In late summer of 2008, our Malibu Maxx went back on lease. We had our Prizm, and decided to be a two compact car family, biased toward thrift. Of interest to me was the new movement at Saturn. They had started rebadging a few Opels and selling them as Saturns in an attempt to try and inject some life into the struggling brand. The new Vue crossover was an Opel Antara. The Aura borrowed the front clip from a Vectra.
The German designed Opel Astra H came here from Belgium largely unmodified over the Astra you’d buy in Europe. It struck a handsome profile with a sporty stance. Mrs. C test drove it and liked it as it would be her car to drive. Our XR tester had leather seats, but not the available stability control, nor the nicer 5 spoke wheels. I was quite taken by the sporty coupe…but is was $2,000 more for 2 less doors. The price for the 4 door was right, barely $18,000 out the door. Ten years later, we still have it. It is the vehicle I’ve held on to the longest and it has 137,000 miles and counting.
Not For U.S. Consumers- The 1970 Rekord C Coupe and 1988 Manta GTE
I have always been curious about the interesting (to me at least) Opel product that never made it over here. Now I would know what it would be like to own a real Opel. It’s quite accurate to say that GM mismanaged Opel from the early 2000s before selling it to PSA in 2017. Its last profitable year was 1999. Opel was almost sold in 2009 during the bankruptcy but GM ultimately decided they were too inextricably linked at that point with engineering and technology sharing.
In its heyday, Opel was an autonomous crown jewel in the GM empire, rising from the ashes of World War Two. It built solid, well priced cars for the average European and they were very successful for decades. In peak years, Opel challenged VW for European sales leadership. Detroit largely left them alone. If you’re of a certain age, you remember Opel’s being sold at Buick dealerships up until the mid 1970’s.
Opel’s Past U.S. Misfires- 1988-1993 Pontiac LeMans, 1996-2001 Cadillac Catera
Since that time, there were attempts by GM at getting Opel product here, but it never translated well to American tastes. First, there was the 1988 Pontiac LeMans, a Korean license-built Daewoo copy of an Opel Kadett, beset with quality problems, and it was a bust. Then in 1997, the Opel Omega-B, an “executive saloon”, was rebranded as the Cadillac Catera, the “Caddy that zigs”. Years before the resurgent 2003 “Art and Science “ CTS was introduced, it was in effort to woo would- be BMW and Benz buyers. While it wasn’t a horrible car dynamically and sold 90,000 units during it’s five year run, it was largely ignored. The platform lived on as the Australian Holden Monaro and for us, a bit later as the 2004-2006 Pontiac GTO.
For this next experiment, it seemed that the Astra had a bit more going for it. And that’s because in Europe, the Astra was (and still is) a very class competitive car. In 2007, it was the second best-selling car in Europe, behind the Golf. Europeans have a much higher expectation of what a small car should be. Nowadays, Europeans are drifting to crossovers as well, but this size of car is still a huge market there. To be a player there, the Astra has to be good.
Opel Astra Estate and Performance OPC- Would have been nice to see these Stateside
All based on the new Delta platform, the Astras in Europe came in many variants: saloon, convertible, hatchback and MPV (the Meriva). For powertrains, you had your choice of at least 8 (!) powertains in gas and diesel, turbo and normally aspirated. The Opel Astra OPC was a hot hatch in a class of the Focus ST or Mazdaspeed 3. The U.S. Astra had only one engine choice, the 1.8L Ecotec 4 delivering 140 horsepower. In Europe, a smaller 1.6 and 1.3L (petrol) were offered as well.
I daresay this dearth of the higher spec Astras had a lot to do with the fact that in 2008, the Dollar to Euro exchange rate was $1.47 to 1 Euro, in historically the greenback’s weakest period against that currency. Also, Saturn planners, desperate for better product wanted the car here quickly, so no time for much Americanization or dumbing it down. They also had to be able to sell the Astra at a price American consumers would be willing to pay for a compact car. One has to believe that GM lost money on every one of these shipped here.
The Astra certainly didn’t feel like the Ion or Saturn S that preceded it. The doors close with a satisfying “whump”. Inside, it has soft touch, high quality surfaces in all the right places and excellent fit and finish. Even now, it does not feel too dated. The vertical center stack and gauge cluster is handsome and upscale looking. The perforated leather seats are supportive and sporty looking, and have held up very well. The center console does not have a storage bin between the front seats, so no place to rest your right arm. It does have one center cup holder, though it is oddly placed behind the parking brake.
Over the road, it has a very solid, Teutonic feel to it. It corners very well and has excellent ride quality. While not a speedster, 0-60 in 9.5 seconds, it feels very happy highway cruising at 80 and above. It could have used a six speed automatic to boost fuel economy. We get 27 MPG around town, and I’ve clocked 31-33 MPG on trips … not bad. And I love the utility of a hatchback (this is my 4th). I can get my road bike in here without removing the front wheel. I would say it feels like a much more expensive car than it is.
Interesting Display Unit and Cruise Control on the Astra
Quirks? Yes indeed. The unusual warning light symbols are not parallel with what we’re used to here, remedied simply by reviewing the owner’s manual. The cruise control switch is oddly placed, not on the front of the steering wheel like most cars, but hidden at the back of the signal stalk on a wafer thin tab. Fine…once you figure it out. The seat pitch adjustment is via a large rotating knob instead of a lever and spring. Not bad, just different. The digital readout in the center stack is a weird orange font that reminds me of a 1976 Pong game, or an early computer terminal. The digital clock always runs about 3 minutes slow. How can that be?
2 Astra Coupes in One Place. A near statistcial impossibility?
The Astra should have had a lot going for it, even as a niche player, as the non-GTI Golf is. Reviews were generally positive. But when you factor in GM’s and Saturn’s troubles, the global recession, a new model in a very crowded compact car field, some quirkiness to the Astra and so on, it sold just 18,000 units in 2008-2009 before Saturn was shut down. I rarely see one. And it’s really too bad, because I think it is a very good car. Its the best, most reliable and durable car I’ve ever owned. And it’s surprising that I’m saying this about a near automotive unicorn from an orphan brand.
Two years ago, I put a new mass air flow sensor in and that was $800.00 and is the most costly repair in 10 years. A check engine light now shows it needs a throttle body, it’s hesitating upon accelerating. My son’s friend has offered to fix it free in the local high school auto shop (I have the OEM part- $277@ Rock Auto. Risky perhaps, but I like Max and I’ll let him try and hope the auto shop teacher bails him out if the repair goes sideways.
It has taken a few punches and has its share of creaks and groans now, but has no visible rust. Unusual given its home state. Right now, it’s driven by my 17-year-old son Adam. It’s perfect for him to load his saxophones in back with the seats folded down to go to school. He keeps it a bit dirtier than I’d like, and I give him occasional doses of adulthood in making him pay for oil changes. It is not getting quality miles – just short trips in a 3 mile radius mostly, so l take it out on occasion to put it though it’s paces.
2018 Astra- Still Going Strong Sans GM
I have not tired of the car and still enjoy driving it. When Adam goes away to college next year…I don’t think I want to sell it. In fact, I likely will be driving it a bit more to keep miles off another COAL. Adam may take it to college in a few years but let’s not put the cart before the horse. Maybe Shane, now 14, will inherit it when he gets his license in 2020. Bottom line, I hope this car will be in the family for a long time to come.
Never mind the Astra. I just want that 1970 Rekord coupe. Unsurprisingly so Monaro like.
My eyes get stuck on that picture as well. My brother had a two door station wagon for a year or so. I had some significant seat time in it.
A student friend of mine had one too and it needed a bit of attention. Brake work and such. Valve lash was particular interesting. It is adjusted with the engine at operating temperature and while idling. I failed at that and adjusted them with the engine stopped.
I also live in Michigan – usually a great place to see obscure low-production domestic cars out and about – but I just never, ever see these. The last one I saw was outside a fraternity house in East Lansing sporting a plastic-wrap window in the rear door and missing all 4 hubcaps. I noticed it specifically because it seemed unusually beat up for an 8 or 9 year old car, and I mentally lumped them in with the garbage, common-as-dirt Chevy Cobalt beaters which all seem to be in the same state of disrepair already. They look so similar, but this review and others I’ve read have universally framed the Saturn as a much better car. I’ve driven, ridden in, and experienced plenty of Cobalts, new and used, but never even sat in one of these things.
I still see LOTS of Saturn Auras, and even the occasional Relay minivan, but these just never got off the ground. I recall the Astra being a lot more expensive than the typical Cobalt especially after the crazy incentives Chevy was running at the time – these were easily over $18k or even close to $20k loaded up, whereas a Cobalt could be had for as little as $12k towards the end for the strippo base models which they sold a ton of. I don’t think Saturn even offered a strippo crank-window version either or blatantly marketed them as loss leaders, unlike Chevy. Factor in the hatchback bodystyle and it was the kiss of death… despite being a much better car, it seems. The same reasons you see five Volkwagen Jettas for every Golf on the road, actually. Americans like their compact cars at the lowest possible price and with a trunk – the most metal for your dollar.
Another Michigander here. I still see an Astra from time to time here, but like Max P. said, Michigan is great for finding oddball domestic cars.
Right about the same time I was ready to give back my Maxx, I was looking at these. Not seriously, as I still had two kids in high school, and this would have been too small. I really liked the coupe, but I thought the four door hatch was a mish-mash of automotive design. I can see where GM got the doors for that generation of Cobalt, they look like you could peel them off of an Astra and bolt them right on to a Cobalt…
As GM family, we used to get decent discounts, but Saturn still acted like they weren’t part of GM, at least in this regard. This is probably one of the reasons why you see many more Cobalts vs. Astra. OTOH, there was no way Saturn was prepared to shift half as many Cobalts as Chevrolet division could.
Closer to Saturn shutting down, they finally allowed GM employee / family / supplier / etc. to use their benefits, by then it was too late. Ratner and the Automotive Task Force had decided several GM divisions needed to die, Saturn was one of them.
One of our guys on here (Steve! Where are you?) had a difficult time earlier this year deciding on whether or not to buy an Astra at a local used car lot. There was a lot of discussion on unobtanium parts for an oddball model. Apparently, that hasn’t been a problem for Carlsberg66, which is great. My “last of old GM” car is holding up well, too, with the exception of some rust that I’ve found. But, that’s the price we pay for living in a winter wonderland…
Maybe I’ve just been lucky with mine in terms of longevity, knock on wood. It stands to reason that as time goes on it might be more difficult to find parts for a car that has not been sold here in 12 years. But Rock Auto had that throttle body part from 3-4 different sources. If I was Steve, I think I would of passed on a used Astra for basic transportation. Maybe it ended up on that lot because it was a basket case.
One of our guys on here (Steve! Where are you?)
My ears are burning!
I started sniffing around for an Astra in 2015, as I quite like my 2014 VW and wanted to keep it out of winter driving conditions. I liked the looks of the Astra and the controls work almost exactly the same as my VW. Owner feedback on sites like Edmunds is overwhelmingly favorable.
First issue is that (at that time) 8 year old Astras around here (metro Detroit) were not priced like the orphan beaters they are. The second issue was finding one that didn’t have something wrong with it. iirc I looked at about a dozen of them. There was a rash of dealers putting the cars on their lot with the CEL on. Found a low mile example that looked pretty decent and took it for a spin. The engine had a diesel like clatter indicating a bad cam phaser and the front shocks were toast as the thing would dart off in one direction or another at each bump in the road.
The time service limit on the timing belt is 10 years, so, before buying an Astra on the cusp of a service bill like that (one shop where I inquired wanted $850 for the belt service), I started looking at parts support as I would want to keep the car for several years. GM parts support was very good, until just about the time GM sold Opel to Peugeot. Last time I looked, GM parts inventory was exhausted for the following: front struts, front calipers, rubber brake lines front and rear, horns, heater cores, CV joints, and I forget what else. Looking on Rock Auto today, they only have CV half shaft assemblies from a third party vendor I never heard of, and only 1 or 2 remaining in stock. The only front calipers Rock has are remanufactured. Rock has no power brake boosters, only a rebuild service. Rock has 2 heater cores left. I don’t know what the deal is with heater cores on Astras, but suspect they are getting irreparably clogged because people don’t replace the Dexcool when they should.
I’m fundamentally lazy, and decided that, at this late date, an Astra was more of a challenge than I wish to undertake.
Looks like a likeable well engineered car done in in the USA by GM’s relentless mucking about with brand engineering. In South Africa the well regarded Opel Corsa bakkie [pickup] was rebranded Chevrolet Utility during a model run, how crazy is that? Against the brand loyalty built up by Toyota, Volkswagen etc how do they not think customers become confused and stay away. Unsurprisingly GM has left SA.
I like the crisp styling on these and see lots of them around as Vauxhall Astras, though we never had the saloon. We did get the CC with the powered roof though and they still build the current model here in the UK, though quite how things will go on after the Peugeot takeover and Brexit, we’ll just have to wait and see.
The MPV on the Astra chassis was the Zafira, the Meriva of this generation was on the smaller Corsa chassis.
Thanks for the correction. Apparently Ireland and Eastern Europe got the saloon. Not sure why that is so from a consumer preference standpoint , unless it was sold at the lowest price point to get into an Astra. When we were in Ireland this past summer, one of the drivers in our group had a new Astra saloon. I personally thought it looked a little odd. And you get so much more utility from a hatchback. Apparently, PSA has managed to do what GM could not, and that is make Opel profitable in a very short amount of time. The Astra will likely live on but in the next generation will have PSA architecture.
Supposedly it a conservative/older buyer thing, which is why sedans are more popular in southern Europe and apparently Ireland.
Makes sense if you also consider the wholesale rejection of hatchbacks in the US.
There was saloon in the previous Astra G range in the UK but it was a comparative rarity. Through all the series since the first in 1979 they were never big sellers compared to the hatchbacks. Probably sold the most in the second series (1984-91 Kadett E in Opel form) as a Vauxhall Belmont. Ford did the same kind of thing with the Orion which was basically an Escort saloon.
The digital clock always runs about 3 minutes slow. How can that be?
2004 F150 Heritage had a clock that was 8 min FAST, always. You’d reset it (usually did this based on my cell phone) and within a couple of weeks it would be running 8 min fast again where it would stay indefinitely.
Weirdest quirk I’ve ever seen with a digital clock.
Seems like you should set it 8 minutes slow, and in a couple of weeks it would be correct and stay that way!
Somehow, I’m guessing that won’t actually work…
I don’t think that I’ve ever seen a digital clock in a car keep the correct time. The ones in both my current Mustang and my previous Mustang were consistently 2-3 minutes slow. We have had several varieties of Toyota and the clocks in those were always off as well. I’m sure there is some sort of logical explanation for this but I’ve never heard it.
That’s an interesting take on the Saturn Astra. I knew it was an Opel with the wrong batches. Thus I regarded it as an European import. Typical for GM they were priced competitively but once you needed spare parts you would have to pay through the nose.
That is why I didn’t even look at the Astra when I was shopping for a used 4 door hatchback about 4 years ago. Your experience shows that I should have. I bought another orphaned by GM car (Pontiac Vibe) and I can buy my spares at the Toyota dealer if needed.
Awesome to hear that you have had such good service from your Saturn. I so wanted them to succeed. We tried an Ion twice but both were lemon lawed back. As for engine parts, the Ecotec was used in a lot of products across the GM line and parts should be available for some time. Saturn specific stuff might be a bit tougher. I still wouldn’t mind a Sky wearing the Opel GT badging.
I’ve heard good and bad things about the ion. Neighbor up the street has one that’s 15 years old, same owner, his kid drives it to school and it’s been really good. I prefer the sky over the solstice, but give me the red line with the turbo. Both are now collector cars. As far as my Astra goes, at this point the longevity is all gravy. If I had major engine trouble or transmission failure, it might have to go as the fix is worth more than the car. Let’s not jinx it I guess.
As for engine parts, the Ecotec was used in a lot of products across the GM line and parts should be available for some time.
The 1.8 used in the Astra is slightly different from the Mexican produced version in the Cruze and Sonic. Some parts interchange, but some, like the coil packs, do not.
If you walk into a GM dealer, you will probably pay list for an Astra coil pack $525 (all four coils are mounted together in one unit). Ordering it from GM Parts Direct, it’s $284. The Astra owners on the Saturn owner groups buy Chinese knockoffs on Amazon for $50-$100.
If you walk into a GM dealer for a superficially identical coil pack, but with a different part number, for a 1.8 in a Cruze LS, the list is $177, and on GM Parts Direct it’s $95.56.
Thank you for your COALs, I enjoy reading them. I don’t comment often, more of a reader.
I’m in no way a GM apologist, as I’ve never owned a GM vehicle. But my findings are based on a book written by Bob Lutz during his time as a vice-chairman of GM – “Car Guys vs. Bean Counters”, where he explains what was happening at GM. It’s not that GM mismanaged Opel and backed out of sale, just partially by not moving it’s operations to Eastern Europe. GM had a problem with Union that represented Opel workers and especially with the union leader – IG Metall head of the Works Council, Klaus Franz. As to backing out of sale of Opel to Magna, the decision was reversed by the new board, selected jointly by GM’s three largest new shareholders: the U.S. federal government, the Canadian government, and the UAW.
GM had a problem with Union that represented Opel workers and especially with the union leader – IG Metall head of the Works Council, Klaus Franz. As to backing out of sale of Opel to Magna, the decision was reversed by the new board, selected jointly by GM’s three largest new shareholders: the U.S. federal government, the Canadian government, and the UAW.
Having lived my entire life, so far, in the big three’s front yard, I have observed that big three management never, ever, admits to making a mistake. Everything is always blamed on either the union, the government, or the Japanese. I have seen the big three cry a river that the government is going to entirely destroy the industry over the most trivial of things, like a safer design of power window switch. (in spite of all their sturm und drang, I noticed my 2008 Taurus X had the safer design window switches, that big three management had declared to be “impossible”) Lifetime big three honchos, like Lutz, have zero credibility with me when they start pointing fingers and declaring Armageddon. It’s like it’s a cultural thing in the industry: to advance in the company, you have to buy into that mindset that big three management is infallible and every problem is someone else’s fault.
I don’t think folks in the US can appreciate just how militant IG Metall can be. A lot tougher to deal with than UAW/Unifor but not as tough as the Korean unions. Also, the EU has all kinds of protections in place for laid off workers that the corporation must pay. I’ve thought that since the sale of Opel to PSA, this was a win-win for GM; they sever a division that’s losing money and they don’t have to lay off anyone and pay the high EU separation penalties.
I don’t think folks in the US can appreciate just how militant IG Metall can be.
Yet VW, BMW and Mercedes aren’t on the ropes and crying about the union. IG Metall has seats on the VW board. French unions can be militant too and I remember when the UK was notorious for labor problems.
Meanwhile, PSA has Opel turning a profit. Apparently, one thing Tavares did was end GM’s practice of selling cars below cost to build volume.
I don’t think folks in the US can appreciate just how militant IG Metall can be.
Case in point, IG Metall members went on strike in 1984 in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, where the entire Porsche manufacturing site was located (at that time). The members demanded the reduction of working hours to 35 per week. The strike lasted seven weeks before the concession was reached.
Porsche in the early 1980s was in a precarious financial position: three models (911, 924/944, and 928) didn’t really helped at all. When the American economy took off in 1983 after a recession of 1982, thanks to Reagnomics, the cash flow was increasing, albeit gradually, once again for Porsche.
However, the timing couldn’t be any better for Porsche when IG Metall voted to strike in 1984. At the same time, the orders for 911 and 944 increased dramatically. Thus, severe backlogs and longer waiting period for the consumers. Once the cash flow stopped, Porsche was very close to filing for bankruptcy and shutting down.
Imagine if IG Metall strike went longer than seven weeks. The lingering effect and impact would be much more severe.
Bimmer, I appreciate your positive comment, thanks. I also would say even when they emerged from bankruptcy, GM probably didn’t make the necessary cost cutting moves fast enough in Europe to right the ship. It is far more costly to close plants there where there are more EU and national govt protections for workers. It was said Opel was trending to break even or to return to profitability by mid (this) decade but Brexit was the final straw. Finally, in many ways it is a more fragmented and more competitive market than North America. In addition to all the players you have in North America, Renault, PSA, Seat, Skoda, Dacia , etc are in the mix as well. Tough sledding, even for the biggies.
I read in Lutz’s book that the decision was made to import the Astra because they would lose only $2000 per car vs $4000 (or thereabouts) if GM developed their own car for Saturn with the polymer panels etc. This shows what a mess GM was in at the time.
He also stated that it was a huge, billion-dollar mistake to engineer the body panels onto an Opel for the creation of the L series, when they should have just brought it over as is.
if GM developed their own car for Saturn with the polymer panels etc. This shows what a mess GM was in at the time.
Of course, if they did the obvious thing and adopted the styling cues of the Astra sedan, with the Astra’s instrument panel and switchgear, to the Cobalt, it would have cost less than the Ion, and Astra owners would not now be dealing with hard to find parts.
Actually, I think the instrument panel of the South American market, Astra H based Chevy Vectra looked a bit more upscale than the European Astra IP.
I think what was really behind the Astra being offered as a Saturn was GM wanted to close Spring Hill, which made the Ion and Vue. So, the Ion was replaced by the imported Astra and the Vue was replaced by the Mexican built version of the Vue, aka Chevy Captiva, aka Opel Antara.
I find it interesting that we only got the Vue and Captiva based on the short Antera over here. In Iceland we rented a vehicle badged as a Chevrolet Captiva but stretched in order to fit a third row. Yes it was an Antera, just longer then the Vue/Captiva that we got over here. It also had a turbo diesel and wasn’t bad at all to drive all over Iceland with the wife and three kids. Decent room in the third row for either of the smaller kids, methinks it would/could have sold decently over here.
Forgot the pic..
I see a few of these in the Twin Cities, including one I regularly see with an “England” sticker – presumably an ex-pat.
LOLZ at GM asking two grand more for the “coupe”. It’s funny to think of an Astra as somehow special or a premium product, as it’s about as mundane as it gets in Britain. Longtime police car favourite in Scotland. Then again, having become familiar with the laughable interiors in American GM products, it’s understandable.
There’s one for sale on US 20 in New Lebanon NY that looks clean but is probably at deaths door given the last chance saloon look of the dealer. A neighbor had a white one for a few years. Probably the only two I’ve ever seen.
Nice write-up, Carlsberg66. You beat me to it, I had an Astra COAL in mind. I have two, yes two Astras. 3dr (170,000 km) and 5dr (220 000km.) Both have been great and I like they got to Canada about as unadulterated as possible. I am worried about parts availability, though.
Yours look to be in fine shape. I do like the coupe. Would of been nice to have seen a turbo , manual variant in the coupe here in North America, a nice setup. I hope they continue to serve you well (and cheaply) in the future.
Man, those cars really grip the road 🙂
The quirk in Word Press caused the upside down thumbnails if the photos were uploaded from iOS devices. I’ve already sent Paul and William the workarounds, but it seems to be extremely low priority for them…
As a frequent junkyard shopper, I see tons of earlier Saturns, but I’ve never seen an Astra. Not one.
The only Saturns I see on the street anymore are the Sky and that CUV (I can’t even remember the name) that later became a fleet-only Chevrolet. The rest are gone.
A quick post script to this COAL article. Max did complete the installation of the new throttlebody, but in his garage and not at the high school auto tech class service bay supervised by the instructor . That proved to be fairly easy surgery, about an hour, and no more jittering during acceleration . However one fix created another problem as it turns out. Now the car seems to start out in third gear (not first) and has glacial acceleration. Max says that sooner or later the computer will learn the new throttle body or and resynch. I’m not so sure about that. Hoping we can have the teacher look at it once school starts again a week from Monday. I’m not too worried as the car still runs and drives fine. I guess that’s what I get when I trust my fixes to a 17-year-old.
That’s the limp-home mode, almost every vehicle has a set of circumstances that will trigger it. I would simply disconnect the battery to clear the ECU of codes and see if it improves.
This is probably a red herring, but I had to jumpstart a Mazda a couple of years ago and it ran fine but wouldn’t idle.
Googling suggested the throttle body had to re- learn how to idle and there was a “start on half throttle, click your heels together, switch it off and on again” type procedure which fixed it. Maybe if you do some googling for “Vauxhall Astra throttle body” you’ll find a solution in English.
Nobody will probably see this now but we fixed the problem. Max forgot to connect to the mass airflow sensor harness to the air cleaner long tube. It did that mcheck engine light away , shirts through all gears and now it’s running very strong. All’s well that ends well. Just goes to show you you have to check the simplest things first before taking the engine apart.
Glad to hear that you and others have had good luck with these. We bought a closeout for our daughter and got every discount and rebate known to man and it turned out to be a huge mistake. While all of us loved the car it was nothing but trouble. It ate batteries and alternators and Saturn never could fix it. Actually, Saturn was gone fairly quickly and other GM dealers couldn’t or wouldn’t diagnose it under warranty. My daughter traded it after only three years. Because we got it so inexpensively the hit was not too bad.
I see lots of Astras in the US … on British TV shows, in sharp fluorescent police colors, stuffed full of cops wearing bulky protective gear. Actual cars on the road, not a common sight in California. On the other hand there’s an amazing number of older SL and Ion Saturns still running around here. More than any J body or Cobalt variant.
My wife has the same car. It’s an XR 4 door model with the suspension package that we bought while I was a Saturn employee back in 2008 for around $16k and it’s just needed oil changes and tires. Fun to drive, a solid structure and planted on the highway. Granted, it has only 53k but owes us absolutely nothing. My wife loves it and intends to keep it until it’s no longer viable. A rare and underrated car in the US.
Most interesting COAL, and proof if ever needed that one’s mileage may indeed vary.
I have owned a few Astras over time, as various models of these sold in decent numbers in Australia, (badged as Holden Astras), also with the 1.8 engine. Personally, I think this model was and is a properly handsome car.
They’ve all been nice to drive, with the exception of the manual shift which is ordinary. Stiff bodies, truly top-level ride for the high level of handling.
However, mine have all been a bit flighty, with broken or feeble this’s and that’s, and electrical fritzes of differing importance. My sister had exactly your car, also auto, and it eventually was traded when the electrical issues began to overwhelm. Like every European car ever made, the cost and frequency of servicing and repairs is not to Japanese standards. They aren’t liked in the trade, and don’t have much resale value.
I’m glad yours has lasted, because of the looks and the nice drive, but I’m thoroughly surprised to hear an American not mentioning the power of these, especially as an auto: by this incarnation, it was no lightweight, and US conditions seem to require lots of merging/freeway power, which my sisters sure lacked.
A very minor point, the Opel-B/Catera has a substantially different platform to the ’97 VT-on Holden Commodore (later GTO). Styling quite similar, can’t quite recall if actual doors shared, but the platform is 3.5 inches wider, it’s longer, has local steering systems, etc, to the point where it’s regarded as seperate.
Where I live many independent mechanics will not touch a German vehicle due to the high cost of the diagnostic tools required to read the codes. Because the Astra is a GM car my local guy can take care of most everything. As I have friends with BMWs , VWs and Audis , I get to hear all about the high cost to keep in those cars on the road.
As far as acceleration and freeway power goes, the Astra is perfectly adequate,especially for a teen driver.
Thanks for the clarification on the Catera. I am well aware that Holden had a lot of the homegrown engineering and manufacturing on the Monaro. Maybe switch and that came from an article on the Catera in Wikipedia. I believe it alluded to the basic structure of the car underneath being derived from the Omega.
Where I live many independent mechanics will not touch a German vehicle due to the high cost of the diagnostic tools required to read the codes
I saw a video a while back of a VW mechanic and a Toyota mechanic talking. The VW guy mentioned that, if you want to open a VW dealership, first thing you do is spend $500,000 on special tools so you can service them properly, while a Toyota requires far fewer specialized tools.
Fortunately, I have been very satisfied with the service provided by the VW dealer in Ann Arbor, so no need to try and find a competent independent.
If I needed something that size I would seriously consider a Saturn Astra because their oddball orphan status makes them cheap as well as basically good cars, unlike the Deadly Sin grade Ion. The same could also apply to the final Vue crossovers which were rebadged Opel Antara’s. Unfortunately the Antara’s trick retractable bike rack didn’t make it into the Saturn version.
Nice to hear about one of these. I remember them making a bit of a splash in the auto magazines when they were introduced–the oddity of it combined with the surprisingly nice driving character and interior materials made it newsworthy.
Never even sat in one, and I never see them except parked outside one house in the neighborhood.
That is one weird dashboard layout. Very 80s robotic, I could see this being a talking car with a light bar under the dash vents that illuminates with each syllable spoken.
In almost all cases an Opel became a Chevrolet outside Europe, once Opels used to be too humble to be a Buick, it could fit perfectly as Chevys also in America, providing a full range of vehicles for any purpose only with GM products.
Yet another brand of Opel Astra they canbe seen here here in Opel Holden and Vauxhall flavours petrol and diesel engines, apparently good cars, GMH have been slicing dicing and rebadging Opels for decades and it shows in some of the pieces, the side window pressing on that Reckford was used on early Monaros.
Carlsberg, have you driven a first generation Cruze? I haven’t driven an Astra myself, but always imagined the two cars to have similar dynamics, given what I’ve heard. I like the first Cruze, and want to like the Astra as well.
I have not. The Cruze first gen is on a newer Platform, larger with more tech. A friend has a 12 Cruze RS, loaded. Nice car inside and out. She likes it, well over 30 mpg highway. Been troublet free.
The first Cruze is slow, but has surprising composure and steering feel. Many compare it to older Jettas, before VW cost-cut the model into an also-ran. I get that the Astra is an entirely separate car, but I can’t help what wonder if the corporate mindset at the time produced some similarities between both cars.
If you get a chance, do try to drive your friend’s RS. It won’t turn your world upside down, but it is an impressive achievement from a company that had previously been selling the Cobalt and Cavalier. It’s a good economy car.