Holden’s proudly European-sourced hatch is an intuitive, stylish small car with plenty of perks. Obvious flaws – of which there are few – include higher-than-expected fuel consumption, manual seats and occasionally temperamental Bluetooth streaming. These are far outweighed, however, by the wow factor of the small car’s sunroof, on-road comfort, surprising spaciousness and seriously impressive park assist function.
Before I begin this review, a disclaimer: I am so deeply representative of the target market for the new Holden Astra I may as well have designed it.
The week before I drove the car I received a press release about its star-studded launch at a trendy Sydney eatery, hosted by sister music duo The Veronicas. The guest list featured former Bachelor contestants, up-and-coming actors and leggy runway models.
The press release made a big song and dance about the celebrity guest list, plus the fact the Astra is German-designed and engineered, and recently won European Car of the Year for 2016.
They even sent through photos after the launch, showing the blonde-wig-clad Veronicas dancing joyously next to the car while tanned, sparkly 20-somethings swanned about sipping Sauvignon Blanc.
I love The Veronicas. I love trendy Sydney eateries. And I really love Sauvignon Blanc.
What I’m trying to say is that I was destined to love the Astra before I even laid eyes on it. It was made for me – or people like me. The slogan for the car, which is aptly preceded by a very Gen-Y friendly hashtag, is #IdDriveThat.
And drive it I did. The version I took for a spin was the top-spec RS-V, fitted out with a soon-to-be-released Innovations Pack – an additional $3990. That gave me some fancy adaptive LED headlights, an electric sunroof and adaptive cruise control.
The sunroof was a pleasant surprise given I never expect smaller cars to have one – let alone one that actually opens. It rounds out an elegant package that provides plenty of space and visibility with a few special little touches – particularly the illusory floating roof.
I do think the classic Holden front looks a little awkward on a hatch – I always think it should be attached to a bulky sedan – but the Astra’s version is a little more streamlined.
Inside, the Astra is comfortable and surprisingly luxurious. There are no tacky finishes – a leather-wrapped steering wheel and leather seats make it feel expensive, although electronic seat configuration would have been welcome. Adjusting seats in a smaller car is always cumbersome.
While the car is small it makes good use of storage space. Back seat space is enough for a couple of adults, while the boot could comfortably fit a couple of suitcases, on their sides.
Further evidence of the Astra’s target market can be found in the conveniently placed phone holder just below the touch screen – the perfect size and shape for a slender smartphone. The touchscreen is also set up like an iPhone or tablet and thus is instantly intuitive for those of us living in the 21st Century. The only issue I had was that it looked a little grainy and dated for a brand new model.
That said, while it might not look swish-bang it works like a dream. The sat-nav offers you obvious, easy-to-comprehend location options: you can enter an address, crossroads, a point of interest, a recent destination or a contact’s address.
Bluetooth connection is pretty immediate and your phone remains connected, pairing up the second the car starts. As I’ve found in other cars I’ve driven, there’s a slight disadvantage when you’re streaming music off your device as some track and volume changes take a few seconds to register on the actual speaker system. And – my favourite new car feature – the music stays on after the engine goes off, until you open the door.
The headlights also stay on until well after the car is locked, which I always find to be a bit unsettling. I caught myself a couple of times waiting to check they’d turned off.
On the road the Astra is quiet, smooth and responsive – hard to fault. The suspension handles lumps and bumps with ease and transmission is smooth. Safety features are top notch, including a very scrupulous forward collision alert – ideal for all the people who stupidly insist on text messaging while behind the wheel of a moving vehicle.
Then there are sensors – front, back, side, roof, undercarriage (the last two were a joke but it’s only a matter of time). These sensors don’t just kick in when you’re reversing – they’re always on duty at low speeds. You’ll be sitting at a light when they go mental because a pedestrian has casually strolled an inch from your headlight. The front and back sensors even pick up on slightly elevated ground, like kerbs or bumps in the cement, so you’re unlikely to have any gruesome run-ins with the neighbour’s cat.
There’s plenty of other features – keyless entry and start, seat heaters, the lot – all of which might be noteworthy were they not completely outshone by the car’s incredible self-park function.
Bear with me – I’ve never tried a self-park system before or, at least, not one this user-friendly, so some of my enthusiasm is certainly grounded in first-time excitement. But I really was very impressed by the Astra’s parking capabilities. I was wary because I’ve never really trusted other people to drive, so relinquishing control to a ‘robot’ felt bizarre.
All you have to do with the self-park function is line your vehicle up alongside another vehicle, hit the self-park button, put it into Reverse so the robot can do its thing then, once you’re safely in the spot, put it in drive so it can neaten up its positioning, then put it in Park once you’re satisfied.
As you can probably tell, I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread.
I felt pretty enthusiastic about the Astra in general, to be honest. One of my only qualms was that my trip computer had my week of city driving coming in at 11.0L/100km, and that’s with the idle-stop function turned on.
Otherwise, it’s an impressive little car with a European feel that far surpassed the Audi A3 I recently drove (sorry, Audi). It’s also substantially cheaper than the Audi at $30,990 for the top-spec. Compared to peers like the Honda Civic or Ford Focus, that’s a fair price for a car with so much pizazz.
In short: Yeah, #IdDriveThat.
2017 Holden Astra RS-V