At the end of last year, NZ Company Vehicle introduced its readers to the Opel brand and more specifically to the first of the Opel vehicles to arrive in New Zealand – the all-electric Mokka e.  Given that it is the height of summer, an ICE Mokka might have been more appropriate…

If you thought that was something of a forced comment, think again. Opel has ICE (internal combustion engine) Mokkas available along with ICE Corsa hatchback’s and – coming a little later – ICE Astras and maybe an ICE Grandland full-size SUV. And when we say later, we’re not talking years, but months.

Part of Opel’s brand launch strategy is to increase the awareness and uptake of electric vehicles, part of the reason the brand is coming into New Zealand with an extensive model line-up, but having said that, the brand recognises some buyers still need convincing that AC/DC is better than recycled dinosaur juice and accordingly, is ‘twinning’ its EVs with conventionally fuelled models.

More about these in a later edition. For now, we have just reluctantly returned the Mokka e, arguably the brand’s best ambassador vehicle, as it demonstrates everything the Opel brand stands for in one bold and pure package.
Bold and Pure is actually Opel’s design philosophy, and while most auto brands have one, none is quite so pronounced and taken so seriously by its team here and its product, as is Opel’s.

And by way of example, the Mokka e carries the bold and pure design motif throughout its compact crossover form, inside and out.

Brilliantly conceptualised for the inner city, Mokka e occupies 4151mm of road length on a 2561mm wheelbase, 1791mm in road width and 1532mm in height.

If you are into more subjective sizing, the Mokka e is – well pretty much the right size for slipping in and out of tight car parking spaces while providing high riding visibility in a strikingly bold and athletic shape.

Alright, so where’s all the ‘bold and pure’ design motif? For that, just look at the front end of the Mokka e.
The simple and striking nose is made up largely of what Opel calls ‘the Vizor’ – a signature element of Opel’s design philosophy.     

As well as being the backboard for the Opel emblem or ‘Blitz’ – a particularly appropriate logo – the Vizor is kind of like a motorcycle helmet visor inasmuch as it protects what’s behind it; in the case of the Mokka e, the sensors, cameras and radars that are so integral to modern vehicle operation, from dust, grit and debris.

Flanking the Vizor is a pair of super sleek LED Matrix headlights.

Many might recognise the term ‘LED Matrix’ as being THE last word in headlights, and it was, until Opel came along and made LED Matrix better.

The Mokka e has Intellilux LED Matrix lights – a cluster of 14 individual LEDs which are more powerful and more precise than conventional headlights or Xenon bulbs.

High beam lights are automatically selected anytime the Mokka e ventures outside of the city environs it calls home and the lights continue to adapt to provide the best lighting pattern to suit the driving and road conditions.

With their ability to ‘see’ oncoming traffic and shut down certain LEDs while providing sufficient light for the Mokka e driver to see clearly, the Intellilux lights create a glare-free road ahead for everyone on the highway and, being low energy consumers, the LEDs are perfect for freeing up the battery for moving the SUV.

This segues neatly into looking at the battery itself, which is a 50kWh unit, allowing the Mokka e to realise a 363km range, dependent on which mode you are driving the Mokka e in.

You can select from Eco, Normal and Sport from the Drive Select switch with Eco being the one to give you the best range. Normal is the default setting and Sport delivers a more athletic performance for less range.   

Knowing which driving mode you’re in is easy, thanks to the Mokka e’s second signature feature: the PurePanel.
The PurePanel is the driver-centric combination of two screens, a 10-inch infotainment and 12-inch driver information screen, which for all intents and purposes, combine to form one screen and deliver a wealth of driver selectable information.

Its possible for instance to mirror the 3D satellite navigation from the centre screen to the one in front of the driver or do the same thing with the energy flow and charge status.  

The PurePanel keeps the Mokka e cockpit space clean and clear – or bold and pure if you like. As to the rest of the cockpit, you’ll find it has elements of sporty driving, with aluminium pedals, well side bolstered and heated sports seats, black piano gloss and carbon fibre-esque trim finishing up with a multifunction and again, heated, leather steering wheel with the crushed bottom F1-inspired look.  

Opel has imbued its flagship vehicle with six airbags, Lane keep assist, semi-autonomous lane positioning assist, adaptive cruise control with Stop and Go functionality, speed limit recognition and recommendation, blind spot monitoring active emergency braking with pedestrian and cyclist detection as well as night function. And this is only half of the list!

Opel being a German company which has been in the automaking game since the 1890’s, has loaded the Mokka e with everything a vehicle in this class could or should have and more besides as well as its very well thought out electric drivetrain system, but what about the drive itself?

This critical element is often overlooked by EV producers, in favour of whizzy high tech features or radical designs.
If an EV doesn’t have these characteristics, all too often the final product comes out with too much emphasis on trying to look ‘normal’.

The Mokka e sits somewhere in the middle of this spectrum, and that’s about as close to the word ‘mediocre’ as you can get when referring to an Opel product.

As an electric vehicle, the Mokka e stacks up well against its contemporaries, with a practical charging system allowing home charging (28 hours on a 10 amp socket or seven hours with a 7.4 kW Wallbox), as well as on-the-go fast charging (0 to 80 percent in 30 minutes on a fast charger) and uses that battery power at 14.5kWh per 100km.

As an SUV that’s great to drive, the Mokka e delivers the goods too. It’s not only engaging and head turning in its design, the work which has gone into the suspension suggests the Mokka e was designed with New Zealand roads in mind.

Given that this is a city chic SUV first and foremost, getting the suspension right is quite a trick. Remembering that European roads are very different to ours and having an SUV which can not only cope with that but be positively noteworthy in this regard is quite a trick.

Now we become Auckland-centric and our roads are very different to that of say, Hamilton, and the Mokka e delivers the same level of excellence, is pretty impressive when you think about it.

There’s a little subjectivity on this point. NZ Company Vehicle found the Mokka e’s ability to handle road ‘issues’ – broken surfaces, stupid amounts of judder bars/speed bumps, potholes,  uncleaned lane markings and just generally messy surface variations – to be absolutely astounding.

The Mokka e brooks no road nonsense. It encounters the above listed conditions and treats them almost with contempt, swallowing them up under its 18-inch wheels, spitting them out the back and continuing on its way without any undue ‘floating to recover’ afterwards.

It’s not a firm ride, but is better described as a confident one as opposed to that provided by some automakers whose softer suspension is not always the best solution to handling the less than ideal surface issues.

Opel is something of a disruptor brand by its own admission, and the purpose of its ensemble of models is to ‘detox’ our driving habits and reset our concept of mobility – noble goals, which if the Mokka e is any indication, can be lived up to.

From a fleet perspective, the Mokka e is not just another SUV, albeit a compact and clean one. It has all the right credentials in terms of practicality vis its range, its roominess and its appropriate performance in the city.

It sends a loud and clear message of considerate motoring by celebrating contemporary and individualistic style at the same time and yet, there is more than just an element of class, distinction and panache.

With the number of vehicles bearing the Opel Blitz coming into the country this year, Opel is also making a statement of intent.

Not content to provide just one or two models to test the waters, Opel is laying down a challenge to other automakers to have faith in their products and put their machines where their money is.

And if for no other reason (technology, driveability, practicality, vehicle building expertise and head turning looks to mention but a few) this is why Opel – and the Mokka e – should be on your list of brands and EVs to consider – perhaps more so than other more price-heavy EVs?