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Vauxhall Astra

Hello,

We are thinking of getting a bigger car because we have a baby on the way. We need something big enough to fit a pushchair in the boot with and all the other bits and pieces a baby needs. My GF is looking at a Vauxhall Astra. Are they reliable or will it be a dis-astra?

A very friendly car salesman let us drive almost every Astra he had. I am used to driving diesels but even so, the 1.3 diesel seemed sluggish and we did not like it. My GF drove the 1.4 and 1.6 petrol and says she couldn't tell the difference. We didn't bother with the 1.8; should we have done? AIUI, the 1.4 is £125 tax, the 1.6 is £150, and the 1.8 is £175. On paper the mpg figures for 1.4 and 1.6 are not wildly different but I don't know about in real life! I did wonder whether a 1.4L was too small for the car but it seemed to cope quite well. I drove a 1.9 diesel automatic which was lovely but it was an older car with more scratches, so cosmetically not as nice.

Lifting the lids, the 1.4 engine bay seemed to have a lot of space and looked as though DIY filter changes should be straightforward but all the others seemed to fill the space and had the oil filters hidden. How easy are they to work on?

I looked on Amazon for a Haynes book and there seem to be so many: there seems to be a separate manual for petrol models and another for diesels. Why is this? In the past I have bought one manual that has chapters for each; are the petrol and diesels so wildly different?

There also seems to be a different manual for each age of Astra. Has the car changed that much between versions?

Thanks, Stephen.

Reply to
Stephen
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Thus spake Stephen ( snipped-for-privacy@invalid.org) unto the assembled multitudes:

Hi Stephen,

I've had my year 2000 (W-reg) 1.6i 16V Astra since April 2002 and it has never let me down in 90,000 miles. Consistently returns around 40mpg (I usually manage around 400 miles between fill-ups), and it's a comfortable car over long journeys and feels relaxed. The a/c has recently given trouble though (ever since this time last year when I thought I had better have the a/c serviced and regassed, though it didn't really need it). The gas has leaked out twice now, and I still need to get it regassed. I could do with a/c in this weather too.

It'll never win any races or break any speed records, but I didn't buy one for that. It handles pretty well and lopes along nicely on motorways, and as a comfortable small family car I can only recommend it. I've only driven the new Astra once, about two years ago as a courtesy car while I was having mine serviced, so cannot really judge that. I have mine serviced at the recommended annual/10K mile interval, but I also change the oil and filter at 6 months.

Pretty sure I paid £185 for my tax disc a few weeks ago...

I often wish I'd gone for a 1.4 (my previous car was an equally reliable and economical 1.4 Astra Mk2) for the slightly better economy.

Changing oil and filters is a doddle, though the oil filter is slightly fiddly to remove (don't do it when the exhaust is still hot :-)

Loads of similarities I am sure, but probably enough differences to make a different manual a necessity.

Reply to
A.Clews

Like my R plate Arctic estate (end of range 8 valvers). Boring, still comfortable and totally reliable at 140k.

Reply to
newshound

In message , Stephen writes

You'd be amazed how little space you actually need and how quickly you can load a car for a baby's needs.

For god's sake no, I've just had one foisted on me, it's the worst piece of shit I've had the misfortune to drive for a *long* time and i've got it for the next 11,000 miles. Frankly, the sooner they level Ellesmere port the better.

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Reply to
Clint Sharp

What year are you looking at? The current shape Astra seems pretty good from my POV as a passenger in one, but they are very difficult to park due to the lack of rearward visibility. IMO you'd be insane not to try a Focus, Golf, Octavia, Civic, Mazda 3 etc. before making a decision.

Reply to
Doki

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