Opel Astra GTC Sport 2012 review

Content

Price
EQUIPMENT
ENGINES
Driving
Verdict

Wow, what a beautiful car. Opel's new Astra Sport hatchback is on par with the best of them in terms of style. It has a really great silhouette on the street, especially the one we rode – the top-of-the-line Astra retailing for $33,490 for a six-speed manual.

Price

Our drive was $40k plus with a six-speed automatic transmission, flex-ride chassis and adaptive front lighting, adding two thousand each, plus another $700 for the metallic paint and a thousand for the 19-inch wheels over with standard 18's.

We were a bit skeptical about Opel Australia's mission to rise to the premium category, but this car delivered on it. It offers a premium driving feel, the interior is attractive and functional, and the build quality is at least as good as the competition.

But on the money front, it will compete with the likes of the Mazda3 SP25 (XNUMX less), the Lancer VRX (XNUMX less) and the Ford Focus Sport (nearly XNUMX less).

EQUIPMENT

It's the newest car in the area with lots of nice touches including a lowered sport suspension and sport steering, rear spoiler, dual zone climate control, premium audio system, sat nav, heated seats, chiropractic seats, Bluetooth phone with voice control, auto dimming rear kind. mirror, automatic wipers and headlights, cruise, electric parking brake and speed limiter are among its generous equipment.

But there is no paddle shifter and it has a spare part to save space. Minor complaints in the bigger scheme of things.

ENGINES

Power comes from a 1.6-litre turbocharged petrol engine with 132kW/230Nm. It works better in sport mode, offering quicker throttle response and a more lively chassis feel. Fuel economy is 7.3 liters per 100 km with the manual transmission, which is slightly better than with the automatic transmission, which sprints to 0 km/h in 100 seconds.

Driving

Comfortable with a sporty twist is how we would describe the Astra's ride, which also makes the car quite comfortable in twisty sections. Love the seats and plenty of cargo space, but rear seat legroom is a bit cramped due to the large front seat passengers.

From the driver's seat, everything is positive - there is nothing to complain about - it rides well, the roll during acceleration is sufficient, smooth, quiet, manageable.