New Barina perfect for mum

Holden thinks the Barina is the perfect all-purpose transport in New Zealand for older mothers, writes motoring editor ALASTAIR SLOANE.

One statistic binds the history of the Holden Barina in Australia and New Zealand: about 70 per cent of buyers are women. Whereas Holden Australia is pitching the new small car at younger women, Holden New Zealand is eyeing older women - the "independent empty-nesters," says marketing executive Aalbert van Ham.

"Compared with New Zealand, the demographics of the Barina in Australia are different," he says.

"The Australians are targeting women in the 18 to 24 age group, or first-time car buyers. Here in New Zealand we are aiming the car mostly at women aged 45-plus, mothers whose children have grown up.

"Our figures show that Barina buyers are much more likely to be in that age group. Men buy them too, but there's definitely a skew towards women."

The new XC Barina replaces the outgoing SB model and goes on sale later this month.

Holden New Zealand has taken a conservative advertising route with the car, using television commercials filmed in this country and aimed at its older target audience.

Holden Australia has taken its message to the internet, where the young and the restless hang out. It has launched a 24-hour music channel called Barina FM, which will run for 12 months and cost about $620,000.

"Young people are the hardest to get to," says Holden Australia marketing executive Michael King. "They don't like being told what's good or what's cool, they make up their own minds - and then make irrational purchases."

The new Barina, with its sharper, European styling and roomier, jazzier interior, is the first all-new Barina in seven years. Six of its nine exterior colours are new, too.

The car is longer, wider and taller than the one it replaces. It is about 90kg heavier, with a 33 per cent stronger body. Its ride and handling package is said to be much improved.

Further evidence that stylists at Opel - the Barina is a rebadged Corsa built in Spain - wanted the car to appeal to women of all ages comes from chief designer Friedhelm Engler, who once styled luggage and accessories for luxury house Louis Vuitton.

Engler likens the Barina's skin to clothes. "We didn't want to lose the Barina's spunky shape," he said. "We wanted tight lines and sharp creases. We wanted the Barina to be well dressed."

Designers set out to accentuate the car's European heritage and to give it a wider, more purposeful stance to accentuate its body lines. The bigger interior is sexier too, with a basketball-type texture on the dashboard and steering-wheel.

There are integrated pen holders in the glovebox, a drawer beneath the front passenger seat, sun-visor document pockets, door bins, cup holders and seatback hooks for shopping bags.

Luggage space has been increased and the fold-down use of the rear seats is more versatile.

The Barina is available in one model, with three doors or five. Holden, thankfully, has dropped the mushy "Swing"and "Joy" model names.

The car is powered by a 1.4-litre engine delivering 66kW at 6000 rpm and 120Nm at 4000 rpm. This is an improvement of 6kW and 6Nm on the old engine. The reworked engine is mated to either a five-speed manual or four-speed automatic gearbox.

The three-door manual costs $20,700, the automatic $21,900. The five-door manual costs $23,200, the automatic $24,400.

Standard equipment includes disc brakes on all four wheels, air-conditioning, driver and front passenger airbags, force-limiters on the seatbelts, speed-dependent electric power steering and steering wheel-mounted controls for the Blaupunkt stereo.

The Barina name appeared in New Zealand in April 1985 when Holden began assembling and rebadging 1.3-litre Suzuki Swifts at its Porirua plant. The plant closed in the late 80s in favour of completely built-up vehicles. Holden continued to import rebadged Swifts until 1994, when it switched to Opel-sourced cars from Europe.

The outgoing SB Barina (Corsa) was sold in 80 countries and has been one of the most successful models in Opel's history. Produced in nine body styles at 11 plants on five continents, about six million models have rolled off the production lines.

The new XC Barina is built at Zaragoza, Spain, where 1950 units roll off the production line each day. The vehicle is also built at plants in Eisenach, Germany, and Azambuja, Portugal.