Updated Opel Rocks Is A Mild Refresh
Opel has rolled out the updated urban Rocks EV. Unlike its sister Citroen Ami, the restyling of the Opel Rocks is purely formal and extremely cheap.
Two-seat electric quadricycle of L6e class appeared in the Opel range in 2021, then it was called Rocks-e, later the prefix “-e” was abandoned, now it’s just Rocks. At the time of its debut, the Opel Rocks was a product of the most primitive badge engineering – it was made from the Citroen Ami, which debuted in 2020, by replacing the emblems; in addition, Opel’s electric car in expensive versions received original coloring with stickers and a branded wheel hubcap design.
Last year, Citroen Ami went through a full restyling, as a result of which it became remotely and conditionally resemble the legendary “ugly duckling” Citroen 2CV, while all the technical stuffing remained the same. In turn, the updated Opel Rocks has retained the same body panels, they are just now painted in other colors.
If before, completely identical in shape front and aft panels were painted in black, and panels with emblems – in gray, now it’s the other way around: front and aft panels are gray, and panels with emblems – black. The emblems themselves, accordingly, also had to be repainted: they were black, now they are gray. There are no more motley inserts of acid-yellow color on the body, the design of wheel covers is the same.
The interior is also the same, but all the colorful inserts, which apparently irritated many people, have disappeared: only the flaps, which perform the function of door handles, are now painted in acid yellow color. Equipment is still very poor: there is a heater and a fan, but there is no air conditioner, instead of audio system – wireless speaker, instead of multimedia system – smartphone of the driver or his only passenger. A transparent roof is standard equipment. Curb weight with any level of equipment does not exceed 500 kg.
The Opel Rocks has an overall length of 2,410 mm, width of 1,388 mm, height of 1,525 mm and wheelbase of 1,728 mm. The standard tire size is 155/65 R 14. The only electric motor on the front axle produces 6 kW (8.2 hp), the full charge of the battery with a capacity of 5.5 kWh is enough for 75 km of travel. Maximum speed is limited at 45 km/h, thanks to which in Germany teenagers who have reached the age of 15 can get behind the wheel of Opel Rocks, and in France quadricycles of L6e class can be driven from the age of 14.
Prices for the updated Opel Rocks are not announced yet, the electric car in pre-reform color scheme costs now in Germany from 7990 euros. There are no objective reasons for the price rise.
