2003 VAUXHALL Meriva 1.8i 5MT (125 HP)

Vehicle Overview

Vauxhall introduced the Meriva on the British small-segment market in 2003 to answer the customer’s needs for a small yet spacious vehicle.

The small vehicle was based on the Vauxhall Corsa, and unlike its small-segment cousin, it featured an MPV stance with a taller greenhouse. It was meant to provide more interior room while still be lower priced than other minivans on the market. The result was surprisingly good, but the market was already started to shift toward the SUV segment.

At the front, the little MPV showed a black grille adorned by the big, chromed V-shaped Vauxhall’s badge decoration. Its headlights were more vertical than longitudinal to create an impression of a taller vehicle. The hood was short and very steep, continued by the A-pillars and windshield. The car featured an unusual number of side windows, four, for such a small vehicle. Despite all the attention to the vehicle’s shape, the carmaker didn’t consider installing body-colored door handles or mirrors.

Inside, the Meriva offered high-mounted seats at the front with little side support. They were meant to provide easy access. Depending on the trim level and options, the carmaker installed a separate panel for the on-board computer in the middle of the dashboard, while the instrument cluster featured a four-dials layout for main information. The biggest advantage of the Meriva was the interior seat arrangement with a 60/40 split-folding rear bench seatback.

Under the hood, Vauxhall offered a range of five engines, and two of them were turbo-diesels: one supplied by Fiat and the other by Isuzu.