Vauxhall Corsa VXR

Our verdict

The lumps and bumps of the body kit are reflected in the Vauxhall Corsa VXR’s vivid character. An in-yer-face experience, and one we like.

Comfort

The huge seats grip you like a vice - they're almost too narrow for the broad-shouldered and well-fed. The suspension crashes hard into town bumps but gets smoother at motorway speed, and refinement isn't bad at all, so you could do long journeys with no hardship.

Performance

There's lots of it, as evidenced by a 0-60mph time of 6.8 seconds. More than that, it's easily accessible performance, because the torque spread is so generous. The engine, which sounds good in bigger Vauxhalls, gets a bit harsh at high revs in the little Corsa, but not enough to take away from the fun.

Cool

There's been a huge amount of work done to distinguish the VXR from a regular Corsa, inside and out. Whether the VXR is cool to you depends on how you wear your baseball cap. Depends too on your attitude to BTCC. Among certain social subsets this Corsa is a totem. But it doesn't have the universal desirability of a truly cool car.

Quality

The dash and interior are nicely fashioned and the whole Corsa feels pretty solid. The interior is a bit bling, with about 20 different colours of plastic, several types of lighting and a superabundance of VXR logos, but it's decently made bling. Especially at the price.

Handling

The VXR engineers have done well to harness all that turbo thrust, and it's got plenty of traction unless the road is wet or bumpy. The electrically assisted steering is a mite short on feedback but it's quick, and you can trim the cornering balance with the throttle in that hilarious old-school hot-hatch way - beware the tail going light. Mind you, the ESP will gather it in.

Practicality

Hot hatches in general are where sporty cars get useful. But this one in particular has limitations. The front seats are so big they restrict access to the back, and the boot opening is weeny.

Running costs

Group 16 insurance could be your first hurdle, but after that and a bloated tyre budget there shouldn't be many nasty surprises because this is a Vauxhall.