Sober realities
Frederic Manby takes the Vauxhall New Corsa GS 1.2 Turbo 100PS Manual for a spin beneath a black roof and an uncertain outlook for the small car market.
LAST year the Vauxhall Corsa was the UK’s third best seller, after taking top spot in 2021 and second in 2022. Trends now favour SUVs and in March it was placed sixth as the best-selling supermini. Overall, Vauxhall is third in the van and car market. Vauxhall points to changing trends. Corsa is number two in class on the heels of the Volkswagen Polo but the top ten’s only small car is the Mini.
A Corsa revamp last year included a more powerful motor option for the all-important electric version with greater mileage but it is a hefty £35,475 in the mid-range GS model and £38,585 for the Ultimate.
The Chinese, including faux Brits MG and emerging BYD, are selling much cheaper electric rivals. Skoda, Dacia and VW are among European makers with new budget models.
Vauxhall has responded with the £26,895 Corsa Electric YES Edition, lowering the entry point to the Corsa electric line-up by £5,550. This month it knocked £7,000 off the price of the cheapest electric Mokka. All new buyers of electric Vauxhalls will be offered a year’s free charging credit at Tesco stores but is that enough?
The entry prices to Corsa petrol motoring are now £19,625 for the 74-horsepower Design, £20,525 for the turbocharged 99bhp Design and £22,255 with automatic gears. Top petrol price is £28,385 for the Ultimate eight-speed automatic using a 128bhp version of the threecylinder 1.2-litre petrol engine.
The Design has 16-inch alloys, air conditioning, LED headlights with beam auto assist, forward collision alert, cruise control, smartphone links which you’ll need for navigation, a 60/40 folding rear seat, speed sign recognition and so on.
The middle order GS, which will set you back an extra £2,400, adds lots of kit including climate control, bigger disc brakes, sportif body styling and bolstered front seats, heated electric mirrors, etc, and a black roof, which you may like. I didn’t.
The Ultimate, an additional £2,780, gets the update’s headlines: a phone-charging pad, the Intelligent anti-dazzle pixel matrix lights, adaptive cruise control, heated seats and keyless entry and ignition and navigation.
These have been joined by a mild hybrid petrol version assisted by an electric motor in the gearbox. Power ratings are 99bhp and 134bhp, giving lower CO2 emissions on the back of up to 20 per cent better fuel consumption. All four hybrids are automatic, from £22,890 for the 99bhp Design to £29,020 for the 134bhp Ultimate.
On paper, the figures look good, with CO2 as low as 102g/km and all beating 60mpg. Most non-hybrid models have MPG in the low 50s and emit some 20g more CO2. The price premiums vary, from virtually the same to a few thousand pounds.
Vauxhall says it is happy with increased sales for most models, ranking sixth in the UK (but it was once second) and its Mokka is the best-selling model from the Stellantis Group in the UK. Peugeot and Citroën are in the group and Fiat is its global best seller.
The Opel and Vauxhall Corsa are kin with the Peugeot 208, share its body and are built in Zaragoza, Spain. The engines and running gear are found in other Stellantis cars.
The Vauxhall and Opel have firmer suspension settings and steering feel, bespoke interiors and a conventionally placed instrument cluster instead of the Peugeot’s lofted and fussy display.
We were sent the most economical petrol turbo, the 99bhp with manual gears in GS trim. It is rated at 54/55mpg and 114/117g. Some of the time we matched these figures. There is not much difference in road tax with the hybrid.
Corsa is a ubiquitous car, suiting all ages and most pockets, though they have to be deeper than the day when lads and lasses could afford one and dream of having the rapid VXR. This price upscaling is not confined to Vauxhalls.
‘Corsa is a ubiquitous car, suiting most pockets, though they have to be deeper than the day when lads and lasses could afford one.’
The Corsa is the last of the current Vauxhall range to get what they call the vizor face. Squint your eyes and you may get the picture. Hmm, it looks too bland on the Corsa.
The styling is safe, inoffensive, conservative, modest and bashful. Its sister, the 208, also uprated last year, gets the chic facial styling you’ll notice on the road, where the Corsa skips under the proverbial radar.
There have been upgrades to its displays and touchscreen, a new steering wheel, seat fabrics and so on. Once again, smart, sober, functional.
Happily, it is usually good to drive, light enough for the engine’s healthy torque to make progress. It will carry five but those in the back are squeezed getting in and will look in vain for a USB port. There is one in the front, and a 12v socket.
Minor and major controls are accessible, with manual buttons and knobs for ventilation and the radio.
There is the promise of a sport mode but I noticed no difference nor indication it was engaged. Maybe it wasn’t.
On the motorway it runs calmly and is at its most economical.
Suspension is set firm to suit German tastes, not mine and make it skip a beat on bad surfaces when cornering and it is noisy on coarse stuff, too. The Peugeot and Citroën are softer, me too.
■ Coming later this year is the electric Frontera SUV.
Vauxhall New Corsa GS 1.2 Turbo 100PS Manual; 1.2-litre turbo petrol engine, 99bhp; torque, 184lb/ft; manual six speed; top speed, 120mph; 0-62mph, 9.9 seconds; local, 33mpg, touring, 55mpg; tank, 10 gallons; CO 2 emissions, 114/117g/ km; length, 160 inches/4m; braked towing limit, 1,200kg/1.2 tons; vauxhall.co.uk.