If you’ve followed EV Powered lately, you’ll know George East had an absolute hoot in the Vauxhall Mokka GSE. Now the Grand Sport Electric badge has landed on Britain’s best-selling supermini, and it’s our October cover star.
The GSE name is a riff on the old GSi, and anyone of a certain vintage will remember when GSi and VXR models were everywhere, from the Nova to the Astra, Vectra and even the Zafira. Then they just sort of disappeared. Now they’re back, and the Corsa GSE is priced from £34,495, or £32,995 once the £1,500 Electric Car Grant is applied.
Restrained but purposeful
Vauxhall has resisted the urge to make the Corsa GSE look anabolic. Two-tone, three-spoke 18-inch alloys nod to the GS models of old, yellow GSE-branded front calipers peek out from behind them, and new bumpers bring a big front splitter and a chunky rear diffuser.
The car sits 24mm lower at the front and 11mm lower at the rear, which helps the look and, more importantly, the handling. George’s test car came in £650 Contour White with a contrasting black roof, and he’s not shy about the result. In his words, it looks better than an Alpine A290 or a Cupra Raval. Yes, he went there.
Retro inside, for better and worse
Inside, the Alcantara and cloth seats wear a chequered black, grey and yellow pattern inspired by the Nova, and there’s a flat-bottomed Alcantara steering wheel. The layout is logical, storage is generous and there are plenty of physical buttons.
But the Corsa Electric has been around since 2019, and it shows. The 10-inch screens are low resolution and slow to react, which makes the G-force meter and race timer functions more of a novelty than a tool.
A riot to drive
Underneath, the Corsa GSE shares its e-CMP platform with the Mokka GSE, Abarth 600e, Alfa Romeo Junior Veloce and upcoming Peugeot E-208 GTI. That means a 277bhp front motor, 254lb ft, a front limited-slip differential and a 54kWh battery, good for 0-62mph in 5.5 seconds.
Stellantis developed the chassis around the Nürburgring, and George found it truly stellar on North Yorkshire’s Croft circuit, with the chassis, new anti-roll bar and uprated steering rack working as one. The piped-in ‘engine’ drone is less of a joy, but thankfully you can switch it off.
Range is 220 miles on the standard Michelin Pilot Sport tyres, rising to 232 miles on optional Hankook rubber, with 100kW charging. Drive it in Sport mode, though, and George reckons on about 150 miles.
So should you buy one over rivals like the Alpine A290, Cupra Raval or Mini John Cooper Works Electric? George’s full verdict, and why a dated cabin and a ‘dowdy’ badge shouldn’t put you off, is in the October issue.
Read the full review on page 22 of the October issue, or see our full Vauxhall Corsa GSE review online. Full pricing and specification is in Vauxhall’s official announcement.
