Whether it will be jumping over very expensive cars and upsetting the luxury class, or just sitting pretty in your driveway, Opel’s all-new Astra should be a force to be reckoned with.
Before we get into anything else, let’s just laugh one last time at that ridiculous ad where the Astra jumps over luxury cars such as the Audi A8, Mercedes S-Class, BMW 7 Series and Jaguar XJ. Oh and what’s with the Volvo S80? It’s an Audi A6 rival, not an A8 rival. They couldn’t get their hands on a Lexus LS or something?
Anyway, the point is that Opel/Vauxhall are being really bold with this Astra, and for extremely practical reasons, they might actually have a strong case here.
As you well know, the Astra will be available initially as both a 5-door hatchback as well as a Sports Tourer model – both successful over the years, regardless of which generation you’re thinking of.
The new model is light, packed with modern tech (Traffic Sign Assist, Lane Keep assist, Forward Collision Alert, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto etc) and has more economical engines than the outgoing model.
By all accounts, it should fit in nicely next to the Golf and the Focus, and it should pass the 308 and the Leon in sales, theoretically. The all-new Megane might have something to say about that particular battle as well, but on paper, the new Astra should strive to knock the Focus off the podium (2nd place sales-wise).
And no, nobody is touching the Golf from that perspective.
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