Vauxhall, or Opel as it is known across most regions, is hardly a brand you associate with performance or a strong road presence. Sure, the Vauxhall Omega was the basis for the Lotus Carlton, which at one point was banned from being sold in the UK for being capable of outrunning the police, but otherwise the manufacturer produces mostly bland and unremarkable vehicles. The Vauxhall Corsa certainly fits the definition, but not all is what it seems. Adam Smith's YouTube channel has featured what is the absolute definition of a sleeper, a Corsa “granny mobile” with an exotic drivetrain allowing it to give Lancer EVOs and WRX STIs a run for their money.
Swedish Power
The now-defunct Swedish carmaker Saab went out in a defiant blaze of glory in 2016. The brand was formerly owned by General Motors, which attempted to make the Swedes produce re-badged and re-bodied Vauxhall models. Their defiance produced some memorable vehicles, like the Saab 900 Viggen, but it also led to the brand’s extinction.
With that said, many of Saab's engines overlapped with Opel/Vauxhall, which was owned by General Motors until 2017. Nick, the owner of this unassuming Corsa B, has chosen to swap the Corsa's standard powerplant with a Saab B204 engine. The owner chose the Swedish 2.0-liter, turbocharged inline-four over a C20LET and a V-6 engine. Apparently, the engine swap is quite common among the Opel/Vauxhall community. The reason is cheap power, and who doesn’t want that?
The engine develops 300 horsepower, which is sent to the front wheels through close-ratio, five-speed manual from a Vauxhall Vectra. It may not sound like much, but the Corsa B weighs just over 1,860 pounds (840 kg), so sprightly could be one way to describe it. And on tighter British roads, 300-hp feels a lot more powerful.
The Sleepiest of Sleepers
It's no exaggeration to say this Corsa is exemplary of sleeper. Most “sleepers” usually have some sort of giveaway, whether it’s an aggressive stance, bucket seats, or additional gauges on the A-pillar or dashboard. This Corsa doesn’t even pack aftermarket wheels. It has bigger steel wheels with plastic covers that come from the next-generation Corsa. It even has the plain, black plastic bumpers. The intercooler has been neatly integrated into the front bumper and "camouflaged" in black to fit the bumper. The small exhaust tip is for "smoke and mirrors". Underneath it is the real deal, and it's much bigger. Inside you get a stock interior. Really, it looks like a fully-restored 1990s Corsa B, which makes the way this thing goes even more absurd.