VAUXHALL MERIVA 1.4 16V Breeze 5dr (2004)

Pretty annoying car, reasonably reliable, but all in all unhappy

I had a Zafira before this Meriva, which was a pretty good car, lots of space and comfy for long journeys. I suppose I didn't spend long enough really trying out the Meriva before buying, but I am really pretty disappointed.

It is fairly reliable, although it isn't that old. The main thing is that it's just, firstly, not at all enjoyable to drive, feels awkward and clunky, and secondly, it really looks pretty old fashioned. I think I took to it originally because it reminded me of the Zafira, but after a while you realise it basically is the old Zafira in terms of styling, and the inside of the car is just full of these kind of dowdy dull plastic surfaces that look old and naff very quickly.

A bigger problem though is the way the Meriva drives. It does feel pretty awkward from the start. The clutch is at a really weird angle, difficult to move down. The steering is pretty lifeless really, by which I mean it's hard to know exactly what angle you've reached by turning however far. I think power steering might have been over developed in this car. Also, even though it's quite a tall car, the visibility is still quite bad. The pillars each side of the windscreen are in quite silly places (this was actually a problem with the Zafira too), and the blind spot (at least in my driving position) is quite big. It's easy-ish to park, but does take quite a bit of getting used to.

The dash controls in the Meriva are a bit weird too. The radio channel buttons 1-6 aren't arranged in a line like you might expect, they're arranged a bit like a phone dial pad which is just strange to start with. All in all the stereo controls are just oddly spaced out and in unintuitive places, which can be dangerously distracting when you're first getting used to the layout. The stereo is ok though, nothing special, and at least it plays MP3s off a CD.

The cabin space is ok, there's some handy drinks holes round the front, and the glove box is al alright size. The top of the dash is a bit annoying though, because stuff falls into the space where the central display is located, which makes it hard to see. It's only the clock and radio etc. but still, bit silly. Meanwhile the rest of the top of the dash just sends stuff flying into your lap.

There are some cute little touches in the Vauxhall Meriva though. Like in the back you can have an aeroplane style table flip down from the back of the front seat. And the middle seat flips down to make a little storage space for the rear passengers (if there's only two of them).

Space wise it's a good little box. The back seats fold down fairly flat and the boot then is big enough for a couple of bikes and some camping gear, or say a small two seater sofa.

So, it's ok, but kinda annoying really, and I would get a different car given the choice again.