While the default chassis set-up allows excellent handling and impressive suspension comfort, drivers favouring a sharper, stiffer response can simply press the 'Sport' switch on the dashboard and instantly enjoy a firmer chassis set-up.

Under the skin, Vauxhall Zafira VXR shares much of its DNA with Astra VXR, and that means it has an effective combination of Macpherson struts at the front and a torsion beam at the rear. The spring and shock absorber rates are specially tuned to a special VXR formula, while uprated steering geometry plus performance bushes and bearings give Vauxhall Zafira VXR an exceptionally sharp and dynamic feel.

To cope with the power, the braking system is shared with the Astra VXR. That means Vauxhall Zafira VXR gets massive 321mm ventilated disc brakes at the front , along with a tailored ABS and EBD package. Two wheel sizes are available, either 18-inch or 19-inch alloys of an exclusive VXR design.


Vauxhall Zafira VXR - Safety and quality

- 5-star Euro NCAP rating
- Pedestrian-friendly bonnet and bumpers
- Premium build quality
 
It might be a performance model, but Zafira VXR is still packed with the same innovative passive and active safety features as New Zafira, that aim to protect both you and other road users.

New Zafira's safety package uses an inherently stable chassis package combined with the latest electronic aids to keep the car in check and hopefully avoid a collision, or determine the severity of an impact and activate the correct safety features should an accident occur. The IDS2-plus chassis technology further improves that safety, with sharper steering and braking responses and better body control.

Active safety devices available to help the driver in extreme situations include ABS, ESP-plus, Brake Assist, Understeer Control Logic, and CDC Continuous Damping Control, helping to deliver incredibly safe and secure chassis behaviour.

But there's much more to it than that. As well as exceptional pedestrian safety, courtesy of energy absorbing bumpers and a collapsible bonnet, Vauxhall Zafira VXR offers excellent protection in the event of an accident. By using the same safety systems and testing methods as the top-scoring Astra, New Zafira achieved a top five-star Euro NCAP rating.

But then that's hardly surprising, as the newcomer is packed with passive safety features. Twin front, side and head curtain airbags help cushion the impact of an accident, while Vauxhall's acclaimed Active Head Restraints are also available, moving upwards and forwards to reduce the risk of whiplash in rear end collisions. Furthermore, if an airbag is deployed in an accident, the hazard warning flashers are automatically switched on and all doors unlocked.

New Zafira has also been designed to ease the pain of repair costs after an accident. Low-speed shunts are easily and cheaply repaired to keep insurance costs low. The car contains a 'crashbox' between the bumper cross members and the body, which is effectively a bolted-on metal section that absorbs impacts, and in the event of a minor bump can simply be removed, discarded and replaced without the need for any expensive jigging or straightening.

The inherent safety is matched by Vauxhall Zafira VXR's quality of finish. The cars are finished in a UKP 300 million start-of-the-art factory in Bochum, Germany, on one of the cleanest and most modern production lines in the entire motor industry. 

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