BonzoHansen
04-21-2008, 03:12 PM
...picked this up off the newswires..score one for GM....
AUTO REVIEW: The 2008 Saturn Astra -- Delightful
04/20 11:17 am (ON)
Story 0427
By Ron Amadon
DAMASCUS, MD (Dow Jones) -- Say hello to a sweetheart car that is such an improvement over the late (but not lamented) Saturn Ion (oooh, that hurts the APP) that you wonder if the two cars came from different parts of the world.
Actually, that is the case. GM, seeking an easy way to get a gas sipper to the U.S., turned to Opel of Germany for its Astra. And talk about an international car. The Astra is assembled in Antwerp, Belgium with an engine assembled in Hungary and the transmission in Austria. Thirty-five percent of the parts content comes from Germany and only 3% from the U.S. It is our understanding that GM made few changes to the European model.
Our Black Sapphire/Charcoal top of the line XR was well built, fun to drive and economical. Judging from our rather emphatic e-mails of late, this is just the car many people say they are looking for.
At 170.5 inches long, the Astra is shorter than one of our favorite compacts, the Honda Civic, but longer than another fav, the VW Rabbit. It comes in three-door and five-door models. The five-door is available in the base XL and jazzier XR models, while the three-door settles for just the XL treatment.
Beautifully put together interior
One thing that we felt was the car's strong suit was the interior. Beautifully put together with a nice combination of soft touch materials and other upscale stuff, it was well above what one would expect in the Astra's price range.
Nicely sculptured seats kept bodies where they should be during, shall we say, more vigorous cornering, plus they were multi- adjustable and all-day comfortable. Our non-sun roofed test car had lots of headroom up front, and ample leg and foot room. To the rear, you could put your boss back there for a run to lunch along with one other adult, without jeopardizing your next pay raise. For a six foot tall person, there is good knee, foot and head room, particularly for a car this size. The front passenger seat easily slides well forward to make entry to the rear easier, but some flexibility still is required.
Behind the second row, there is covered storage. With the second row seat folded down, there is 38.8 cubic feet of storage and 12 cubic feet with the seats up. The rear hatch lid easily lifts skyward and allows a normal-sized adult to stand under it without damaging your skull or the baseball cap you are wearing. Lift-over height is more than reasonable.
However, not all is peaches and ice cream inside. The view straight back is poor, given that the rear window is rather small and sits lower in the overhaul design than many of the Astra's competition. You will notice this when trying to determine if the second car behind you carries a nice bald-headed officer of the law, sadly behind on his quota.
Some of the controls in the center stack are not intuitive, but can be quickly mastered with a glance at the owner's manual. We thought the ventilation controls were too low in the center stack and there is but one cup holder and it is a small one. Many Europeans don't understand our fascination with these things.
A bit down in the power department
All of the models come with one engine. It is a version of GM's well known Ecotec collection, but it was one of the more refined versions. Engine noise was well muted except for higher rev ranges.
The 1.8 -liter four was good for 138 horsepower at 6,300 rpms, with torque at 125 lb-ft. at 3,800 rpm. We would recommend the shift-it-yourself lovely five-speed to get the maximum there is out of the engine.
Simply stated, the Astra was a bit down in the power department, and we kept wondering what a light turbo would do here. Look for zero to 60 in just a hair over 8.5 seconds. Having said all that, one could have good fun along rural back roads with this car. The suspension is from heaven, and in keeping with other German designs that we have driven over the years. The secret here is to keep the revs up to at least that 3,800 mark and let the suspension do its thing.
That consists of independent struts up front, with a torsion beam axle to the rear. Our test car came with the lowered sport-turned package. We can say without any hesitation, that it was a perfect combination of comfortable ride and flat, planted sporty car handling.
Okay, how much does it cost? Our top of the line model with the $595 Advanced Audio Package with 7 speakers went out the door for a more than reasonable $19,090. In addition, that gets you an EPA rating of 24 miles per gallon in the city and 32 on the highway. We averaged 30 in mostly suburban and rural driving situations.
Smartly sized, priced right, good economy, solidly built and the promise of a no haggle deal at your Saturn dealer, makes the Astra one of the best gas sippers we have driven.
Comments? ramadon@marketwatch.com
If all goes according to plan, we should soon have a look at the new Pontiac G 8 from down under, the Chevy HHR SS, and perhaps a new Lotus.
And have you seen a new Smart car yet? What do you think? Drop us an e-mail if you have seen one, sat in one, or now drive one. We would love to know your thoughts.
Want back road tests? There are years of them, all free, at our website. Do a word search for my last name, Amadon, and catch everything from hydrogen-powered Hondas to Lamborghinis and luscious Ferraris.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04 -20 -08 2317ET
Copyright (c) 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
AUTO REVIEW: The 2008 Saturn Astra -- Delightful
04/20 11:17 am (ON)
Story 0427
By Ron Amadon
DAMASCUS, MD (Dow Jones) -- Say hello to a sweetheart car that is such an improvement over the late (but not lamented) Saturn Ion (oooh, that hurts the APP) that you wonder if the two cars came from different parts of the world.
Actually, that is the case. GM, seeking an easy way to get a gas sipper to the U.S., turned to Opel of Germany for its Astra. And talk about an international car. The Astra is assembled in Antwerp, Belgium with an engine assembled in Hungary and the transmission in Austria. Thirty-five percent of the parts content comes from Germany and only 3% from the U.S. It is our understanding that GM made few changes to the European model.
Our Black Sapphire/Charcoal top of the line XR was well built, fun to drive and economical. Judging from our rather emphatic e-mails of late, this is just the car many people say they are looking for.
At 170.5 inches long, the Astra is shorter than one of our favorite compacts, the Honda Civic, but longer than another fav, the VW Rabbit. It comes in three-door and five-door models. The five-door is available in the base XL and jazzier XR models, while the three-door settles for just the XL treatment.
Beautifully put together interior
One thing that we felt was the car's strong suit was the interior. Beautifully put together with a nice combination of soft touch materials and other upscale stuff, it was well above what one would expect in the Astra's price range.
Nicely sculptured seats kept bodies where they should be during, shall we say, more vigorous cornering, plus they were multi- adjustable and all-day comfortable. Our non-sun roofed test car had lots of headroom up front, and ample leg and foot room. To the rear, you could put your boss back there for a run to lunch along with one other adult, without jeopardizing your next pay raise. For a six foot tall person, there is good knee, foot and head room, particularly for a car this size. The front passenger seat easily slides well forward to make entry to the rear easier, but some flexibility still is required.
Behind the second row, there is covered storage. With the second row seat folded down, there is 38.8 cubic feet of storage and 12 cubic feet with the seats up. The rear hatch lid easily lifts skyward and allows a normal-sized adult to stand under it without damaging your skull or the baseball cap you are wearing. Lift-over height is more than reasonable.
However, not all is peaches and ice cream inside. The view straight back is poor, given that the rear window is rather small and sits lower in the overhaul design than many of the Astra's competition. You will notice this when trying to determine if the second car behind you carries a nice bald-headed officer of the law, sadly behind on his quota.
Some of the controls in the center stack are not intuitive, but can be quickly mastered with a glance at the owner's manual. We thought the ventilation controls were too low in the center stack and there is but one cup holder and it is a small one. Many Europeans don't understand our fascination with these things.
A bit down in the power department
All of the models come with one engine. It is a version of GM's well known Ecotec collection, but it was one of the more refined versions. Engine noise was well muted except for higher rev ranges.
The 1.8 -liter four was good for 138 horsepower at 6,300 rpms, with torque at 125 lb-ft. at 3,800 rpm. We would recommend the shift-it-yourself lovely five-speed to get the maximum there is out of the engine.
Simply stated, the Astra was a bit down in the power department, and we kept wondering what a light turbo would do here. Look for zero to 60 in just a hair over 8.5 seconds. Having said all that, one could have good fun along rural back roads with this car. The suspension is from heaven, and in keeping with other German designs that we have driven over the years. The secret here is to keep the revs up to at least that 3,800 mark and let the suspension do its thing.
That consists of independent struts up front, with a torsion beam axle to the rear. Our test car came with the lowered sport-turned package. We can say without any hesitation, that it was a perfect combination of comfortable ride and flat, planted sporty car handling.
Okay, how much does it cost? Our top of the line model with the $595 Advanced Audio Package with 7 speakers went out the door for a more than reasonable $19,090. In addition, that gets you an EPA rating of 24 miles per gallon in the city and 32 on the highway. We averaged 30 in mostly suburban and rural driving situations.
Smartly sized, priced right, good economy, solidly built and the promise of a no haggle deal at your Saturn dealer, makes the Astra one of the best gas sippers we have driven.
Comments? ramadon@marketwatch.com
If all goes according to plan, we should soon have a look at the new Pontiac G 8 from down under, the Chevy HHR SS, and perhaps a new Lotus.
And have you seen a new Smart car yet? What do you think? Drop us an e-mail if you have seen one, sat in one, or now drive one. We would love to know your thoughts.
Want back road tests? There are years of them, all free, at our website. Do a word search for my last name, Amadon, and catch everything from hydrogen-powered Hondas to Lamborghinis and luscious Ferraris.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
04 -20 -08 2317ET
Copyright (c) 2008 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.