It would never do to underestimate the engineering work involved, but it's reasonable to say that if you put a standard engine into a very light chassis you're well on your way to producing an excellent road-going sports car. Vauxhall achieved the feat with the original VX220, and it has done it again with the Turbo version.In standard form the VX220 shares its underpinnings with the Lotus Elise but uses the 2.2-litre engine also found in more sedate Vauxhalls such as the Astra and Vectra. The Turbo's engine is slightly smaller at two litres, but forced induction raises the power output to 200bhp. A few visual clues such as large air intakes behind the doors make it clear that this is the more purposeful model.The extra power makes it quite acceptable for the Turbo to be a shade heavier than the standard car. It's less minimalist than the standard VX220, with leather trim on the seats and some extra sound insulation. The car tested here was fitted with the Touring Pack which includes yet more noise-deadening stuff and a set of carpets.Carpets! Dear me, it's almost as if the VX220 has gone soft.Er, no, it hasn't. The power increase also takes the car's performance into a new league entirely. Vauxhall uses the term "supercar" pretty freely in this context, and you can see the point. A top speed of 151mph is impressive without being outstanding, but a 0-60mph time of 4.7 seconds is deeply serious stuff.But it's not all about going fast in a straight line. The lack of weight (930kg) doesn't simply allow the Turbo to get off the mark quickly. It also helps in the key areas of braking and cornering. A small amount of mass can be persuaded to speed up, slow down or change direction very easily - so much more easily than a saloon or hatchback, in fact, that the VX220 genuinely feels like a race car that has happened to stray on to the public road.A very refined race car, of course. With such a low centre of gravity, there's no need to make the suspension particularly stiff, so the ride is really quite comfortable. It would even be a perfectly acceptable motorway cruiser but for the large amount of wind noise.Of course, motorways are not what the car was designed for. Twisty country roads are its true home, and here the VX220 is quite superb. It doesn't like being manhandled, but if you drive it with a delicate touch it will nip round a corner, erupt along the following straight, wipe off all the speed it needs to with a brush of the brake pedal and then quickly sort out the next corner as the whole process goes into the next cycle, and then the next and the one after that.It covers the ground very rapidly, but you're not entirely conscious of the fact. The car feels so much at home that you get the impression of everything simply happening correctly, rather than being a rollercoaster-like experience. For that reason there are fewer thrills to VX220 driving than you might expect, but there's a deeper pleasure in driving a car which is as capable as this one.The Turbo does its best work at higher revs, but with maximum torque of 192lb/ft coming in at just under 2000rpm you can choose your method of acceleration and the accompanying sound effects. If you choose a high gear for a given corner and come out at barely double the engine's idle speed, flooring the throttle will produce an impressive surge forwards, and you hear a loud whoosh which seems to come from the air intake beside your right ear.Alternatively, you can opt for a lower gear so that you start accelerating at about 5000rpm. This gives an even stronger kick, plus a loud and very pleasing bark from the exhaust. The only snag with this is that you have to change gear very soon afterwards, as the dashboard shift light will begin to flash within a second or two, followed closely by the stuttering of the revlimiter.Base price is £25,495, and as tested here the car costs £26,930. It seems an awful lot of money for what is little more than an automotive toy, but how much would you otherwise have to pay for a car which works so well both on the straights and in the corners? Supercar performance, yes, but for a lot less than supercar money.Second opinion: "Doesn't like being manhandled" is quite an understatement. To some drivers, the Turbo will feel like one of those Monte Carlo Rally cars of the 1950s which people drove on sheet ice over mountain roads with a layer of spit between their fingertips and the rim of the steering wheel. Once you realise, though, that trying to force it the way some magazine testers do while giving their photographers shots of daft amounts of opposite lock is exactly the wrong way to approach this exhilarating machine, everything will be OK. Bags of charisma, exhaust noise and creaks from body parts. Bear in mind the quoted maximum speed was achieved with the roof panel in place, on the fastest test circuit in Europe, at Nardo in southern Italy. Impossible to get into with any dignity when the roof's on, because the high sill and tiny side window opening demand contortions many of us cannot manage. Take the roof off, climb over the North Col of the sill, stand on the seat, slide down, belt up and blast away from the opposition at the next trackday. Ross Finlay. Engine 1998cc, 4 cylinders Power 200bhp Fuel/CO2 33.3mpg / 202g/km Acceleration 0-60mph: 4.7 seconds Top speed 151mph Price £25,495 Details correct at publication date
