Holden has announced new information about the all-new Astra as the first examples bound for Aussie landfall rolls off the European production line.
Arriving in dealerships in December and fresh off its victory at the European Car of the Year awards following its official debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2015, the fifth-generation Astra will be offered in three variants, fending off the corresponding tiers of the Volkswagen Golf, Honda Civic, Ford Focus, and Peugeot 308 on multiple fronts.
Peter Keley, Holden’s Executive Director of Sales, said: “It’s incredibly exciting to see the first all-new Holden Astra built and ready to ship – it’s a stunning car, packed with state-of-the-art technology, and another great example of the exciting future vehicles we will be introducing over the next couple of years. Holden has committed to replacing or refreshing every single model in our line-up as part of our plan to launch 24 new models by the end of 2020.”
The range starts with the Astra R at $21,990, powered by a 1.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine that generates 110kW and 240Nm, mated to a six-speed manual transmission while an automatic box will add a further $2,200 to the price tag.
Standard features include 17-inch alloy wheels, a rear view camera which displays through the new 7-inch infotainment display with support for Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity.
Moving up a tier brings the mid-range Astra RS (MT) which starts at $26,490, this time powered by the more powerful 147kW/300Nm 1.6-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine. It also adds features such as push button start and active safety tech such as blind spot monitoring, park assist, and the Holden Eye forward facing camera which enables such functions as automatic emergency braking (AEB), forward collision alert, and lane keep assist.
The top of the range Astra, the RS-V, also uses that same powerplant but adds 18-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery to match its heated front seats and steering wheel along with a more advanced 8-inch infotainment system with embedded satellite navigation and dual zone climate control.
Holden is confident that the all-new Astra deftly combines class-leading value along with sporty handling and ride refinement. Holden’s director of vehicle performance, Ian Butler, said: “Holden and Opel share very similar D.N.A. but we still made sure our engineers were involved in developing Astra and setting targets, right from the start of the program,”
“We’ve engineered our own unique Australian chassis input which, when combined with the new 1.4-litre and 1.6-litre turbo petrol engine options, we’re confident will excel on the variety of road surfaces in Australia."
“Along with Spark and Colorado, Astra is another great example of how Holden is collaborating with GM engineers globally to ensure we can deliver the best vehicles to Australia and also share our expertise for the benefit of other markets.”
- 1.4L turbo R manual $21,990
- 1.4L turbo R automatic $24,190
- 1.6L turbo RS manual $26,490
- 1.6L turbo RS automatic $28,690
- 1.6L turbo RS-V manual $30,990
- 1.6L turbo RS-V automatic $33,190
For more on Holden vehicles, including pricing and specifications, check out our Showroom.
