New Opel Corsa exposed

The sixth-generation Opel Corsa has been revealed in a series of images posted to the internet over four months before its planned public debut the 2019 Frankfurt motor show.

The revealing images were originally posted to a French website. They were subsequently deleted at the behest of Opel, but not before one internet user later re-posted them on a different website.

As well as being the first model to be conceived under new owner PSA, the 2019-model-year Corsa also provides the basis for the first electric-powered model to be produced by Opel and its sister brand, Vauxhall.

The eye-catching orange coloured model featured in the images is the new electric powered Corsa e, which shares its front-wheel drive platform and driveline with the recently unveiled Peugeot e-208.

It is expected to feature a 134-hp electric motor and a 50kWh lithium-ion battery with a range that around 340km.

As with the electric powered version of the new Opel model, other more conventionally powered Corsa models also adopt PSA’s front-wheel drive EMP1 platform, which already underpins the latest Peugeot 208 and DS3.

The new platform is claimed to contribute to a 108kg reduction in weight on the outgoing fifth-generation Corsa, according to Opel. It says the new compact hatchback will weigh as little as 980kg in entry-level guise, thanks in part to a 40kg saving in the body-in-white alone.

Further weight saving measures include the adoption of an aluminium bonnet, significantly lighter seats both front and rear and new engines.

Despite the switch to a new platform, the dimensions of the sixth-generation Corsa are understood to closely match those of its predecessor, which measures 4021mm in length, 1736mm in width and 1479mm in height.

Opel insiders reveal the design of the new model was originally set to be evolutionary. However, it was changed following PSA’s purchase of Opel from former owner General Motors in 2017.

Following an industry-wide trend in Europe, the new line-up will support just one body style in the form of a five-door hatchback. The three-door version of the Corsa is no longer planned to be produced, according to Opel.

Development of the new EMP1-based Opel model has taken little more than two years following a decision by PSA to shelve original plans for the sixth-generation Corsa to be based on General Motors’ SCCS platform - something that would have required the Franco-German car maker to pay a licencing fee to General Motors, according to Opel chairman, Michael Lohscheller.

"It’s true that we had a version ready to go, and you can’t just stretch a design to fit a new platform," he said, "but the teams have done a fantastic job in record time to ensure that the car is on schedule,” says Lohscheller.

As well as adopting the EMP1 architecture, the new Corsa also uses a PSA developed engines, including a turbocharged 1.2-litre three-cylinder gasoline unit in a variety of outputs.

Inside, the cabin of Corsa has been thoroughly redesigned. Key features include a digital instrument panel and central touch screen display. The existing model’s MyLink interface developed by previous parent company General Motors appears to have been dropped in favour of PSA’s more contemporary interface, as found on recently introduced Peugeot, Citroen and DS models.

The new Corsa is planned to be produced at Opel’s Zaragoza plant in Spain.