New Opel Corsa GSE: Hot Hatch Tradition Reloaded

• Back to the future: Corsa GSE revives the tradition of sporty Corsa models
• Small, strong, fast: 207 kW (281 hp), 345 Nm, from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.5 seconds ¹
• From the Corsa A GSi to the new Corsa GSE: Each Corsa generation enthuses fans with at least one highly dynamic version

Combined values for Opel Mokka GSE according to WLTP ²: energy consumption 18.5 kWh/100 km, CO ₂ emissions 0 g/km; CO ₂ label: A

Compact, quick and seriously powerful: the new Opel Corsa GSE 1 delivers electrifying driving pleasure in its purest form! This new everyday performance car – which will arrive later this year and will celebrate its exhibition premiere at the Paris Motor Show in October – is turning heads not just with its striking, racy ‘hot hatch’ design. Above all, its performance figures speak for themselves: With 207 kW (281 hp) and 345 Newton metres of torque it will offer just as much electric power as the Opel Mokka GSE. Added to this is the fastest acceleration of any current Opel production model: in just 5.5 seconds, the Corsa GSE propels the speedometer needle from 0 to 100 km/h1. This is high performance in a compact package and makes the new Corsa GSE the most powerful production Corsa to date.

At the same time, the new high-performance version of Germany’s and UK’s bestselling small car takes the sporty GSi genes of the first Corsa generation into the future. Ever since the first generation of the model, Opel has been offering Corsa fans the chance to drive an extra-hot and sporty version of the beloved small car. The ‘hot hatch’ fun all began in 1988 with the Corsa GSi. Since 2007, the various versions and generations of the Corsa OPC have been providing adrenaline rushes. And now the new, all-electric Corsa GSE is on the starting blocks, ready to deliver the ultimate driving experience a small car can offer!

The first Corsa GSi: A car as dynamic as a motorcycle

In 1988, the first Opel Corsa GSi entered the market. A car as dynamic as a motorcycle: ultra-compact, 820 kilogrammes light, with prominent wheel-arches, sports seats, 74 kW (100 hp) and 188 km/h fast.

The 1.6-litre injection engine newly developed for the launch accelerated the sportive first-generation Corsa to 100 km/h in around 9.5 seconds. With powerful low-end torque, the car has always brought a smile to Corsa GSi drivers’ faces when they step on the accelerator pedal. To bring the higher performance and agility onto the road, Opel engineers adapted the chassis and brakes of the Corsa to the GSi specification. The extra features included stiffer springs, specially tuned shock absorbers as well as larger, internally ventilated front disc brakes. Anti-roll bars at the front and rear kept the car safely on track in corners.

The designers also reflected the sporty character of the first Corsa GSi in its appearance. The standard specification at the time already included sports seats, a three-spoke sport steering wheel, a rev counter, sports alloy wheels and wide tyres. With its technology and design, the first-generation Corsa GSi paved the way for future generation sporty Corsa models.

GSi = fun-to-drive: Corsa B GSi and Corsa C GSi boost performance

A particularly sporty model variant hit the road in 1993, the Corsa GSi 16V. It featured colour-keyed side-sills and bumpers as well as front and rear spoilers. The standard equipment also included electronically controlled ABS, a rev-counter and wide tyres.

As most powerful Corsa model of its time, the second-generation Corsa GSi offered 80 kW (109 hp) and impressed once more with plenty of power from low revs (‘low-end torque characteristics’). The small car could sprint from zero to 100 km/h in 9.5 seconds and reach a maximum speed of 195 km/h. A sporty chassis and gas-filled shock absorbers helped to bring the performance onto the road. The Corsa driver could shift gear using the five-speed sports gearbox, and the standard power steering helped to steer through tight bends with ease. Sports seats and a leather-trimmed steering wheel created the right atmosphere in the cockpit.

In 2001, the Corsa C GSi followed in the footsteps of its predecessor – stronger, faster and more powerful than before. With a top speed of 202 km/h and acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h in 9.0 seconds, the third-generation Corsa GSi was the fastest production Corsa to date. At the same time, the Corsa GSi’s 92 kW (125 hp) 1.8-litre engine impressed not only in terms of power but also, thanks to 165 Newton metres of torque, with sporty bursts of acceleration while maintaining modest fuel consumption. This was made possible by an advanced engine management system controlling sequential fuel injection, particularly precise fuel distribution, ignition and other functions. Even back then, the developers focused on delivering sporty driving pleasure in the most resource-efficient way possible.

Start of the Corsa OPC era in 2007: Even sportier, stronger and more expressive

From 2007 onwards, the ‘OPC’ abbreviation had finally come to stand for pure dynamic driving fun in the Opel Corsa as well. In that year, Opel presented the Corsa D OPC with 141 kW (192 hp) and 266 Newton metres of torque. With a dark-contrasting diffuser, striking gills, powerful front and rear aprons and a roof spoiler, the OPC showed at first glance what drivers could expect. But the end of the line had not yet been reached. In 2010, the Corsa OPC ‘Nürburgring Edition’ – the most powerful Corsa to date – followed. Its characteristics: 154 kW (210 hp), 280 Newton metres of torque, from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.8 seconds and a top speed of 230 km/h! The newly developed Bilstein performance chassis and the special high-performance braking system from Brembo brought the power safely to the road.

Opel continued to cater to GSi fans amongst Corsa drivers too: For all those who preferred a more discreet sportiness with superior power delivery, Opel had also the fourth-generation Corsa GSi on offer. With 110 kW (150 hp) and a top speed of 210 km/h, the for the first time turbo-charged car closed the gap between the ‘ordinary’ production Corsa and the high-performance OPC variant.

The OPC of the fifth-generation Corsa, which followed in 2015, also demonstrated right from the start that, whether on the famous Green Hell of the Nürburgring race track or in the urban jungle, the Corsa E OPC feels at home anywhere. Once again being the fastest member of the Corsa family with a top speed of 230 km/h, it combined uncompromising sportiness with superb everyday practicality. This sporty car, just under four metres long, impressed with its powerful turbo engine delivering 152 kW (207 hp) and 280 Newton metres of torque, its agile handling and, last but not least, its sporty design: Recaro performance seats, a flat-bottomed leather steering wheel and sports pedals inside, as well as large air intakes, a strongly contoured bonnet, bold side skirts, a dominant rear spoiler and the twin exhaust tailpipes flanked by a diffuser on the outside all bore witness to the power of the Corsa OPC. And to channel this power onto the road in a controlled manner, the Corsa E OPC featured, for the first time, a suspension system with Frequency Selective Damping technology.

‘Hot hatch’, the next level: The new Opel Corsa GSE electrifies the public

To all who want to experience an exhilarating, high-performance driving experience in a state-of-the-art small car before the end of this year will not have to wait much longer. The new Opel Corsa GSE is on the way. It succeeds the Corsa OPC as the most powerful Corsa to date and takes the ‘hot hatch’ experience to the next level – uncompromising, thrilling and, above all, fully electric and locally emissions-free. After all, that is exactly what GSE stands for: Grand Sport Electric!

With 207 kW (281 hp) – that is 181 hp per 1,000 kilogrammes of vehicle weight! – and 345 Newton metres of torque, the new Corsa GSE will offer just as much electric power as the Mokka GSE. At the same time, however, the top-of-the-line version of the model family becomes even more dynamic. With an acceleration of just 5.5 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h ¹, the high-performance Corsa pushes its driver into the GSE sports seat more vehemently than any other current Opel production model.

Sophisticated technology also contributes to the exceptional performance, handling stability and direct feedback: the Corsa GSE has front-wheel drive with Torsen-multi-plate limited-slip differential and a lowered sports chassis with specifically designed axles, stabilisers and hydraulic shock absorbers. GSE-optimised steering and pedal tuning underlines the highly dynamic driving experience. And if necessary, four-piston performance brakes ensure immediate deceleration from high speeds.

The new Corsa GSE confidently showcases its performance. Numerous details – from the GSE-specific front and rear to 18-inch wheels, performance seats, yellow seatbelts to digital displays with performance data and much more – create a Corsa GSE design with genuine wow-factor and demonstrate what emotional, all-electric ‘hot hatch’ driving fun is all about in its purest form.

^[1] All data are provisional. Vehicle not yet homologated and not yet available.

^[2] The values of a vehicle depend not only on the efficient use of fuel by the vehicle, but are also influenced by driving behavior and other non-technical factors.