2015 Opel Corsa Is Still An Opel Corsa

THE NEW Opel range now boasts two old Corsas: one disguised as an Adam, and one masquerading as the new Corsa. Powerful word, ‘new’. It persuades us to look past the familiar bodyside and me-too layout and makes us think, maybe it could be... Actually the new Corsa isn’t even an old Corsa. The old Corsa was the old Astra. The sharp, clean, two-box that preceded today’s Seat-alike and pre-empted the chisel-like Golfs now on the street.

That the new Corsa marries the architecture of the outgoing model with the styling of the Adam isn’t a bad thing. Mainly because you will pay less for it. Opel could have spent more to silence cynics, but the customer would rather save money and have only as many changes as the cash allows. Opel knows it, and they are carefully garnering a profit from up-cycling existing packages. 

The Adam-themed styling is most noticeable at the front and most useful at the rear, which I always found too generic. ‘We can’t stray into the bootlid, that costs too much’  plus ‘ We want it to look dynamic’ equated in the diamond-shaped fayre that has bestowed so many budget-conscious cars from Fiesta to, well, Corsa. Thankfully, some of those saved pennies have been spent on dragging the tail-lamps into the bootlid, lending some much needed width and getting the car in line with the Astra. 

Inside I was pleasantly surprised to see an overhaul of the IP. The perceived quality is quite high, and gone are the days of cutesy circular vents (that glowed in the dark, no less). No time for gimmicks: there is subtle driver-orientation and a more sturdy-looking fascia with big-car style air-vents. (You may mock, but those vents form a large part of one's impression of an interior.)

The new Corsa represents a smart move by Opel to stay competitive in the small car stakes. We look forward to seeing where they really have spent the money. Monza concept, where are you?