New opening for Vauxhall Meriva

Unusual rear-hinged back doors aid access

The unusual rear doors on Vauxhall's new Meriva are no gimmick, says ANDY RUSSELL.

As one door closes, another one opens for the new Vauxhall Meriva…and it's a talking point.

The compact multi-purpose vehicle is the first family passenger car for many years with two rear-hinged back doors. The cynical will call it a gimmick, but live with the Meriva and you wonder why no one has done it sooner because it's so family-friendly.

Decades ago, in long past era of motoring, rear doors that opened backwards were not unusual but none were as practical as the Meriva's.

The front and rear doors open independently almost 90 degrees to give unparalleled levels of access to the cabin making the Meriva very practical family transport - so much easier to get in and out, especially with the seats set higher than in a normal car, and put children into child seats or a few bags of shopping or a briefcase on the back seat, shut the back door and then hop straight into the driver's seat. If you're worried about little ones opening the doors on the move, the FlexDoors automatically lock at 2mph and cannot be opened from the inside.

Those doors aside, the other thing that strikes you is how much more stylish the second-generation Meriva is, picking up design cues from the new Insignia and Astra both inside and out with the distinctive 'blade' feature down the side of the body. The original Meriva was never a looker and a friend's model looked decidedly dumpy beside the new one.

Three 1.4-litre petrol engines are initially offered - a naturally-aspirated 100PS and 120PS and 140PS turbo versions - along with 75PS 1.3-litre and 100PS 1.7-litre turbo diesels.

Light and airy cabin.

The lower-powered 1.4 Turbo petrol engine gives decent fuel consumption and trickles along at low revs in traffic but on the open road needs to be worked for decent performance especially with a load on board. It can feel flat picking up from low revs but use the five-speed gearbox to keep the engine in the mid range and it nips along nicely.

I hadn't expected the Meriva to be such fun to drive - handling is neat and tidy, cornering precisely with good steering feel, making it agile enough to please enthusiastic drivers. The ride is firm, but on the whole comfortable and composed with good bump control although it can feel a little sensitive on poorly-surfaced roads, accompanied by very noticeable tyre noise.

The flat-sided boot is a decent size, offering 400 litres of space with the rear seats in place, and with no spare wheel there is underfloor storage or the boot floor can be lowered to make the loadbay deeper.

Rear seats split 40/20/40, just pull a loop on the back of them and the cushions drop down and the backs fold flat and lock into place to create a long load floor. The rear seats also slide back and forth individually so you can tailor legroom and bootspace to your needs although with them right forward they are really only suitable for children.

Like the exterior, the interior and fascia follows the themes set by the Insignia and new Astra and looks all the better for it. It's features the new Vauxhall 'wing' design cue on the steering wheel and dashboard to create a fascia as elegantly curved as the old model's was slabby. Materials have a good finish and it feels well built, while the dashboard looks classy with clear instruments and piano black trim inlays on top models. Controls are well positioned for ease of use but some buttons for the audio unit are small.

Visibility is good but the downside of those FlexDoors is chunky B-pillars which slightly obscure the driver's vision on the nearside when pulling out of a T-junction so if you have the seat well back you need to lean forward to check the way is clear.

Storage is a must for any vehicle likely to carry children and the usual doorbins and glovebox are boosted by Vauxhall's innovative FlexRail three-tier storage system. With an electronic parking brake replacing a traditional handbrake, a flip-top armrest/storage module slides along two curved, aluminium rails run between the front seats so it can be accessed by passengers in the back and there's a tray and cupholder below - they can also be removed easily.

Useful boot space.

Four trim levels are offered - Expression, S, Exclusiv and SE. All come with anti-locks brakes, stability control, front and side airbags, remote locking, powered and heated door mirrors and electric front windows - but you need to step up to Exclusiv to get air-conditioning, cruise control, curtain airbags, the FlexRail storage system and steering wheels controls.

The Meriva has always been popular with UK but was not the most stylish small MPV, the new model changes all that and those clever rear doors could open up its appeal to a whole new audience.

Vauxhall Meriva Exclusiv1.4i VVT Turbo 120

Price: £17,365 (range from £12,995)

Engine: 1,364cc, 120PS, four-cylinder turbo petrol

Performance: 0-62mph 11.5 seconds; top speed 117mph

MPG: Urban 35.3; extra urban 56.5; combined 46.3

Emissions: 143g/km

Benefit-in-kind tax rate: 17pc

Insurance group: 14

Warranty: Lifetime/100,000 miles for first owner

Will it fit in the garage? Length 4,288mm; width (including door mirrors) 1,994mm; height 1,615mm-edp24.