Long-term introduction: Opel Corsa 1,4T Sport
With the arrival of the Opel Corsa 1,4T Sport and the departure of the Renault Mégane GT-Line, it’s a case of different car, same idea. Both models form a mildly tuned, sportier-looking bridge between their workaday and high-performance stable mates – a combination that should lend itself well to a year in our company. Opel has opted to take a fairly low-key tack when it comes to injecting a spot of sportiness into this currently halo-placed Corsa, leaving much of the chest-thumping machismo addenda to the OPC.
Externally, the Sport’s high- lights include a fetching set of 17-inch alloys, some faux carbon-fibre bits in the grille and mirror caps, and slightly more purposeful-looking lower bodywork. The interior is a similar story, with the most obvious changes being the tartan-style seat panels, metal pedal boots and a flat-bottomed sports steering wheel.
Thanks to its high roof and deep side glazing, the cabin feels reasonably airy and the standard of fit and finish is good. But, while rear legroom is acceptable for a car of this class, the boot is rather small.
In keeping with the Sport’s, er … sports motif, and to open up an acceptable gap between it and the 85 kW 1,0-litre models, Opel has opted for its 1,4-litre turbopetrol with 110 kW and 220 N.m on tap. It’s also proved reasonably frugal – returning a respectable 6,7 L/100 km for a full-tank range of about 560 km. Broadly speaking, this unit feels reasonably brisk and revs keenly, but we’d stop short of de- scribing it as particularly punchy.
The six-speed ‘box to which it’s coupled has that typically Opel feel to its throw, being slightly rubbery but pleasingly direct, while the clutch is progressive and lurch-free.
Opel has tweaked the Sport’s suspension slightly by dropping the ride height and adjusting the dampers to rein in body roll. It works reasonably well, giving the lofty-feeling little car a slightly more settled attitude when cornering at speed. But what’s really impressive is that these revisions haven’t negatively impacted the ride.
In terms of refinement, there’s little to complain about. Al- though the engine’s muted tone is far removed from anything sporty, it emits a pleasant burble and there’s little in the way of mechanical noise. The only black spot against the Sport is a slight whistle around the wing mirror/ quarter-light glazing.
Our test unit has the R5 000 driver assistance pack, which includes front park-distance sensors, blind-spot alert and automated parking system – the latter I’ve yet to try out.
After 1 month
Mileage now: 3 183km
Fuel consumption: 6,71 L/100 km
We like: supple ride, tasteful execution
We don’t like: small boot, wind whistle at highway speeds
