First drive: Vauxhall Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTi (165PS) Start/Stop

The family-friendly Zafira MPV has sold well for Vauxhall over the years; an entirely practical kiddie-coach that does the school-run-business without fuss or bother. Commendable indeed, but on the flipside, it’s not much of a looker and the drive’s a little on the dowdy side, too.

But, one look at the latest, third incarnation Zafira; now with added “Tourer” – on sale now – with its large boomerang-shaped headlights, swoopy “blade” door detailing and modern interior design and space, and I think it’s fair to say that Vauxhall has added more than just a touch of jazz to their new up-to-seven-seater. You can even buy it with optional LED taillights, for an extra £240.

The new Zafira Tourer range starts at £21,000 and is offered with a decent choice of the latest petrol or diesel engines, with eco-tech like start/stop giving the trees a chance and – for the coming EcoFlex diesel variant – kicking the CO2 surcharge off at an MPV-lowly 119g/km.

Today, I’ll be trying out the Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTi 165bhp Start/Stop, in both Exclusiv (£24,565) and Elite (£27,415) trims, the Zafira Tourer SE 1.4 Turbo (140PS) petrol-turbo, and that more frugal-focused Zafira Tourer 2.0 (130PS) EcoFlex Start/Stop, in Exclusiv trim (£23,950).

First impressions:
The basic MPV shape is all about maximising inner space for (up to) seven people, but the Vauxhall boffins have given that basic boxy shape a modern makeover with that striking front-end, those blade door details below sharp shoulder creases and bang-up-to-date rear lights with LED innards if you so desire. It’s still all about the family, but it’s certainly an altogether fresher affair.

Into the interior:
Like the exterior, new Zafira Tourer’s inner space is some lightyears ahead of the old car in terms of style and substance. The old car was tough and durable inside, a definite blessing when sticky fingers are always on the prod, but there was never much to raise a smile of style satisfaction.

Of course, depending on the price paid, interior specs will always rise in glitz and glamour, with leather, metal and soft-touch plastics, and the Tourer is no exception, but the new car – and in every trim I tried – fitted me well (ergonomically), felt solid and thought-out, and reflected with certainty of finish and presentation the areas where more money had been spent on luxury specs.

There’s a new “lounge” seating system in the new car that transforms the three seats in the second row into two seats with more space around to sprawl, as well as over 30 storage areas dotted throughout the spacious cabin. A huge sunroof can also be specified to let the light flood in and in my test cars that generous dash of extra winter sun did indeed lift the inner space, and inner spirits.

The drive – Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTi (165PS) Start/Stop (137g/km):
With 165bhp on tap, the 2.0 CDTi turbodiesel Zafira Tourer is a peppy performer, and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised by the fast, flat and responsive driving experience from behind this leather steering wheel.

Matched to a sweetly succinct 6-speed manual gearbox, the torquey 2-litre motor (officially) sprints to 62mph in 9.1secs, and on to 129mph. It felt more than fun enough to have dad ditching the kids as soon as possible and then off to his favourite back lanes. The brakes felt impressively powerful and the suspension nicely firm, flat and in control. A sorted saloon-style drive; surely not an MPV!

This particular engine has a CO2 tailpipe-price of 137g/km and a combined quoted economy of 54.3mpg; a reasonable price to pay for entertaining performance.

The drive - Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTi (130PS) EcoFlex Start/Stop (119g/km):
The Zafira Tourer with Vauxhall’s EcoFlex technology makes less power, but stretches out its eco-legs to the tune of 62.8mpg on the (quoted) combined consumption cycle; emitting 119g/km of CO2 along the way.

Yes, it’s not got the eyebrow-raising grunt that the full-bloodied 165bhp Zafira enjoys, but it still pulls well through its six gears and certainly won’t bore you to death. The 62mph sprint comes in 10.6secs with the top speed pegged at 120mph. And, happily, the same sharp yet supple Tourer chassis is yours regardless of powerplant.

The drive - Zafira Tourer 1.4 Turbo (140PS) Start/Stop (148g/km):
Fans of the quieter and smoother fuel, petrol, will want to look at the 1.4-litre, turbocharged Zafira Tourer, with eco-stats at 148g/km of CO2 and a quoted combined consumption of 44.8mpg.

I didn’t notice the turbocharger at all here – with the turbodiesel cars you get a little pause before the whoosh of power – but the little petrol delivered its respectable dollop of torque without drama.

It’s not as torquey as the diesel motors but it is, of course, quieter and more refined-feeling, so you takes your choice on that one. But, again, with that cracking 6-speed manual gearbox, this engine felt right at home and performance-wise it sits between the two diesels at 9.9secs to 62mph, topping out at 126mph.

Ten second sum up:
The new Vauxhall Zafira Tourer certainly takes the fight to accomplished Fords in this MPV market segment, mixing space, style, practicality and driveability for a frugal, family-friendly package that can also entertain when the going gets quicker.

Prices and availabity:
The Vauxhall Zafira Tourer range starts at £21,000 for the 1.8i 16v (140PS) manual 5-speed petrol in ES trim, rising to £25,165 for the 1.4i 16v Turbo (140PS) manual 6-speed petrol in Elite trim. Available now.

www.vauxhall.co.uk



Boomerang-style headlights look very bold next to the old Zafira 



17-inch alloys 



"Blade" design detail to lower doors, under a sharp shoulderline crease



Fabric seating in this Exclusiv trim car, priced from £24,565 with the 165PS diesel engine. I found a great driving position regardless of trim level 



Three seats out back, or switch it to two with more space, using the "lounge" feature



Two extra seats can go here, or a ton of shopping, muddy dog etc



LED rear lights are an optional extra at £240






Rather a lot of buttons here, for sat-nav, Bluetooth, multimedia etc etc






The new Vauxhall Zafira Tourer, seen here in Elite 2.0 CDTi (165PS) Start/Stop trim, priced from £27,415 OTR. Technical Grey is the colour...



18-inch alloys 



Comfy leather seating under large glass sunroof 



Middle seats turns into a table






The new Vauxhall Zafira Tourer 2.0 CDTi (130PS) EcoFlex Start/Stop (119g/km), seen here in Power Red, coming soon, priced from £23,950 









The most frugal of the bunch at a quoted 62.8mpg and 119g/km of CO2 



The new Vauxhall Zafira Tourer 1.4 Turbo (140PS) Start/Stop (148g/km), seen here in Silky Shadow colour, priced from £24,005



17-inch alloys 



Groovy seat fabric is super-soft to the touch









FlexRail centre console system does all sorts of neat stroage tricks 



Words & pics: Daniel Anslow

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