[turbo_lover]

Finally i have a day off so i thought i should put it to good use by writing this report on my Corsa more because we are planning to sell her off soon .

so here goes ..

Year of Make 2003
Year of purchase 2nd jan 2004
Colour - BLACK !
Engine cap. - 1.4
Variant - "fully loaded" GSI
Mods - Completely Stock
Audio System - Blaupunkt FM /Cassette came stock with 4 speakers , replaced front 4'1/2 with stock rear 6inchers and added 350W 6'1/2 inch JVC tweet/woofers..am not a dhikchik dude, i like to rock .

it started off when my 800 was stolen giving way to a "big" car for me ..
hence, began the research ..
Cars i tested - Esteem VXi, Palio 1.9D, Sienna 1.2, Sail 1.6, Corsa 1.4

Sienna was a quick no no pathetic pick up very sluggish bulky interiors , 1.9D was very impressive for a diesel adequate torque lessy noisy cabin for a diesel but then no boot ,FIAT tag (dad wasnt convinced they'll survive) ..
hence we hit the GM showroom ..the sail was their hype then ... hence off i went for a ride in a red 1.6 ...mom loved it .."Cute car!" .. dad - "germans make good cars" ..performance was better but it was a 1.6 and it was a hatch not a "BIG CAR" .. went home that day ..returned with dad after 2 days to test a 1.4 corsa (sedan) .. difference less torquey that the 1.6 ..4 more horses were not worth the extra cash we decided ..all this while keeping dad away from the esteem..*chuckle*..not for long though ..
that weekend dad wants to "make sure" hence me and the old man go to the maruti dealer ..Esteem VXi.. well i drove while dad cribbed about how pathetic the quality fit / finish was and how terrible the ride was...how thin the body sheet was ..DAD - "did you see how heavy the bonnet was on the Corsa ,germans never compromise on safety"..ahhh cutting it short ;very much convinced we took delivery and started our 23 000 long relationship.. ohh did i mention a 97k corporate discount from Opel ?

i have a feeling that this is going to be one long report bare with me ..

Engine and performance -
the 1.4 E-tec is probably one of the most refined in its class. Not a performer but certainly not a loser. With the torque maxing at a rather late 3200rpm it still manages to pull through traffic in 5th gear. She pulls happily from 45kmph in 5th.. Altought most of my gear changes take place by 2000rpm ...take it higher up the revs and the car really roars.
A loud bassy roar ( for which i often roll down my windows and or mute my stearo) . when idle it has this heavy humm which i just love.
Now coming to performance i'd say its a drivers car ..Its a cruiser not a racer boys toy ..Thats just what i love doing in it cruise..On highways 110k's in overdrive is perfect...while in the city it'll pull the car from 20k's till the next shift ..so i have never felt the car lacking in terms of power.. In terms of top end runs it has an edge over the esteem no dbout .. 3rd and 4th is were the power lies ..

Handling -
Corsa's come with Hydraulic power steering has a heavier feel to it than the suzuki's but trust me it feel much much reassuring while at high speeds.
Softly sprung ,fast corners makes her very tail happy, also body roll makes it quiet a challenge for a driver whose newto a corsa push it hard through a corner. Must get used to the car before you decide to throw it into corners.
Where the corsa really scores is its High Speed Stability .Did manage to touch 175 (speedo reading) and i did it on a long curve while sticking to my lane while she was as much as hugging the road (well wasnt that a bit optimistic ? hope you get the point )...blame it on the weight ,the power steering and german engineering.
Braking is adequately powered, never had a problem with brake balance car generally stops in a straighline in terms of dead braking ,unless ofcourse there is gravel on the road or something..Oh and the Anti dive technology does work and does compliment the braking potential of the car.
Torque Steer - very much present the car has a tendency to steer towards the right (found out the hard way)

Ride and Comfort -
This is one bit where i can really boast about my car .
Corsa, friends is the most comfortable cars in its segment.
The ride quality is right up there and is very much comparable to costlier cars.The suspension is just built for the Indian roads. "Sir, Corsa is the Mini Mercedes " -said the saleman. I'd say now he had spoken the truth. If you guys think the baleno has a great ride after the Corsa ..you should sit in my car and then sit in the baleno . "I'd say it was bone jarring" (no offence to baleno users)..
A/C delhi heat ? not a problem man even without sun films and the black colour..the opel a/c is a complete chiller.. the thermostat works very well ,you can have the A/c on and not freeze at the same time.
Seats are very comfortable at front ;rear legs space aint too good however and seating 5 people can make the car look like a stuffed turkey on thanksgiving .

Interiors -
Another point where she scores .Interior design very much shared from the Astra doesnt give you a chance to complan .being an older desgin opel kept in mind the ergonomics ,focused on the practicality and quality.
Everything is within reach, A/c knobs ,the stereo panel ..the power window button can be pushed by as much as lifting a finger with your arm on the arm rest (not twisting the wrist or lifting the hand)..Interior detail is too good and very plush .It is something which is very important to me i.e " the Look and feel ".
Visibilty seems fine too never seemed to have a problem having a clear view of the road as i was up on the hills recently where most of the driving is done looking out through the windsheild and the window seperated by the A pillar ,that was never a problem.
Cabin is relatively noiseless ..driving at low revs you can can just hear the engine humm lightly. A/c blower if on full blast sounds like a mini tornado but then level 3 is the max i set the fan speed regulator to (there are 4 fan speed levels 1,2,3,Turbo)


Build Quality -
Superb ! for the price one has to pay for the car . With the kind driving temperment i have i feel she has done really well to give me what i have asked from her..Never had any reliabilty issues engine ,suspension, drivetrain and brakes all good .The doors still shut with the same thud .No electrical failures except the speedometer and the rest of the dials lost illumination 3 months back .No big deal. Car still feels new ,not a rattle not a sqeak ..Such things drove me mad in my 800 at times .

Fuel Economy -
I could have fitted it in the performance and engine para it is one of the biggest issues amongst us car users .
Well ,My car returns anywhere from 11 to the max of 13 with a/c only if driven the way it should be in city conditions. Flooring it phase initially returned me around 8kmmpl. FE is not a issue for me (as in am not Obsessed with FE, its all paid by the company) so i do rip her from time to time .. Without a/c FE should be in the FE reason ,cant really say because i use the A/c throughout the year thanks to the delhi pollution and my addiction to A/c.
On a highway max we recorded recently was a 17km doing speeds of 90 -100ks at a stretch you know the usual driving with mom dad speed.

Pretty much coming to an end a few incidents with the car ..

Torque steer damage - launched the car at full rev from a narrow parking lot car slid and brushed a zen parked on the right ,minor dent and a tiny scratch on the front right panel .Car was 2 months old , got spanked at home .

tempo hit - small tempo bumped on the boot curve on our way to chandigarh

bumper scratched - at the parking in Greater Kailash,some car managed to nicely rub the right side of the rear bumper ..

Spun !- quite a few times pushing too hard mostly in the begining ..Now very much used to te handling.

I wonder how many of you are still reading on ,hell my longest post in Team- bhp.
So wrapping up here ;we are selling her off soon. Replacing her with an Optra most probably.
Reason being - I dont live here anymore , parking space is a problem 3 cars make no sense with just mom and dad in the house.
So this is probably the last time i ever get to be in my gaadi..

[ntomer]

Hi Gang,

Corsa is sold by both Chevrolet and Opel world-wide. I was wondering whichis the original maker, is Corsa a German car or an American one?????

\N

[turbo_lover]

Originally Posted by ntomer

Hi Gang,

Corsa is sold by both Chevrolet and Opel world-wide. I was wondering whichis the original maker, is Corsa a German car or an American one?????

\N

err..corsa was designed and developed by Opel from the 1st gen till the current one..hence its german
Chevy sells the aveo sedan as the corsa in the americas..in UKits sold by both Opel and Vauxhall.

MODS- apologies ..can someone please move this thread under the approprate section?thanks

[Samurai]

Nice Review. But shouldn't this be in Long term review section?

[gkrishn]

Nice review.

Originally Posted by turbo_lover

err..corsa was designed and developed by Opel from the 1st gen till the current one..hence its german

Read some where that the corsa we have here is actually from brazil.

[turbo_lover]

the 2dr hatchback to 4rd sedan design is brazilian ...

[gkrishn]

One question here...
At rolling speed, i found that its impossible to slot in first gear. I have to bring it to complete halt before i can slot in first. Experianced that??

[turbo_lover]

huh?never experienced that.. how do you move in snail speed traffic?

[gkrishn]

Well this is during the down shifting. Lets say that your now in 3rd or 2nd and traffic gets really slow for this gear but still rolling, then either u have 1/2 clutch or get it down to 1st gear. At these times, i have to get it to complete halt to downshift. No problem getting down to 2nd, 3rd or 4th, but to get into 1st, u have to bring car to complete halt.

At snail phase its 1st gear. But to get there i have to do that jugglery. Tried another 1.6, it was also behaving like this. Think thats how corsa's gear shift works.

Also you forgot 2 things.
Really compact front end... enables easy manouvring at tight traffic.
And extremly sweet turning radius. There is one u-turn near my office, where one certian vtec struggles, and my sail really zoooms...

[turbo_lover]

dude i'll certainly check again and let you know about the 1st gear bit..
if you are in rolling speed in traffic ,isnt it dangerous to stop inorder to shift to 1st?
you probably carry on in 2nd right?as far as i know i can shift down to 1st if the revs are high enough to cause damage..

Really compact front end... enables easy manouvring at tight traffic.

yeap the front end helps you squeeze through traffic ..Mines the Sedan not the hatch so i have a boot to keep in mind while cutting through small spaces ..

[haryan]

Guys ...
I have an Opel Corsa 1.4 GL ... bought on 08/08/00 ...
Had wonderful , joyful and exhilerating experience of owning this car for 5 years ..
i am not that good in putting my experiences onto thoughts and then onto words ...
so i cannot give any further details but i can say that i thoroughly and absolutely enjoyed owning and driving this car ...
5 years ........ 75000 kms done ...

[haryan]

Originally Posted by ntomer

Hi Gang,

Corsa is sold by both Chevrolet and Opel world-wide. I was wondering whichis the original maker, is Corsa a German car or an American one?????

\N

Corsa is a design and product of OPEL ADAM AG ... GERMANY....
GENERAL MOTORS owns Opel ... or you can also say that OPEL is a part of worldwide GM empire ............ so it is sold by GM worldwide ...
GM has a factory in Brazil where also they build Corsa for other markets worldwide .. Lot of Corsa spares in India come from that Factory in Brazil
Corsa in India is built at GM factory at Halol Gujarat ..

[turbo_lover]

@gkrishn - dude i checked with my car ..i can slot first gear while in motion ..its confirmed .I dont have to halt the car.

cheers

[adya33]

Originally Posted by turbo_lover

@gkrishn - dude i checked with my car ..i can slot first gear while in motion ..its confirmed .I dont have to halt the car.

cheers

had same problem with my Astra.
most likely the greace in the gear leaver has worn out. do get it checked its at the bottom of gear level
but beware thats an imported greace don't replace it with the local one.
use the stock greace only
best option will be to go to GM workshop

hope that helps
for further info you can PM me

aditya

[dadudeonfire]

no car would downshift to first easily dude tillll you get your speed to say max 5...you do not need to shift to first..i own a sail too...even v-tec and the scorpio..do not go down on 1 easily while in motion...itts better not to put it in the first gear as it is suposed to be locked while in motion and you will have to push a bit harder to put in first which will affect your first gear...however you acn come down to second from third...or third from fourth and so on..but should not try going from second to first...i used to do that to my indica...at 3000 rpm sometimes while racing i used to shift to first...to be a bit faster and get a better speed in second gear....it spoilt my first gear completely...the mechanic told me...even when you race....u can go down to second third fourth or any gear which the car takes happily...but first gear the car will not take happily unlesss you have actually stopped the car..