Opel GrandlandX – balanced SUV

The demand for SUV cars forces manufacturers to offer more and more models with a higher body structure and robust appearance. This trend has not escaped the German manufacturer Opel either. After the purchase by the French concern PSA, the possibility of sharing individual components opened up for him and thus also the easier and cheaper development of new models. On the basis of this cooperation, the Grandland X model was also created. However, unlike the concern sibling Peugeot 3008 , Opel is aimed at a more conservative customer. We are testing the Grandland X in the Ultimate equipment.

It looks balanced from the outside

The car looks very balanced from every side. Nothing excessively protrudes or sticks out anywhere. Opel does not try to shock the design, rather it offers pleasant and pure elegance. Personally, I was particularly interested in the rear, probably the least conservative part with a prominent spoiler and a sharp edge under the rear window. The tapered lights fit nicely into the heavily sculpted fifth door. The richly plasticized bumper is a little spoiled by the dummy exhausts.

On the side, a distinctive C-pillar, separated from the roof in color, stands out. Above the door handles there is a striking molding starting at the side turn signal and ending in the taillights. The massive plastic trim on the bottom of the door visually slims the body.

The front part looks relatively simple, but at the same time dignified. A pleasant design accessory is the black color of the roof and rear-view mirrors, which is standard for this equipment. The combination with the Dark Ruby red color suits the car extremely well.

Conservative interior

There were no surprises or design blunders waiting for me in the interior. In this case, Opel remains faithful to the classic instrument panel with four analog indicators and one multifunctional display. The standard-sized steering wheel with a sufficiently thick rim is of high quality, including buttons for controlling the cruise control and the basic functions of the audio system.

The 8" touch screen is tastefully placed in a higher position between the ventilation vents, where together with the other buttons they form one unit. The nicely shaped dashboard is made of softened material, except for its lower part. I was very impressed by the subtle climate control panel. I already liked less the empty area below it, which formed the door of a small storage space with a USB slot, moreover covered with impractical piano varnish.

The selector of the automatic transmission could have been a little shorter and the shifting of individual modes could have been solved in a straight line. The center console is made up of a part of the central tunnel, humorously finished with a handbrake button.

I was positively surprised by the honest covering of the door thresholds. Their interior upholstery is interesting and elegantly shaped. It is made of a combination of softened, hard plastics and imitation leather. However, the good impression was spoiled by the significant creaking of the plastic handles. It's a shame, because the other plastic parts of the interior are well assembled and don't make any noises. However, as I found out at the Opel store, it was a fault of the tested piece.

At first glance, the seats are simple, but tastefully covered with stitched leather and patterned textiles. Opel is proud of their AGR certification, so I was curious about sitting behind the wheel.

Top seat behind the wheel

At first glance, the seats are nothing special. The lateral guidance is inconspicuous, the length of the seat and the height of the backrest are only adequate. However, they offer rich setting options. The lumbar support can be adjusted in four directions, the possibility of extending the seat, changing its inclination… all this contributes to the comfort provided by the seats. I especially appreciated it after a long drive, when I got out of the car without back pain from sitting in one position for a long time.

I also liked the seat behind the wheel, which is lower than in other SUVs. I was completely satisfied with the placement of the pedals and the range of steering wheel adjustment. However, the left footrest fits smaller feet. The driver's space is sufficient, but not to be given away. Sharing a narrow, albeit very comfortable armrest with a passenger will also not be easy.

The steering wheel fits perfectly in the hand and the view of the instrument panel is unproblematic. But I had to get used to the inclination of the levers under the steering wheel, whose basic position is at the highest level in cars of other brands.

The view outside is satisfactory, but I would welcome slightly longer rear-view mirrors. The ergonomics of the individual controls is fine, except for the air conditioning panel, where the air flow direction setting is missing. To change it, it is necessary to use the Menu button, select a direction on the infotainmenu display and then return it to the previous mode, which I consider unnecessarily complicated.

On the road

GrandlandX pleasantly surprised me, mainly with the excellent soundproofing of the cabin from aerodynamic noise and from the chassis. I enjoyed driving in it mainly during longer transfers, which was largely due to the already mentioned seats.

The chassis is comfortable enough on normal roads even on 19" wheels (235/50 R19), which are part of the equipment. It can filter out unevenness as well as a continuously bumpy road with an overview. Larger holes or transverse breaks in the road will already be transferred to the body and will be felt mainly by the crew in the back seats.

The steering is not completely direct and its connection with the front axle is not felt either. However, I was comfortable with the power steering setup, which is properly stiff, provides natural resistance, and has no play around the center position.

The driving characteristics are in line with the focus of the car. Even when driving fast, the car provides enough security and you can rely on it. When driving through sharper turns on an uneven road, you can feel a certain nervousness of the rear axle, which I attribute to its simple concept. However, the car's natural understeer was decently suppressed and it was not easy to tear off the front wheels.

The car was powered by a four-cylinder diesel engine with a volume of 1997 cm ³ , a maximum power of 130 kW at 3750 rpm and a torque of 400 Nm at 2000 rpm. It is an engine that meets the latest EURO 6d eco-norm, which entails the necessity of topping up the urea solution. With a weight of around 1.5 tons, it does not have much to do with the car. It acts briskly in a wide range of revolutions and lends the car solid dynamics. It is relatively quiet at low revs, you can hear it at higher revs, but I wouldn't call its sound unpleasant. The delay in the engine's reaction to stepping on the accelerator was relatively small.

I would call the connection with the 8-speed Aisin automatic transmission almost perfect. The gearbox shifts smoothly, at the right speeds and can adapt to the driver's driving style. During the week I spent with the car, I did not encounter a situation where a different gear was engaged than I wished. The transmission used the torque of the engine and tried to keep the revolutions between 1500 and 2200, with vigorous acceleration up to 4000. I also appreciate the display of the engaged gear on the on-board computer screen. However, the speed of downshifting by several steps when trying to accelerate faster is not one of the positive aspects of the gearbox.

I returned the car after driving approximately 600 km with 80% of highways with a consumption of 6.9 l, which I consider to be a reasonable value. However, it's a shame about the low volume of the fuel tank (53 liters), which reduces the real range to 700 km.

In the city, I drove for 8 liters in average heavy traffic. The car feels nimble, but the turning diameter of 11.5 meters could have been smaller. I was also negatively surprised by the number of revolutions between the extreme positions of the steering wheel, which is close to 3. Parking is assisted by a front and rear camera, while the 360° image is gradually completed by software during slow driving.

When driving in the districts, I used the assistance systems to the full extent. The adaptive cruise control worked gently and with sensitivity, and I was also pleased with the blind spot warning. Lane Assist failed to keep the car in the center of the road and bounced off the lanes like a ping-pong ball. On the other hand, it does not intervene in the steering as aggressively as in vehicles of other brands, which have this system solved more perfectly.

At night, I appreciated the excellent low beam and even better high beam LED lights, which shine relatively far and illuminate the edges of the road sufficiently widely. It's a shame they don't offer the 'Matrix' feature like its Astra or Insignia siblings. Automatic switching to remote mode was fast, the system reacted more slowly when I returned, which was pointed out to me by the oncoming drivers.

When driving in the districts, I achieved a consumption of around six liters, while I made full use of the flexibility of the engine and did not try to drive economically.

I did not complete the cross-country drive. Although the ground clearance of 188 mm would allow the car to drive on unpaved roads, the lack of four-wheel drive, 19" wheels and the general orientation of the car put me off.

The car was stable when driving on the highway and surprisingly not sensitive to crosswinds. A long drive made it possible to keep diesel consumption at an acceptable level even when driving fast. At a speed of 130-140 km/h, the on-board computer displayed values in the range of 6.5 to 7.4 l/100 km.

In the table below, I list the revolutions at individual speeds on the 8th gear:

 Practical side, equipment, price

In the interior of the GrandlandX model, Opel prioritized design over practicality. The storage compartments are relatively small and the car does not overwhelm with their quantity. The exception is the huge box in front of the passenger and reasonably large spaces in the doors.

There is "just enough" space in the back seats. When sitting behind me at my height of 185 cm, my knees were already touching the front seats. However, the absence of a central tunnel, ventilation vents with the possibility of temperature adjustment, heated seats and a charging USB slot will please.

I was satisfied with the perfectly placed IsoFix mounts not only on the rear seats, but also on the front passenger seat. Parents will also appreciate the practical material on the back of the front seats and the retractable screens of the rear windows.

The luggage compartment has a regular shape and a volume of 514/1652 liters. I was impressed by the clever brackets that keep the double bottom board in the open position. There is also the possibility of folding the rear seats, side pockets and hooks for the safety net.

The Ultimate equipment represents the top of the range of the Grandland X model. The basic price with the tested engine and automatic is EUR 34,990, with accessories it can reach up to EUR 40,000. I already consider this amount to be excessive. However, the refined fleet and discount program of the brand can reduce the price to a very acceptable level under certain conditions.

I was extremely satisfied with the rich equipment offered, I just missed the AutoHold system and the head-up display. It goes without saying that there is seamless support for Android Auto and Apple Car Play.

Verdict

Opel bet on safety in the case of the GrandlandX model. The car has a nice and modern design, a pleasant and functional interior and especially excellent seats. Together with a sufficiently powerful and at the same time economical engine, refined gearbox and good driving characteristics, it represents an interesting offer in the richly represented segment of medium-sized SUVs.