Vauxhall has confirmed it’s launching a new, all-electric version of its Corsa best seller, bringing back memories of 90s hot hatch legends such as the Corsa GSi and Corsa VXR.
This time the Corsa wears a GSE badge and is the latest model to join the British brand’s expanding Grand Sport Electric lineup, following the arrivalof the Mokka GSE last year.
The Corsa GSE will sit at the top of the Vauxhall supermini range and aims to combine the model’s familiar everyday practicality with the sharper edge and bolder styling traditionally associated with Vauxhall’s hot hatch offerings. The latest GSE will be available to order later this year, although key technical details and performance figures are still to be announced.
However, it’s safe to assume that clues to the Corsa GSE’s performance figures can come from the Mokka GSE, which shares the Stellantis CMP platform technology with the Corsa. That’s the same tech that will power the upcoming Peugeot E-208 GTi, too.
In the larger Mokka GSE, a front-mounted electric motor produces around 277bhp and 345Nm of torque, paired with a battery with a 54kWh capacity. Performance figures include a 0-62mph time of 5.9 seconds and a top speed of around 124mph, supported by hardware such as a limited-slip differential, lowered suspension and substantial braking upgrades.
Peugeot’s E-208 GTi takes that same core formula into the Corsa’s supermini class, with comparable output of 277bhp and 345Nm and an expected 0-62mph time in the region of 5.7 seconds. The E-208 GTi claims a maximum range of 217 miles and will charge from 20 to 80 per cent in less than 30 minutes on a 100kW fast charger.
The Corsa GSE is likely to land in a very similar performance territory to the 208 GTi which would make it the fastest Vauxhall electric car yet.
Vauxhall managing director Eurig Druce said: “The GSE badge has already proven a great success with the Mokka GSE – now Vauxhall is bringing that electrifying high-performance to Corsa. The Corsa GSE will combine small and agile practicality with thrilling, pure electric, motorsport-inspired power and dynamics. Vauxhall has a proud heritage of hot hatches, and we’re excited to now offer customers those same thrills but combined with the electrifying performance and zero emissions in use of these new GSE models.”
The Vauxhall Mokka GSE has been criticised for its lukewarm appearance, so it’s hoped that last summer’s Vauxhall’s Corsa GSE Vision Gran Turismo concept provides an early glimpse of how a slightly bolder Corsa GSE might look.
Since its UK debut in 1993, the Corsa has frequently offered hot sporting versions, beginning with the Corsa GSi which helped build its reputation as an attainable performance car. That car was powered by a 1.6-litre petrol engine producing 105bhp, could reach 60mph in 9.2 seconds and had a top speed of 121mph – figures that made it a legendary entry point into hot hatch ownership.
Later versions including the Corsa VXR continued that theme, with hot Corsas (and hot versions of the Vauxhall Nova that preceded it) becoming firm favourites with young performance car fans and on the car modifying scene.
Vauxhall first introduced the GSE sub-brand in 2023 on plug-in hybrid versions of the Astra, Astra Sports Tourer and Grandland before moving to fully electric models with the Mokka and now the Corsa.
Motorsport remains closely linked to the GSE strategy. Vauxhall is participating in the ADAC GSE Rally Cup, described as the world’s first electric one-make European rally championship. The brand will return to competition in 2026 with a works Mokka GSE Rally entry driven by British driver Ioan Lloyd, with technology from that programme expected to influence Vauxhall’s road cars.
The Corsa continues to be a central player in Vauxhall’s UK plans, being the brand’s best-selling model by some margin and the UK’s best-selling supermini, reaching number four in the overall 2025 sales charts.
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