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Vauxhall Tigra

Vauxhall Tigra Sport CDTI Sport a/c

If Porsche's latest 911 cabrio is the ultimate cross-country convertible, which drop-top is best for city drivers on a budget? Vauxhall reckons its new diesel Tigra is the perfect urban roadster, thanks to its neat folding hard-top and penny-pinching mpg. We took to London's busy streets to see for ourselves.

By Chris Thorp

May 2005

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If Porsche's latest 911 cabrio is the ultimate cross-country convertible, which drop-top is best for city drivers on a budget? Vauxhall reckons its new diesel Tigra is the perfect urban roadster, thanks to its neat folding hard-top and penny-pinching mpg. We took to London's busy streets to see for ourselves.

A 69bhp 1.3-litre engine developed with Fiat makes the range-topping Tigra the most economical car in its class. Returning a huge 61.4mpg on the combined cycle, it will be cheap for even high-mileage drivers to run. What's more, with its 124g/km CO2 emissions and compliance with Euro IV regulations, the car makes sense for tax-conscious company drivers.

Nipping in and out of traffic with the roof down, you are hard-pushed to tell what is under the bonnet. As with many oil-burning cabrios, the wind noise drowns out the clatter of the diesel motor in all but low-speed manoeuvres.

With the Tigra in coupί¿½ guise, the engine sound becomes more of an issue, but drivers are likely to be even more frustrated by the performance. An epic 15.5-second 0-60mph time highlights the sluggish pace, but the Vauxhall still keeps up with city traffic thanks to decent mid-range acceleration.

Our range-topping Sport was fitted with air-con, and is priced at ΂£15,845. That's ΂£845 more than the equivalent 1.4-litre Tigra - but whether it proves to be good value depends on your mileage.

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FIRST OPINION

    Fitting small cars with diesels always leads to miserly economy - and here the result is a Tigra which is cheap to run, with good refinement. More powerful petrol variants will be better if you do mainly A and B-road work, but the CDTI is fast enough for city driving.
 

AT A GLANCE

    Racy Sport is far more attractive than the base oil-burner, which costs £14,595.
    Engine: 1.3-litre 4cyl, 69bhp
    Price: £15,845
     
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