We headed to Ratoath Motor Centre in Co. Meath to have a look at a 2014 Opel Corsa. Ratoath Motor Centre is an AA Approved Garage, so this Opel Corsa comes with 12 months free AA Breakdown Rescue and a 101-point check. We wanted to see if this was the perfect starter car and city runabout!
What is the Opel Corsa?
The Opel Corsa is a small hatchback that offers good value and decent space. Although becoming less popular, the hatchback format still has a lot to offer. The Corsa is cheap to run, yet has a nice amount of creature comforts. You can get a range of engine options, and we had the 1.2l petrol on test.
How much does it cost to run an Opel Corsa?
Fuel economy
The Opel Corsa will be quite efficient to run as it’s a relatively small car. The engine options are, in general, quite frugal. The 1.2 litre is particularly popular and will be very light on fuel around towns and cities. It isn’t ideal as a motorway muncher, but the odd Dublin-Cork trip will be no bother to it. Treat it right, and you could get close to 60mpg out of it.
Don’t forget that if you want to reduce your fuel costs, you can download the AA App here. You don’t even have to be a member. Just use the App at the counter in a participating Circle K garages and you will get a 3c per litre discount!
Tax & Insurance
Tax will also be quite decent at €270 for the 1.2l version we tested, which is reasonable considering the purchase price and how efficient it will be on fuel.
This version of the Corsa will be reasonably cheap to insure also. It isn’t an expensive car. It’s also not particularly powerful. If you are interested in finding out how much it would cost to insure yourself on it then you can get a quote from us here!
Is the Opel Corsa spacious?
The Corsa certainly isn’t the biggest car on Irish roads! However, it is quite spacious considering its small footprint of 4m long and 1.7m wide. The boot is reasonable and will fit a couple of weekend bags easily.
There’s plenty of space for two adults in the front. In the back, legroom gets a little tight for those of 6ft or more. The central back passenger will be a bit of a squeeze. But a car like this isn’t built to haul people around, so if it’s just you and a few friends the odd time, then it’s plenty!
Spec and finish inside
The Opel Corsa styling has aged quite well. The edition we were testing is 10 years old and it has held up. It’s not luxurious, but there is plenty of comforts there to keep you happy. The seat fabrics were in good condition, as was the dash and all buttons. The reversing camera, heated seats and heated steering wheel were great to have!
The exterior had held up quite well also. The red we had on test was quite bright and had kept its sheen. The alloys were in good condition, and the paintwork was in good condition. The tyres seemed to be nearly new, so you would get a long stretch out of those before changing.
What is the Opel Corsa like to drive?
We were testing the 1.2 litre manual, which when new had 85hp. So it’s not the fastest with a 0-100km/h time of about 14 seconds. However, thanks to its size and weight it still feels quite nimble. In fact, we’d say it’s a lot more fun to drive than a lot of the more modern SUVs that feel a bit frumpy.
The Corsa has a nicely balanced suspension that probably favours comfort over sportiness, but that’s a good thing in our book. It takes ramps nicely and irons out the minor imperfections in the road. Noise insulation isn’t great and you can hear the wind and tyre noise, but we’re not expecting it at this price point either.
Why buy an AA Approved Car?
AA Approved garages such as Ratoath Motor Centre where we tested this Opel are inspected before being allowed onto our programme. They have to meet a certain quality to be accepted. If they don’t continue to meet our standards, they will be removed from the AA Approved programme.
Each AA Approved car that is sold comes with a 101-point check. For added peace of mind, you get 12 months free Breakdown Rescue when you buy an AA Approved car. You can learn more about the programme here.
