Holden Barina 2001 Review

What we liked
>> Really economical engine...
>> ...delivers good power
>> Fun and involving to drive

Not so much
>> No steering reach adjust
>> Legroom is tight in the rear
>> Performance suffers under load

OVERVIEW
Holden's light car offering's been through a number of guises since it first arrived in 1985. First it was a rebadged Suzuki Swift, engine and all, which lasted until 1994. Supply then moved to General Motors European division, Opel. The latest generation was launched in 2001 and is built in Spain.

Barina's importance cannot be underestimated, both for the sales volume it brings Holden, and -- equally important -- its role as a lure to first car buyers. Get the car buying and ownership experience right and Holden could have a convert for life. If you don't field a vehicle in the 'first car' market, you're handing the competition a free hit.

It's a cut-throat marketplace below $20,000, where a 'special offer' or 'free air' can boost a car's sales appeal powerfully, and cost the competition heaps. Toyota played a currency fluctuation to its advantage in 2003 with the Echo, rocketing sales through the roof, and Barina suffered as a result. But that doesn't mean Echo is a better car than the Barina; it's simply a reflection on the all-conquering power of the price at this end of auto alley.

FEATURES
Holden simplified its Barina range at the start of 2003. There are three models, namely the Barina SXi three-door, Barina CD five-door and Barina SRi three-door. Prices at the time of writing (Feb, 2004) started at $15,990 and stretched to $22,490. Air conditioning is an $1880 option, a four-speed automatic transmission is $2000 extra (SXi and CD only) and metallic paint will add $300.

Standard equipment on all models includes CD player, steering-wheel-mounted stereo controls, remote central locking, electric front windows and mirrors. An engine immobiliser is standard, along with 15inch alloy wheels and a durable cloth interior.

Step up to the five-door Barina CD and you'll get a different interior trim with chrome highlights and a leather-bound steering wheel. Only the front windows operate electrically, rear occupants will make do with winders.

COMFORT
The driver's seat adjusts for reach and backrest rake, but the steering wheel tilts only, there's no telescoping feature, which causes a driving position compromise. A small storage bin between the seats makes an ideal mobile phone holder, and the door pockets swallow CD covers, though they do rattle around a bit.

The back seats are cosy at best, there's no way three adults will fit, and three big kids will grizzle and moan. Legroom is fine, providing the front seats are moved forward to allow room, and headroom is fine for most heights.

Access to the back seats is a tight, twisty affair in the three-door, but not the contortionist's job other cars demand. The second row of seats split folds 60/40 in all models, opening up an otherwise unimpressive boot area to bigger cargo.

SAFETY
All Barinas come with driver and passenger front airbags, as well as seat belt pretensioners and force limiters. Lap sash belts are fitted to all five seating positions. Dynamic safety is a pretty short story, with only four-wheel discs and the BAS brake assist system to talk about. BAS identifies an emergency braking manoeuvre and applies full brakes.

It's a useful safety feature, but only delivers 100 per cent performance when teamed with antilock brakes as in the SRi model. We tested this system in the CD and found that without ABS, it's prone to locking the wheels, and makes it harder for the driver to apply cadence braking.

MECHANICAL
We'll deal with the SXi and CD first. As of January 2004, both are powered by a 1.4-litre, four-cylinder engine, which has two inlet and two exhaust valves per cylinder and two camshafts. It produces a peak power of 66kW and 125Nm of torque, which is on par for the class, though not outstanding. Drive is via the front wheels, hooked to the engine via a five-speed manual gearbox.

The sporting SRi model gets a bigger 1.8-litre, four-cylinder engine with a similar valve and cam count. The extra capacity pushes peak power to 92kW and torque to 165Nm -- very useful numbers. Drive is again fed to the front wheels via a five-speed manual gearbox. No automatic box is available on the SRi, in keeping with its sporting intent.

Kerb weights on the various models range from 1017kg to 1112, depending on the body style and equipment. All models feature independent front suspension and speed-sensitive power steering. Disc brakes are fitted to all four corners, though ABS is only available on the SRi model.

COMPETITORS
Holden's Barina is just one of a number of light passenger models crowding the market and confusing shoppers. A quick look through the price guides pops up a number of competitors, including Ford Fiesta, Toyota Echo and the soon to arrive Mitsubishi Colt.

Spread the net beyond Australia's 'big four' and you'll catch Mazda 2, Hyundai Getz, Honda Jazz, Kia Rio, Daewoo Lanos and Suzuki Liana. Shop with Euro flair in mind and Citroen C3, Renault Clio, Peugeot 206 and Volkswagen Polo all fall into contention, though sometimes with a higher price.

ON THE ROAD

CarPoint jumped straight into a seven-day test of the Holden Barina. See below for road test notes.

Holden Barina CD is an honest car. It doesn't bamboozle you with flash, or trick you with a sleight of hand. It never promises more than it can deliver, which is compact, reliable, comfortable motoring. Economical too. Our time with the Barina returned a very pleasing fuel economy of 6.8 litres per 100km.

It's not gonna win stop-lights grands prix, but you'd definitely call the engine sprightly. It's a real trier, this 1.4-litre single cam four, and charges off the mark with enough power to spin the wheels if your foot technique's not perfect. At the same time, it's easy to bog down off the line with too little revs onboard. Get moving and the Barina's happy to explore the upper limits of the rev range. It's not coarse or rough up top, but power does tail-off as you'd expect.

The small engine works best if you're careful with gear selection; there's not enough torque to deliver meaningful acceleration in fifth at 60km/h for example, but slide back to fourth or third and the Barina buckles down and pushes on. Add a few extra bodies onboard and the engine's performance dulls noticeably, but not enough to make life difficult.

Driving dynamics are actually pretty good for a compact hatch. It's subtly sporty in its stance, and has a decent amount of rubber on the ground, delivering good cornering speeds and stability. Steering and gear shifter controls are fine, well weighted and accurate, with very little slack. Shame then that Holden didn't put telescopic adjust on the column, the steering wheel was just that much too far away in reach to be called comfortable.

The seats are good, front and rear, though rear legroom's a snug affair. Two adults in back will be fine, if the front seat occupants make allowances. Headroom front and rear adequately housed our 1.7m (5ft 9in) frame.

Occupant comfort is nothing to worry about; the Barina's interior is quiet and well insulated from outside noises. The suspension does a good job of damping bad roads, though it is a little abrupt on sharper bumps and badly built speed humps.

This sub-$20k category is proof positive that, in the 21st century, there's no such thing as a bad car. All cars are competent. Some barely make the grade, and others, like the Barina, do it easily. Electric windows, remote central locking, dual airbags, it's the sort of equipment even a $30,000 Commodore didn't have five years ago. Holden's Barina provides cheap, economical motoring without the budget-car corner-cutting we cringed at in the 1980s and 1990s.

A cracking good drive this little bugger -- let's get that straight from the start. With 92kW and just over 1000kg to haul around the 1.8 litre Holden Barina SRi three-door is a potent and engaging hatch that deserves more than a passing glance.

Priced at a substantial $24,370 (including optional air-conditioning), the SRi tops the Barina range. Available only in the as-tested five-speed manual three-door version, it is, however, one with the lot. Indeed, on the safety front, the Barina-burger gets driver and passenger airbags, four-wheel antilock disc brakes and front seat belts with belt force limiters and pre-tensioners. Mod-cons are not on back order either, a good quality in-dash CD player is standard as are steering-wheel mounted sound system controls, power windows, remote power door locks and electric speed-sensitive power steering.

And unlike some other electric power steering systems we've sampled, the SRi is neither over-servoed nor devoid of feel. In fact, there's real feedback delivered via the thick-rimmed tiller -- especially when pushing on. The steering of the new Fiesta we had on test at the same time as the SRi was dull by comparison.

Almost three years old (the Opel version of the car debuted in Europe in 2001) the Barina SRi has been updated for 2004 and still cuts a dashing figure. There's a new trapezoidal shaped chrome grille at the pointy end that looks more Chev than Holden and the new colour-keyed front and rear bumpers have just enough edge to take the car out of the 'girls-only' box. Sorry ladies...

The SRi version also gets unique projector-style headlamps that incorporate three separate lamps for low beam, high beam and indicators. We loved the look of the lights and the big multi-spoke alloy wheels but a badly placed paver in the local golf course carpark claimed one of the latter. Though we just kissed the bluestone block while manoeuvring at parking pace, the convex shape of wheel meant two spokes were badly scored. Sorry Holden... Touch parkers take note!

The wheel at each corner look of the SRi translates into practical ability when the road gets twisty. Suspension is not too stiff; firm is a better description, well controlled and damped. Turn in is sweet for a mass market hatch and the next person who gets a grin after punting an SRi down their favourite piece of blacktop won't be the last. Top stuff.

Power delivery and ratios are well matched and acceleration is strong -- off the line and in-gear. Though we found the 1-2 shift particularly notchy, the rest of the box was fuss free. And unlike most current hatches there's even a bit of aural reward for rowing the 1.8 litre powerplant along -- not too much rasp or volume to grate, but just enough of both to be interesting.

Three door hatches aren't known for family lugging ability. Suffice it to say there's plenty of room up front in the SRi for two, and with a little co-operation from the front seaters another couple will fit in the back.

In summary, not cheap, but very, very cheerful...