Sprint Review: Opel Corsa 1L

Opel Corsa 1L Enjoy EcoFlex

I’ve always associated an Opel Corsa with those vibrant sea-green or metallic purple bubble-like cars that almost every acquaintance and student seemed to drive at some point in the late 90s. The new Opel Corsa is a far cry from these simple cars and I absolutely loved our recent test model.

What is it like?

Our zippy little 5-door model arrived in an exquisite dark sea blue coat with a feisty 1l turbo charged motor (Opel’s EcoFLEX  3-cylinder motor). The Corsa exudes a more sophisticated character with solid Opel finishes in the interior, a funky dashboard, trendy 16-inch alloys and fun-loving city car character.

It also offers a much sportier look with careful contours and a bulkier looking rear end. The interior offers sporty looking seats, a sublimely simple clutch and 6-gear manual shift system (so sweet and responsive) and a funky silver trim to alleviate the black materials used inside. LED daytime running lights and Bi-Xenon headlights ensure optimum visibility on the road as well.

What didn’t we like?

Only a small complaint to list, and that was that it was incredibly difficult to find the infotainment screen dimmer light in the dark. Once located, you’re on your way but prior to that, driving in the dark with the lights on was an absolute nightmare!

Where did we go?

Meetings, a commute to a neighbouring town and multiple trips to the stables – my usual weekly runaround. Our little test model handled all tasks and routes with aplomb and feather-light steering. A fun novelty to impress your friends would be the easy parking system. Hate parallel parking?  Let the car do the work for you… Endless entertainment  with minimal input guaranteed!

What did people say?

Almost everyone was astounded at how smartly the Corsa has grown up and our little car developed quite the enthusiastic following. Most people loved its new look and our test drivers loved its true city car characteristics of easy maneuverability,  funky looks and useful connectivity to our digitally driven lives, from the easy to use Bluetooth phone and audio system to the on-board computer measuring all aspects of your trip and energy consumption.

The only drawback for many was the price. You’ll be forking out a starting price of N$229 400 for this particular little run-around and frankly, it’s got a whole lot of competition from more competitively priced models in this bracket. Which is sad, as this is one awesome car to drive…


Gallery


Performance

0-10km/h: 0,41 seconds
0-20km/h: 1,10 seconds
0-30km/h: 1,81 seconds
0-40km/h: 2,57 seconds
0-50km/h: 3,66 seconds
0-60km/h: 4,51 seconds
0-70km/h: 5,51 seconds
0-80km/h: 6,73 seconds
0-90km/h: 8,37 seconds
0-100km/h: 9,88 seconds
0-110km/h: 11,58 seconds
0-120km/h: 13,68 seconds
0-130km/h: 15,94 seconds
0-140km/h: 18,47seconds

0-100m: 7,31 seconds @ 82,68km/h
0-200m: 11,09 seconds @ 107,25km/h
0-300m: 14,21 seconds @ 121,98km/h
0-400m: 17,01 seconds @ 134,64km/h

Maximum acceleration G-force: 0.61G

Altitude: 69m

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