Opel Astra 2012 review

Astra is back. But don't go looking for your Holden dealer looking for a long-time favorite in small cars. This time around, everything but the name has changed as the Astra leads the German Opel race.

Opel has always released the Astra, but now it's reclaimed its prize baby and is using the impressive new GTC coupe - and a reasonable starting price of $23,990 for a five-door hatchback - to spearhead a lineup of three models that should quickly grow into Volkswagen's planned European rights challenge. bragging rights in Australia.

Joining the Astra is the baby Corsa - once the Holden Barina - and the family-sized Insignia, pre-announced by Carsguide and available in both sedan and station wagon bodystyles called the Sports Tourer.

So it's not just the launch of a showroom for Astra, although this is a key moment, but the launch of the Opel brand. To focus attention on the new Opels, we note that they are opposed not to Holden, but to Volkswagen, Peugeot and some high-end Japanese brands. At least that's what Opel's planners think, which has opened 17 dealers across Australia to start sales on September 1st.

Opel's key message is that it's a design-led German brand with similar strengths to Volkswagen. How buyers will react, especially since there will be more than 50 different brands in Australia in 2012, is a very big question, but the head of Opel Australia, Bill Mott, is, as you might expect, confident in himself.

“The countdown is over. “Customer choice is changing. We believe we have the right product and brand for this changing market,” says Mott. He promises a growing range and an expanding dealer network, but says Astra is the key to success. “We are entering segments that… are targeted for further growth. I think it would be much more difficult without Astra,” he says.

“This Astra is both a real help for us and, as a new brand, a problem that we need to solve. We must speak the truth and speak the truth well. The truth is that Astra has been here and it has always been Opel.”

Value

Holden turned down the Astra because he could get cheaper kids cars from Daewoo in Korea, but Opel is doing its best to add value to its cars. “I'm sure we've done our homework,” says Mott. This was largely helped by the strong Australian dollar, which means that the bottom line for Astra is reasonable but not outstanding.

So it starts at $23,990 for a five-door 1.4-litre turbo petrol. It's not great when you can get a similar-sized Toyota Corolla for less than $20,000, but it sits in the heart of European small cars and looks good enough compared to the cheapest $21,990 Golf with less power and as the saying goes. Opel, with less standard equipment. The main body styles are the five-door hatchback and the Sports Tourer station wagon, while the range goes up to a 2-liter turbodiesel from $27,990 and a 1.6-liter petrol turbo from $28,990.

The automatic transmission is predictably $2000 extra, and there are plenty of trim levels and option packages. But the headliner is the GTC coupe, starting at $28,990 with the 1.4-litre turbo or $34,90 with the more powerful GTC. “We really believe that the Astra GTC is a unique animal. It's an achievable dream car."

Technologies

Opel has always done a lot of engineering work, building the basic chassis elements and pushing it further. There's nothing groundbreaking about the Astra package, but the different engines provide solid power and torque, there's a six-speed manual and automatic transmission - automatic only in the Sports Tourer - Watts-link rear suspension and things like bi-xenon lamps, alloy wheels. wheels and even an electric trunk opening and a system that flips the rear seat in a van.

Optional equipment includes a premium center console and even special ergonomic sports seats, as well as an adaptive lighting system with cornering lights and automatic low beams. What about GTK?

The chassis is set up with the usual sporty settings, but there's also a HiPerStrut front suspension for better traction and feedback, optional magnetically controlled Flexride dampers - similar to those found on some HSV Commodores - and 18-inch alloy wheels, electric power steering and more. All Astras come with Bluetooth connectivity.

Design

This is a key moment for Opel, which wants its cars to stand out on the road. Australian-born Nils Loeb, who heads up exterior design at Opel, is a special guest at the car press show and speaks passionately about the company's philosophy. “We are an emotional German brand,” he says. The cars definitely look good, and the GTC really stands out even against beauties like the Renault Megane, but what's most impressive is the attention to detail.

Dashboards are more than just flat plastic panels, the switches look and feel good, and Loeb admits that Opel chooses larger wheels for its cars "because they look good."

safety

Six airbags in all models. All cars have five EuroNCAP stars. Enough said.

Driving

Good, but not great. This is the point. Starting from the bottom, the Astra's base hatchback feels reliable and responsive. The 1.4-litre engine is nothing special, but the 1.6-litre is more than enough to get the job done and promises fuel economy in excess of 8 liters per 100 kilometers.

Looking around, both the hatchback and the Sports Tourer are impressive in design and finish - much better than the Corsa, which has an old-gen Korean feel in the cabin - from dashboard layout to seating comfort. Luckily, Opel remains old-school with push-button switches rather than a fancy iDrive-style controller, and everything you need is included, from reliable air conditioning to Bluetooth connectivity.

The station wagon is a little more impressive than the hatchback, thanks to plenty of space in both the back seat and in the luggage compartment, and does nothing for driving pleasure. But...there's wind noise, the tires rattle hard on nasty surfaces in regional New South Wales, and the overall feel of the car isn't as plush or refined as the Golf. Beautiful, of course, but not a breakthrough.

Which brings us to the GTC. The headliner coupe is really cool and very beautiful, but somehow it seems that there is more space in the back seat than in the trunk. The base car gets along reasonably well, not that it matters to fashion-conscious buyers, but it's the 1.6-liter engine with FlexRide suspension that deserves the love.

The switchable FlexRide also adjusts steering and throttle response, taking the car from normal to snappy and snappy in milliseconds. It has great traction and can easily handle more power - which we will eventually confirm once Opel Australia gets the go-ahead for the hotrod OPC model. The first impression of the Astra is to be expected, especially after so many years at Holden.

The main change is more sophistication in design and the promise that fixed-price service will give buyers the confidence they need to buy cars.

Verdict

So good and good enough, but we'll find out more when we compare the Astra to the Golf and our current favorite among compact cars, the Toyota Corolla.