Vauxhall Adam Review: Unique, If A Bit 'Meh'

Under the hood

The Vauxhall Adam is exciting to look at, but exciting to drive it is not. Underneath our ‘James Blonde’ coloured bonnet lies the lower powered (of two) 1.4-litre unit. It’s not turbocharged (one’s thankfully coming later), so we’re relying on just 86bhp here.

Performance? Not really, but for the sake of consistency we’ll give you the figures: this Adam will saunter from 0-62mph in 12.5sec and is good for 109mph. Eventually. Opt for the most potent 98bhp 1.4 and these figures are 11.5sec and 115mph respectively.

It’s also important to mention that no engine in the current Adam line-up manages to undercut the golden 100g/km CO2 marker (such cars are free from London’s C-Charge and are road tax exempt), with 118g/km as good as it gets here. Tut tut.

Behind the wheel

Aha, finally the puzzle is starting to come together. You see, the Vauxhall Adam is a fashion statement for Shoreditch hipsters, for people who wear different coloured socks and for those who drink tea out of baby blue cups, with ‘OMG’ emblazoned on the side. These, ladies and gents, are the fashionistas.

It’s for these reasons that I feel so very at home in the Adam’s beautifully appointed interior; I jest of course, but even this non-socialite really likes what he sees. The quality of materials is top notch, the dashboard layout uncluttered and easy to use and seats comfortable and good looking. The big news inside, however, is the Adam’s IntelliLink infotainment system – displayed on a seven-inch colour display - which connects your smartphone (both Android and Apple iOS) to the car.

Then there are the limitless personalisation opportunities (over 1 million!) inside and out. Want an illuminated starry night roof lining? You got it. How about multi-coloured alloys? Would go well with your car’s ‘James Blonde’ exterior colour (pictured). You dream it up, the Adam will wear it.

So we’ve established that Vauxhall’s new city slicker is fashionable, unique and Twitter ready, but what’s it like to drive? Honestly, it’s a little ‘meh’. Don’t get me wrong, the ride and handling are good – firm, grips well – but the engine line-up will disappoint those of us who like to blow the cobwebs out of our pipes on a weekend. Acceleration feels as slow in reality as it looks on paper and weak shove out of corners can frustrate.

The five-speed gearbox is notchy and easy to use once warm, while the steering - tuned for the UK market - is light and accurate.

Splash the cash?

The Vauxhall Adam is fairly average to drive, but more fashionable inside and out than that Grimmy bloke from Radio 1. It’s also a comfortable, good looking (go home Fiat 500) and truly customizable city car, and one which promises decent three-year re-sale values.

Until the line-up is graced with a turbocharged and six-speeder Adam, your buying decision here will rely on how heavily you favour fashion and tech. Something tells me that Vauxhall won't have a problem with sales…