Autoblog

While sales of the newly-minted (at least for the U.S.) Saturn Astra aren't exactly setting the world on fire, we found it to be a rather good vehicle with a chassis capable of handling plenty more power when we had it in our garage. Auto Express has what they claim is an official picture of the next-gen Vauxhall Astra VXR, which is sold in its base-model form as a Saturn in the states, and it looks pretty good. Expected in Europe is a new 1.8-liter turbocharged engine sending around 240 horsepower to the front wheels and possibly a diesel as well. These engine are not currently certified for sale in the U.S., but GM's excellent 260 horsepower 2.0-liter Ecotec, as is available in the HHR SS, is ready and waiting -- and we'd love to see a Saturn Astra Redline powered by it. We'd be more than happy to see the attractive nineteen inch rims and aggressive body kit make it stateside too. As evidenced by today's current crop of hot hatches, such as the Volkswagen GTI and Mazdaspeed3, a small performance car, when done right, can sell in the U.S. Auto Express also indicates that this vehicle is likely to be shown in concept form at the upcoming Paris Motor Show in October.

[Source: Auto Express]

Click above for high-res gallery of the 2008 Saturn Astra

Enthusiasts here in the States have long wondered why they couldn't buy Ford and GM small cars from Europe, and at least part of the answer has been that Americans don't want to pay big bucks for premium small cars. Spiking gasoline prices have quelled that argument, and fuel economy is now towards the top of shoppers' lists when looking for a new car or truck.

While Ford is still more than a year away from bringing over the Euro Focus and Fiesta, GM has made the cross-Atlantic jump by importing the Opel Astra to our shores. The Astra is a hot-selling hatch in Europe with high-end amenities and very good fuel economy, and the model is shipping to the U.S. differentiated from its Euro twin by some Saturn logos and little else. We were itching to get our hands on an Astra to see if it were as good as advertised, and our tester came equipped with everything Saturn could throw at the vehicle. Hit the jump to see how the 2009 Saturn Astra fared in the Autoblog Garage.


All photos Copyright ©2008 Chris Shunk / Weblogs, Inc.

Click image for photo gallery

The Saturn Astra Tuner concept that GM is bringing to SEMA is cool, but it's also a bit of a tease. The bodywork and wheels are upgraded thanks to accessory parts from OPC, Opel's in-house go-fast shop, and they all look really good. Unfortunately, the show car doesn't have the Euro market Astra OPC's 240-hp 2.0L turbo Ecotec. Instead, the Astra XR's NA 1.8L four gets a 20 horsepower bump to 160 for SEMA duty.

The car we want to see in Saturn stores is basically this, but with a Red Line badge on the tailgate and 260 horses from the DI 2.0 turbo that's seeing a lot of action lately. Since all Astras are imports, however, we'd settle for the Euro-spec 240-horsepower version of said engine. Saturn can keep those Recaros, too. We don't fancy sitting on something whose deco pattern could realistically be called "rusted shipping container." Make 'em a solid color, however, and we're all good. Follow the jump for the full mod list from the General.

[Source: GM]