The Opel Meriva with New Diesel Engines

In 2003, Opel literally strike it rich with the Meriva, the mini MPV based on the Corsa’s C, combine the great attributes of a mini van with the four-meter long little urban car. Since June, the second generation Meriva has been spicing up the successful recipe with some refined ingredients, more interior space, more flexibility, more drive comfort, seven engines are available, four diesel version which can be ordered right away, their output ranging from 95 to 130 horsepower.

The main engines for the new Meriva are the four-diesel versions. Four cylinders and transverse engine alignment are powerful and economical. Don’t believe a diesel drinker like the Meriva can't be nimble as a fox. With 130 horsepower, the 1.7-liter range topping diesel zips from rest to 109.9 seconds peaking at 196 kilometers per hour. And still, the common way of direct injector only uses 5.2 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers.

Compared with its predecessor, the new Meriva is much more mature. The grille and the large headlights make up the brand image. The cute little kink in the window line makes the car unmistakable. One of the stunning innovative features are the rear hinged rear door making entry and egress so much easier. Special safety systems prevent them form opening inadvertently while driving.

The four-chrome leather CDTi at the back of the Meriva point to one of the four diesel engines available for the new Meriva. The 1.7-liter engines generate 100,110 and 130 horsepower respectively. The 1.3-liter Ecoflex with 95 horsepower beats the previous model in performance by 20% and that, even though it uses 11% less fuel, 4.5 liters per 100 kilometers and 119 grams of CO2 per kilometer are tops in this category of cars. While the 1.3-liter unit has made it to a five-speed manual transmission, the 1.7-liter version with 110 and 130 horsepower comes standard with six speeds. The 100 horsepower unit impresses with the comfort of a six-speed automatic.

In 2011, Opel will also offer the Meriva with an auto-start stop function although the Mini MPV is only been out in showrooms since June, more than 60,000 customers in Europe have decided to buy one of the new Merivas.