Opel Adam is a stylish rarity with the machine

Those interested in a stylish small car in the city with a vending machine do not have to look any further. The tested Adam is a hot candidate, and he is also a relatively rare car on Czech roads

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Only a few Opel Opels were sold here. And even fewer pieces with a vending machine. If you only need a car in the city, you usually reach for the popular Citigo, while the stylish are looking for a Fiat 500 or Mini. But the Opel Adam is a reliable and interesting car, think of it too.

Are you looking for a stylus for your daughter with a fresh driver's license, you can't find a Fiat 500 in a vending machine and the Mini is too expensive for you? So look no further, because you have just found the ideal car. The Opel Adam is unique in a way because we don't really have many of them.

In the category of urban-style games for young people, however, Adam does not have such a girly image as the Fiat 500 and does not look as snobby to some as the Mini. But maybe that's why he was, especially in our market, misunderstood. But it has its charm and it is simply an original car, behind the wheel of which even a man will not feel inappropriate.

Moreover, it cannot be described as a risky and unreliable used car. It uses a relatively decent and tried-and-tested Corsa technique, the service is not overly expensive and you can get everything for it. Rather, you will have to accept that the limited offer on the market does not give you much choice, and if you do not like the specifications of a particular car, you are out of luck. Fortunately, the pink-pale blue Adams, unlike the Fiat 500, do not drive much.

Rare than Ferrari

At Auto ESA, we borrowed an Opel Adam with a 1.4 16V engine with an output of 64 kW and in a rather rare combination with a five-speed Easytronic robotic controller. The nicely equipped car from 2018 had only driven 31,000 km at the time of the test and the dealer wanted CZK 250,000 for it.

The Opel Adam is not a very common car on the Czech market. Ferrari cars prices start below 150,000 CZK, but few used cars are sold around the 250,000 CZK, depending on the engine and equipment.

You will find a much better choice abroad, especially in Germany. And how do these little styles, including Opel Adam, stand in bazaars? Filip Kučera from Auto ESA answers that the stylish small cars are sold as new with a premium price tag. The biggest drop in prices occurs in the first three years. Then their price falls slowly. Even slower than higher class cars. The Opel Adam from 2018 is an ideal choice in terms of price for those interested in a city car. The highest price drop is behind it, while it has a low drive, excellent condition, current design, and equipment from cars of higher classes. Similarly, the prices of other even better-known stylish models, such as the Fiat 500 or MINI, are developing in the second-hand market. When ordering a new stylish car, customers take advantage of the wide range of personalization options that this specific type of vehicle allows. In the used market, you can find many different versions from two-color combinations of roof and body, through cheerful colors and noble materials in the interior to advanced safety features. In our offer, every small stylish car is original in its own way.

We know the GM SCCS platform from the Opel Corsa generation D or the Fiat Punto third generation. But Adam has a 20 cm shorter wheelbase compared to Corsa and is also almost 30 cm shorter. With a length of 3.7 meters, it is really an ideal car for the city. With comparable engines and equipment, however, Adam is only slightly lighter than the Corsa, at least as the tables say.

More expensive but well equipped

At the time of its launch, the basic Opel Adam cost CZK 250,000 with a twelve-cylinder, and the fourteen-cylinder was CZK 20,000 more expensive depending on the equipment. In addition, most customers chose higher equipment, so in Adam, who did not try to be a budget car, you will usually find a decent radio with a USB port, additionally configurable interior (dashboard decors, seat upholstery, ceiling upholstery, etc.), and exterior and in addition to air conditioning those electronic toys. Plenty of cars have cruise control, for example, the onboard computer is a matter of course.

The vast majority of Adams have very decent equipment with air conditioning, a better radio with a USB connection and other necessities. The power steering has City mode, then you turn the steering wheel with one finger

Opel offered many accessories and personalization options, so you can hardly find the exact same car. Some interior decors can even be replaced. The quality of the surfaces is actually very decent

While in the Corsa there were quite a few engines and versions, and Opel, as perhaps the only manufacturer in Europe, even offered you three transmission options in the B-segment (the 1.4 16V engine had either an Easytronic robotic automatic machine or a classic torque converter). ), the Adam engine range is much simpler. The mentioned Easytronic automatic machine was the only automatic option and only for the 1.4 16V 64 kW engine.

The engines then offered a four-cylinder twelve-cylinder, fourteen-cylinder in the version 64 kW (also as LPG) and 74 kW) and then the sporty version 1.4 Turbo with an output of 110 kW. Atmospheric versions always had a five-stage manual, versions with a turbo six-stage. In mid-2014, a three-cylinder three-cylinder turbo with an output of 66 or 85 kW, which always had a six-speed transmission.

No dragon, but that's enough for the city

The tested Adam is not a racer by nature, but miracles cannot be expected from a 64 kW engine. Rather, his efforts are dulled by the over-emission of Easytronic. For example, in Corse C, he was not afraid to keep higher speeds and keep the engine in the middle range to engage better. Here, during normal driving, it disengages unusually early on a six-cylinder, stealing the necessary dynamics, which comes at up to 3,000 rpm. Fortunately, you can help the transmission with a quick sequential selection of gears, and it's actually quite fun when you just tap the selector and you don't have to push the clutch. With the comfort of shifting, it helps to easily remove the throttle.

Unlike the Corsa, which could have an automatic for almost all motorizations (and in some cases even two types of automatic), Adam had only one option, moreover only as a robotic Easytronic transmission. But it is possible to survive with her

You get used to it quickly and the robotic machine (there is a more modern version of Easytronic 3.0 in Adam) is then not such a disaster as it is said. It even seems to me that, for example, when parking and starting off, it gives a smoother and more natural impression than most overzealous dual-clutch transmissions. Of course, Easytronic cannot be compared to a classic automaton with a hydrodynamic converter.

However, the transmission uses a classic clutch and does not steal, unlike the automatic with converter, the engine power. So dynamics and consumption than do not suffer. But reliability is contradictory. There are those who have been on the Corse Easytronic for maybe fourteen years and still work without problems, others started reporting errors after 40,000 km. The service life of the clutch then depends on the driving style, in the exclusively urban mode it usually does not last over 100,000 km.

Opel Adam received an improved version of the Easytronic transmission. It shifts more comfortably, but it is not very suitable for faster driving, when it really takes a change of speed

Although mechanically it is actually an identical housing with a classic manual, the electronic clutch control member can fail, the hydraulic fluid must also change, and especially when replacing the clutch, the electronic transmission brain must learn to work with the new clutch. The clutch limits must be set correctly. In total, it can cost 10 to 15 thousand crowns.

But if you want Adam and you don't want to sort (or you can't for health reasons), you have nothing else left. Despite all this fright, you can live with Easytronic, and I personally don't remember a used car that Easytronic wouldn't work in, whether it was a more self-propelled and tight Opel.

And as I say: you get used to it, and with Adam and the machine, the driver, who doesn't have a problem shifting, has a nice ride. In the manual mode, it is possible to maintain higher speeds, at which the atmospheric fortnightly feels better and the car is not completely useless even on the highway, although of course, it is more suitable for the city and for quiet traffic. Consumption can be maintained between 6 and 7 liters per 100 km.

No one will sit behind a larger driver, but if the passenger moves a little forward, there will be enough space behind him for an adult. Otherwise, this car is really for two

Personally, I like ergonomics at the Opel Adam, where it sits quite low, the steering wheel is widely adjustable, and overall the position behind the wheel is very German. So right. Opel has always been able to do this. Only then is there no more space behind the driver, and the rear seat is really only usable as storage space. However, the front passenger can move closer thanks to the recess in the dashboard, and then someone will sit behind him. So Adam is a car not just for two, but with a little effort for three.

The interior looks quite high quality and valuable. Probably not like the Mini, but better than the Fiat 500 and the basic Corsas. However, the chosen color combinations will do a lot, which can pleasantly refresh the interior of the mentioned Fiat 500. All I was struck by the rumble of plastics around the mid-range, but I had never encountered anything like this before the Opeles, so it could have been the vice of a particular piece. But it was nothing terrible, and he who hears the radio aloud will not hear anything.

The scarecrow is not under the hood

We have already devoted ourselves to something about the gearbox, at least in short, about the engines. The basic twelve-cylinder is actually a very reliable and simple engine, which also applies to the fourteen-hundred. In addition, the 1.4 16V engine should have solved earlier chain problems, Opel has gradually introduced modifications, and in Adam, you should no longer encounter a delicate timing chain.

The Opel Adam has never been sold with diesel and is not even needed in a city car. The new supercharged three-cylinder is flexible, but more delicate in the city. Older indirect injection engines last a long time if serviced correctly

But keep an eye on the service history, because you may experience unpleasant surprises with some pieces. They may have driven only 20,000 km after three or four years, but they are still running on the original oil from production. It is honest oil changes, preferably after a maximum of 15,000 km or one year, that are essential for the condition of the opener engines. Then there is no danger that the piston rings will stick to them and they will start taking the oil like a two-stroke.

Occasionally, the ignition strip leaves, which on the four-cylinder costs about three thousand crowns in primary production. The supercharged three-cylinder uses classic coils that are separate for each cylinder, but over time, expensive injectors that are not yet available in series production can become stuck with carbon if you refuel with low-quality petrol.

The 1.4 Turbo unit needs at least ninety-eight, and for a three-liter three-cylinder with a turbo, high-octane petrol is a recommendation due to the content of cleaning additives. The supercharged fourteen can still have an indirect injection (so it won't be clogged with carbon braces and it won't dilute the oil with gasoline in city traffic), but the higher octane number will prevent detonation combustion, which the blown fourteen in Opel suffers from and can even burst piston. Then it can only make the regulation of the turbo angry. Otherwise, they are quite reliable engines if they receive regular service.

Due to relatively small raids and less utilization, used Adams are not usually dismantled as delivery cars (for which Adam was expensive) and other servants. These are usually the second or third cars in families, which will suffer as much as possible from some scar from the parking lot (be careful not to let more damaged places rust) or will have neglected service.

It is quite common to knock the stabilizer bars on the front axle, in combination with low-profile wheels, the wear of the chassis will be accelerated. But the simple construction of the bottom with a trailing axle at the rear and drum brakes (only Adam S with a 1.4-liter turbo engine has discs at the rear) does not unnecessarily increase the cost of repairs. This is a simple and really reliable car. It will be significantly cheaper to service than the not very reliable Mini.

Overall rating: Used Opel Adam

As I mentioned: if you like the Opel Adam and need a vending machine, don't solve anything and buy. Overall, it is a reliable car and with the risk of a little more expensive repair of the transmission with a replacement, the clutch can be lived. If Adam hasn't driven 150,000 km (which he probably doesn't even have in the ads yet), you won't hear about that transmission for many years to come. But we can recommend it to anyone who just wants something different and, for example, compared to the Fiat 500, it really doesn't have such a girly image. And against the rather risky Mini, Adam is much more reliable. Together with the Fiat 500, this is one of the best small cars in the city, and even if you buy a cheap, well-designed, and reliable Citigo, the Opel Adam is definitely a more attractive and emotionally premium car.