Warm hatch is out in the cold

GSi looks cool but spoiled by awful ride

THIS week’s road test features a very rare car. But it’s not a limited edition £2million Ferrari or a one-off concept car that runs solely on rotting vegetables.

No, today’s test car is rare in that it is truly bad. It is not unusual to test a car that falls short in a few areas, sometimes seriously, but it is uncommon in the 21st century to drive a new car that is, er, rubbish.

So without further ado, let me introduce the Vauxhall Corsa GSi. Its purpose is straightforward – to fill a gap left open by the demise of the Corsa VXR, Vauxhall’s weapon to take on Ford’s Fiesta ST and other hot hatches.

The GSi name will be familiar to Vauxhall fans as it goes back a long way and has also recently been introduced on the Insignia.

The Corsa GSi is what you’d describe as a warm hatch, having the looks of a full-fat hot hatch but with more modest power. The GSi pinches many of the visual cues of the VXR, including its bonnet intake and aero add-ons, but under the

bonnet instead of a 200bhp motor there’s a 148bhp 1.4-litre turbo.

Having only 148bhp is not this car’s problem. The Suzuki Swift Sport has only 138bhp but is a great little car. So what’s wrong with the Corsa then? Well, for starters, it has the worst tyre noise of any car I can remember driving. The standard fit tyre is the

The noise is so bad a handsfree phone chat would be a shouting match

Michelin Pilot Sport 4 which for our test car sit on optional 18in alloys. The tyres are very low profile 215/40

R18s and even at low speeds the noise is so bad you’re unable to listen to music. A hands-free phone chat would be a shouting match.

And then there’s the suspension itself. No small hatchback rides as badly as the Corsa GSi. At low speeds it is particularly poor, but matters don’t improve much as you speed up. We drove the GSi on traffic-free country roads in Hampshire where it’s still possible to have fun.

Vauxhall’s engineers have managed to create a car that feels considerably quicker than it is due to its habit of bouncing about and a general uneasy feeling the faster you go. The steering is quick but that adds to the car’s nervousness because the ride is so jittery.

Torque steer is rare these days even in 300bhp hot hatches but the Corsa GSi has that old-fashioned wriggly feeling through the front wheels with only 148bhp.

To be fair to Vauxhall the Corsa GSi is not intended to be a hot hatch or a direct rival to the 200bhp Ford Fiesta ST. Unfortunately, at £18,995, it happens to cost the same money.

Vauxhall will counter with the fact that the GSi has a low insurance grouping (20E) and that a young driver might have half a chance of insuring one, whereas the Fiesta sits in Group 28. Cheaper insurance does not make it a better car, however.

The Corsa VXR was also less comfortable than its rivals and in many ways more raw. I liked that little car, especially the later Clubsport version which came with lots of goodies like a mechanical limited-slip differential.

It wasn’t the best hot hatch you could buy but it had a madcap personality that appealed. It also looked a bit special. So does the GSi, but it includes all the VXR’s faults and none of its highs.

It’s a shame because a cheap to insure sporty little hatch with strong performance and cool styling is just the thing for apprentice petrolheads.