Back to Page 1: What’s brewing with the Opel Mokka-e?

Space and Practicality

While it’s ostensibly a small SUV, keep in mind it’s slightly smaller than the most popular small SUVs around, and inside it feels more like a compact hatch, headroom aside. As a result it’s decent in terms of space, but not class leading.

There are some quibbles: Legroom is okay, but entering the car you have to mind the high door sills, while rear passengers also have to mind the small door aperture. Two adults will fit the second row, but three means unavoidable shoulder-rubbing.

There’s 350-litres of boot space, less than an SUV and around the same as a small hatchback like the VW Golf, which expands to 1,105-litres with the seats folded down.

Driving Experience

So far the Mokka-e sounds like regular java, rather than a brew with a kick, which is true. But where it surprises is behind the wheel, and not because it jolts either.

We always bitch about coupe-SUVs because they’re hard to look out of and have dynamic compromises, but the Mokka-e proves our bias unfounded in this case. While it does have thick A-pillars, the overall size and smooth electric drivetrain means it’s very easy to drive in urban Singapore, and it’s also capable of good endurance as well.

There’s 130hp on tap, but this is only fully unlocked in Sport mode. Normal mode limits this to a sensible 107hp, while Eco only gets 80hp. In Sport, the car is appropriately darty, although its 0-100km/h time isn’t impressive, the 0-60km/h is undoubtedly punchy because of the plentiful torque, and great for our streets.

Understeer and changeable brake feel detract from the driving a little, but it’s generally agile and well behaved, and doesn’t feel like it’s dragging along two tonnes of batteries. As a result, on its 17-inch wheels it actually rides quite well.

The CarBuyer team covered almost 500km in the Mokka-e (more on that soon) and what really stood out to us is the refinement: It’s very quiet, with little wind noise or tyre road. In fact, it’s quieter than the Mercedes-EQ EQB, likely because of the latter’s huge wheels and large windows.

On average, we saw 13.5kWh/100km with the Mokka, dipping down to low 11s on highways and up to 14 in the worst traffic. But we can say it’s quite an efficient car, as a small EV should be, and an average driver should easily top 300km on one charge. Doing that sort of distance, thanks to the Mokka-e’s refinement, isn’t a chore either. 

A small battery has benefits, since it charges at home in less than five hours if you’ve a fast 11kW charger, although in public, DC fast charging tops out at a tame 50kW. We tested it personally, and 25kWh (half a charge) took around 30 minutes. It’s not horrendously slow, but it’s far from the fastest we’ve seen.

Competition, Pricing, Conclusion

Of course two mainstream Euro EVs appear at the same time, the Mokka-e debuting just bare weeks before its group sibling, the Peugeot e-2008, which is slightly more expensive. Our test drive of that car will be up shortly.

Mini’s fun-to-drive Cooper SE certainly fits the small bill, but isn’t exactly mainstream, at over S$200k – it’s for people who really want 1. an electric car and 2. a Mini. On the other end of the spectrum, the MG ZS has a similar cost to the Opel, but quite a bit more spacious. The current hit of mainstream EVs has to be the BYD Atto 3 though. It’s around S$180k but very impressive for the price.

But there is the question of : What happens if you  want mainstream EV-ing, but must have a Continental car? The Opel is the least expensive choice, and if you don’t need a whole lot of room, and put a premium on styling and refinement, the Mokka-e might be your cup of tea joe.  

2022 Opel Mokka-e

*According to battery capacity and LTA homologated efficiency figures

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