Opel Corsa OPC Nurburgring edition 2011 Review

Fingers crossed - the hottest of Opel's hot hatches could be heading our way

Opel Corsa OPC Nurburgring edition

What we liked
>> Ample power from turbo 1.6
>> A real limited-slip differential?
>> Razor sharp handling, okay ride (for 18-inch wheels)

Not so much
>> The bodykit’s a bit over the top
>> Mismatched paint colour from bumpers to body
>> Apart from the awesome seats and steering wheel, the interior’s drab

The last time we had a car even remotely like this from General Motors it wore Holden Barina badges. The Barina SRi, sourced from Holden’s German cousins at Opel and sold in Australia between September 2001 and December 2005, was powered by a relatively modest 1.8-litre four-cylinder engine.

Although it lacked a turbo, it was a big engine (borrowed from the Astra of the time) in a little car and quickly won a small but passionate band of followers... Even though the visual excitement extended to a modest front lip spoiler, discreet badging and alloy wheels.

Power and torque figures weren’t sensational (92kW/165Nm) but they were a step up from the previous 'hot' Barina, the GSi, powered by a 1.6-litre engine (78kW/148Nm) sold between April 1994 and September 1998.

Fast-forward a decade-and-a-half later and, as the saying goes, oh how times have changed. While the Opel-sourced performance products have been away from Holden showrooms, the Germans have been going to the gym. Every day it seems.

Enter the Opel Corsa OPC (Opel Performance Center). A car with a turbocharged 1.6-litre heart and improved reflexes thanks to sports-tuned suspension.

It was released in Europe in 2007 and sold alongside the rest of the Corsa range as a part of the regular line-up. Then in April this year GM's Euro-arm went one better and created the Corsa OPC Nurburgring edition, to be restricted to “500 or so cars” (although Opel will keep building them if demand is there).

The OPC boffins liberated more power and torque with a newly tuned turbocharger and exhaust system (to create less back pressure) and a recalibrated engine that can run on 100 octane fuel. The result is an increase from 141kW/230Nm to 154kW/250Nm (with a peak of 280Nm on overboost). Not bad considering we used to get excited about hot hatches with half this much grunt only a decade ago.

A real, mechanical limited-slip differential was fitted, as were Brembo front brakes. And the suspension was overhauled with help from German tuning specialist Bilstein, which lowered the ride height by another 20mm from the ‘regular’ Corsa OPC.

Inside there is a pair of superb Recaro sports seats with a map of the Nurburgring embossed into the headrest, and a meaty-grip steering wheel with some glossy black bits. The door scuffs also get Nurburgring badging but, apart from that, the interior is pretty dull and downmarket.

In Europe, all this kit costs 4000 Euros more than the regular Corsa OPC which sells for 23,500 Euros. At current exchange rates 27,500 Euros translates to 37,695 Aussie dollars. Ouch! But let’s come back to that.

Thankfully, Opel hasn’t just used the Nurburgring name in vein. This edition was born and bred there, belted over the Nordschlieffe for over 10,000km during development. And it was worth it, for OPC has created its best hot hatch yet.

The spread of torque from the engine is phenomenal. Officially, its peak is between 2000-4000rpm. Unofficially, it’s from the moment you think about pushing the throttle. The 0 to 100km/h dash takes 6.8 seconds but in-gear acceleration is the hot Corsa's biggest asset.

The six-speed manual (an auto or twin-clutch auto is not available) is not Mazda MX-5 slick, but its purposeful and feels solid.

Traction is incredible – for a front drive. It gets a slight wriggle on away from the line but the limited-slip diff does its job well and ensures you’re getting the most amount of forward motion made possible by physics and the grip of the tyres.

Opel cannot be commended highly enough for going old tech in this department. Sorry, but when it really matters, in extreme or track-day conditions, electronically-controlled diffs favoured by other hot hatch makers aren’t quite there yet.

The most impressive aspect, however, isn’t the handling or the spread of effortless power but the fact that the suspension doesn’t break your back over cracks in the road. Bilstein and OPC have done an impressive job of tuning the springs and shocks to suit the 18-inch Continental tyres (which are massive on such a small car by the way).

Of course, we’ll reserve final judgment until we test the OPC Nurburgring edition on Australian roads, a dilemma we hope to find ourselves in.

You see, this Opel isn’t confirmed for Australian release when the brand sets up shop here in October next year.

But hopefully the Australian media pack sent to Frankfurt recently to sample these cars pestered the Opel Australia boss Bill Mott enough to at least put it on the consideration list.

Take it from us Bill, don't mess about with the regular Corsa OPC. A car with almost as much power as the Nurburgring edition but with worse brakes, worse suspension and no limited-slip differential (so, worse grip) won't do Opel any favours. And what better way to highlight how German your brand is with a vehicle named after the country’s (if not the world’s) most revered racetrack?

That only leaves the small matter of the rather large price. At $37,695 they’d collect more dust than a trophy cabinet because you can get a larger Golf GTI for $39,990 and a more practical Polo GTI for $29,990 (if you can wait 12 months). And Skoda hasn’t surprised us with the sticker price of its Fabia RS yet – but on recent form it’ll be cheaper than the mechanically identical Polo GTI when it goes on sale in early 2012.

So, here’s hoping Opel can work its final bit of magic on the Corsa OPC – and get the price near or below $30,000. If that happens, they fly out the door!

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Opel Corsa OPC Nurburgring edition 2011 Review

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