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Rover800.Info • New Astra
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New Astra

Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2019 6:24 pm
by CHR15E
We've been looking for months and ended up ordering a new one as we couldn't find one used with the right options in it.

It's a 1.6 turbo petrol which is the largest engine available these days.

It's a Nav version and we had a few extras added to our taste.


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Re: New Astra

Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2019 7:29 pm
by Richard Moss
I'll be interested in your impressions of it. I've had a couple of Corsas and an Astra as hire cars lately. I liked them - a LOT more than an Insignia I hired previously (a real nanny car that kept stopping you doing what you wanted by deploying "safety features")

Re: New Astra

Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2019 7:42 pm
by CHR15E
So far we're very happy with it. Only had it since Thursday though.

It does have safety bits in it but so far nothing's been a problem.

The boss said no to an Insignia as they're a lot larger. This Astra is only 4" shorter than the Mondeo I had which I think is mad.

Re: New Astra

Posted: Sun Jan 06, 2019 10:27 am
by scoobyh123
CHR15E wrote:
Sat Jan 05, 2019 7:42 pm
This Astra is only 4" shorter than the Mondeo I had which I think is mad.
Glad you're pleased with it Chris, i also think it's mad that cars these days are a lot larger than they used to be - a new Fiesta is now about the same size as the Mk1 Granada was when the Fiesta was first launched - so much for being a "super-mini"! :shock:

Re: New Astra

Posted: Sun Jan 06, 2019 8:19 pm
by SJG
Hope you enjoy it Chris, I now have a new Peugeot 3008. Really impressed with it, so much better than the 308 I had previously.

Re: New Astra

Posted: Fri Jan 25, 2019 4:53 pm
by CHR15E
Extra parking sensor now fitted. :)

£425 all in, £140 of that is the vehicle specific wiring loom to switch off the parking sensors when towing and other bits.

Now to test it and see how the car copes with the caravan on the back.

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Re: New Astra

Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2019 10:37 am
by scoobyh123
Aaaah! The infamous braille parking sensor! :P :lol:

Seeing as it's a fairly new model Chris, you'll probably be called upon by many to write reviews of it as a tow car! :wink: :D

Re: New Astra

Posted: Sat Jan 26, 2019 12:55 pm
by CHR15E
Not a bad idea once I've tested it. The way the world is now people are moving to larger and larger caravans and a lot of them use 4x4/SUV type vehicles. The days of the humble estate being used are very much over for most.

Personally, as we are only using the van 3 or 4 times a year having a car all year round I don't like makes no sense. That's why it took so long to find this as we had very little other choice. Things just aren't like they use to be for picking cars, particularly ones that most other people aren't buying/wanting.

I could in theory use the Jeep but that means living with it once we get to wherever we're going. The ride is just too jiggly to use and enjoy on country/coastal roads. Plus in order for me to tow our caravan I'd need to take a test. The Jeep GVW is 2500KG and the carvan is 1200KG, so that puts me 200KG over the 3500KG for newer licenses.

So in conclusion I'm really hoping it does tow OK as I'm not sure what I'd do instead at this point. I'll find out soon when I get the van hooked up for a test drive.

Re: New Astra

Posted: Sun Jan 27, 2019 11:53 am
by scoobyh123
How heavy is the Astra Chris? There used to be a theory (don't know whether it still applies) that the trailer weight should be no more than 75% of the kerb weight of the tow vehicle. That would mean that ideally, the Astra would need to be about 1600kg, quite possible these days with all the extra stuff on them but most Astras i've known have been around 1000kg so you could end up with "the tail wagging the dog" - not nice! :o :shock:

Re: New Astra

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2019 12:18 pm
by CHR15E
Circa 1400KG, there is a theory still held by some that 85% of the cars kerb weight shouldn't be exceeded.

So this is about bang on for that. Though they then say with more experience you can go as high as 100%.

When you think about it though the car will almost always be heavier than that. Certainly when going away anyway. So if you work on a weight including passengers and luggage I think the 85% becomes less important. A lot of people think it's outdated thinking, a lot like the highway code and stopping distances for example.

I think I'm going to try and get a few more miles under it's belt first and then look to test it. It's just ticked over 500 from when we fetched it 3 weeks or so ago.

Re: New Astra

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2019 12:42 pm
by scoobyh123
Good idea waiting until you've got a few more miles on the Astra first Chris - do they still do the 600 mile oil change?

While i agree a lot of the Highway Code needs updating, braking distances for example are shorter because of improved tyres, brakes, ABS, suspension and so on but the reaction time is still there, arguably longer now because of all the distractions built into cars these days.

That said, i wonder if people even read the Highway Code these days before passing their tests, round here we get idiots parking within 15 yds (probably metres in the modern version) of junctions, parking so their lights are blinding oncoming traffic and umpteen other things i can think of. Makes a mockery of having it really.

As for the ratio of trailer weight to tow vehicle weight, i think 85% would be the maximum i'd want to go to although i have towed above that ratio - wouldn't want to do it again though! :shock:

Re: New Astra

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2019 5:00 pm
by CHR15E
Nothing like that these days. No running in period as such anymore I was told, just don't be too stupid with it was the advice at the dealer.

I get what you're saying. I was just making the point that times have changed and a lot of things haven't moved with it. Good or bad.

We're not looking to change the van anytime soon, so I'll look into weights again if need be later on.

Re: New Astra

Posted: Mon Jan 28, 2019 8:08 pm
by scoobyh123
Was the Insignia estate not on your radar when you looked Chris? Think that would be heavy enough - also think i might already know the answer too! :P :lol:

Agreed, the Highway Code needs a serious revamp, surprised at the lack of running in period though. Does it even have a sump plug to change the oil?

Re: New Astra

Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2019 12:21 am
by CHR15E
scoobyh123 wrote:
Mon Jan 28, 2019 8:08 pm
Was the Insignia estate not on your radar when you looked Chris? Think that would be heavy enough - also think i might already know the answer too! :P :lol:

Agreed, the Highway Code needs a serious revamp, surprised at the lack of running in period though. Does it even have a sump plug to change the oil?
Depends which answer you were expecting?

Any of these?

- Too big, SWMBO said they're just too big and tbh I agree day to day.

- Too expensive, a similar spec car would be £5-8k more than an Astra depending exactly which options you pick. Plus being very honest we already spent around £5k more than we intended with this as it was never the plan to order a new one. Older petrol insignias don't really exist worth having.

- Engine, as mentioned few petrol choices. The current model AFAIK uses the same engine as we have in the Astra. There is a VXR version in the old shape but they're rare. Plus high road tax and poor economy for a daily car (I must be getting old)?

And we don't like the look of them.

Probably other reasons too, while I would never say an Astra was my dream car trying to find something that ticked all the boxes was basically impossible to find.

As for a sump plug, pass. Not job anyway with having a warranty on it.

Re: New Astra

Posted: Tue Jan 29, 2019 8:45 am
by scoobyh123
All of those answers Chris! :P

I know the car is new so you won't be doing the oil changes etc, was just curious to know if it still had a sump plug.