Vauxhall Adam review - Practicality, comfort and boot space
Three-door-only Adam is roomy in the front, but usability is hampered by cramped rear seats and a tiny boot
Realistically, you’ll probably find yourself using the back of the Adam for transporting shopping and other luggage. Although the boot is wide, it’s not very long or deep, and when you fold down the rear seats to free up more space, there’s a big step in the middle of the load floor.
Another word of warning: don’t go for that optional Infinity stereo upgrade if you need a big boot, as the subwoofer takes up a lot of space in the back. Still, for many customers in this market, audio enjoyment is likely to matter more than practicality.
Size
The Adam is well short of four metres in length and is a relatively light car – kerb weights range from 1,101kg for the 1.2 to 1,178kg for the Adam S, including the chunky-looking Rocks models. That makes the little Vauxhall ideally suited to urban use; it’s an easy car to thread through city streets. Thankfully, it’s also not lost when you venture out on to the open road – the Adam never feels so flyweight that it gets buffeted when passing HGVs on dual carriageways and motorways, for example.
Leg room, head room & passenger space
If you’re looking for a spacious family car, you’re probably better off with a Corsa or Astra than an Adam, given its compact dimensions, but it is wider than a Fiat 500, so there's more elbo room up front. While driver and front seat passenger have plenty of room – as well as numerous storage areas and cup-holders – people sitting in the rear will feel distinctly claustrophobic.
Adults will probably only want to spend short journeys back there, so keep this in mind if you frequently give lifts to friends. Sliding front seats make getting into the rear easy at least, and children should be reasonably happy, although fitting a child seat will be a pain.
Boot
With the back seats in place, the Adam offers 170 litres of boot space – and that’s pretty poor compared to class rivals like the MINI (211 litres), DS 3 (285 litres) or Audi A1 (270 litres). Fold the rear seats down and you can carry 484 litres by loading the car up to the window line, and if you cram stuff up to the roof that increases to 663 litres.
