I got the message as soon as the Vauxhall Agila ecoFLEX test car arrived.
This car is supposed to be green, you see, and the paint could hardly have been greener – a sort of dayglo metallic pea soup.
The Agila is the starter model in the Vauxhall range and was selling under the scrappage scheme for only £6,295 in Expression trim with the one litre petrol engine.
My test car was at the other extreme, though, as it was the top model in the range, the Design 1.3 CDTi.
This car is a hybrid in the true sense of the word (it doesn’t do all that dodgy battery stuff), but that’s not where it gets the eco bit in its name. It’s made by Suzuki, powered by Fiat, and badged by Vauxhall to make it a truly international effort, especially as the maker with a Japanese name actually produces the car in Hungary, where it also makes the Swift, Ignis, and SX4. Suzuki knows a bit about sharing its cars about, because as well as the Agila being marketed as the Suzuki Splash the SX4 turns up in Fiat showrooms as the Sedici.
Suzuki styled the base car for the European market but it was left to Vauxhall stylists to top and tail it to add their own distinctive features. The middle section is basically the same so maybe the choice will stem as much from your perception of each brand as it will from anything else. Suzuki’s target is young people, Vauxhall will probably attract older buyers.
The whole point of ecoFLEX is to have cars with low emissions but the badge on the Agila should not be allowed to pull the wool over your eyes as there are plenty of small cars around that pump out less CO2. That’s probably important if the eco label is what has drawn you to the Agila in the first place.
My recent trip in the Agila is my first experience of this generation of the car wearing the Vauxhall badge even though it has been in the range since April last year. I had driven the Suzuki though so knew roughly what it was all about.
When Vauxhall asked if I wanted to try the car I thought it would be churlish to say no. Despite all its troubles during 2009, the General Motors press office in the UK has kept its supply of press cars going so you can be kept informed, which is far better than the frankly shoddy attitude of Ford which hides behind restrictions on overtime for its hourly paid drivers as a lame excuse for not sending out test cars.
That’s how I came to be driving an Agila diesel. It’s definitely not my first choice because diesel small cars are so expensive and not necessarily good value when compared with their petrol counterparts.
Last year’s Suzuki was the 1.2 litre petrol model which averaged close to 50 mpg. The diesel Agila managed 58 mpg, which, while good, I don’t view as particularly outstanding for the size of car when compared with what the petrol model would do. If the urge for all-round economy floats your boat then better to look at the 1.0 petrol model - marginally slower and less economical but saving a shedload of cash on the purchase price. The precise figure is £2,135 although that’s about to increase as the VAT rate goes back to 17.5 per cent.
You can only have the 1.0 with Expression or Club trim but that’s no hardship really because most people planning to buy a small economy car know it’s likely to be sparse.
There’s no shortage of space in this true five seater, though. Fold the rear seat backrests and up to 1050 litres of load space appears before you as you open the tailgate. Keep the seats up and there’s 225 litres, hardly a lot although enough for quite a bit of shopping.
Avoid the £12,625 Design diesel and choose a cheaper Agila if you really want to have that eco bit ring true. You’ll find that it won’t disappoint unless low CO2 is you ultimate target.
Maurice Hardy
The interior of the Vauxhall Agila is appealing because it’s simple. There’s a single instrument pod in front of the driver with a separate rev counter sitting on top of the dashboard, Mini style. It’s all very effective and the sort of thing that appeals when so many cars are bland.
A common failing with many small cars that renders them useless for a family of five, or where the car is regularly used to take turns ferrying kids on a school run, is the lack of the fifth seatbelt but luckily the Agila is entirely practical on this point. The centre belt pulls downs from the roof when you need it but otherwise stows out of the way.
Less practical is the small boot, but when my daughter’s partner took his friend Bob for a round of golf in the Suzuki Splash we had last year they found that just folding the smaller section of the rear seat was sufficient to accommodate two sets of clubs.
The rear seats are easy to fold, going almost flat at the touch of one lever. Convenient features like this make living with a car so much better.
What’s not so brilliant is the choppy ride. The steering also goes very light when the car speeds up and there’s real old fashioned torque steer from this diesel if you try to pull away from a junction fast.
Annette Hardy
Car: Vauxhall Agila Design 1.3 CDTi ecoFLEX
Does it fit your ego?...
0-62 mph: 13.3 secs
Top speed: 103 mph
Bhp: 75 @ 4000 rpm
Torque: 140 lb ft @ 1750 rpm
...and your wallet?...
Price: £12,625
Urban: 51.4 mpg
Extra urban: 70.6 mpg
Combined: 62.8 mpg
CO2 emissions: 120 g/km
Insurance Group: 4
Best bits: spacious; sips fuel; seats five.
