2004 Holden Barina Reviews

Holden Barinas come from a variety of backgrounds. From 1989 until April 1994, Barina was a Japanese Suzuki Swift with a different name, though it sold in fewer variants than did the Swift. From April 1994, Barina was built by German car maker Opel.Then from December 2005, Barina was produced by the South Korean company Daewoo. These days Daewoo, now GM-Korea, has quite a few Australian engineers and designers so there's plenty of local expertise in them.To further increase confusion, Opel Corsa entered the Australian market for the first time in September 2012 and is the ‘grandson’ of the Barina that used to be built for Holden by Opel.It’s still early days for the Corsa in Australia, but owners of the German Barinas are paying close attention to them. Not only do Corsas have sportier dynamics than the Korean Barinas, the importer is closely related to Holden in back-office operations.Holden Barina is a small car that’s generally tough in its build and put together to a good standard in any of the factories just mentioned. It has earned a good reputation for being simple to drive and park.However, some older models didn’t have power-assisted steering as standard so can be a handful at parking speeds. If you do come across one be sure to road test it at very low speeds to see what you think.The Barina is sold as a three-door or five-door hatchback, or a four-door sedan, the latter not offered at all times. Occupant space in the front seats is fine. Some drivers complain the pedals are too close together in the German versions, others don’t have a problem.Rear seat legroom is rather restricted unless the front occupants are prepared to give up some of their space. Hardly unusual in a car in this class. Boot space is marginal in the ‘Suzuki’ Barina, better in the ‘Opel’ and ‘Daewoo’ versions. Naturally the rear-seat backrest can be folded down to increase luggage room when required.In their Suzuki and Daewoo formats the Barina is mainly aimed at suburban running. The German Opel Barina isn't out of place on country roads provided they are not too rough; corrugated roads can knock them around. They are designed to cruise at 140 to 160 km/h in their home country so dawdling along at 110 km/h in Australia sees them barely raising a sweat.The current GM-Korea Barina isn’t too bad on the rough stuff, but is still better left to the suburban areas. Handling in the European-sourced Barinas is enjoyable and will appeal to the enthusiast. The Suzuki and Korean models can be on the soft side, though a decent set of tyres can make them reasonably pleasant to drive.All Barinas have four-cylinder engines. The Suzuki engine is a 1.3-litre unit (three-cylinder engines used in some Suzuki Swifts but were never installed in Barinas). Though the engine is small, performance is reasonably good because of the light weight of the car.The European-built Opel Barina comes with several different engine sizes. The 1.2-litre engine was sluggish and a poor seller, it was discontinued midway through 1997; the 1.4-litre is the most common engine and provides on-road performance that’s fine for most people.There's also a hot GSi motor in the Opel versions of the Barina. It had 1.6 litres until the 2001 model, then 1.8 litres (re-tagged as the Barina SRi) made it a genuine hot hatch at a pretty modest price.Engines in the current Barina, the South Korean one, have a capacity of 1.2 litres in the low-cost Spark model and 1.6 litres in the others. The 1.2 is on the dead side but the 1.6 provides reasonably peppy performance. These days there’s no high-performance option on Barina, but the Opel Corsa OPC, launched early in 2013 is a great little hot hatch.Five-speed manual gearboxes are probably the best bet unless you are going to be doing a lot of heavy-duty commuting. The automatic in the ‘Suzuki’ Barina is a three-speed unit, that in the German Opel and Korean models a four-speed. The automatic option isn’t offered in all versions of the Opel-based Barina.From November 1997 until late 2000 some three-door hatches were converted into two-door cabriolets by HSV in Melbourne. They are great fun to cruise in when the weather’s right, but their extra weight makes them sluggish in acceleration and handling suffered because of the removal of the roof.The cabriolet is even smaller in the back seat than the others, so is really a two-plus-two not a four-seater. Spare parts prices are generally favourable and there are Holden dealers in virtually all areas of Australia. Those in remote country areas are unlikely to stock every Barina part, so you may have to wait for parts to be shipped from a major city.Barinas are reasonably easy for the amateur mechanic to service and repair, though the underbonnet area is on the crowded side and work can be frustrating at times. Having a workshop manual on hand before you lift the bonnet makes a lot of sense. Insurance charges are generally reasonable, some companies will ask extra for the higher-performance Barina GSi and SRi.WHAT TO LOOK FORThe engine should start reasonably quickly and idle without too much movement. Listen for a rattle when it first kicks over, even if the rattle dies away after a couple of seconds it probably means the engine is badly worn.After the engine has been idling for a minute or so, hit the accelerator pedal and look for a puff of smoke from the exhaust. This could indicate serious engine wear.Make some fast gearchanges and listen and feel for a manual gearbox that baulks or crashes. The problem usually shows up in the critical third-to-second downchange before any others.Automatics that are rough in their changes or which change too frequently, may be due for an overhaul.Check that the brakes don't pull to one side under hard application. If ABS is fitted, feel for a pulsing through the pedal when you push it very hard.Look for front tyres that are worn unevenly. This could be caused by something as simple as poor wheel alignment, but it could also mean the body has been twisted in a prang.Rust is not normally a problem in Suzuki-built Barinas, but if it does get a hold it can make a real mess of the body in a relatively short time. Be wary of this because rust repairs can cost big bucks.Opel cars are significantly better for rust protection and the only problems we have seen are in cars poorly repaired after a crash. Korean cars look to be well rust proofed and are standing up well.To be on the safe side, check for rust in all lower areas of the body, doors and hatchback, as well as the surrounds of the front and rear windows and the petrol filler flap.CAR BUYING TIPSmall cars with low kilometres on the clock have probably spent most of their lives in heavy-duty traffic with their engines cold. This is not good for longevity of mechanical components.

These city cars are not meant to put a smile on your face.They're not meant to look hot yet still appear like they come from the factory.And they're certainly not meant to incite rivalry between male and female drivers as to who gets the keys for a run down to the shops.Holden's Barina SRi, right, is the exception.Admittedly $22,490 is a little pricey for a runabout but the SRi is the top of the food chain in terms of Barinas.And for this you get the 1.8-litre four cylinder, a step up from the 1.4-litre engine in the rest of the range.Right from start up it is evident that there is a little more urge and excitment under the skin.It is armed with lusty performance yet together with a harder edge there also is a degree of practicality.Inside the Barina there is a spacious cabin in which adults will not feel like sardines when they climb into the rear.In some respects the Barina is a more enjoyable drive than the corresponding Astra SRi.Vision is clearer all-round, there is a well sorted manual gearbox, crisp steering, sharp turn-in, supportive seats and a punchy engine.Perhaps one of the best attributes of the Barina SRi is the fun factor.There are faster, wilder and meaner four-potters around but they also are pricier.All-round the Barina does everything with a reasonable degree of competence.It sits proud around town and on more demanding runs on the freeway and handles well, tucking in and sitting confidently around tight corners.Road manners are polite, obedient and brisk from a lightweight package that is heavy on enjoyment levels.There has been changes to the Barina SRi compared to when it first came out a few years ago.For starters the windows have gained electric controls compared to the manual ones which kind of didn't quite cut the mustard for what it was trying to be.It now has all the mod-cons in a smart package that wants for little.While the rest of the Barina range recently underwent a revamp which coincided with price reductions of between 5-6 per cent, the SRi is rock solid at $22,490.

Even a facelift and freshen-up is not enough to re-ignite whatever excitement was caused when the model burst on to the scene.Take Holden's Barina – yes, the 'Beep Beep' car – as a case in point. With much fanfare and more than a little praise, Holden launched the XC Barina early in 2001. Its Euro-build, big-car dynamics and pleasing demeanour shot the Barina to the head of the light-car class and gave its rivals a target to aim for. And aim they did, with laudable efficiency.Mazda was first into the fray, scoring a hit with the Mazda2. Then Honda lined up the pair of them with its Jazz.The Barina slipped off the publicity radar but never too far down the popularity scale, continuing to sell its 500-odd cars a month.Early this year Holden sent its beep-beep baby off for a make-over – nothing extreme, just a tuck and trim and a bit of a update on the wardrobe.Back on the party circuit, it was time to revisit Barina and what a nice experience that was.All the good things that impressed everyone at the original launch – the feeling of substance and quality, strength of engine, space and steering that put many more expensive cars to shame – were still evident.The changes are largely cosmetic with a new chrome grille, colour-keyed front and rear bumpers, body-coloured door and tailgate handles. The five-door CD manual, the model re-visited, has won some significant interior changes with a new charcoal grey fabric trim, and co-ordinated centre console along with a 60/40 split rear seat.The Barina's dynamics, impressive to start with, have been tweaked to further sharpen the steering control. Changes to the ride are so fine as to be almost indistinguishable.A new 1.4-litre engine – available only with the manual gearbox – delivers exactly the same 66kW of power with a marginal 5Nm improvement in torque but does, according to Holden, improve fuel efficiency to below 6L/100km.During the test period it wasn't quite that good – around 6.6L/100km – but there was a fair degree of enthusiastic zipping involved. And that, in a nutshell, is the attraction of the Barina.It does encourage a bit of fun without ever feeling that it is just a try-hard out of its league.You are not going to blow off too many performance models – well, none to be honest – at the lights, but when asked, the Barina gives its all and is quite capable of punching above its weight.The engine spins out willingly right to its redline, just a tick past 6000rpm without getting gaspy.The five-speed box is well sorted for ratios and the shift feel is nice and precise without being especially sporty.Room in the Barina is particularly impressive. There is no feeling of being cramped – for headroom nor shoulder space.Steering adjustment is rake-only but the seating position is enough to make finding a comfortable driving position possible.Rear-seat room is also impressive with enough clearance to the roof and the rear of the front seats to make transporting four adults a no-fuss proposition.Luggage space is not huge but is adequate for a couple of suitcases or a large shopping expedition and if you need that bit extra, the split-fold rear seats can accommodate.

In bang for your buck terms, there isn't much around to match the 1.8-litre Holden Barina SRi for $22,490, plus on roads. Perhaps Suzuki's Ignis Sport comes the closest but it's a 1.5-litre.Spend substantially more and chances are you'll only get marginally more performance and probably the same level of sporty handling.It's been around since 2001 but was tweaked earlier this year to add more godies such as brake assist, revised steering and suspension for improved dynamics.Holden persisits in putting a premium of $1880 on airconditioning for all Barinas.But the SRi has plenty of goodies to complement it's rather wicked turn of speed and sports car handling.These include sporty seats, CD audio, remote central locking, ABS and dual front airbags.Power comes from the same 1.8-litre, twin cam engines as the larger Holden Astra – with predictable results.Small car/bigger engine is a tried and true performance formula. It's good for 92kW/165Nm.The SRi not only goes like the clappers, it has superb torque making it responsive from just about any speed. Whip it into top and you can pretty well stay there most of the time and simply push the accelerator to make things happen.But if you really want to go, a quick flick down a ratio or two and things become even more urgent.The engine doesn't seem this potent in Astra, nor as rorty in engine and exhaust noise. I might just be imagining it but I like it.Only available in the three-door body, Barina SRi will take four people at a pinch and the boot is a reasonable size.Front seat passengers are spoiled for comfort and the array of standard equipment makes travel time better. The CD audio is actually quite good for a car in this class as are the comfortable seats and steering wheel mounted audio controls.There are limits to its handling capabilities dictated by the car's height and suspension setting. It can really hoot through turns but becomes untidy when you push a little too hard. This produces understeer effect with loss of front end grip.But the brakes are powerful and the 15 inch tyres are user friendly.Other controls such as the steering and gearshift have a sporty feel.A slightly flashier exterior treatment would lift the SRi's appearance abouve lesser models.