Test Drive Mitsubishi Space Star 2002 - 2006 Minivan

Perfect married couple

Opel Zafira and Mitsubishi Space Star claim to be homemade favorites
Opel Zafira and Mitsubishi Space Star correspond to the definition of an exemplary family man, because they are ideal for the role of the only car in the family. They are similar and ideologically: both German and Japanese cars are based on the Opel Astra and Mitsubishi Carisma Golf Class Cars. However, despite the many similar qualities, there are between them and fundamental differences.
Opel Zafira is a rather rare guest in our market. This car can be attributed to the category of universal enhanced capacity. It is only 3 cm longer, 3 cm wider and 17x above the Opel Astra Caravan (the usual universal belonging to the golf class), but at the same time it accommodates as much as 7 people! Today, Zafira has only two classmate competitor in the Russian market: Peugeot 307SW (to buy which due to the deficit is problematic) and Kia Carens.
In the car dealers of Opel Zafira dealers for sale at a price of $ 19,000 (1.8 liter engine, manual gearbox). Opel Zafira with a 2.2 liter engine and a manual box will cost from $ 22,690. The automatic transmission adds costs about $ 1500. These prices differ little from those asking for Opel Zafira in Germany. And there he is very popular. Curious detail: According to the EuroTaxSchwacke reference book, this single-visuous car less than other classmates loses in the initial cost when selling in the secondary market. Opel car turned out so successful that competitors from Ford three years ago even suspended the development of a model of a similar class based on Focus.
In Zafira, the extremely wide possibilities of transformation of the cabin are bribed. It is logical to judge that everything you need to carry with you, the Opel designers have come up with the seating system, which was called Flex7 (from English Flexible Flexible). With its help, the car's interior with light movement of the hand can be turned into a bus, van and even limousine.
Actually, only the driver's seat is not folded. Especially it is worth noting the seven constructor, who invented the mechanism of transformation of the seats of the third row. When they are folded, and you won't guess that Zafira is a seven-country car. The floor of the trunk of this microvena is absolutely flat. To set the rear seats, it is enough to fold the carpet of the trunk, slightly move forward the sofa of the second row and pull the handle on the back of the seats of the third. Then the smart mechanism will do everything yourself. You can figure it out in all this and without instruction. The time spent on the transformation of the cabin, from strength - two or three minutes.
The sake of objectivity should be said that the gallery is not suitable for long journeys (if adults are sitting on it). In other places it will be convenient to people of any growth and a set. And all due to the fact that the landing of the driver and passengers made more vertical compared to the usual sedan: we recall that Zafira for as many as 17 cm above Astra. Comfortable make a trip and the presence of cup holders in the second-row folding armrest, and the supply of warm air into the back of the cabin, and large pockets in the doorway. In general, it feels that the convenience of passengers was supplied by developers at the head of the corner. The tallness of the car also greatly facilitates landing and disembarking.
But the driver can make several serious ergonomic claims designers. More precisely, four. The first: extremely uncomfortable location of the gear shift levers and parking brakes. Translations have to be switched, completely pulling the hand, and to use the handbrake, you have to bend. In traffic jams, when you constantly turn on-off, it annoys so much that I strongly recommend purchasing a Zafira with a machine gun. The second serious claim steering wheel. I really want to give him more verticality, but the only way to adjust (up-down) does not allow it to do. Such a landing does not contribute to active management. The third flaw is an insufficient range of driver seat adjustment in the longitudinal direction, which is why people above 190 cm have serious inconvenience. And the last claim is an overly compact location of the pedal node. People with a large foot size or in warm winter shoes, pressing the gas pedal, will constantly touch the plastic casing or for the clutch pedal.
All these shortcomings are easily explained. They are the consequence of the fact that the Opolevsky Mikrovan is made on the platform of the usual golf class. Prickies in the ergonomics of a driver's seat could be avoided, designed by Zafira as an independent car. But then the price of it would be fundamentally different. Especially since the versatility of the car with interest takes up these forced compromises.
But the engine is 2.2 liters with a capacity of 147 hp, installed on the tested ZAFIRA, compromises do not tolerate. Motor is very temperamental (exactly the same engine is installed on almost sports Astra Coupe and unequivocally sports Opel Speedster) and the drag. It allows not to part with the transmission switching or jump from the first to the third, and then to the fifth speed. In addition, on the highway, even with full loading under the gas pedal, there will always be a power reserve. Although, despite all these wonderful qualities, such an engine for this car, in my opinion, is too thin. At least on slippery (after processing by anti-rolling reagents) asphalt, Zafira leading wheels, trained in studded rubber, were constantly broken into slip. Thanks to the stabilization system of course stability, which has repeatedly came to the rescue. I think that a harmonious thing on the family car will look at the engine with a volume of 1.8 liters. It completely satisfies the requirements for a family vehicle, which is not customary to arrange races from traffic lights.
In general, Zafira left a very pleasant impression. It is not a flint, dynamic car with an extremely functional and spacious interior. In addition, the manufacturer promises that this year the updated Zafira will be on sale, deprived of some of the above flaws.
City Star
The second participant of our comparative test Mitsubishi Space Star has already stayed on the pages of Co. However, for another story about this car there is a reason: Most recently, Space Star began to be sold in Russia with an engine 1.8 l with a capacity of 112 hp. Richly equipped Space Star with such a motor can be bought for $ 17,900. Supplement for sequental automatic with manual gear selection mode $ 1260.
In Europe, Space Star (by the way, the most successful Mitsubishi model in the old world) is positioned as a family multifunctional car. Its main habitat is close streets of the metropolis. With very compact sizes (and therefore maneuverability), it is higher than the traditional golf class representatives at least 10 cm. These centimeters not only create additional space over the heads of the driver and passengers Space Star. The tall body allowed to plant the star crew more vertically. Due to such a decision, the salon became very spacious fully five-seater. Three adults of the average set with convenience will be scented in the rear sofa, while their knees will not touch the backs of the front seats.
To sit down in the car and get out of it is also very convenient: the seats are at the level of the fifth point, so it is not necessary to sign in the cabin, neither to scribble on the seat.
On the rear sofa, Space Star jumps through the class and practically complies with the standards of the A group E (for example, Peugeot 406). However, in the functionality of the Salon of the Japanese car loses Zafira. For example, in order to fold the second row of seats, with the backs of the chairs it is necessary to remove headrests. The seat itself moves forward-back by 15 cm, but these centimeters do not play a fundamental role when placing baggage. We have a problematic item to transport long-term items in Space Star: Unlike Opel, the Japanese has no hatch in the back of the rear sofa, the back of the front passenger seat does not make up. Not to mention that the third row of seats cannot be installed even for extra charge.
But the driver feels behind the wheel Space Star is much more convenient than behind the Opel Zafira Baruned. There are no complaints about the driver's site. Only a high landing and again, a slightly routing wheel of the steering wheel interfere with the truly light on this car. However, the car was very maneuverable and yoo. For sharpness in manageability, it is necessary to thank the steering of the steering with a progressive characteristic (when parking the car, the steering wheel is easy, and at high speeds poured by force, allowing you to confidently control the trajectory of the movement) and the rear independent multi-dimensional suspension suspension. In their behavior on the road, the car differs little from the traditional hatchback.
With the appearance in the arsenal of the space car of the modern engine with a volume of 1.8 liters, Space Star has become even more reasons to be called an ideal family car. Even if the car is clogged under the urban, the motor allows you to confidently stay in the urban stream and make overtaking. The engine is extremely elastic, and its capacities are more than enough on country tracks when driving at high speeds.
The advantages of hatchbacks with a high roof (namely, Space Star refers to this category) not only in Europe, but also in Russia. This, for example, says the most popular popularity of the main competitor of the Japanese car Peugeot 307. However, now, with a new engine, Mitsubishi Space Star is quite able to compete with a French classmate.
Igor Komarov
 

A source: Wheel (Company)