VIDEO: Next-Gen Opel Astra takes on Ford Focus and new VW Golf
Click above to watch the video after the jump
The 2010 Opel Astra has an impressive exterior and an overhauled interior, but it's also important that the upcoming C-segment hatchback can hang with the competition. The guys and gals at Vauxhall wanted to show just how competent a handler the Astra is, so they brought a pre-production tester to the Millbrook Proving Ground test track in Bedfordshire, England.
Hit the jump to watch the next Astra take on the twists and turns at Millbrook, and while you're at it, make sure to keep an eye on the MKVI Golf and the Euro Focus. You'll have to really pay attention here, though, because the Astra passes them without much of a fight. Sure, that may have something to do with the fact that the Astra is piloted by Vauxhall's own BTCC pilot, Fabrizio Giovanardi. For all we know, the Golf and Focus could be driven by students from the local driver's ed academy.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Taglane 1:14PM (6/18/2009)
lol- I loved the little jump over the hill.
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spookthehamster 1:37PM (6/18/2009)
I have a video of an Aston Martin Vanquish, DB9 and V8 Vantage jumping over that hill, filmed by a friend working there before the V8 Vantage was released.
Coolio 2:10PM (6/18/2009)
To spookthehamster:
Can you put in Youtube and post the link ? Sounds great !
izorro 1:20PM (6/18/2009)
Skeptical....just a tad...
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Torrent 1:36PM (6/18/2009)
Yeah just a little. I love the car and all. Like... really love it- just from the few pics I've seen, but notice whenever they show Mr. Fabio or whatever his name is shifting, he just happens to be right on the tail of the next car.
hmmm curious.
FSM 1:27PM (6/18/2009)
I've driven the Golf (in Rabbit guise) and the Astra and I have to say I enjoyed the Golf more. It's interior was nicer and the it felt a bit more peppy.
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Bloke 1:34PM (6/18/2009)
Considering that both the (non-GTi) Golf and Astra in North America come only with one engine option a piece and one has a far larger engine capacity than the other, that's a ridiculous comparison.
In Europe, all three cars in this test come with a variety of petrol and diesel units in the 1.3 to 2.5 litre range, making them far more comparable.
Michael 1:40PM (6/18/2009)
I agree with Bloke. And to go further, you've driven the current-gen Astra, not the next-gen one that is being built on a new platform (the same as the Chevy Cruze I believe) so I don't think that anyone here can make a valid comparison.
Then again a video made by vauxhall/Opel might not be the best reference.
The clunking sounds are probably because this is not yet a production version of the car.
FSM 1:42PM (6/18/2009)
@ Bloke
Its a ridiculous comparison to compare 2 naturally aspirated hatchbacks with close price points where each only has one offering in the US?
Bloke 1:57PM (6/18/2009)
FSM - if you're comparing a 138bhp 1.8 with a 170bhp 2.5 with an extra cylinder, saying the latter is more peppy? Of course it is. Use some common sense. Price similarity has no bearing on power.
FSM 3:43PM (6/18/2009)
@ Bloke
It doesn't matter. If I am an average consumer in the market for a hatchback in the mid to high teens, I will look at the Mazda 3, the Rabbit, the Astra and the few other hatchbacks that exist and then I will COMPARE their interiors and how they handle. I could care less that it is somehow unfair to compare the peppyness due to the differences in engine sizes. Thats GM's fault. Ultimately it comes down to the dollars and perceived bang for your buck, and in my opinion the current Astra fails compared to the Rabbit and the Mazda 3. I have no control over what the automakers put under the hood but I do have control over what I put in their pockets.
Rich 7:24PM (6/18/2009)
@FSM: who gives a flying noodly appendage what you think? The article is about UK spec Astra, UK spec Golf, and UK spec Focus.
Bloke 9:15AM (6/19/2009)
FSM - let's use some common sense, ok?
You say that a 2.5 litre 5-cyl 170bhp C-segment hatchback of similar weight to one with a 1.8 litre 4 outputting 138bhp is peppier?
Well thanks for stating the obvious. Thing is, you wouldn't even have to drive the two to determine that.
You have to compare like-with-like. Compare a standard 1.6 litre Golf with a Focus or Astra with their respective 1.6 litre units and THEN see which is "peppier." And THEN you can determine their price to see which is the better deal.
It is staggering how bloody stupid some people on here really are.
Bloke 9:22AM (6/19/2009)
And FSM - if there's a choice between the Golf with the (old) 2.5 litre 5-cyl unit and the Astra with the standard non-turbo 1.8, you have a choice don't you? Get more power from the Golf, or more fuel economy from the Astra. Having spent time with many Astras, including one with that 1.8 unit in it, you should easily be able to average 32-35mpg (US) in it depending on how you drive.
The Mazda 3 is a fine car with an excellent chassis, but its bland design has no character compared to the Astra, Golf or Focus.
apearlman 1:32PM (6/18/2009)
Nice ride, but what are those awful clanging noises at 0:20 and 0:59?
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TheMan 7:23AM (6/19/2009)
Pro-mo video, this wasn't rigged
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zamafir 1:43PM (6/18/2009)
"Sure, that may have something to do with the fact that the Astra is piloted by Vauxhall's own BTCC pilot, Fabrizio Giovanardi."
Something? No. Everything? Yes. Go hit the track with a professional driver, give him a much weaker car, he'll destroy you. But it makes for good marketing. If EVO et-al do a shoot out (similar to the one they just ran where the Focus RS loss to that fugly RS.R) they I’ll be quite glad to see the Astra bringing it’s A game and giving the others some gruff. Put TK in the GTI and then we’ll have even more entertaining TV, hell or any of the VAG drivers that do the 24 hours of the ring, and lemans and dtm.
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audi_arena 1:55PM (6/18/2009)
Absolutely. The other drivers don't look like they even understand the
basic concept of how to take turns quickly. This video says nothing about
the cars themselves.
Razor 2:18PM (6/18/2009)
Odd, I was just talking to my grandmother the other day on the phone, she lives in Bedfordshire, England. She made the comment that on her way to the grocery store in her new Golf VI, some a-hole came flying past her in what appeared to be a new Opel Astra. She finally caught up to him at the next red light and beat him in a drag race.
:-)
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spa2nky1 10:37PM (6/18/2009)
Can I marry your grandmother?