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Photo: Christian Bittmann
The first impression:
What is that – a broken-in minibus?
An oversized toy car?
And where is the front and where is the back?
This is what the manufacturer says:
Nobody needs more cars – at least not in the city.
This is how Opel promotes a new form of mobility.
»Its design is clear and bold, its dimensions are extremely compact, its drive is purely electric and its price is unbeatable.
In this way, we make it possible for young novice drivers to inner-city commuters to make the affordable switch to electromobility,” drums Andreas Marx, head of Opel in Germany, for the 2.41-metre-long cube on wheels.
However, the Rocks-e is basically nothing more than the Citroën Ami, which was presented two years ago - but is not sold in Germany.
The cars differ in their logos – the double chevron on the Citroën, the lightning bolt on the Opel.
And with decorative elements in bright yellow, which the Rocks-e wears as a contrast to the gray body.
The Rocks-e is not a car.
It is listed as a category L6e light vehicle.
This means that the vehicle must not weigh more than 450 kilograms without the battery.
In addition, it may not drive faster than 45 km/h, but from the age of 15 with a moped driver's license.
"With this vehicle, we're introducing young people to the brand," says product manager Keanu Eftekhari.
»Grandmother will pay the down payment and the leasing rate will cost as much as a monthly ticket for the local transport association,« the press people say.
Some parents are happy to raise the money so that their offspring can get home from the disco a little more safely than on a moped.
The leasing is designed in such a way that a real car can be purchased on time for the 18th birthday.
more on the subject
Hints like cigarettes: Driving is the new smokingBy Felix Wadewitz
We noticed that if
you want to get along with the Rocks-e, you first have to erase all memories of real driving so that you don't constantly compare the Rocks-e with more comfortable vehicles.
Just because there's a roof over your head, a steering wheel and two pedals doesn't make the Rocks-e feel like a car.
It's too tight and uncomfortable for that.
Plastic as far as the eye can see, the seats are harder and more uncomfortable than in the city bus, instead of a heater there's only a blower that blows open the windows in an emergency.
The chassis is as smooth as that of a shopping cart.
While other electric cars lure with silence, the Rocks-e's plastic body mixes in a lot of exterior noise with the creaking and crackling of its plastic body.
For an electric car, the price of 7990 euros may be a bargain, with no subsidies flowing in this class.
But many customers would probably expect more value for it than a garden chair on wheels.
It should also be a little more than the 12 hp and 40 Nm of torque.
Theoretically, the limited speed is okay, at 45 km/h you are hardly faster at your destination than at 50, especially in the city.
In practice, however, the Opel Rocks-e is perceived as a car - and as such it seems too slow.
This makes changing lanes difficult.
The grille of a truck looks menacing in the rear-view mirror.
The city motorway is of course taboo, which makes route planning difficult.
With a Microlino from the lightweight class L7e, which allows 90 km/h, you are faster and more relaxed on the road.
The great moment of the Rocks-e comes when parking.
A Smart looks bulky against him.
And suddenly driving pleasure flares up when you drive in circles around other cars, fit through every gap and always find a place.
This sometimes makes up for the limited top speed: while others are still looking for a parking space, the Rocks-e crew is already in the coffee bar or in the changing room.
After half a day in the city, the realization matures: You shouldn't see the Rocks-e through the glasses of a driver, but through the eyes of those who otherwise travel by bus, train or moped.
And since the small Opel is sometimes the better choice.
He drives according to his personal timetable, the user can choose the company.
And unlike a scooter or bicycle, it offers weather protection.
And a seat belt.
Airbags, crumple zones or ESP are not available for weight and cost reasons.
You have to know that:
The Opel Rocks-e has been on the market since January.
At 2.41 meters long and 1.39 meters wide, the car is so small that it even disappears behind a Smart Forfour.
To call the facilities spartan would be an exaggeration.
With a storage capacity of 5.5 kWh, the battery has not even half as much as that of the plug-in hybrid version of the new Opel Astra.
The Rocks-E manages 75 kilometers on one charge.
Charging takes three hours at the normal 230-volt socket, and an adapter is required for charging at a wall box.
The small Opel cannot use the fast charger.
We will not forget that:
The idiosyncratic hinged doors that open on the right side with and on the left against the direction of travel.
There is something like that only with - of all things - Rolls-Royce.
There a whim of the designers, it serves to save costs at the Opel.
Because with the mirror-inverted installation, one and the same door can be used on both sides.
Because Opel also uses this trick for folding windows and other parts, the entire car consists of just 250 parts.
They are put together in the factory in Morocco like at Playmobil.
