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The Vauxhall Corsa-e is the electric version of the Corsa, one of Britain’s best-selling small hatchbacks. It ticks all the same boxes as other Corsa models, being spacious and practical, well equipped and good to drive with light steering and a comfortable ride. Simple, familiar and easy to understand, it’s a great option if you’re taking your first steps towards owning an electric car.
The Corsa-e was launched in 2020 as the electric version of Vauxhall’s small hatchback. Visually, there’s little to distinguish the Corsa-e from the petrol models, other than the badge on the boot lid and different wheel designs.
All Corsa-e models have the same 136-brake-horsepower (bhp) electric motor and 50kWh battery. The motor gives really nippy acceleration around town and can get up to motorway speeds easily. The battery gives you a range of up to 209 miles on a full charge, according to official figures.
There are four main trim levels to choose from, called SE, Griffin, SRi and Elite. Some model names also have the suffixes Nav or Premium – more on those below.
Top-of-the-range Elite models have a bigger infotainment touchscreen, heated seats and steering wheel, and matrix LED headlights that don’t dazzle oncoming drivers when on full-beam.
The word Nav after the trim name simply means that the car has sat nav. Premium models have a faster on-board charger; you can read more about what that means in the next section.
According to official figures, all Corsa-e models can give a range of up to 209 miles with a fully charged battery, which is enough to cover most people’s regular trips for at least a week. Put the car in Eco mode, which reduces the power, and you could get as much as 293 miles from a full battery.
Recharging at home from a 7kW wallbox takes around 7.5 hours, while the time it takes using a public charging station depends on which on-board charger is fitted to your car. Premium models have a faster 11kW on-board charger, whereas non-Premium models have a 7.4kW charger. Fully recharging from a 22kW rapid charger takes around five hours with the 7.4kW on-board charger, or just under 3.5 hours with the 11kW. In both versions, an 80% top up takes 45 minutes from a 50kW charger, or 30 minutes from a 100kW charger.
Insurance costs are in the same ballpark as for other Corsa models, and there’s no Vehicle Excise Duty (car tax).
Other small electric hatchbacks include the Renault Zoe, the Peugeot e-208 and the Honda E. The Renault has a longer range, the Peugeot’s interior has more of a premium feel and the Honda has very impressive tech. But the Vauxhall is a good all-rounder that makes switching to an electric car very easy – it looks and feels almost exactly like a petrol-powered Corsa.
The Corsa-e is just as spacious as petrol Corsa models. There’s good headroom and legroom in the front, and the back seats have enough room for two adults. There are two sets of Isofix mounts if you need to use child seats, while the boot has space for a week’s worth of food shopping or a few medium suitcases. The back seats fold down to give extra space if you need to carry more.
The Corsa-e is Vauxhall’s smallest electric car. There’s one other – the Mokka-e SUV, which is taller than the Corsa-e but only a few inches longer. The Corsa is the smallest hatchback Vauxhall currently makes, slotting into the range below the larger Astra and Insignia. There have been smaller Vauxhalls in the past though, including the Viva city car.
Safety organisation Euro NCAP gave the Corsa-e a four-star safety rating out of a possible five. It comes with lots of driver safety systems, including automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping assist, blind-spot monitoring and traffic-sign recognition.