Throughout history, German engineering and motoring innovation has always been at the forefront of the industry.
And with a tightly interwoven history with the European country, Namibia is no stranger to its brands, especially Opel.
Opel has an interesting manufacturing history. The company traces their roots to a sewing machine manufacturer founded by Adam Opel in 1862 in Rüsselsheim in Main.
From sewing machines, Opel transitioned into transportation with the production of bicycles in 1886 and produced their first automobile 13 years later. After listing on the stock market in 1929, General Motors took a majority stake the company and then full control in 1931, establishing the American reign over the German automaker for nearly 90 years.
Almost two centuries after its inception, Opel has come a long way, releasing top of the line vehicles every year while competing well in respective markets.
The Opel Adam is one such vehicle. A car that is perfect for Windhoek’s busy city life, the Adam carries out its purpose effortlessly.
The Adam was launched in France in 2012 at the Paris Motor Show, starting sales early the following year.
Having the opportunity to take the Adam Jam, the one-litre ecoFlex version, for a drive, the hatchback burrowed its way into my heart. A tiny hatch, it has a length of
3 747mm, width of 1 966/1 807mm and measures 1 484mm in height. The size of the Adam is part of its appeal. The contours and hot-red paint give it a sporty edge, with 16-inch alloy wheels adding to its youthfulness.
The Adam’s rounded edges and accentuated elliptical head and taillights add to these characteristics of the car.
Colour-coded door handles and bumpers and the chrome upper-body side moulding all come standard with the Adam Jam, along with power and heated side mirrors.
The interior styling impressively matches the outside. The Adam is on par with industry standards when it comes to luxury and technology. The multi-functional steering wheel offers options in media and cruise control while having a steadier feel than most power-steering vehicles nowadays. This aspect makes the driver feel more in control and the vehicle steadier on the road, while the leather provides a firm grip.
The three-cylinder engine puts out 85kW between
5 000 and 6 000 rpm, and 170Nm of torque between 1 800 and 4 500 rpm.
The six-speed manual transmission adds to the sportiness of the vehicle; navigating through the city and on highways is a breeze. Although not the largest of engines, the Adam has no problem accelerating steadily and quickly – even when the air con is on – and is relatively powerful on the road.
The Adam Jam comes standard with safety features found in most modern vehicles including driver and passenger airbags, side blind zone alert, electronic stability programming and cruise and speed limiter control, along with security features such as an anti-theft alarm, immoboliser and remote central locking.
The Adam Jam delivers an exhilarating and satisfying drive. The size of the car makes it easy to navigate and the peddling offers just the right amount of pressure.
A car made for the city, it isn’t very spacious and could be uncomfortable for some passengers. It doesn’t offer much boot space either. So it’s probably not suited for larger rugby player types.
In April 2013, the Adam won the Red Car Design award, while in 2012, German Auto Zeitung readers voted it the number one city car. The 38th Reader’s Choice award of trade magazine Auto Motor und Sport also went to the Adam.
Sadly, late last year, Opel and its British subsidiary Vauxhall announced that in order to optimise the model line-up and to focus on high volume segments, the company will axe the Adam, Karl, Cascada and Viva models after the end of their life cycles in approximately one year.
The hot hatch won’t have any successors as Opel announced intentions to focus on SUVs, notably the new Opel Mokka.
This announcement is unfortunate as the Adam is one of the most enjoyable three-door hatches out there, with its own sense of personality and attitude.
Catch our full test drive on The Namibian’s YouTube channel.
– @jonathan_sasha on Twitter; @jonathan.sasha on Instagram.
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