I refuse to be ashamed of my love for the Opel Adam, and I'm still annoyed that it isn't sold in the U.S. I want one even more now that GM is unveiling a hotted-up version designed to battle the Fiat 500 Abarth. Meet the Opel Adam S!
"S" has to be the most overused letter in all of auto-dom — "R" is a close second — but it actually means something here. The Adam S gets a 150 horsepower 1.4-liter turbo engine, a very healthy bump of about 50 horses over the most powerful base Adam. It also gets 162 pound-feet of torque, which should help the little city car move in a much more brisk fashion than its little brother.
In terms of output, it's got more juice than the European Fiat 500 Abarth but a little less than the Abarth EsseEsse.
The gearbox is a six-speed manual, and GM says the car can hit 137 mph if you're brave enough to try it. Other enhancements a specially-tuned chassis, brakes from the VXR performance cars, Recaro seats, a sport suspension and a front and rear spoiler. You know, the usual go-fast stuff.
Full performance specs like 0-60 times weren't released, but it all sounds like a promising combination. I hope the Chinese enjoy it, because we won't get to.
The Opel Adam S Is A 150 Horsepower Micro Abarth-Fighter