Opel Zafira
The Opel Zafira, also known as the Zafira Tourer since 2011, is a multi-purpose vehicle produced by the German car manufacturer Opel since the beginning of 1999. It was also marketed under the marque Vauxhall in the United Kingdom until June 2018, the Holden marque in Australia until June 2005, and under a number of other market specific brands and names. It is the model of the Opel brand based on the chassis of the Astra small family car.
Zafira A (1999–2005)
The first generation of the Zafira was usually referred to as Zafira A, as was customary for Opel models. Developed with the aid of Porsche, the Zafira was first shown in concept form at the 1997 Frankfurt Auto Show, and entered series production in January 1999, with sales beginning in April. The Zafira achieved third place in the European Car of the Year for 2000, behind only the Fiat Multipla and Toyota Yaris.The car was based on the same T platform as the 1998 Astra G, and shared much in common with that car. The Zafira A body was used in GM/Opel's concept hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicle the HydroGen3. Offered with a series of petrol engines and initially a single diesel offering, the "X" engines were replaced by the newer "Z" engine generation in 2000.
These featured variable intake manifolds and were able to meet Euro 3 emissions standards. A facelift was launched in February 2003.
The Opel Zafira had seven seats arranged in three rows, the back row of which could be folded into the floor, individually or together to create more space, rather than requiring that the extra seats be physically removed from the vehicle. The system was named Flex 7. In TüV's ranking of the quality of three year old cars, the Zafira was by far the best Opel; only slightly behind the winning Ford Focus.
Introduced at Geneva in February 2001, the turbocharged Zafira OPC went on sale in October 2001. With, this was the fastest minivan on sale in Europe. Only available with a five speed manual transmission, 0–100 km/h can be reached in 8.2 seconds and the top speed is.
The popular two litre turbodiesels were complemented by a 2.2 litre option in January 2002. The Opel Zafira A was replaced by Zafira B in Europe, but was still sold in most other markets until 2012, except for Australia and New Zealand, where the model was cancelled altogether.
The Zafira was sold in the Philippines from 2001 to 2005. It was the last European based Opel car to be sold in the Philippines after they stopped selling the Opel Astra in 2003. Although being sold as the Chevrolet Zafira, it was sold alongside with other Opel vehicles until it the Opel name was pulled out of the Philippine-market by its distributor, GM Philippines. Zafira A production ended on 25 May 2005, in Bochum.
The Zafira was sold in Japan from August 2001 through to November 2004 as the Subaru Traviq alongside the standard Opel vehicle, where it was cancelled, and replaced later in 2008 by the Subaru Exiga – developed from the Subaru Legacy platform. According to Subaru, the name was a combination of the words "travel" and "quick", however, the word more closely resembles the English word "traffic".
Due to the exterior dimensions exceeding Japanese government regulations for vehicles defined as "compact", Japanese buyers were liable for additional taxes. The Traviq was originally only available with the bigger 2.2 litre engine, although a 1.8 L, lower priced alternative was added in July 2003.
The engines used were not Subaru supplied boxer engines, but were conventional in line units that were uncharacteristic to market recognised Subaru products, and all wheel drive technology was also not available.
The sale of the Zafira as a Subaru created a conflict with previously established Yanase Co., Ltd. retail dealerships, in that Yanase was already selling Opel products, like the Zafira. When production of the Traviq ended, Yanase continued to import Opel products into Japan until 2006.
The Zafira was sold in Malaysia as the Chevrolet Nabira.
In June 1999, soon after the release of the Zafira, Griff Rhys Jones starred in adverts for the Vauxhall Zafira, in which he played a professor who was fascinated about the car. He was dismissed by Vauxhall in April 2001, after an embarrassing advert for the Vauxhall VX220.
Zafira B (2005–2014)
The second generation of the Zafira, called the Zafira B, debuted in Europe in June 2005, with sales starting on 9 July 2005. It shared the platform and mechanical parts with the Opel Astra H. In February 2007, the Zafira B was launched in Singapore. By March 2007, the model had only been introduced in Europe and Singapore.It went on sale in Mexico in April 2006, and Chile in September 2007. In both countries, it was branded as a Chevrolet Zafira. Although this generation was replaced in the end of 2011 by the Zafira C, this model remained in production until May 2014, retailing as the Zafira Family.
Names and markets
- Vauxhall Zafira – United Kingdom
- Chevrolet Zafira – Chile, Mexico, and Thailand
- Opel Zafira – Europe, Japan, China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan & South Africa
However, by 2010, reflecting both its status as a run out model, and adverse consumer reaction to uncertainty over Opel's future, the car was outsold by the more recently facelifted Volkswagen Touran on the market in Germany, with 2,568 Zafiras sold in the first two months of the year, against 7,270 Tourans.
Engines
The Zafira B's engine line up is partly carried over from the previous Astra/Zafira generation, but Opel replaced the old 2.0 and 2.2 turbodiesel I4 engines with 1.9 L common rail turbodiesels developed by Fiat. Opel Performance Center developed a turbocharged 2.0 L performance version of the Zafira B as well. A CNG version of the new Zafira with a 1.6 L engine is also available.Known issues
In December 2015, safety officials in the United Kingdom asked Vauxhall to initiate a full safety recall of the model Zafira B, due to a worrying level of car fires apparently or alleged to have been caused by 'Improper Repairs'.The fires continued, even those recalled, and a second full safety recall was announced in May 2016, with all owners advised not to use the fan in speeds regulated by the "resistor pack" which contained a solder based unreliable safety critical thermal fuse, until the second recall, starting August 2016, had been carried out.
On 3 May 2018, a criminal investigation into Vauxhall's handling of the fires of the Zafira B and recalls was launched in the United Kingdom.
On 7 January 2020, there was a spontaneous fire in an Opel Zafira, which caused over 200 to 300 cars in a parking garage at Stavanger Airport, Sola to be destroyed. No people were harmed.
Zafira Tourer C (2011-2019)
The third generation of the Zafira, called the Zafira Tourer, was previewed in concept form at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, as the 'Zafira Tourer Concept'.It was largely based on the Opel Astra J, and when the Zafira Tourer C went on sale, the Zafira B remained on sale from 2011 up to 2014, albeit in facelifted form as the "Zafira Family", to act as a smaller and cheaper version, as the Zafira Tourer C increased in size, to act as a proper rival to the Ford C-Max.
A hybrid/electric version was expected to follow during 2012. This car indirectly replaced the Opel Sintra, the only previous full sized Vauxhall/Opel MPV in Europe, which was discontinued in May 1999 after just three years on sale, as a slow selling product built in the United States. The production version debuted at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show in September, and went on sale November 2011.
A natural gas version of the Zafira Tourer was announced in December 2011. A dual fuel vehicle, its CNG tank driving the car 530 kilometres, and a 14-litre petrol tank provided additional range or operation when a CNG filling station was not available.
In June 2016, a facelift was unveiled for 2017, dropping 'Tourer' from the name when sold as an Opel. As part of the upgrade, new front and rear bumpers and new interior brought styling in line with the Opel Astra K. OnStar navigation was also introduced as part of an updated IntelliLink infotainment system, complete with 4G LTE hotspot, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.
Other new options for MY2017 included adaptive LED headlights, "Opel Eye" front camera, high beam assist, traffic sign assist, forward collision warning, lane departure warning and adaptive cruise control.
In June 2018, the Vauxhall Zafira Tourer was discontinued from the United Kingdom, citing the rise of SUV and crossover vehicles.
Engines
All engines had a six speed manual gearbox as standard, bar the 1.8 petrol, which had a five speed manual gearbox as standard. An automatic gearbox was available as an option on the 1.4T and 2.0 CDTI, both without S/S.An EcoFLEX version went on sale in 2012, equipped with the 2.0 CDTI engine and it gained a Start/Stop system to make it more economical, emitting 119g/km of CO2, as for petrol variants they were 1.4T ecoFLEX with a Start/Stop system with same amount of power like standard versions but with lower CO2 emissions – 144g/km and better fuel efficiency.
In 2013, two all new engines were introduced: 1.6 SIDI Turbo petrol engine with 170 PS and 200 PS, and newly developed 1.6 CDTI diesel engine with 136 PS. In September 2014, Opel introduced its all new generation of engines – Large Diesel engines, starting with 2.0 CDTI engine with 170 PS and 400 Nm, which is a part of new strategy in which Opel will introduce seventeen new engines, in a period from 2014–2018.
Awards
- The Zafira Tourer was awarded "Best Estate" at the German Car of the Year awards of 2012.
- The Zafira Tourer scored a five star rating in EuroNCAP.
- The Opel Zafira Tourer won the prestigious "Golden Steering Wheel 2012" award from German publications Auto Bild, Bild am Sonntag and twenty six European partner magazines.