Refined, well built, powerful. Add to that a compact bodyline and you have the Opel Corsa SAIL 1.4. There is sophistication written around it. On the inside, the German packaging shows,

especially in the way everything is put together.

The Corsa SAIL reminds me of the Volkswagen Golf and the BMW Mini Cooper. Both of these cars are excellent German compacts, earning their evergreen icons in automotive history.

Quick facts The Corsa SAIL 1.4 produces 85bhp (88PS) and has a top speed of 173km/hr. Thats actually higher than some sedans and SUVs in India. For example, the ’’quick’’ Toyota Qualis SUV has a top speed of 130km/hr and a Chevrolet Tavera

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SUV (Isuzu Panther) tops out at 140km/hr. The Corsa is still accelerating at those speeds. Also, the Corsa meets Euro 3 emission standards already (as in early 2004, when I bought mine).

The things I love about this car:

Big power. Lots of power on tap if I rev the engine

Soft ride. I can drive fast over an unsurfaced road and not feel it

Refined. Feels refined and smooth (as in Audi A6, versus a BMW M3)

Straight-line stability. I can cruise at 140km/hr on a highway and feel like I am merely approaching 100 km/hr

Beefy steering. I love the way the steering feels. It feels chunky and assertive.

Great clutch. The engagement is smooth, mellow and never jumpy

Braking feel. Bringing this car to a stop is re-assuring. The pedal feel is assuring, the traction very predictable. I prefer this feeling over risking locking up my wheels during a panic braking situation.

Compact exterior. Though I love big cars, I prefer big-car power in a smaller body. Its far more advantageous. Great to skuttle in Chennai traffic.

Design. Honestly I love the Indian Corsa’s design (Corsa B) -- versus the newer European Corsa ’’C’’ designs. But this is a matter of personal taste.

Negatives:
 
Sluggish on low RPM. Its unbelievably sluggish at low RPM, especially if I have airconditioning activated. Its can annoy a commuter.

Poor fuel economy. For a small form-factor, the 1.4 gives me an average of 9km/ltr in the city and 12km/ltr on the highway with airconditioning activated. With airconditioning off, it returns 10kms/ltr in the city and 15 on the highway.

Handling & recovery. There’s some excess body roll. The car takes a while to recover from a path of travel in response to a change of direction.

Road-to-steering feedback. The car does not provide adequate feedback on whats going on at the road level. Well, one will hardly notice the last two while commuting or even at a 140kmph highway-cruise. But if I put this car through some winding roads real quick, it feels a bit wallowy. Perhaps 2 things can change this behavior, in order of priority, (i) a lower profile tyre/rim combo, example 195/50R15 and (ii) a stiffer suspension. But ride softness may be compromised.

Hatchback or sedan I love the hatchback version over the Sedan. Here’s why: (i) The third box in sedans often have a mind of their own. Hatches generally provide quicker recovery. (ii) The rear seat angle on the Corsa sedan is steep. On the SAIL it is just right. (iii) The SAIL has better visibility at the rear and has virtually no ’blind spot’. There is a 4th reason too, and that is that the German Corsa was originally built as a hatchback. The third box is probably a Brazilian modification for underdeveloped regions like South America, China and uhm, India.

Performance This is where the Corsa really shines. But first, I will re-state that the car is annoyingly sluggish on low RPM. But if rev it over 1500 RPM, it kicks in some real mean & aggressive acceleration. I have made several 700km-a-day trips in South India and those are a testimony to this fact. Many engines redline at 6000RPM (including the C5 Corvette) , but the 1.4 climbs well over this mark, actually peaking at 6600RPM before it relents.

At third gear, this RPM translates to 120kmph (can stretch this to 132kmph but you risk an over-rev, losing power though gaining some higher speed). When shifting this high in the RPM range, I find myself already in the power range for the next gear. Performance enthusiasts will appreciate this, especially because it does well without the need of a close-ratio gearbox.

Off the record: On straight-line acceleration (quarter mile/ drag/ no traffic/ wide road/ street race drivers), the 1.4 SAIL outran the 1.6L Ford Ikon, Hyundai Accent, Daewoo Cielo, 1.2 Palio NV, 1.3 Honda City and the 2.0 Skoda Octavia (not the turbocharged RS version). Surprisingly, Ford Ikons ran out of breath quickly, ’’josh’’ not withstanding. More on that later perhaps, this is off topic.

The Corsa is a tuners car in several parts of the world. A few links are below:
http://corsasport.co.uk
http://www.corsa-b.co.uk
http://www.corsaclub.it/tuningb.h
tm
http://www.corsamania.com/galfotos.asp
http://www.cardomain.com/MakeModel/Opel/C
orsa

Problems Within 1 year of my new purchase, some replacements were made. After about 1 month, GM called me to request bringing in my car in for replacing a clutch sleeve. Later, an airconditioning switch on the dashboard was replaced. My rear defogger-windshield was replaced after 6 months. A worn gear-shift linkage had to be replaced after 14000 kms. Front brake rotors were re-surfaced at 18000kms.

All replacements were done for free as part of vehicle warranty, except for the brake rotor surfacing and wear and tear related items. The optional extended warranty has really helped. Spares pricing is reasonable and has never been exhorbitant. Actually you can even import aftermarket performance parts for this car from several online UK retailers (known as the Corsa B).

Some stuff from Opel’s history The Corsa is one of the most successful models in GM Opel’s history since it was introduced in 1993. In addition to receiving over twenty international design awards, the Corsa has been Europe’s top-selling small car since 1994.

The Corsa is designed in Germany, but is sold in approximately 80 countries and manufactured in 16 plants on five continents. In China, it is badged as a Buick Sail, in Australia as a Holden Barina, in Argentina as Chevrolet Corsa and in Germany as Vauxhall/ Opel Corsa.

PS: This review has evolved over a period of time. Appreciate your feedback and comments.

Purchase Price (INR):	Rs.5.05 lakhs
Dealer Name and City:	MPL Automobiles, Chennai
Model Year:	2004