You’d scarcely believe the new Vauxhall Mokka was related to the old, forgettable model just by looking at it. This new car is one of the most stylish crossovers on sale.
It certainly makes a great alternative to the likes of the Volkswagen T-Cross if you’re after something with a bit of visual flair – especially if you go for one of the Mokka’s eye-popping two-tone colour schemes…
Even without one of these optional paint jobs, the Mokka looks more dramatic than your average family car. It’s no off-roader, but its chunky black wheel arch trims and raised ride height means it’ll turn more heads than something like a Vauxhall Corsa hatchback.
Thankfully, Vauxhall hasn’t run out of ideas for the Mokka’s interior. Sure it doesn’t have quite the same visual appeal as the tres-chic Peugeot 2008’s cabin, but the Mokka’s glossy black trims and raised touchscreen look posher than what you get in most small crossovers.
Speaking of which, that touchscreen comes with all the must-have smartphone mirroring features as standard, and mid-range models get sat-nav, too.
Everything in the Mokka’s cabin is relatively easy to use and you’ll have plenty of space to get comfy in the front. But, the back seats are a little too cramped for tall adults to stretch out and the boot isn’t as roomy as in a Peugeot 2008.
The Vauxhall Mokka makes a good choice if you’re after a stylish small family car that won’t be mistaken for your average boxy crossover in the school car park
That said, you probably won’t be ferrying too many large items of furniture in your Vauxhall Mokka. It’s much more likely you’ll be tackling the school run or popping to the shops – jobs this attractive crossover does pretty well.
The Mokka deals with most bumps around town without any fuss, and its raised driving position gives you a better view out forward than in hatchbacks such as the Vauxhall Corsa.
That said, parallel parking is made a tad tricky by the small rear windscreen – but the Mokka’s light steering helps make most inner-city manoeuvres a doddle.
It’s easy to drive for long periods, too, and you won’t hear a great deal of wind or tyre noise at motorway speeds.
All this makes the new Vauxhall Mokka a good choice of family crossover – especially if you’re looking for something that’ll stand out and don’t mind paying a bit extra for some posh-looking upgrades.
Fair passenger space in the front but the back seats are quite cramped and other crossovers have roomier boots
Boot (seats up)
350 litres
Boot (seats down)
1,105 litres
The Vauxhall Mokka’s cabin feels pretty roomy in the front. The seats are comfortable and come with a decent amount of adjustment so you’ll be able to get a good view out whether you’re small or very tall.
It’s a shame that things are much cosier in the back seats. Six-foot-tall passengers don’t have much headroom to spare and their knees will touch the front seats if they’re sitting behind an equally tall driver.
The central-rear seat is raised, which limits headroom further, but at least there’s enough space for three kids to sit side-by-side without the need to fight over elbow room.
The Mokka’s relatively small rear windows mean they won’t get a particularly good view out, however, and the dark interior fabrics can make things feel a little too snug at times.
You’ll find a few handy cubby holes dotted around the Vauxhall Mokka’s cabin. The front door bins are wide and deep enough to comfortably hold a large bottle, but their hard plastic lining means anything you put in there will rattle about as you drive.
There’s another storage space under the front armrest but it’s only large enough to hold a drinks can, and the glovebox is only just big enough for a small bottle.
You get a storage tray under the dashboard for your phone beside a USB port and you can get an extra pair of USB charging ports between the front seats for passengers in the back.
Unfortunately, the rear door bins are much smaller than those in the front and the position of the rear-door armrests makes it tricky to slide in a drinks bottle.
The Vauxhall Mokka comes with a 350-litre boot. Its square shape makes it nice and easy to load, but you can’t carry quite as much luggage as in the Skoda Kamiq’s 400-litre boot or the Peugeot 2008’s 434-litre loadbay.
You can get the Mokka with an adjustable boot floor that makes it easier to slide in heavy items, and it gives you a nice hidey-hole to keep valuables out of sight.
Flip the back seats down (which you can do in a 60:40 split) and the raised floor makes it easy to push heavy luggage right up behind the front seats.
Unfortunately, the button to open the Mokka’s boot is located down on the bumper by the number plate. This makes it a bit tricky to reach, especially if you’re carrying heavy luggage, and it’ll likely get covered by dirt and grime in winter months.
The Mokka deals with bumps reasonably well and it’s easy to drive, but rear visibility isn’t great and the automatic gearbox in high-spec cars can be sluggish at times
You can get the Vauxhall Mokka with one diesel and two petrol engines. The 1.5-litre diesel produces 110hp and Vauxhall claims it’ll return more than 64mpg. This means it’s worth a look if you mostly do long journeys, but it’s a shame that it’s only available with a six-speed manual gearbox.
The same goes for the entry-level, 1.2-litre 100hp petrol engine. This returns a claimed 51.4mpg and makes a good choice if you spend a lot of time driving in town.
There’s also a more powerful 130hp version of this same petrol engine that comes exclusively with an eight-speed automatic gearbox. This can’t match the 100hp car’s fuel economy, but Vauxhall still says it’ll manage more than 47mpg.
The 130hp engine’s standard automatic gearbox makes it easier to drive in town and for long periods than the manual gearbox in other Mokka models, but it’s not all good news. The gearbox can be a little slow to change gears when you need to accelerate hard to overtake slow-moving traffic, and it can be a tad jerky at low speeds – such as when you’re parking.
The Vauxhall Mokka is a fairly quiet car to drive. You won’t hear too much noise from the engine – unless you accelerate hard – you’ll only notice a slight wind-whistle from the door mirrors at motorway speeds.
The Mokka’s light steering means it’s easy to drive through tight spaces and in town, and it does a decent job smoothing out most bumps and potholes. That said, the electric Mokka-e is even better in this regard.
You get a better view out of the Vauxhall Mokka than in regular hatchbacks such as the Vauxhall Corsa thanks to its raised suspension and tall body. But, the narrow rear windscreen and small rear windows can make parallel parking a little tricky.
You’d never describe the Mokka as ‘fun’ to drive. Still, the electric Mokka-e can put a cheeky grin on your face when you accelerate thanks to the instant shove from its electric motor.
What's it like inside?
Looks smarter than many small crossovers and feels solidly built, but its infotainment system isn’t the most intuitive
*Please contact the dealer for a personalised quote, including terms and conditions. Quote is subject to dealer requirements, including status and availability. Illustrations are based on personal contract hire, 9 month upfront fee, 48 month term and 8000 miles annually, VAT included.
