If you ever doubted the rampant downsizing that’s going on among the British car-buying public, I’ve got the proof for you. Vauxhall is to launch not one but two new models that will be smaller than the Corsa. That’s the Corsa which already falls into what the industry calls the Supermini category.
Being factory fresh and engineered to the latest standards, these are hopefully not going to suffer too much from car breakdown syndrome.
Beyond the obvious – that cash-strapped customers want smaller cheaper cars because they can’t afford bigger pricier ones – the reason for having two cars is simple, and it comes down to two words that begin with ‘p’… profit from personalisation.
One car will be a bog-standard replacement for the slow-selling Agila, for people who just want something very small to get them from A to B.
But the other will be a lifestyle runabout. Vauxhall bosses have seen what MINI started nearly a decade ago, and what Fiat copied when it launched the 500 (pictured). Those executives realised they missed a trick. MINI took a risk banking on drivers paying to add a host of extras to personalise their cars, but it was a risk that’s paid off handsomely. Bundling in features such as free servicing and vehicle recovery was something else MINI pioneered.
For Vauxhall, it’s better late than never, I suppose. The car is set for launch in 2013 and will have the sort of warm cuddly exterior design that Fiat got so right with the 500.
Will it work for Vauxhall? That very much depends on getting the right image for the car. Both MINI and Fiat were playing the retro / heritage card with their models, harking back to time when life was simpler. Britain was emerging from post-War austerity and cheeky little runabouts were seen as ultra-chic. Ironically, we’re now entering a period of austerity. Let’s hope the recovery is on by 2013.
Breakdown Cover from 
