| Vauxhall Revises Corsa | ||
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(Thu 19 Nov 09) Although passers-by won't notice, since there are no exterior changes, the Vauxhall Corsa range is being significantly altered. The most important difference is that the engines are generally more powerful than before (the 1.7 CDTi turbo diesel, for example, now has a maximum of 128bhp, while the one-litre three-cylinder petrol has been uprated to 64bhp) but are also on average 13.2% more economical.
The super-economy model remains the 1.3 CDTi ecoFLEX, which has a CO2 rating of 98g/km and is therefore exempt from VED. All manual models, with the except of the high-performance 1.6 turbo VXR, now manage more than 50mpg on the EU combined cycle. In its previous form the Corsa rode and handled pretty well, but Vauxhall is aiming to make it better in this respect by altering the suspension. For those who like to know about this sort of thing, the front springs are softer, the front anti-roll bar is stiffer, the damper settings have been revised at both ends, and the steering geometry has been changed. The naming of the trim levels has been altered too, to bring it into line with the Astra and Insignia ranges. The former Life, Club and Design are now known as S, Exclusiv and SE respectively, though the SXi, SRi and VXR titles remain as before. And it's not just about names, because the equipment levels have been improved too. The SE, SXi and SRi all now come with cruise control and a trip computer as standard, the SRi gets air-conditioning, 17" five-spoke alloy wheels and a VXR styling kit, and the SE, rather impressively, gets a heated steering wheel. Prices for the Corsa now start at £10,285 for the 1.0 ecoFLEX S three-door, and the top-priced regular model is the 1.7 CDTi SRi five-door at £16,805. The VXR, which is available only in three-door form, costs £17,155. Comment on this story on Facebook or Twitter. |
