NEW Vauxhall Astra: Like A Golf, But BETTER?

[Music] this is the brand new 8th generation vauxhall astra soak it up it's very different isn't it and it's not just the looks that are different it's also more practical more technologically advanced and for the first time in the astros history it will also be electrified more on those power trains in just a moment first let's dig into those looks cast your mind back to the mark 7 astra pretty anonymous right the new model makes a much bigger impression it was designed here in the uk by a brit mark evans whose intention was to deliver a bold and pure design language so the plain jane looks of old and no more in its place we get something that definitely stands out particularly at the front which has a black strap known as the vauxhall visor behind the visor you have these wing-shaped leds tucked away on either side which look really distinctive along with some interesting detail on the led main beams and the fact that this entire front section has been blacked out means that vauxhall has been able to more tightly integrate or hide a lot of the sensors that you might otherwise see on a car of this sort for example if you look closely you'll see it's got a front-facing camera tucked away in the chest of the vauxhall griffin below that you've also got some ultrasonic sensors on either side of the number plate they haven't been able to completely hide the radar sensor but that lives just behind this gloss black panel at the front of the car as for the surfacing the bonnet has got some nice sharp taut lines to it the whole thing seems to flow quite nicely and importantly it's very distinctive voxels of old particularly astras might not have stood out as much as the company might have liked but there is no mistaking this this is the new face of vauxhall and it's very distinctive along the side it's simple understated yet reasonably bold if you look closely you will find some details that make it stand out though including these blisters at the side front and rear which look a bit like the quattro blisters you get on audis of old it also rides on 18 inch wheels and has a two-tone finish so you got the body color and then a contrasting black color for the roof except on the c-pillar which protrudes a bit like a shark spin this car being the plug-in hybrid has two ports for refueling one is your petrol port on the right-hand side and this one is the port for recharging the battery at the back again it's very bold without being too fussy i really like what they've done with this super thin set of rear lights with the indicators integrated quite neatly just underneath i also like this vertical high level brake light which looks a bit like the rain light on formula one cars that's a nice touch this particular car also has the black pack so all of the graphics are finished in gloss black including this lower section down here and the astra badge which is worn proudly in the center of the car and also the griffin batch which actually doubles as a handle for the boot storage is very good you get 422 liters in the boots for reference a golf provides 380 liters so this would appear to be the more practical car rear space is excellent too the new astra is 11 millimeters longer than before with a wheelbase that's been stretched by 13 millimeters so legroom and headroom are more than adequate those who want yet more storage will be pleased to hear there's also a sports tourer aka estate version in the works let's have a look at the inside shall we one of the things that vauxhall wanted to deliver was improved material quality and the materials do feel like a step up from the previous version i like this soft squishy material used just above the glove box this technical material up here on the upper level of the dashboard and this textured surface at the top level it all feels quite premium there's also a couple of bits of plastic in the doors but they don't feel too bad and they're kind of offset by this technical material here this fake leather and a little bit of suede as well on this particular model so all in all materials good vauxhall also wanted improved storage in the new astra so they've done a lot of work in that particular area so you've got a couple of cup holders in a center compartment with this flap that allows you to open and close so you can actually keep your valuables hidden away where the cup holders are you've also got some additional storage just up here where you'll find two usb ports a wireless charging map for your phone and also your 12 volt adapter plus in the center compartment there's a decent if not amazing amount of storage meanwhile these door bins are nice and large so practicality seems to be well sorted a quick word on these seats as well these have actually been certified by a german back health organization who have given these seats their stamp of approval so it should be pretty comfortable and supportive on long journeys as for the steering wheel if you look closely you'll see that these spokes that run across the full width of it look a bit like the mask on the front of the car you also have this spoke at the bottom which looks a bit like the crease that runs all the way down the center of the bonnet let's talk about the infotainment system this has taken a massive leap forward they've installed something called the pure panel which was first seen on the vauxhall mocker and effectively it's two 10-inch displays that run side by side one for the driver and one for your infotainment system it's a lot like what you see on the mercedes a-class and the volkswagen golf and it all looks really nice but crucially vauxhall haven't gotten rid of the physical button so there's a row of buttons up here which give you instant shortcut access to your heated seats heated steering wheel and crucially your heating ventilation and climate control there's even a physical volume knob volkswagen are you watching as for engines as i've said vauxhall will offer an all-electric version of the astra available from 2023 with no further details on that version sadly but those looking for an electric fix can make do with a plug-in hybrid model available for the first time in an astra this will come in two performance levels 180 horsepower and 225 horsepower both will have a pure electric range of around 35 miles and a charge time of around 90 minutes the cars will be available in january 2022. further details including pricing will be available soon so there it is the brand new eighth generation vauxhall astra very distinctive with more space and better technology will it be as good as the volkswagen golf only time will tell but so far all the signs are very positive and i'm sure it will add to the 15 million or so units it's already sold what do you guys think let me know in the comments below hopefully we can go for a driver in this thing very soon anyway thanks for watching guys stay tuned [Music] [Music] you

Channel: AutoTrader

Views: 379,623

Keywords: Vauxhall Astra, New astra, New Vauxhall astra, 2022 astra, Electric astra, Astra EV, Astra hybrid, Astra design, Astra interior, New astra boot, New astra tech, New astra vs, Astra vs, New astra range, Astra rear seats, Astra boot, Astra Vizor, Astra phev, New astra review, Opel Astra, New Opel Astra

Id: fshYmUV5E5U

Length: 7min 39sec (459 seconds)

Published: Wed Sep 01 2021