Opel Zafira
The Opel Zafira, also known as the Zafira Tourer since 2011, is a compact MPV manufactured and marketed by the German automaker Opel on its Astra platform, from January 1999 until 2019 across three generations. It was also marketed under the marque Vauxhall in the United Kingdom until June 2018, the Holden marque in Australia until June 2005, and under a number of other market specific brands and names. The name "Zafira" is derived from the Arabic word for to succeed. Zafira A (1999–2006). The first generation of the Zafira was usually referred to as Zafira A, as  was customary for Opel models. Developed with the aid of Porsche, the Zafira was first shown in concept form at the 1997 Frankfurt Auto Show, and entered series production in January 1999, with sales beginning in April. The Zafira achieved third place in the European Car of the Year for 2000, behind only the Fiat Multipla and Toyota Yaris. The car was based on the same T platform as the 1998 Astra G, and shared much in common with that car. The Zafira A body was used in GM/Opel's concept hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicle the HydroGen3. Offered  with a series of petrol engines and initially a single diesel offering, the "X" engines were replaced by the newer "Z" engine generation in 2000. These featured variable intake manifolds and were able to meet Euro 3 emissions standards. A facelift was launched in February 2003 at the Geneva Motor Show. The Opel Zafira had seven seats arranged in three rows, the back row of which could be folded into the floor, individually or together to create more space, rather than requiring that the extra seats be physically removed from the vehicle. The system was named Flex 7. In TüV 's ranking of the quality of three year old cars, the Zafira was by far the best Opel; only slightly behind the winning Ford Focus. Introduced at Geneva in February 2001, the turbocharged Zafira OPC went on sale in October 2001. With , this was the fastest minivan on sale in Europe. Only available with a five speed manual transmission, 0–100 km/h (62 mph) can be reached in 8.2 seconds and the top speed is . The popular two litre turbodiesels were complemented by a 2.2 litre option in January 2002. The Opel Zafira A was replaced by Zafira B in  Europe, but was still sold in most other markets until 2012 (albeit that its cousin the Chevrolet Astra was discontinued in 2011), except for Australia and New Zealand, where the model was cancelled altogether. The Zafira was sold in the Philippines from 2001 to 2005. It was the last European based Opel car to be sold in the Philippines after they stopped selling the Opel Astra in 2003. Although being sold as the Chevrolet Zafira, it was sold alongside other Opel vehicles until it the Opel name was pulled out of the Philippine-market by its distributor, GM Philippines. Zafira  A production ended on 25 May 2005, in Bochum. The Zafira was sold in the Thailand from 2000 to 2005. it was sold alongside other Opel vehicles until it the Opel name was pulled out of the Thai-market by its distributor, GM Thailand. Thailand’s domestic family wagon segment with 3,946 units sold. The Zafira was sold in Japan from August 2001 through to November 2004 as the Subaru Traviq alongside the standard Opel vehicle, where it was cancelled, and replaced later in 2008 by the Subaru Exiga – developed from the Subaru Legacy platform. According to Subaru, the name  was a combination of the words "travel" and "quick", however, the word more closely resembles the English word "traffic". Due to the exterior dimensions exceeding Japanese government regulations for vehicles defined as "compact", Japanese buyers were liable for additional taxes. The Traviq was originally only available with the bigger 2.2 litre engine, although a 1.8 L, lower priced alternative was added in July 2003. The engines used were not Subaru supplied boxer engines, but were conventional in line units that were uncharacteristic to market recognised Subaru products, and all wheel drive technology was also not available. The sale of the  Zafira as a Subaru created a conflict with previously established Yanase Co., Ltd. retail dealerships, in that Yanase was already selling Opel products, like the Zafira. When production of the Traviq ended, Yanase continued to import Opel products into Japan until 2006. The Zafira was sold in Malaysia as the Chevrolet Nabira. In June 1999, soon after the release of the Zafira, Griff Rhys Jones starred in adverts for the Vauxhall Zafira, in which he played a professor who was fascinated with the car. Zafira B (2005–2015). The second generation of the Zafira, called the Zafira B, debuted in Europe  in June 2005, with sales starting on 9 July 2005. It shared the platform and mechanical parts with the Opel Astra H. In February 2007, the Zafira B was launched in Singapore. By March 2007, the model had only been introduced in Europe and Singapore. It went on sale in Mexico in April 2006, and Chile in September 2007. In both countries, it was branded as a Chevrolet Zafira. Although this generation was replaced in the end of 2011 by the Zafira C, this model remained in production until May 2014, retailing as the Zafira "Family". This name change occurred  in many markets, such as Germany. Names and markets. In Mexico the Opel Zafira was discontinued after the 2006MY, and replaced by the five passenger Chevrolet HHR (discontinued in Mexico since 2009). However, by 2010, reflecting both its status as a run out model, and adverse consumer reaction to uncertainty over Opel's future, the car was outsold by the more recently facelifted Volkswagen Touran on the market in Germany, with 2,568 Zafiras sold in the first two months of the year, against 7,270 Tourans. Engines. The Zafira B's engine line up is partly carried over from the previous  Astra/Zafira generation, but Opel replaced the old 2.0 and 2.2 turbodiesel I4 engines with 1.9 L common rail turbodiesels developed by Fiat (Multijet). Opel Performance Center developed a turbocharged 2.0 L performance version of the Zafira B as well. A CNG (Compressed Natural Gas) version of the new Zafira with a 1.6 L engine is also available. Known issues and recall. In December 2015, safety officials in the United Kingdom asked Vauxhall to initiate a full safety recall of the model Zafira B, due to a worrying level of car fires apparently or alleged to have been caused by  'Improper Repairs'. The fires continued, even those recalled, and a second full safety recall was announced in May 2016, with all owners advised not to use the fan in speeds regulated by the "resistor pack" which contained a solder based unreliable safety critical thermal fuse, until the second recall, starting August 2016, had been carried out. On 3 May 2018, a criminal investigation into Vauxhall's handling of the fires of the Zafira B and recalls was launched in the United Kingdom. On 31 August 2019, major damage occurred in a parking garage in Cork, Ireland when an Opel Zafira  caught fire. On 7 January 2020, there was a spontaneous fire in an Opel Zafira, which caused over 200 to 300 cars in a parking garage at Stavanger Airport, Sola to be destroyed. No people were harmed. Zafira Tourer C (2011-2019). The third generation of the Zafira, called the Zafira Tourer, was previewed in concept form at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, as the 'Zafira Tourer Concept'. It was largely based on the Opel Astra J, and when the Zafira Tourer C went on sale, the Zafira B remained on sale from 2011 up to 2014, albeit in facelifted  form as the "Zafira Family", to act as a smaller and cheaper version, as the Zafira Tourer C increased in size, to act as a proper rival to the Ford C-Max. A hybrid/electric version was expected to follow during 2012. This car indirectly replaced the Opel Sintra, the only previous full sized Vauxhall/Opel MPV in Europe, which was discontinued in May 1999 after just three years on sale, as a slow selling product built in the United States. The production version debuted at the 2011 Frankfurt Motor Show in September, and went on sale November 2011. A  natural gas version of the Zafira Tourer was announced in December 2011. A dual fuel vehicle, its CNG tank driving the car 530 kilometres, and a 14-litre petrol tank provided additional range or operation when a CNG filling station was not available. In June 2016, a facelift was unveiled for 2017 (with sales starting at the end of 2016), dropping 'Tourer' from the name when sold as an Opel. As part of the upgrade, new front and rear bumpers and new interior brought styling in line with the Opel Astra K. OnStar navigation was also introduced as part of  an updated IntelliLink infotainment system, complete with 4G LTE hotspot, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. Other new options for MY2017 included adaptive LED headlights, "Opel Eye" front camera, high beam assist, traffic sign assist, forward collision warning, lane departure warning and adaptive cruise control. In June 2018, the Vauxhall Zafira Tourer was discontinued from the United Kingdom, citing the rise of SUV and crossover vehicles. In 2019, it is replaced by LCV-based Zafira Life. Engines. All engines had a six speed manual gearbox as standard, bar the 1.8 petrol, which had a five speed manual gearbox as  standard. An automatic gearbox was available as an option on the 1.4T and 2.0 CDTI (165 PS), both without S/S. An EcoFLEX version went on sale in 2012, equipped with the 2.0 CDTI (130PS) engine and it gained a Start/Stop system to make it more economical, emitting 119g/km of , as for petrol variants they were 1.4T ecoFLEX with a Start/Stop system with same amount of power (120 and 140 PS) like standard versions but with lower emissions – 144g/km and better fuel efficiency. In 2013, two all new engines were introduced: 1.6 SIDI Turbo  petrol engine with 170 PS and 200 PS, and newly developed 1.6 CDTI diesel engine with 136 PS. In September 2014, Opel introduced its all new generation of engines – Large Diesel engines, starting with 2.0 CDTI engine with 170 PS and 400 Nm, which is a part of new strategy in which Opel will introduce seventeen new engines, in a period from 2014–2018.