out for a new car as with having two kids, my present car was far to small and having a 3 door did not help especial when trying to put the youngest in her car seat. So my partner ... ...car was it was a Vauxhall Meriva life and we checked the price and I could not believe it, is was only £8,000 and was only 9 months old and it was everything we needed as a family car. So I thought don't rush into things got all the details about the car and went to had something to eat with me parents to look at the pros and cons of the car.
Pros for a Vauxhall Meriva Life
· It was a five door
· There was loads of room in the car and the boot ...
ldvda 09.07.2004
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Vauxhall Meriva 1.6i 16v
Advantages: Plenty of room for tall adults and luggage. Handles well under all conditions. Disadvantages: The materials used could of been of better quality, petrol consumtion could of been better.
1: FIRST IMPRESSION
I have been used to driving the Vectra and Astra, so the Meriva was a bit of a shock. My first thought, a box on wheels, not good for the image. I felt I was sitting on a pedal stool driving an out of proportioned car or should I say a van with seats.
2: COMFORT
I am 5' 2" with 2 children and husband who are around the 6' mark. Their usual comment with cars is not enough leg room. No problem with the Meriva.
The car is a lot ... ...to be positioned higher to give more leg room. The driving seat is positioned so the driver is sitting upright instead of sitting lower with your legs stretched out, this helped with my bad back.
3: STORAGE SPACE
As I have already mentioned the car is shaped like a box which isn't that pleasing to the eye. What it lacks in looks it certainly makes up for in storage space.
Test 1: I play golf and I need to fit a full set of golf clubs, electric ...
jprwilliam 05.10.2003
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Vauxhall Meriva 1.6i 16v
Advantages: nice car with good looks Disadvantages: never get to drive it as the wife always has it
...a larger family vehicle a Vauxhall Astra, but with the huge buggy ,bags of toys blankets and changing bags there was just about enough room for Molly to sit in her baby chair.
My wife owned a Saxo and after 3 years decided she wanted to change her car. After a few weeks of looking we came across the Meriva looks nice and very spacious.
After a bit of carry on with the garage which I wont go into (but why is it so difficult to just buy a car and ... ...anyone reading this maybe a nice sales person!!!!) anyhow we did find a nice garage with nice people and purchased a 04 plate Meriva enjoy for £9,000 star silver with 9,000 miles on the clock, quite high considering it is only 6 months old at the time of writing this.
This model has the air/con which was essential for Molly, CD player and a better look inside than the life model with silver trimmings and a better dash. After reading the manuals ...
turbos 20.09.2004
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: very helpful Review of Vauxhall Meriva 1.6i 16v
Advantages: SPACE,SPACE,AND EVEN MORE SPACE Disadvantages: I HAVEN'T FOUND ANY YET.
BEING DISABLED, I NEEDED A CAR THAT I COULD GET IN AND OUT OF WITHOUT A WINCH. I ALSO WANTED SOMETHING WHICH DIDN'T LOOK DOWDY AND OLD FASHIONED. THE OPTIONS THAT LAY BEFORE ME WERE SIMPLE: 4x4 OR MPV.
I LIVE IN A TOWN, SO THE 4x4 WAS A WASTE OF MONEY.
THERE ARE ONLY TWO PEOPLE, SO WHY DID I WANT AN MPV.
THE MERIVA OFFERED SOMETHING THAT MANY OTHERS DIDN'T; THE SPACE AND EASE OF USE FOR THE DISABLED PERSON.
HAVING DRIVEN IT FOR A THOUSAND MILES, ... ...TO ME IT IS A LIVELY, ROOMY CAR WITHOUT ANY OBVIOUS DRAWBACKS. TRUE, I COULD MOAN ABOUT THE FAULTY SENSOR WHICH HAD TO BE REPAIRED AFTER JUST TWO HOURS BUT THE MAIN PROBLEM WAS NOT THE CAR BUT THE SHOWROOM WHO SEEMED INCAPABLE OF SORTING THE REPAIR OUT.
SINCE THEN, I HAVE FOUND NOTHING TO BITCH ABOUT. THE FUEL ECONOMY COULD BE BETTER, BUT THIS CAR WAS NEVER MEANT TO BE DRIVEN BY A LEAD FOOTED YOB, AND I HAVE FOUND THAT IF YOU CARESS THE ACELERATOR ...
CRIPPLE 29.01.2004
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Ciao members have rated this car review on average: helpful Review of Vauxhall Meriva 1.6i 16v
