Vauxhall Astra 5-Door Hatch Road Test Reports and Car Reviews

Vauxhall Astra 5-Door Hatch SXI 1.4 Twin Port 2007

This is my 4th Astra and they keep getting better. Bought ex-fleet at 9 months old for £7k. The drive on this model is a little harder but the handling is very good. My last was a 1.6 CD which I sold with 104K miles on, but this model is livlier although lacking power a little on hills. Engine is quiet but road and wind noise seems to be worse than earlier models. I would like to see a water temperature gauge fitted as was on previous models, though this seems to be more and more common on modern cars. A recent journey of 275 motorway non-stop miles returned 42 mpg (driver onlyon board). Road tax of £120 instead of previous £170 and better mpg means that my running costs should be lower. One big moan is the lack of front storage space, no drop down drawer as on my previous model, I believe to make space for more airbags which seem to be everywhere. Rear seats map storage is a plus as are brighter interior lights. Stereo is adequate but not a quality sound like Sony. Plus point is MP3 CD play and jack for MP3 player. Just as well as there is nowhere to store disks. I’m not keen on the ’plastic chrome trim’ to front and back of the car, already showing signs of pitting which is hard to correct. All in all a great car for the money which is why I give it 5 star rating.