Press Release
Design: Expressive Styling with a Passion for Geometry
The OPC model range has never been so wide and varied. This gave the design team the opportunity to design an extraordinary car with the Corsa OPC. OPC Designer Ulli Hochmuth − responsible for shaping Opel’s sportiest cars since 1999 − says, “The Corsa OPC is aimed at a considerably younger target group than most of its model family. That’s why we styled the Corsa’s sporty lines to be more expressive. We wanted to create an unmistakable driving machine.”
Powerful front and rear aprons with distinctive gills give the compact, bold-looking sporty car a powerful stance, while the rear spoiler and darkly contrasting diffuser in the rear bumper ensure good looks and downforce. The front and rear are united by a sporty modeled side sill and as in other OPC models, the color-keyed crossbar is a distinctive characteristic of the radiator grille.
Attention to detail was just as important for the designers as the expressive styling, which is apparent from the repeated use of the triangle. In the Corsa OPC, designers make use of this shape in a variety of places: from the radiator grille structure and the fog lamp frames to the perfect, centrally located triangular tailpipe integrated in the rear bumper. The two clips on the unique, thin exterior mirrors form a triangle and the spokes on the special, finely crafted 17 or 18-inch alloy wheels are also triangular. Even the rubber grips on the aluminum pedals are easily recognizable as Corsa OPC parts.
Sportiness also dominates the Corsa OPC’s cockpit. In addition to the typical OPC door sills, chrome-ringed instruments with red pointers and − depending on upholstery color − blue or silver-ringed air vents, the flat-bottomed leather sports steering wheel is especially eye-catching. Also reminiscent of motor sport vehicles, the steering wheel features a ring at its crown, while the center console in piano lacquer finish and aluminum pedals underline the sporty, high quality ambience. The sports seats with integrated head restraints are a joint new development by Opel and Recaro. These race-car-like seats provide optimal side support and protect both the driver and front passenger with integrated side airbags.
Chassis: Thorough Sporty Tuning On the Nürburgring
Pure driving fun was at the top of the agenda during the Corsa OPC chassis’ design. The sporty, compact car therefore boasts an appropriately sophisticated balance of agile handling and pronounced vehicle control. The technology team, consisting of specialists from series production and special vehicle development, used the Corsa Sport’s technical basis to develop an even sportier setup, assisted by Lotus Engineering experts. The base tuning was set on the test course in Idiada, Spain, and then development moved to the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Five test cars with various fine-tunings were compared by experienced chassis engineers. Racing car driver and brand ambassador Manuel Reuter was also a regular test crew member. The data obtained from the circuit was continuously checked for its everyday suitability on the Eifel Mountains’ country roads around the Nürburgring, and there were also calibration drives at Opel’s test center in Pferdsfeld. The final check was an endurance test of a special kind: over just ten days, the Opel Corsa OPC had to prove its durability with a 10,000 kilometer hardness test on the Nürburgring Nordschleife.
Key elements of the OPC’s chassis, which has been lowered by 15 mm compared to the base Corsa variants, include a stronger rear axle profile that increases the roll rate by 5 percent. The spring/dampener tuning was adjusted accordingly and an optimum characteristic chosen for the gas-pressure shock absorbers. The standard ESP system, which can be deactivated, was also tuned to the car’s sporty character. The new Corsa OPC comes with 7 J x 17 alloy wheels with 215/45 R17 tires ex works, while 7.5 J x 18 rims and size 235/35 R 18 tires are available as an option. The large 16-inch brake system with blue painted brake calipers ensures strong deceleration: the Corsa OPC boasts internally ventilated, 308 mm front disk brakes and 264 mm disk brakes at the rear.
Variable-progressive steering for sports car feeling unique feature for this class is the Corsa OPC’s variable-progressive steering, which provides a true sports car feeling. With a ratio of 13.0:1 during straight-ahead driving, the system response is already very direct. As the turning angle increases, so does the level of direct response, so that by 90 degrees the ratio is at 11.8:1. The variable progression also ensures that the response ratio increases again at greater steering-wheel angles to up to 13.3:1, reducing the effort needed for maneuvering or parking.
