A bright-green, 202bhp supermini with a lairy bodykit and a sports exhaust probably isn’t too high on your wish list if you’re no longer in secondary school or care what people think of you - but cast your prejudices aside for a second.
Not only does the Nürburgring Edition pack a 13bhp and 37lb ft boost over the standard bolshy Corsa VXR but it also came with uprated Bilstein dampers, Brembo performance brakes and bespoke alloy wheels. On top of that, it was the first Vauxhall model of the new millennium to receive a limited-slip differential. This was no half-baked commemorative trim package.
When we first drove it just nine years ago, we eagerly declared it to be “stunning” and thoroughly worthy of its £22,000 price, which makes this sub-£8000 example look amazing value, especially when today’s Ford Fiesta ST, with a 5bhp deficit and a missing cylinder, asks more than £22,000 for a similar experience.
The 2014 VXR that jumped out at us from the classifieds has covered a reasonable 58k miles and has been in the hands of just two people since new. That’s good news, as it implies it has been properly maintained.
And while that paint might make you stick out like a sore thumb, it’s the right hue for a Nürburgring Edition, which will surely work in its favour in the future. As with any VXR, cracked pistons and turbo failure are worth watching out for; you can avoid a costly repair if you catch these early.
There are cheaper VXRs, but some have been questionably modified and others have more miles under their belts, so the extra outlay is money well spent, if you ask us.
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Barchettas are so pretty.
I got excited there, before
I got excited there, before realising that the white Audi in your photo is not an S2 Avant. What is going on here?