Vauxhall Corsa (2014-2019) Review
Written by Andrew Brady
Quick overview
Pros
- Very refined at all speeds
- Flexibility of engines
- Masses of choice of engines and trims
Cons
- Variety of trims is baffling
- Steering feels lifeless
- Styling now looks dated
Overall verdict on the Vauxhall Corsa
"In this Vauxhall Corsa review we are looking at one of the most popular small cars of recent times. Visually there's not much to tell it apart from its predecessor, but this was a deliberate ploy to please customers who loved the design of the old car. Underneath there was plenty of new kit and remains a capable and attractive small car today."
Everything from the windscreen forward is new, including the front suspension, steering and some of the engines. It made the Corsa a much more mature, able car and one that was able to stay on terms with its big rivals from Ford and Volkswagen in the respective shapes of the Fiesta and Polo.
Stiff competition was also given by the likes of the Skoda Fabia on space, the Mazda 2 for driving prowess and the Toyota Yaris for quality, so Vauxhall had its work cut out to keep the Corsa as one of the best-selling cars in the UK and Europe. Fortunately, the results were up to the job and the 2014 Corsa was more refined, frugal and spacious, which makes it an excellent used purchase too.
Out went the scratchy plastics and dated layout, replaced by a cabin similar to the Adam. That means more panache and style plus a big leap in quality. The plastics used are far superior and touches like the soft touch dash top and glossy trim make it feel more upmarket. Standard equipment on all models now also included a heated windscreen.
When it came to engines, there were again some considerable improvements. The new 1.0 Ecotec petrol is the pick of the range. It may be a small three-cylinder engine, but thanks to the fact it's turbocharged it provides perky performance with good refinement.
Two versions are available: a 90PS model and one with 115PS. Both are economical, with the 90PS averaging a claimed 65.7mpg in the three-door model. Under the skin there were big changes with a reworked and stiffer chassis plus all-new suspension which was tuned specifically for UK roads. It also has a lower centre of gravity for improved handling, something the turbocharged 1.6-litre Vauxhall Corsa VXR hot hatch version made the most of.
These changes certainly improved the refinement of the Corsa and it rides very well for a small car, feeling stable and comfortable even at higher speeds. Unfortunately, the new electric power steering is overly light and feels vague in corners. As a result, the Corsa isn't much fun to drive, but it's ideal in town and easy to park.
This won’t unduly bother many Corsa buyers. Instead, they will be happy with a refined small car that comes in a huge range of trims and engines that lets them tailor the Corsa to their needs and budget.
If you're looking for the newer version, you need our Vauxhall Corsa review.
Is the Vauxhall Corsa right for you?
It would be easy to say millions of Corsa buyers must be right, so the Corsa is the small hatch for you. There are a couple of caveats to that as the Ford Fiesta is a more engaging drive and the Volkswagen Polo has a classier cabin ambience. On the other hand, the Vauxhall Corsa offers an interior with plenty of space, decent material quality and most versions enjoy a reasonable amount of standard kit.
The Corsa also appeals for the range of engines available, from the perfectly able to the superbly frugal. The three-cylinder 1.0-litre turbo petrol Ecotec engines are the pick of the bunch as they balance economy, smoothness and surprisingly strong low- and mid-rev shove. You could also treat yourself the raw excitement of the VXR hot hatch model with its 1.6-litre turbocharged engine delivering 205PS to make it an exciting alternative to a Ford Fiesta ST.
What’s the best Vauxhall Corsa model/engine to choose?
The 1.0-litre turbocharged engine in the Vauxhall Corsa may be the smallest capacity petrol motor, but it’s the one to go for. It comes in 90 and 115PS forms and we’d take the more powerful version simply because you get more performance and flexibility but with very little drop in fuel economy.
We’d also stick with a manual gearbox rather than the Easytronic auto transmission that blunts performance. The decision between three- and five-door body styles will come down to what you need from your car, though the five-door is by far the more practical option.
When it comes to trim level, Vauxhall offered a vast array of choices, but the one to aim for is the Excite that offers a good amount of kit as standard. It comes with air conditioning, heated seats and even a heated steering wheel for a touch of premium luxury.
What other cars are similar to the Vauxhall Corsa?
When talking about rivals to the Vauxhall Corsa, there are only really two others in the same league and they are the Ford Fiesta and Volkswagen Polo. The Ford delivers a much sharper drive and its 1.0-litre Ecoboost petrol engines are more fun to use, although they don’t match the Corsa for economy.
The Polo is the choice of those who want something with a slightly more premium air to its cabin. The Volkswagen’s materials deliver this, but it’s not as crisp to drive or refined as the Corsa.
Others to consider are the Honda Jazz for cabin space, Skoda Fabia for value and the Mazda 2 for an engaging driving experience.
Comfort and design: Vauxhall Corsa interior
"Getting in and out of the three-door Vauxhall Corsa can be a pain in tightly packed parking spaces due to the length of its doors. So, if you spend a lot of time in the city or supermarket, the five-door is the better bet."
Space for the driver is identical however many doors the Corsa has. It’s one of the most generous small hatchbacks, so you get loads of room for head, legs and shoulders. The driving position is good and visibility all round is adequate, but the thick front pillars aren't ideal at busy junctions. On the plus side, the instrument dials are easier to read than the previous Corsa’s and there’s a better feel to the controls, including the impressive IntelliLink stereo system.
There’s no problem with finding somewhere to stash a bottle of water, charge your phone or keep smaller items from rolling around thanks to plenty of storage spaces arranged around the driver. We like the big, deep door pockets that make it easy to slot a water bottle into rather than having to jam it in and hope it stays put.
The dash top has a soft-touch covering and there's a gloss trim on the majority of models that stretches right across the dash. This combined with simple ventilation controls and stereo system mean the Corsa still feels modern inside. It’s a more upmarket and stylish feel than in many other small hatchbacks of the same period, making it a better bet than most rivals.
Quality and finish
Vauxhall finally got to grips with providing a high quality feel to the Corsa’s cabin with this generation of its hatchback. It’s not quite up to the standards set by the Volkswagen Polo, but you won’t have much to complain about thanks to the thickly padded soft-touch surfaces used for the dash-top and along the upper parts of the door trims.
Look and feel a bit further down in the Corsa’s cabin and you soon discover some hard, easily scratched plastics. This is where the Corsa loses out to the Polo, but it’s no worse than you would find in a Ford Fiesta’s interior and the Vauxhall seems to be well put together, so don’t expect many creaks or rattles.
Most versions of the Corsa come with Vauxhall’s IntelliLink infotainment system with its integrated touchscreen as standard. This adds a touch of sophistication to the cabin and the system is easy to fathom, even if it’s not the most intuitive or responsive to use.
Infotainment: Touchscreen, USB, nav and stereo in the Vauxhall Corsa
Avoid the most basic versions of the Vauxhall Corsa and you will enjoy the IntelliLink infotainment system with its 7-inch touchscreen. It’s integrated into the dash rather than sitting proud like an iPad that is the current fashion. No matter, the display is easy to read and clear in the way it presents its information.
Linking your smartphone to the IntelliLink set-up is easy and you can stream music using Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. There’s also Bluetooth for hands-free calls, while pairing your phone to the car also allows access to your device’s apps that means you can have sat-nav and other services on the car’s display.
The IntelliLink system is easy enough to use, but it can be a fraction slow to respond to your finger’s inputs. Also, the stereo’s volume control is positioned in just the right spot to be knocked by your wrist as you press an onscreen icon, which is mildly irritating.
Space and practicality: Vauxhall Corsa boot space
While the looks of this generation of Vauxhall Corsa are very similar to the car that preceded it, there is a good deal more space inside the cabin. In the front, six-foot tall adults can fit perfectly easily and still leave enough room in the back for two more adults to fit, albeit a little snugly.
If you need to carry more than one adult on a regular basis, it would be a wise decision to choose the five-door version of the Corsa. Not only does it make getting in and out of the back seat much less of an athletic trial, it will also help when parked close to another car as the Vauxhall’s in three-door configuration has lengthy doors that make it tricky to get enough of a gap to step into.
Take the five-door and there’s a decent size and shape of aperture to access the rear seats through. Once in there, two adults will fit with sufficient headroom and just enough space for knees, but the more likely occupants will be kids and they fit just fine. It’s one of the most spacious rear benches in the hatchback market and all three seats have a triple-point belt.
However, the centre cushion is raised a little, leaving this passenger feeling perched on rather than in the car. However, Vauxhall provides two ISOFIX mounts for kiddy seats and the five-door makes it simples to fetch these into and out of the car.
When it comes to carrying luggage, the Corsa makes a good fist of it thanks a 285-litre boot with the rear seats in place. That’s fractionally less than the contemporary Ford Fiesta’s boot but the Corsa’s is well shaped and has a load floor that can be adjusted between two heights so it sits flush with the rear seat backs when they are tumbled forward.
Fold the 60/40 split back seats and you can release up to a sizeable 1120-litres of carrying capacity. This makes the Corsa one of the best in its sector for outright cargo space.
The Vauxhall Corsa's dimensions are 4021mm long, 1944mm wide and 1479mm tall.
Handling and ride quality: What is the Vauxhall Corsa like to drive?
"You cannot accuse Vauxhall of lacking effort when it came to sorting out how this generation of Corsa drives. There was an all-new front suspension, stiffer body shell to make it safe and quicker to respond to driver inputs, and the car’s weight was moved lower down to help with handling."
On top of that lot, the steering was uniquely set-up for UK cars to give better feel in corners while that of Corsas sold in the rest of Europe erred more towards motorway stability.
This isn’t to say the Corsa is fidgety or flighty on the motorway in Vauxhall guise. Far from it, as it’s one of the most planted and solid-feeling small hatchbacks when driven on this type of faster road.
It’s very at home in this environment and is just as happy around town where the steering is light, with a tight turning circle that makes it a doddle to park in compact spaces. There’s also a City Mode for the steering to make it even lighter to twirl in these situations and it’s positioned on the dash to the left of the infotainment screen.
Where the Corsa does fall a bit short is steering feel when you are driving along more twisting country roads. This isn’t such a problem for the hot hatch VXR that has a heftier feel to its helm, but the rest of the Corsa models have an inert steering set-up that leaves the car trailing the Ford Fiesta in sensation and feedback.
There’s nothing wrong with the way the Corsa handles, however, and there is plenty of grip to make sure you have something in reserve if you need to avoid a hazard mid-corner.
If only the same were true of the ride quality, which feels like it has nothing more to offer than jitters and bumps. It’s a shame as it undermines the otherwise refined feel of the Corsa as you drive. This trait is accentuated on models with larger alloy wheels and the VXR with its firmer suspension, so the Vauxhall just feels too unsettled too much of the time to get the upper hand over the Ford Fiesta.
What engines and gearboxes are available in the Vauxhall Corsa?
All of the engines in this Vauxhall Corsa were either new or heavily revised. The 1.0-litre Ecotec three-cylinder turbo petrol is the pick of the bunch and comes in 90- or 115PS forms. It’s very refined and has a broad spread of power that makes it relaxed in all conditions.
There are two standard petrol models with the 1.2 and a 1.4 that were carried over from the previous Corsa. Alongside these is a 1.4 Turbo engine that produces 100PS, which is less than the more potent of the two 1.0-litre turbos. The 1.4 Turbo is designed for economy and mid-range performance, making it a better motorway choice than the 1.0 Ecotec and it's slightly smoother than the three-cylinder 1.0-litre motors.
Drivers looking for something with a hint of sportiness are catered for with the GSi model’s 1.4-litre turbo tuned to deliver 150PS. It's not as quick as the Ford Fiesta ST or the feisty 205PS 1.6-litre turbo petrol of the Corsa VXR, but it's good fun for those who want a sportiness without the running costs of a full hot hatch.
If it's outright economy you're after, the 1.3 CDTi ecoFlex diesel is the engine to go for. This was carried over from the previous Corsa with specific improvements. In its most frugal guise, it had a claimed 88.3mpg with carbon dioxide emissions of just 85g/km. It's perfect if you spend a lot of time on the motorway but we'd suggest sticking with a petrol if you're covering short distances.
Refinement and noise levels
Starting with the engines in the Vauxhall Corsa, they are all impressively quiet and the three-cylinder 1.0 Ecotec petrol is very hushed at tickover. In normal driving, it remains very calm, helped by its generous mid-rev strength that means you rarely have to rev it hard. However, the 1.4 Turbo with 100PS is even smoother and the one to choose if you spend long stints on the motorway.
The diesel engine options are also quiet, though they betray themselves earlier on than the petrols. Still, you will be able to travel long distances without being bothered by any noise from under the bonnet of any Corsa.
It’s much the same story when it comes to wind noise, which is ably suppressed to make the cabin a relaxed place to sit. There is also little it the way of road noise in those Corsas that ride on smaller wheels, but step up to the larger alloys of higher spec models and some road makes its presence heard in the cabin. This is a disappointing element to what is otherwise a very well rounded and quiet small hatch.
Safety equipment: How safe is the Vauxhall Corsa?
The Vauxhall Corsa covers the basics with twin front, side and curtain airbags as standard. It also comes with ESP traction and stability control, and ABS anti-lock brakes.
Every version of this generation of Corsa also has three-point seat belts for all five occupants and headrests for them too. The two outer rear seats have ISOFIX child seat mounts.
Also included with all trim levels is a tyre pressure monitoring system and Hill Start Assist to prevent the car from rolling backwards as you go to pull away on an incline.
However, the Corsa only scored a four-star rating from Euro NCAP in crash tests, which was a bit disappointing at the car’s launch in 2014 and some way behind the latest small hatches. Part of this score was down to the Corsa not being fitted with or having the option of autonomous emergency braking that can spot hazards and apply the brakes if the driver doesn’t intervene to avoid a collision.
MPG and fuel costs: What does a Vauxhall Corsa cost to run?
"Look at the official figures for the Vauxhall Corsa and the most frugal is the 95PS 1.3 CDTi turbodiesel that has a claimed combined consumption of 87.8mpg. Real MPG numbers show you are more likely to see an average of 63.9mpg, which is still very respectable."
If you want a petrol engine, the 90PS 1.0 Ecotec turbocharged three-cylinder motor is the one to aim for as has a claimed economy of up to 65.7mpg and Real MPG combined 48.3mpg.
How reliable is a Vauxhall Corsa?
The Vauxhall Corsa scored an unimpressive 8.22 out of 10 for reliability in the HonestJohn.co.uk Satisfaction Survey, making it one of the worst-performing Vauxhalls.
Worse still was Vauxhall's performance as a brand, finishing 29th out of 30 manufacturers in the same survey. As with any used car, a fully-stamped service history is an absolute must.
Insurance groups and costs
Engine and trim choice have a big bearing on how much your insurance premium will be with the Vauxhall Corsa. Choose the basic Life model with the least powerful 1.2-litre petrol engine and it falls in the group 2, so insurance will be easy for new and young drivers.
At the other end of the scale, the GSI model with its 150PS turbocharged 1.4-litre engine sits in group 20, while the punchy VXR hot hatch is all the way up in group 30. A 1.0 Ecotec in Excite trim attracts a group 10 rating.
VED car tax: What is the annual road tax on a Vauxhall Corsa?
Later Corsa registered from 1 April 2017 will now pay a flat fee of £165 per year for their road tax. Cars registered before that date have their Vehicle Excise Duty determined by their carbon dioxide emissions.
As a result, several Corsa enjoy free road tax thanks to their sub-100g/km emissions with the 1.3-litre turbodiesel engine. Next best is the 90PS 1.0 Ecotec turbo petrol in Band B with a £20 per year tax.
Most other Corsa models sit in Band C that costs £30 per year, but the VXR will set you back £265 for 12 month’s road tax.
How much should you be paying for a used Vauxhall Corsa?
"The popularity of the Vauxhall Corsa as a new car means there are plenty to choose from in the used market. Prices start at under £3,000 for a 2014 car with the 1.0-litre turbo petrol engine in Excite trim."
If you want something newer, a 2017 Corsa with around 25,000 miles is yours for £5,000. Or, you could go for something from the tail end of this generation’s production life for around £9,000 from a franchised dealer with less than 3000 miles on the clock.
Trim levels and standard equipment
Vauxhall claimed to have slimmed down the trim line-up from 10 to nine versions. This means there’s a broad choice. We’d avoid the sparsely fitted out Life, Sting and Sting R models. Instead, pick the Excite model to get standard air conditioning, 16-inch alloy wheels, rain-sensing wipers, height adjustable driver’s seat, and heated seats and steering wheel. This trim also comes with the IntelliLink infotainment with 7-inch touchscreen, DAB radio, Bluetooth and USB port.
The Vauxhall Corsa Design model adds cruise control to this, while the Sri comes with sports front seats. Take the Sri VX Line and you get a sport body kit and sports suspension with lowered suspension, while the GSI has this plus a more powerful engine. The full-on VXR hot hatch has a unique specification that includes Recaro front seats, limited slip front differential and uprated Brembo brakes.
For a more luxurious take, the Vauxhall Corsa SE comes with automatic wipers and headlights, electrically adjusted door mirrors, leather-covered steering wheel, heated seats, and front and rear parking sensors.
Ask the heycar experts: common questions
Is the Vauxhall Corsa a reliable car?
What are the main problems with a Vauxhall Corsa?
Is a Corsa smaller than an Astra?
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