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Dean Slavnich test drives the new Vauxhall Astra
GM finally has a winner
in the all-important European C-segment sector. Enter the fifth generation
Astra. It’s good, so good in fact that the big chiefs at Ford and
VW should be worried. Dean Slavnich explains why.
The new Astra, with its
high levels of engineering, has matched the fifth generation
Golf. But will the new Focus be better? |
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At the end of last year AE ran an exclusive scoop with Opel/Vauxhall
boss Carl-Peter Forster, who insisted that GM’s mainstream European
brand would transform itself from being a loss making company to at least
breaking even by the end of this year.
It was quite a bold admission to make, but Forster– for all intense
purposes – insisted Opel/Vauxhall could jump from the red and into
the black in less than 15 months.
Many doubted the Project Olympia plan and said such a rapid turnaround
was not feasible. But Forster had a secret ace up his sleeve; fore he
knew way back in October just how good the next-generation Astra would
be.
Heaping praise on an Opel/Vauxhall vehicle is something of a rarity in
today’s marketplace. One just has to utter the words Omega or Vectra
to ram home the point. But, in the new Astra, GM – and perhaps more
importantly Opel/Vauxhall – has finally got a winner, and it is
a winner in the most important sector of all.
Encapsulating the quality of the new Astra is simple. The car was first
launched in 1980, and for over two decades it has played ‘catch
up’ to VW’s iconic Golf and Ford’s offering in the C-segment,
first the Escort and then the Focus.
Now, things have changed. The feeling is the fifth generation Astra is
just as good – if not better – than the more pricey fifth
generation VW Golf. Furthermore, the new Astra has forced Ford chiefs
on both sides of the Atlantic to take note just months ahead of unveiling
the all new Focus.
The thing about the new Astra is that it dares to go where no other car
of its class has gone before. For example, it offers an adaptive suspension
system with electronic damping control that has only graced the likes
of high-end sports cars like the Ferrari 575 M, executive saloons like
the BMW 7-Series and acclaimed off-roaders such as the Porsche Caynne.
Keeping it simple – (we dive deep into the world of Constant Damping
Control technology in the focus of this months’ AE) – the
ZF Sachs’ developed technology offers numerous benefits, including
reduced pitching and rolling motion of the vehicle’s cage and improvements
in the Astra’s handling and suspension.
Tagged by Opel/Vauxhall as the Interactive Driving System, the technology
– which will only be offered as an option – ties to the electronic
chassis network all the individual systems, like the ESP, ABS, traction
control and CDC.
The drive of the new Astra is impressive and responsive. The handling
of the car is enhanced even more so by a highly engineered body shell
that, compared to the outgoing model, has had its flexing resistance increased
by 52 per cent. Torsional rigidity has been upped by 15 per cent, keeping
NVH levels to a minimum.
Other noteworthy features that add to the quality of the new Astra include
GM’s electro-hydraulic power-steering that bases the level of power
assistance on the speed of the car and the rate at which the wheel is
being turned. The Astra also offers adaptive frontal lighting.
The technology under the bonnet is equally impressive. The petrol line-up
starts with an economical 91 ps (67 kW) 1.4 litre engine and ends with
an awesome 172 ps (127 kW) 2.0 litre turbocharged unit. Sitting in the
middle is the 127 ps (93 kW) 1.8 litre engine and, what Opel/Vauxhall
chiefs expect to be the most popular petrol engine, the 106 ps (78 kW)
1.6 litre unit.
Three oil burning engines will also be on offer, including two 1.7 litre
choices that produce power outputs of 71 ps (52 kW) and 101 ps (74 kW).
A new 1.9 litre turbodiesel that generates 152 ps (112 kW) will also be
introduced in the Astra line-up later this year.
The summer introduction of the new five-door Astra will be followed by
the launch of an estate derivative with an extended wheelbase in the autumn,
while a sportier three-door will be ushered into the marketplace around
spring next year. There is even talk that a convertible will also be given
the go-ahead later next year.
So we have had the new Golf and, the new Astra – it would seem –
at least matches its German counterpart. The only thing standing in GM’s
way for European gold is Ford. We now await the Focus to enter the arena.
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