Doesn’t excel at anything
Opel’s compact mid-sized car, the Astra, was for years an impregnable fortress for all other brands. At least in the Netherlands. Yet the leadership crumbled further and even disappeared completely. With this generation of Astra, Opel regained lost ground. We take a used 1.4 Turbo from 2019 from the showroom and see if it makes us happy.
An Astra is almost as much a concept as the Golf. It is not very exclusive, but it is about what you get for your money, of course. Speaking of money, this costs €17,450 and for that you get an automatic gearbox and a ‘120 Edition’, a special version, because of a birthday party of the brand. This is definitely a well-dressed car. With navigation, Bluetooth, an extensive multimedia system, ESP, Hillhold, tire pressure sensors, air conditioning, cruise control and rain and light sensor.
The technical expert: “Astra solid, but minor electrical faults”
Marco den Hertog is technical expert of Vakgarage. What does he think about the technical reliability of the Opel Astra of this generation? “In general the Astra is known as a solid thing, but it does suffer from smaller, rather innocuous electronic faults that show up in various places, such as the steering column, the dashboard, the starter motor and at the fuel pump of the 1.0 Astra gasoline engine. In addition, moisture that penetrates the rear of the car can also be a cause of malfunctions.”
Everything goes without saying in the Astra
The advantage of this car is that it is very self-evident. The ergonomics are self-explanatory. You can really send a message to anyone with this. Opel has opted for sturdy furniture. It seems a bit very hard, but on longer rides you will appreciate that. The combi automatic transmission and 1.4 turbo, is that now recommended? I’m not entirely convinced of that. And that also applies to a bit for the chassis.
Astra is not very slick about
What we lack in this Astra is sophistication, refinement. Everything is logically placed, but operating it just doesn’t feel that slick. The powertrain does deliver sufficient performance, but the interplay between engine and gearbox and what the engine produces is sometimes a bit raw. That could be a bit more civilized. We think that the sturdy chairs are fine, but the chassis does have difficulty with short bumps. He just doesn’t filter it out optimally. In addition, the handling is excellent. Once in the turn, it remains stable when on rails hold its line. This Astra is certainly not an overzealous understeer.
Reviews Astra positive
The reviews about the Astra are generally positive. The engine always gives home, the oil consumption, which was sometimes a thing with Opels, seems normal and neat consumption figures are possible with a controlled driving style. The strong point of this generation is the relatively low weight of less than 1,200 kilos, which is a relief in these times.
Nice and complete as 120 Edition
The Edition is the most sold version. This is the ‘120 Editon’ and that is a bit of a special case, but in any case above average. In general, you can say that the Opel Astra offers slightly better value for money compared to that competitor from Wolfsburg. In any case, you will not be short of anything in this car. In addition to the aforementioned matters, LED daytime running lights and beautiful chrome elements on the outside are standard.
Also take a look at other C-segmenters
This generation of the Opel Astra is more modern, finer and more spacious than the somewhat boring, mainstream earlier editions. That favors the car. Still, it’s not a real standout, it’s not a winner. He doesn’t really drop anything, but he doesn’t really excel at anything either. It is not the sportiest, not the most comfortable, but all in all it is an understandable choice because it does not sink through the ice anywhere. Yet there are more pronounced C-segmenters for sale for this money. We would definitely take a look at that.
– Thanks for information from Autoweek.nl