Our cars: Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer - June

Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer 2.0 CDTi SRi automatic

Week ending June 24
Current mileage 11,316
Driven this week 383 miles

The Astra is best at being a relaxing high-speed cruiser. It's less happy around town, where you hear too much engine noise.

That's not the only issue when you're trundling around. A relaxed throttle response and leisurely automatic gearbox are fine when you're not in a rush, but they're a pain when you're trying to get into a gap in traffic or accelerating from about 20mph.

Also, the angle and thickness of the front pillars badly restrict your vision, especially at junctions and roundabouts.

These problems aren't enough to put me off the car (it spends most of its time on the motorway), but it's something to bear in mind if your Astra will be mostly town-bound.
Neil.Williams@whatcar.com

Week ending June 17

Current mileage: 10,933
Miles driven this week: 1057

As a What Car? photographer, I’m usually found pounding the country’s motorways to photo locations all over the UK – that’s why I need a comfortable, quiet, economical car.

The Astra is all those things, and it goes for miles between fuel stops. This week it went from Oxford to Salisbury, the Dorset coast, Halifax and back to Oxford. It almost managed the whole lot on one tank of diesel – going for 585 miles before needing to be refueled.

The journey also highlighted a neat feature of the £855 sat-nav system. When the car is running low on fuel, the sat-nav suggests nearby petrol stations. Click on one and it’ll then direct you to it. Neat.
Neil.Williams@whatcar.com

Week ending June 10
Current mileage: 9876
Driven this week: 1435 miles

The Astra has gone the length and breadth of the country with week – literally. It was one of two cars used to transport What Car? staff members attempting the Three Peaks Challenge – climbing the three highest mountains in England, Scotland and Wales to raise money for the Help for Heroes charity.

The Astra's driver loved the supportive seats, comfortable ride, impressive motorway refinement and the automatic gearbox that gave his left leg a rest. There was also lots of storage space and the boot was a more practical shape than the Insignia Sports Tourer’s, which was the other car.

There were some gripes, though. It took a while to get used to where everything was on the centre console, and the rear seats weren’t particularly comfortable after several hours, especially for those exhausted passengers trying to get forty winks.

All in, the Astra did pretty well transporting three people and their gear. Even better, the intrepid walkers completed their challenge.
Neil.Williams@whatcar.com


Euan Doig also drove the Astra while taking part on the Three Peaks Challenge

The car took half of our six-strong team, plus their kit, to Ben Nevis in Scotland, then Scafell Pike in the Lake District, and finally Snowdon in Wales.

It easily swallowed all of our hiking kit, and was comfortable enough to sleep in on the journeys between the mountains.

We were pleasantly surprised by the 45.6mpg average the Astra returned on the trip, too.
Euan.Doig@whatcar.com

Week ending June 3
Mileage: 8441
Driven this week: 392 miles
I knew that brake vibration and noise wasn’t right. Sure enough, I took the Astra to County Vauxhall, Bicester (01869 244 000), who diagnosed warped front brake discs. I certainly didn’t expect that after so few miles, especially given that the car spends most of its time on the motorway.

I'd half expected the dealership staff to try to blame some over-exuberant driving on my part for the problem, but no, they couldn’t have been more helpful. Both sets of front discs and pads were replaced under warranty, leaving the Astra feeling as good as new.

No other Astra drivers have contacted me with the same problem, so if you’ve been afflicted, get in touch.
Neil.Williams@whatcar.com