The Opel brand has a long and illustrious history in South Africa but not as one would think. The first Opel offerings wore the Chevrolet badge when General Motors South Africa, who themselves had been around since 1913, started producing Vauxhall products in the 1960s. The 1980s saw the switch to the Opel brand name and the rest, they say, is history.
Related: Are Opels expensive to repair?
The recent years have been a little tough for the German brand with the departure of GM from local shores. The Williams Hunt motor group ran to the rescue and continued to import Opel models into South Africa, keeping the brand alive until Opel was bought out by the PSA Group and shortly thereafter, the Stellantis umbrella as PSA joined forces with FCA in 2021.
This means that the future of Opel looks good in South Africa as the established Stellantis (Peugeot, Citroën, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Jeep, and Abarth) dealership network is on hand to facilitate the sales and servicing of Opel products.
What is the cheapest Opel in South Africa?
At the time of writing this article, the cheapest Opel on sale in South Africa was the friendly and competent Opel Corsa 1.2. Powered by a 1.2-litre 3-cylinder engine, the cheerful hatchback produces 55 kW and 118 Nm torque and sends power to the front wheels through a 5-speed manual gearbox. This prowess means that the Corsa can do the 0 to 100 km/h sprint in 13.2-seconds and on to a top speed of 174 km/h.
This entry-level trim is surprisingly well-equipped and will offer you a multifunction display, steering wheel controls, electric windows, remote central locking, USB and Bluetooth connectivity, automatic headlights and park distance control.
It's pretty safe too and you get ABS with EBD, emergency brake assist, 6 airbags, a tyre pressure monitoring system, traction control, stability control, and ISOFIX mounting points for child seats.
The Opel Corsa 1.2 will set you back only R299 900* and has a 3-year/120 000 km warranty and 3-year/45 000 km service plan as standard. You can expect repayments of approximately R5369.20 when signing a finance agreement over 72-months with a 10% deposit, no balloon, and an interest rate of 12%.
*Prices correct at the time of publishing
