Vauxhall Astra Review & Prices

The Vauxhall Astra has been one of Britain’s most enduringly popular cars over the past four decades, and while it may be losing its place at the top of the sales charts to SUV models now, it still makes a solid and sensible family car choice. Very sensible, it seems, as the Astra finished third overall in the Driver Power Top 50 Cars To Own list – which means people like you love them.

It’s like a sturdy raincoat — maybe not as stylish as a fashion-forward puffa jacket, but a more versatile and capable all-rounder. Probably with bigger pockets too. While the choice of family hatchbacks might have shrunk a bit of late, the Astra is still an alternative to the likes of the Volkswagen Golf, Seat Leon, Ford Focus, and Mazda 3.

The Astra’s a fairly smart looking car, which helps. It’s not the prettiest car in its class (that’ll be the Mazda) but with the wraparound ‘Vizor’ grille and lights at the front, coupled with square-edged shapes in contrast to most other cars’ curves, the Astra does cut a bit of a dash. You’d even call it sleek from some angles.

It’s a shame, then, that the interior isn’t as good looking as the outside. The layout is tidy and sensible, and it really helps that Vauxhall has kept physical controls for the air conditioning, instead of handing everything through the touchscreen. The Astra’s infotainment system is a bit fiddly to use, though, and the digital instruments look a bit dull, as does the expanse of grey plastic across the dashboard. Some of the materials used could be better, too.  

Hatchback Group Test: Ford Focus vs Honda Civic vs Vauxhall Astra vs Volkswagen Golf

At least the Astra is comfortable, with notably supportive front seats, but the back seats aren’t as good with tight legroom. Headroom is okay, and it’s not as if you can’t get comfy in the back, but the Skoda Octavia in particular offers much more space in the second row.

However, the Astra’s on firmer ground when it comes to boot space, with its healthy 422 litres trumped only by the massive 600 litres of the Skoda Octavia. The square shape and low load lip are very helpful too, and the likes of the Golf, the Focus, and the Mazda 3 simply can’t hold a candle to the Astra’s roomy boot.

The Astra also offers a broad spread of engine choices and options. The Astra Electric has a 250-mile range, but in terms of engines that still burn fuel, you can choose from a basic 1.2-litre 130hp petrol, or a 145hp hybrid version of that same engine.

There’s also a choice of two plug-in hybrid models, which have an all-electric range of up to 50 miles on a full charge (although you do lose a lot of boot space if you go for one of these).

As with the cabin design, the Astra isn’t the most thrilling thing around when it comes to driving. It’s fine, with good steering and a decent balance between staying flat in corners and riding comfortably over bumps, but it lacks the incisiveness of a Ford Focus or a Mazda 3.

Around town, the awkward automatic is a bit of an annoyance, especially in the plug-in hybrid models. At least the PHEV versions are smooth and quiet when they’re driving around in all-electric mode.

Light steering helps the Astra to feel nippy around town, and it’s comfortable on the motorway, helped by standard-fit adaptive cruise control.

While the Astra isn’t the best in its class, it is still a very impressive all-rounder, and a reminder that an SUV doesn’t have to be the default choice for family motoring.

You can check out the latest Vauxhall Astra lease deals on Carwow. You can also look through used Astras and other used Vauxhall models to get a bargain there, and you can sell your car too.

The Astra’s quite reasonably priced. It’s a little cheaper than a VW Golf, a bit pricier than a Seat Leon, about the same as a Ford Focus, and roughly similar to a Skoda Octavia (although, in fairness, the Octavia is really a bigger car).

Set up with comfort in mind, the Astra isn’t the most exciting car around but is a very capable cruiser

In town

The Astra has decent engine performance when driving at low speeds, such as around town centres. The 130hp petrol engine pulls away nicely; the plug-in hybrids even more so, making them suitable for doing a lot of stop-start driving in heavy traffic.

There is a lot of adjustment in the steering wheel and driver’s seat, so finding a comfortable driving position is simple, while there’s decent visibility from all angles. In addition, the Astra has relatively large door mirrors, which helps to minimise blind spots.

The Vauxhall Astra’s ride comfort is good at laid-back speeds, helped by the seats that cushion you from bumps and potholes in the road surface. Sticking with smaller wheels adds to the refinement, but higher-spec models with larger wheels are far from uncomfortable, either.

The steering is light and responsive enough, making for a relaxing journey and effortless parking.

On the motorway

The Vauxhall Astra is suitable for driving at higher speeds, too. The suspension is comfortable enough to keep you feeling chilled but firm enough to prevent the car from wallowing and bouncing around. In other words, it’s all very comfy.

The soundproofing is good, but the hybrid variant is the best option if you want blissfully quiet journeys. It provides a civilised level of performance at all speeds, although it’s more expensive, and if you're regularly doing big miles you won't be able to maximise use of the battery to get mega-low fuel economy costs.

Adaptive cruise control is included as standard on all models to keep you at a consistent speed. Lane departure warning and lane-keep assist, which will help ensure you don’t drift into another lane, are also built-in.

On a twisty road

The Astra’s comfortable ride and stiffened suspension are a very agreeable blend, which means it's pretty agile in the bends and handles well. It doesn't lean too much, either, when you take a corner at speed.

The car provides an enjoyable driving experience, although the steering is too light to make the most out of the handling. The hybrid has a Sport mode which makes the steering weightier and more suited to thrill-seekers, but it’s also quite a bit heavier, which offsets any benefits ,while the supposedly-sporty GSE plug-in hybrid is just too hefty to be any fun at all.

With a large boot and plenty of storage spots, the Astra is only let down by a lack of space for passengers in the back

You get a lot of storage space in the Vauxhall Astra, with a generous cubby in the centre console and two larger cupholders by the gear lever. There is also an area for the wireless charge pad up front in the top-of-the-range models.

It is relatively easy to find what’s what in the cabin, too. This is because most of the unnecessary buttons have been hidden in the infotainment system, leaving it reasonably uncluttered.

There is a considerate amount of room up front, so if you’re tall, you won’t find yourself struggling for space. Headroom is plentiful, too, so you don't feel overly hemmed in or claustrophobic. Even if you're muscular, you shouldn't need to worry about playing elbow tennis with the doors - or the person sitting next to you, for that matter.

Space in the back seats

The rear seat space is arguably the only area where the latest Astra has gone backwards compared with its predecessor.

You will find you won't struggle for headroom if you're tall, but your long legs will make for an uncomfortable journey due to the Astra’s limited legroom. As a result, it's challenging to angle your limbs so that your feet fit underneath the front seats.

Combine the above with a tall driver, and you might find you don’t fit at all. Alternatives such as the Seat Leon offer more space in the rear.

Nevertheless, this shouldn't be much of an issue for families with younger children. And, after opening the rear doors, there's still plenty of room to easily fit baby carriers or child seats to keep your toddlers safe.

In terms of back-seat storage, only high-spec Ultimate models offer a fold-out armrest with cupholders if the middle seat isn't occupied. There are also some smaller door bins and storage nets on the rear of the driver and passenger seats to place smaller objects.

Boot space

While the Astra lacks rear-seat room, it more than makes up for it with the size of the boot. The lack of the former means more of the latter, so 422 litres is enough to laud it over its closest competitors.

There is a boot lip, but it’s not all that big, so lifting pushchairs or shopping bags over it to put stuff in, or take things out, shouldn't be an issue.

The rear seats will collapse in a 60/40 split if you need more room. One of the outer rear seats folds down individually, while the other two seats fold down in one unit. This expands the available space to 1,389 litres. What’s more, if you have an Ultimate model with the fold-out armrest, this can be fully opened out as a 'ski hatch'. Therefore, you can thread longer, thin items, such as a curtain poles or planks of wood, through the boot into the cabin.

The hybridised Astra stores its batteries underneath the boot, so standard cargo capacity is reduced to 352 litres with the rear seats in place. But even this means it’s still only just worse off than the likes of the Volkswagen Golf.

Compared to alternatives, the Vauxhall Astra cabin is well-appointed and equipped. But it can feel a bit dark

The Astra's interior is neat and clean. It isn't on a par with luxury brands, but it more than holds its own against Ford and Volkswagen.

While there are buttons below the infotainment screen and on the steering wheel, the less important ones are now buried into the infotainment system, which helps declutter the interior.

There are lots of premium-feel, soft-touch surfaces. The steering wheel itself looks funky, while the range of colours on the inside is attractive if a little on the dark side. Mind you; this is broken up with some silver materials in places.

Some glossy piano black décor makes the centre console stand out, too, but that’s very easily scratched. Meanwhile, the infotainment screen is housed in a single unit next to the same-sized digital display, giving the cabin a futuristic appearance.

The dashboard curves around to face the driver, which is helpful and adds to the cockpit-like feel. If you’re a wannabe fighter pilot, you’ll love it. And if you’re not, then you’ll nevertheless appreciate the convenience and informative displays.

The Astra's infotainment screen can be used to adjust all manner of things. It is exclusively touchscreen, so there's no rotary dial by the gear lever like you get on some cars, but the screen is responsive, clear, and well laid out, making it easy to use.

You can change radio stations, make phone calls, adjust air conditioning (including the direction of airflow), set up the navigation and view the energy consumption figures (beneficial on the hybrid). Apple CarPlay/Android Auto connectivity comes as standard with smartphone mirroring, too. 

The system also boasts voice recognition for hands-free driving, meaning you can speak normally to it, and it'll know what to do. For example, you can tell it you're cold, and it'll turn the heater on. Of course, systems like these do have their limitations, but it works reasonably well.

As you might expect, the plug-in hybrid versions have the best economy and emission figures. They can return up to 353mpg and just 17g/km CO2 on the official WLTP test, although don't expect to achieve anywhere near those economy figures when you're in the real world and can't find a consistent place to charge the battery pack, which can deliver up to 49 miles of electric only range. Figure on getting about 45mpg on a long run with a flat main battery.

Whichever non-plug-in engine you go for, you can expect decent returns on fuel economy. The best of the bunch is the 145hp hybrid, returning up to 58.9mpg — the same as the now-defunct diesel Astra — but the petrol version isn’t too far behind, capable of just peeping over the 50mpg barrier in official tests.

The 145hp hybrid has impressively low CO2 emissions of just 108g/km, which is good news for your first year’s VED road tax and your company car BIK payments, although the plug-in hybrids will be the right choice, from a tax perspective, for any business user-choosers.

This latest version of the Astra comes with a four-star safety rating from Euro NCAP, which lags behind the majority of its closest competitors. Models like the Volkswagen Golf, Honda Civic, Skoda Octavia and Ford Focus all scored five stars, putting the Astra on the back foot here. It scored no more than 82% (Child Occupant), with Safety Assist scoring just 66%. These scores aren't terrible, just not up to the standard of alternatives.

Fitted on each Astra is automatic emergency braking, driver drowsiness alert, lane departure warning and lane keep assist, front and rear parking sensors, and speed sign recognition. Other versions feature adaptive cruise control, traffic sign assist and a 360-degree camera. Only the top-spec Ultimate comes with rear cross-traffic alert and blind spot monitoring, so may be worth considering if you want all the safety kit available to you.

All versions get a series of airbags throughout the car, including curtain and side impact ones, while those also have an ultrasonic alarm system and locking wheel bolts as standard.

Vauxhall has a reputation for not being built to a high standard. However, across recent surveys, the brand has started to go from bottom to mid-tier, which is a good sign with this latest version of the Astra.

Indeed, the Astra has just finished in third place overall in the latest Driver Power Top 50 Cars To Own list, with owners giving it a hugely impressive rating for reliability and build quality. The Astra also came top in the Driver Power family car category.

With the Astra, you get a three-year warranty - the first year with unlimited mileage and the second and third year with a 60,000-mile cap. You also get 12 months of roadside assistance and a six-year body panel perforation warranty. Getting the PHEV means an eight-year, 100,000-mile battery warranty.

Vauxhall also offers its own care package that includes offers on parts, servicing, and MOTs.