JOE’s Oisín Collins recently jetted off to Bilbao in Spain’s Basque region for our latest international test drive.
Who doesn’t love a good hot hatchback? To be fair, it’s every car enthusiast’s dream to buy a car that can handle itself on the track, but that can also take the kids to school safely.
According to Opel, the new Corsa OPC does just that.
At least that’s the message that was hammered home to us during the Corsa OPC press conference in Bilbao earlier this week and we experienced the car’s abilities first hand on the tight, winding, mountain roads of the Basque County.
Thanks to new technology and a rake of revisions, the latest generation of Corsa OPC features 50hp more than the outgoing generation, giving it a total of 207hp under the bonnet. That’s more than enough power to make you grip the steering wheel just that little bit tighter when you put the foot down.
You can certainly feel those horses pulling when you accelerate and, according to Opel, it only takes 6.8 seconds for the Corsa OPC to reach 100kmh. To be honest, we didn’t test that for ourselves while in Bilbao, but we could well believe it. The Corsa OPC really is incredibly quick off the line. Trust us…
As for the looks, we think it’s a stunner. The Corsa OPC is designed to stand out from the rest of the Corsa fleet and it most certainly does thanks to its muscular, sporty design that just screams: GET OUT OF MY F*CKING WAY. Okay, so it’s a tad less vulgar than that, but it does looks seriously mean (in a good way).
You’ll be able to chose from six different colours, which includes a Corsa OPC exclusive colour called Flash Blue, while the car’s cabin features Recaro seats, a leather, flat-bottomed steering wheel, sports pedals, as well as an OPC gear-lever and instruments.
The rear of the car is dominated by a race-style spoiler and dual exhausts, which Opel said have been redesigned to improve the sound of the car. The sound of the engine is quite impressive and it’s the type of car you’d happily spend €10 just to hear it going through the Port Tunnel.
However, with the windows up and the radio off, the road noise generated from the wheels is a tad disappointing. It’s nothing that turning the radio on won’t sort out, but sometimes it’s nice to just listen to the music being produced from beneath.
Speaking to the Irish contingent about the dual exhaust design, Opel’s Director Performance Opel Motorsport, Volkar Strycek, said: “They’ll hear you coming from the outside and you’ll know your driving a sports car on the inside.
“The car is perfect for the racetrack and also for everyday use,” Mr Strycek continued.
Now, the all-important question… The price.
The New Corsa OPC is set to be unleashed in Ireland this May and is priced from €29,995.
If the standard OPC isn’t sporty enough for you (you must have nerves like Kimi Raikkonen) you can always upgrade the Corsa OPC with the Performance Package.
Priced at €3,000, the Performance Package includes 18-inch alloy wheels with super sticky Michelin Pilot Supersport tyres. The cars we tested in Bilbao featured said Michelin Pilot Supersport tyres and we can confirm they’re sticker than a pair of bicycle shorts after a stage of the Tour de France.
The Performance Package pack also features a motorsport-derived Drexler Limited Slip Differential (LSD), Brembo four-piston brakes and re-tuned Koni FSD system above the standard set up.
Overall, we really enjoyed our time behind the wheel of the Corsa OPC and now that we know what it can do on open roads, we’ll be looking forward to see what it can do on a track.
For more info head over to Opel.ie.
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