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Prepare for a shock. A small shock, admittedly, but a shock nonetheless.
This is the new Vauxhall Meriva. Not a 'concept previewing the new Vauxhall Meriva', but the real, production Vauxhall Meriva. And it has suicide doors!
Actually, Vauxhall doesn't call them suicide doors. They're FlexDoors, apparently, which "allow unimpeded forward access/egress to and from the cabin". That's marketing-speak for ‘make it easier to get in and out of the back'.
We are unashamed suckers for a good suicide door - even on a sensible five-seat family car - so the Meriva is off to a good start. And it should be a tidy all-round specimen when it goes on sale later this year after its debut at the Geneva show in March.
For a start, it looks good, adopting bits of Astra/Insignia design language - check out that ‘sideblade' running down from the front wheel arch - and adding a natty new kink in the window line, which helps to improve visibility from the rear seats but mainly looks rather good.
With a wider track and longer wheelbase than the outgoing Meriva, it should drive better than the old car. It'll be launched with a range of six turbo engines borrowed from the Astra, ranging from 74bhp to 138bhp. Strangely, there's no word on a VXR version yet.
We'll get our first look at the new Meriva in Geneva (poets, know it, etc.) this March.
New Meriva: unhinged
Vauxhall’s sensible family car gets suicide doors and kinky windows. What’s going on?
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What do you think?
Want to comment on this?
Kuang commented on this article
at 03:04 pm on 05 January 2010
I've never understood the point of suicide doors if you still have a big, solid B pillar - it's not as if they make it that much easier to get in. The RX-8 gets style points here for trying something different overall, but otherwise it seems like a fashion statement for a fashion nobody wears anymore.
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oliroolz commented on this article
at 04:07 pm on 05 January 2010
i think it looks pretty good actually! finally a car maker has carried on a concept without making it boring!!! well done vauxhall!
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Mikeado commented on this article
at 04:15 pm on 05 January 2010
It's certainly much more interesting than the old Meriva, although it retains that awful, awful name. But they've made Honda's mistake of making the headlights too big. They're completely out of proportion with the rest of the front mask and are probably only that big to give it a cutesy face that will go with a cartoony ad campaign. I will thus never want one. The rest of it looks good though, nice 'n' modern, and clearly a VauxOpel, although that jagged waistline will likely polarise opinion.
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Oliver006 commented on this article
at 04:53 pm on 05 January 2010
it looks like it can fly, kinda looks like jumbo,lol...
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Mogensen commented on this article
at 09:08 pm on 05 January 2010
Guessing that the OPC (or VRX in UK) ends up with the current Corsa's 1,6 litre 192 bhp engine. Possibly slightly detuned?
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