Its fantastic
Nothing.
I love my Holden Astra, I've almost had it for 3 years and I've found it to be fantastic. It's a great car and I don't have any regrets about purchasing it. I believe I made a good decision when choosing my first car out of all the possible choices on the car market.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 9th May, 2003
Nice to drive at highway speeds, but otherwise not competitive with Korean and Japanese equivalants
Total failure of starter motor after 20000 Kilometres. Almost 1 week delay in obtaining replacement part.
Pinhole leak in radiator at about the same time. Part available in this instance and repaired immediately by dealer.
Ongoing problem with bad rattle from dashboard, which has never been resolved.
Ongoing problem with bad creaking from drivers seat when going over bumps or undulations. This has never been resolved.
Bonnet release fails to work intermittently. Two attempts at repair, but I have now given up on this.
At 550000 Kilometres the rotors and brake pads (both front and rear) need replacing. This repair will cost over $1000.00 as brake wear is considered normal.
This car is nice to drive at highway speeds, being quiet and sure-footed.
At low speeds first gear is almost impossible to engage, unless the car is almost stationary. At these speeds second gear has no torque making the car very unpleasant to drive in "stop-start" traffic.
The car body feels very tight, strong and rigid. This is backed up by good results in European crash testing of this vehicle.
Dealer service is terrible (Melbourne Eastern suburbs). All services were subject to 2-4 week delays. Some of the earlier services were subject to even longer delays and I was coerced not to record any faults if I wanted to get the car serviced in a resonable time. Parts are not readily available. I had to wait a week for the starter motor and brake rotors are continually in short supply.
I have been told that it is normal for the brake system (rotors and pads) to wear out every 50000 Kilometres. This is totally unacceptable.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? No
Review Date: 5th March, 2003
A pint sized rocket, with high finish levels and a cornering ability that demands respect
Developed a faulty Air Bag sensor. This was a loose connection and was fixed at service.
Driver's side door and window seemed to rattle a bit. This was fixed during 1st service.
Tapes very hard to eject from cassette player.
I try to use optimax, it seems to give the best fuel economy. Best range so far is 650km on a tank. I also have shell helix ultra (grey pack) as my oil.
I think this combination, while expensive is the best.
The front wheels seem to develop a lot of brake dust/road grime. I need to clean these on average every 2 weeks to avoid the brake squeal.
The Michelin tyres fitted are very good, however the hub caps are very difficult to remove.
Headlights are excellent. Front fog/driving lights are very costly to add. The manual doesn't describe globe sizes, these however can be found on the headlight lip cover.
The Polar Sea (Blue) paint finish seems to turn purple in the late afternoon sun, an interesting fun part.
I really like the fully adjustable steering wheel. The wheel itself is very good to hold, however the black finish shows the dirt.
Speed sensitive stereo is very enjoyable on long distance trips, and changes according to road surface. EG tarmac to concrete.
Cornering at high/low speeds is the best feeling. The feedback is very good.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 24th November, 2002
I am thinking about buying an Astra and am wondering what the **** does the cars speed do to the stereo? HELP!!!
Considering that I am Going to buy an Astra, I would like to know what all the readers of this comment think: which model should I get? A CD or a Convertible, as they both seem to have faults and strong points...
9th Mar 2003, 06:43
While I have a 2002 model Astra and do not have anywhere the number of kilometers you have, I too have a niggling doubt on the build quality aspect. Overseas reports specifically the UK don't rate the reliability of these cars as very high. I have had problems with rear brakes -the infamous caliper redesign, and trim noises that should not be present in a new car.
The lack of reporting these problems, especially the brake problem ie don't complain and they won't fix it demonstrates the reluctance by Holden not to admit any quality issues which may affect sales.