Bad, Crazy, Scary…
Opel Tigra TwinTop Illusion
The Opel Tigra covers its electrohydraulic retractable hardtop with canvas.
By Matt DeLorenzo
Sometimes things just aren’t what they appear to be. That goes for what passes as a good idea at the time. The Opel Tigra, a convertible hardtop based on the company’s Astra compact platform, covers its electrohydraulic retractable hardtop with canvas.
The idea is to give the car the soft-top look of a traditional fabric-covered convertible, with the weather- and windproof convenience of a fixed roof. The one-touch top takes 18 seconds to lower.
Excuse us if we’re suffering from a case of “been there, done that” at least in the U.S. when canvas and vinyl roofs were the rage during the 1970s and ‘80s, a particularly forgettable era in American-car building.
Still, Opel is pitching the TwinTop Illusion as a flagship for the Tigra lineup, offering such standard features as heated leather seats, MP3-compatible CD-radio, a two-layer metallic/pearlescent paint scheme, aluminum sport pedals, and, of course, the Bordeaux red canvas covering the hardtop.
The Tigra comes with a choice of either a 90-bhp 1.4-liter or 125-bhp 1.6-liter 4-cylinder engine with a 5-speed manual transmission. The smaller engine can also be equipped with GM’s Easytronic 5-speed manual gearbox with its automatic clutch. There are no plans to export the Tigra to the U.S. as a Saturn.
