Opel full speed ahead with Opel Corsa at ERC round in Czech Republic

• Opel Corsa Rally4 in first international competition at Barum Czech Rally Zlín
• Electric ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup round at European Rally Championship
• WRC3 leader Yohan Rossel as special guest pilot in Opel Corsa-e Rally

 

New Opel Corsa Rally4

Barum Czech Rally Zlín from August 27-29 is a twofold highlight of the 2021 rally season for Opel Motorsport. Not only will the world's first electric rally one-make cup, ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup, present itself on the international stage at the Czech round of the ERC. New Opel Corsa Rally4, which has already been busy collecting victories and podium places on the national level, will also make its first international appearance at the asphalt event around the industrial city of Zlín in the south-east of the Czech Republic.

New Opel Corsa Rally4

Opel works driver Marijan Griebel (32), the Junior European Champion from 2016 and 2017, will pilot the new 208 hp Opel Corsa Rally4. Co-driver in the customer sports car from Rüsselsheim is Tobias Braun (26), who is also one of the best in his field. And so the goal of the Opel crew is clear: “The competition is really tough, but it is not our aim to simply compete. We want to prove the high potential of the Corsa Rally4 and give it our all to be a contender at the front of the field,” says Griebel.

Opel Corsa-e Rally

Participants of the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup are sure to pay careful attention to what Griebel/Braun do in the Opel Corsa Rally4. Because in 2022, one of them will have the opportunity to compete in the ADAC Opel Rally Junior Team in exactly this type of vehicle and thus further develop as a driver.

Opel Corsa-e Rally

Season highlight for the first electric rally one-make cup

Barum Czech Rally Zlín is a very special challenge for the Cup participants. Fast asphalt tracks of the traditional event demand the utmost of the young teams in their sporty electric cars. A total distance of 522.72 kilometres – including 12 highly demanding special stages covering 147.33 kilometres – is in store for the crews of the Opel Corsa-e Rally on the three event days.

Opel Corsa-e Rally

Starting competitive status is clear: leader in the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup is Laurent Pellier. The 26-year-old Frenchman has a flawless record after two rounds with a maximum score of 80 points. His closest rival is Luca Waldherr in the Opel Corsa-e Rally from Opel Austria. Top-ranked German drivers, Max Reiter and Alexander Kattenbach, are hard on the heels of the two leaders.

Guest appearance of WRC star Yohan Rossel in TotalEnergies' Opel Corsa-e Rally

Participants of the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup can look forward to another special challenge during the Barum Czech Rally Zlín. Top international driver Yohan Rossel has announced that he will be a guest participant in the electric Cup. 26-year-old Frenchman is considered one of the greatest talents of his country. After his third win of the season in the Citroën C3 Rally2 at the Belgian round of the WRC, Rossel leads the WRC3 rankings. At the Barum Rally, the 2019 French Rally Champion and his co-driver Alex Coria will pilot a Corsa-e Rally entered by Opel Motorsport and designed by Opel partner TotalEnergies. “I'm looking forward to my first start in an electric rally car,” said the WRC star. “I will certainly have to adapt in the Opel Corsa-e Rally, but Alex and I are happy to be here and gain experience. We will give everything to be competitive when we start as guests in the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup. I have no doubt that we will have a lot of fun, and I would like to thank Opel Motorsport and TotalEnergies for the opportunity to experience the Opel Corsa-e Rally.”

Opel Corsa-e Rally

Eurosport TV channel will report on the world's first electric rally one-make cup on Tuesday after the rally as part of its “ERC - All Access” magazine, focusing on standings leader leader Pellier.

New Opel Corsa Rally4 on the Start Line

• New customer car: Opel Corsa Rally4 ready for 2021 season
• Successful: New rally car impresses during testing in France
• Big footsteps: Opel Corsa Rally4 is successor of victorious Opel ADAM R2

New Opel Corsa Rally4

With the new Corsa Rally4, Opel is opening a new chapter in its successful motor sport history. Opel Corsa Rally4 is designed for national and international customer rallying and follows the ADAM R2, with which Opel won four European junior rally championship titles in a row between 2015 and 2018. In addition, since its homologation for the 2014 season, Opel ADAM R2 has taken more than 220 class wins, 530 podiums and 32 titles in national championships.

Opel Corsa Rally4 was developed according to Rally4 regulations, which replace the R2 class. Instead of the high revving, four-cylinder, naturally aspirated engine from Opel ADAM R2, Opel Corsa Rally4 has an extremely efficient 1.2-liter, three-cylinder, turbocharged gasoline engine. Based on the production power unit, the rally engine with Magneti Marelli ECU produces an impressive 208 hp and 290 Nm meters of torque. Power is transmitted from the engine to the front wheels via a three-way adjustable limited slip differential and a sequential five-speed gearbox. Rally suspension with Eibach springs and Öhlins shock absorbers is fully adjustable.

Following months of testing, Opel Motorsport and PSA Motorsport have carried out in recent weeks further extensive test drives with the Opel Corsa Rally4 in the south of France. Over five days, the teams from Opel and PSA Motorsport again covered more than 1,000 kilometres on gravel and asphalt roads in changing conditions. Well-known test drivers Yoann Bonato and Marijan Griebel were highly impressed.

Opel Motorsport test driver Marijan Griebel, reached an all-round positive conclusion: “Opel Corsa Rally4 is very easy to drive and reacts well to changes in set-up. I immediately had confidence in the car. Thanks to the longer wheelbase, Opel Corsa is more stable in fast corners than the Opel ADAM R2 and yet very agile. Turbo engine is great and feels very powerful, especially going uphill. Thanks to the higher torque and the much wider rev band, the driver has to shift less than with a comparable non-turbo. Traction is also very good. Altogether, Opel Corsa Rally4 is a capable, fast rally car. Test drives were very productive and I had a lot of fun.”

Homologation of the Opel Corsa Rally4 is due on December 1, 2020. The production of the customer cars begins immediately afterwards. The order books will then open. “Our customers can look forward to a fast, reliable rally car, just like the Opel ADAM R2”, says Opel Motorsport Director Jörg Schrott. “Opel Corsa Rally4 was also developed with the lowest possible running costs in mind. That saves customers’ budgets and also ensures an optimum price-performance ratio.” Opel will announce price of the Opel Corsa Rally4 in the near future.

In the next step, Opel Corsa Rally4 will represent the second level of the joint promotion of talent by Opel and ADAC. The promotion begins with the ADAC Opel e-Rally Cup, where the best talents will progress to the ADAC Opel Rally Junior Team and the cockpit of an Opel Corsa Rally4. Drivers can then look forward to a demanding international programme in which they can take the next steps in driver development.