- Vauxhall Corsa GSE revealed in full
- Fully electric hot hatch
- Power of 281 PS, 345 Nm torque
- 0-62mph in 5.5 seconds
- Makes it quicker than a VW Golf GTI Clubsport
- 40 years of Vauxhall hot hatch goodness
The incoming Corsa GSE will have ‘power aplenty’, says Vauxhall - and it’ll be quicker to accelerate than a VW Golf GTI.
Vauxhall has now revealed its electric hot hatch in full after months of teasing.
The Corsa GSE gets 281 PS and 345Nm of torque and marks Vauxhall’s return to the hot hatch segment after an eight-year hiatus.
The battery-powered rascal can accelerate from 0-62mph in just 5.5 seconds - which makes it not only quicker than a petrol Golf GTI, but also more rapid off the mark than the Golf GTI Clubsport, which will hit 62mph in 5.6 seconds.
Hurrah, then, for electric shenanigans - and here’s everything you need to know.
What is the Vauxhall Corsa GSE?
The Corsa GSE is a fully electric performance vehicle that brings to mind Vauxhall hot hatches of old, including the iconic Nova GTE from the 1980s.
Vauxhall says the Corsa GSE ‘combines exhilarating performance with everyday accessibility, proving that electric cars can be emotional, exciting, and great to drive’.
It’s a sibling car to the already-launched Vauxhall Mokka GSE, which gets a similar amount of power and pace.
The GSE variant looks sharper than your typical Corsa, coming with sportier bumpers, wider wheel arches, aggressive air intakes, and a black rear spoiler.
You also get three-spoke 18-inch alloys (how very Vauxhall Nova…), fancy brake callipers, and ‘GSE’ lettering down the sides of the vehicle.
What’s the interior of the Vauxhall Corsa GSE like?
The cabin of the Corsa GSE looks exactly like we hoped it would.
There are bucket seats with integrated headrests and Alcantara and cloth upholstery with a black, grey and yellow chequered pattern that gives a nod and a wink to the original Nova.
Bright yellow seatbelts catch the eye, as do aluminium pedals.
You get a 10-inch touchscreen that displays track data, like G-force and acceleration values, as well as heated seats, a 180-degree rear camera, and vehicle-to-load (V2L), which lets you use the car’s battery to power external devices.
How powerful is the Vauxhall Corsa GSE?
The new GSE model is the most powerful production Corsa of all time - and also the quickest Vauxhall you can lease right now.
It’s underpinned by a 54kWh battery and electric motor on the front wheel that chucks out 281 PS and 345 Nm torque for a 0-62mph time of 5.5 seconds.
While the Mokka GSE gets the same power, it’s the Corsa GSE that’s faster off the line (the Mokka GSE lags behind with a time of 5.9 seconds).
Importantly, the Corsa GSE is also faster than another one of its siblings, the Peugeot E-208 GTI, which is underpinned by the same powertrain (both Vauxhall and Peugeot are part of the Stellantis manufacturing group) but takes 5.7 seconds to reach 62mph from a standstill.
So, Brownie points to the Corsa.
With the Corsa, there are three drive modes (Sport, Normal and Eco) while a Torsen multi-plate limited-slip differential and a lowered sports chassis promise some track day heroics.
We’ve no idea what electric range the Corsa GSE will get just yet, with those details still to be revealed before order books open later this year.
40 years of Vauxhall hot hatches - which one is your favourite?
Vauxhall Nova GTE
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For many of us, this was the original boy racer machine and it went up against the equally iconic Ford Fiesta XR2. The Corsa GTE launched in 1987 with a 100bhp 1.6-litre fuel-injected engine, a kerb weight of just 876kg and a 117mph top speed. Ventilated front discs, anti-roll bars, low-profile tyres, and a five-speed close-ratio gearbox completed the transformation of the humble Nova into a thrilling hot hatch. Following the Nova’s facelift in 1990, the GTE version was renamed GSi - and got even more oomph.
Vauxhall Corsa VXR
Because why should the Ford Fiesta ST have all the fun? The original Corsa VXR launched in 2007 with a 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine producing 189bhp. A track-focused Nürburgring Edition followed in 2011 and saw power increase to 202bhp while a limited-slip differential was also added.
The car you’re looking at here is the second-generation Corsa VXR from 2015. Again, a 1.6-litre turbocharged engine did the damage, with a 0-60mph time of 6.5 seconds, while an overboost function provided an additional 26lb/ft of torque for five seconds. The optional performance pack added limited-slip diff, 18-inch wheels, bigger brakes, and upgraded suspension. The Corsa VXR eventually bowed out of the range in 2018.
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