Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer review

Your parents may well have had an Astra estate car – or perhaps a relative Now called the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer, it’s been a staple of the manufacturer's range for decades, focusing on value, space and efficiency.

Today, that brief remains the same, despite the latest version having some French DNA. You see, it shares underpinnings with the Peugeot 308 SW, plus the same engine range. You can choose between petrol, plug-in hybrid (PHEV) or fully electric power – we’ve reviewed the latter separately, so click through to our Vauxhall Astra Electric review if you’re interested. 

Is the Astra Sports Tourer a match for the 308 SW, as well as estate car class leaders, like the Seat Leon Estate, Skoda Octavia Estate and Toyota Corolla Touring Sports? Read on to find out…

For most buyers, the 128bhp 1.2-litre petrol engine (badged Petrol 130) is all you’d ever want or need. It’s the cheapest engine option, and yet with a 0-62mph time of around 10sec, it’s quick enough – even on the motorway. 

It’s available with either a manual or automatic gearbox. Both ‘boxes are quite sloppy next to those you’ll find in rivals (like the Seat Leon Estate), so just pick one based on what your left leg prefers. 

The Hybrid 145 adds mild-hybrid technology into the mix, and it’s slightly quicker (9.3sec). It’s solely available as an automatic.  

Company car drivers will be better off with one of the 1.6-litre PHEVs or the Vauxhall Astra Electric, due to their lower/non-existent CO2 emissions. With the plug-in hybrids, the 192bhp version and the 222bhp GSe have an official electric-only range of around 50 miles. 

Neither PHEV is especially quick (0-62mph in 7.7sec and 8.0sec respectively), and that 50-mile electric range is no match for the Leon Estate (81 miles). As a result, the Astra belongs to a higher benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax band, but more on running costs later. 

Now, let’s get on to how the Astra Sports Tourer handles. It goes round corners in a safe and predictable manner, thanks to good grip and a respectable balance. However, it’s not as sharp in its steering or body control as the Leon Estate is. That car is more agile and fun to drive. 

The trade-off for the Leon’s good handling is a firm ride, but at least it’s not fidgety. We say that because the Astra Sports Tourer’s is, especially at higher speeds. You constantly feel vibrations coming up from underneath you, which can get annoying on long journeys.  

Fortunately, this sensation is less noticeable at lower speeds, and around town the ride is actually quite good. It deals with lumps and bumps well, all the while subjecting you to minimal side-to-side sway. But, by comparison, the Toyota Corolla Touring Sports is comfortable no matter where or how fast you’re driving it. 

In terms of refinement, the Astra Sports Tourer suffers very little from wind noise at speed. Admittedly, all the examples we’ve tried had acoustic glassing (thicker windscreen and side glass) to help reduce external sound

PHEV models are even more refined thanks to their near-silent electric modes. Their only real demerit is that their brakes are sharp until you learn to be measured with your inputs.

“As someone who does a lot of motorway driving, I found the fidgety high-speed ride a bit of a deal breaker.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

While the Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer shares lots of parts with the Peugeot 308 SW, it has a much more user-friendly driving position. The more conventional layout doesn’t require you to look at the digital driver display over a small steering wheel – you see it through the spokes just like in most other cars.

All Sports Tourers have a digital instrument panel for the driver display. It gives you all the key information you need, including your speed, revs and trip stats, though it isn’t quite as configurable as that in the Volkswagen Golf Estate.

Still, the steering wheel adjusts for height and reach, and the standard seats do a good job of accommodating drivers of different sizes. GS cars get sports seats with adjustable cushions and seat-base tilt adjustment for additional thigh support, plus electric lumbar adjustment.

There are far more physical buttons in the Astra Sports Tourer than in the 308 and even the Skoda Octavia Estate, which is a plus point for usability. 

The 10in infotainment touchscreen in the middle of the dash is angled towards the driver. The graphics on the screen are sharp and the screen is clear enough to read at a glance. It’s reasonably responsive to inputs, too. 

We would prefer it if the infotainment menu layout was streamlined, though, because a number of functions are buried deep within the system. Shortcuts – like the one to customise the digital driver’s display – aren’t immediately obvious. All Astras get wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

Visibility isn’t bad by class standards, but an Octavia Estate is still much easier to see out of due to its slimmer roof pillars all round and big rear side windows. The Sports Tourer has the same issues as the regular Vauxhall Astra hatchback in that the pillar directly beside you is pretty chunky and obscures your view over-the-shoulder.

To help negate that issue when parking, every Sports Tourer comes with front and rear parking sensors, while GS trim and above add a 360-degree camera system.

Cast your eyes around the Astra Sports Tourer's interior and you’ll find plenty of soft-touch plastics within easy reach, and a lot of them are finished in a variety of textures. It’s a little too fussy and there are still one or two flimsy bits of trim that you wouldn't find in premium brand estate cars, like the BMW 3 Series Touring.

If you opt for the GS model, you get a black headliner, which might make things seem a bit sombre to some, so choose your spec wisely.

“The materials may feel cheap, but I like the overall design of the interior. It’s sharp and modern.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

The Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer gives six-foot-plus adults lots of head, leg and shoulder room up front. There’s also plenty of storage from the deep bin in front of the gear lever (with wireless phone-charging on Ultimate models), two cupholders along the middle, and a split armrest that hides a cubby with additional charging ports. Even sunglasses have a dedicated home just below the air-con controls.

If those same six-foot-plus adults are travelling in the back, they'll be better off in the Seat Leon Estate because both offer better leg room and more space for your feet underneath the seat in front. The Toyota Corolla Touring Sports (without the panoramic glass sunroof) offers more head room and a smaller central tunnel for the middle-seat occupant to straddle.

GS models have a load-through ski hatch and a rear fold-down armrest, but all models – like the Peugeot 308 SW – have a more flexible 40/20/40 split-folding rear bench. Most rivals offer a 60/40 split, unless you look at premium alternatives such as the Mercedes C-Class Estate.

The Astra Sports Tourer boot size depends on which version you go for. The regular petrols have 597 litres of boot volume, while the PHEVs get 516 litres.

You get more space in the Leon Estate and Skoda Octavia Estate boots, but the Sports Tourer has some neat touches. Firstly, its boot is a usefully square shape that’ll make arranging things in the back easier. Also, there are remote releases for the split-folding seats just inside the boot aperture so you don't have to lean in.

The pure-petrol versions also get a handy adjustable boot floor, which helps to eliminate the loading lip at the boot entrance and gives you a mostly flat load area when the seats are folded down. 

Petrol models have space to store the parcel shelf in its own cubby when not needed, while the PHEVs use the space for charging cable storage.

“The boot is a good size. Even the PHEV should work for most families.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

Private buyers purchasing a Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer with cash will find it slightly undercuts the Peugeot 308 SW but costs more than the Skoda Octavia Estate and VW Golf Estate. 

No matter which version you go for, you’ll find that resale values are predicted to be around the same as its respective rivals. That should keep PCP finance quotes competitive with rivals since future values form part of the quotation. Before you buy, make sure to check out the lowest prices on our New Car Deals pages. 

As for fuel economy, the Petrol 130 officially averages 49.6mpg and the Hybrid 145 ups that to 57.6mpg. Those are good figures, with the latter not far off what the fully hybrid Toyota Corolla Touring Sports can manage (60mpg). 

If you drive a company car, you’ll probably want the Astra Sports Tourer Electric because it cuts monthly benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax bills significantly. As we touched upon, the two PHEV options can officially manage around 50 miles on electric power alone, putting it in the 9% tax band – the rival Seat Leon Estate sits in the 6% band. 

Every Astra Sports Tourer comes with plenty of standard equipment, with even entry-level Griffin trim getting keyless start, automatic LED headlights with high beam assist, climate control, cruise control and a heated steering wheel. 

Stepping up to GS (your entry-point for the PHEV models) adds sportier styling and dual-zone climate control, heated front seats, adaptive cruise control and the upgraded parking camera.

Ultimate adds a powered tailgate, a head-up display, a panoramic sunroof and a heated windscreen. The GSe then brings GSe-specific styling and Alcantara around the interior. 

The Astra hatchback came mid-table in our 2025 What Car? Reliability Survey. Vauxhall as a brand placed an impressive fifth out of 30 brands featured, sitting above Kia, Peugeot and Skoda but below Toyota.  

Like all Vauxhall models, the Astra Sports Tourer comes with a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty. That's in keeping with cover from most other manufacturers, but can’t beat Hyundai's five-year warranty, Kia's seven-year cover or Toyota’s up to 10-year warranty.

When Euro NCAP tested the latest Astra for safety in 2022, it awarded it four out of five stars, highlighting its solid protection for both adult and child occupants. Helping the score is the fact that there’s plenty of safety equipment fitted as standard, including automatic emergency braking (AEB), lane-keeping assist, and speed-limit sign recognition.

“The price stays reasonable with Griffin trim, which is one of the reasons I’d recommend it.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

Buy it if…

- You appreciate 40/20/40 split-folding rear seats

- You’d like the option of petrol, plug-in hybrid or fully electric power

- You want an estate car that’s cheap to run

Don’t buy it if…

-You’re expecting class-leading ride and handling

-You want an upmarket interior

-You regularly carry tall passengers in the back

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