Having made its global debut in 2014, the Corsa E was somewhat outdated before the first cars rolled into the dealership lots. The reason for this isn’t the exterior design, but the backbone. After all, it was underpinned by the GM-Fiat Small platform which made its debut in the 2005 Fiat Punto.
The Corsa E shares a lot of its internals with the Corsa D. The similarity is uncanny, more so when you consider that the glasshouse is shared between the fifth and the fourth generation Corsa. However, all of this will change for the model year 2018, when Opel will launch the sixth-gen Corsa (also called as the Corsa F). The subcompact hatch will be joined by a four-door sedan, spied here racing the Nurburgring. The Corsa sedan has always been sold in limited numbers in select south European markets.
In the case of this particular prototype, we can see the unmistakable waterfall grille first seen on the 1939 Buick models. And while it’s unlikely that Buick will sell such a car stateside, Opel’s US-based mother company GM might push the model into the Chinese market come next year. Then again, the Chinese division of GM replaced the predecessor called the Buick Sail with the Chevrolet Sail some time ago.
As Buick China tries to go further upmarket, it’s very likely that this pre-production prototype of the Corsa F sedan won’t materialize as a Buick, but as a Chevrolet. Beyond Shanghai GM in China, what we expect to be the next-gen Sail will also be sold in South American markets.
Underpinned by the G2XX/Global Gamma platform, the Corsa F sedan and the 2018 Chevrolet /Buick Sail will be offered with three and four-cylinder power plants, in turbo petrol and diesel guises.
