Faults:

Ignition key jams and will not turn. This has now happened twice and is not cheap to fix. Stranded on the side of the road with a baby. Tow truck job. Holden Roadside Assistance just expired with no reminder to renew and refusal to sign up over the phone. Thank you NRMA Service above and beyond the call of duty.

Burnt out starter motor, believed to be due to ignition switch. $700.

Holden care factor: 0.

General Comments:

Handling: Great.

Fuel Economy: Very good ~6-6.5 L/100km.

Trim standard: Good, but some rattles and vibrations.

Performance: Good, but there's a rather unusual feel to the clutch and throttle that takes a little getting used to for smooth gear changes.

Service costs: Very high for the type of car. Parts are expensive and they seem to wear out faster than usual.

Faults:

Intermittent brake noise when cornering or lots of weight in rear of car.

Ignition barrel that failed on a hot day (apparently a common problem for all TS Astra's)

Charcoal/Blackish paint fades easily unless waxed/polished 3 times a week.

Brake rotors wear way too quickly for a late model car. Poor quality metal used in GMH rotors so been advised to fit DBA slotted rotors for longer rotor and pad life.

The 5 speed manual gearbox is very notchy and sometimes hard to find the correct gear. Reverse gear lockout can be a hassle sometimes when changing gears and hand slips on it.

General Comments:

Interior of the SRi model is well appointed. Very roomy and comfortable heated seats make long trips a pleasure.

Excellent fuel economy around town, but outstanding fuel economy at highway speeds. 5L/100Km's is normal even with some spirited driving. The 2.2L motor is very torquey and pulls well from low rpm. Does struggle to rev at hi-rpm though.

Yokohama C-Drive tyres with the factory 16" rims, along with a Whiteline "BHR75Z" rear swaybar fitted transforms the handling of this little hot hatch.

The body kit is very appealing and makes the car look very sporty.

Faults:

Ignition Barrel jammed.

General Comments:

I find the Astra to be a great zippy little car that is very economical.

It has enough grunt without being over the top and it corners well.

I get it serviced every 10k without fail and it runs perfectly.

The only fault was the ignition barrel jamming and the RAC guy said it was a common fault.

I am now selling it as I am putting a lot of k's on it and don't want to run it into the ground.

Faults:

Complete brake system overhaul at 50 000

Timing belt needed replacing

Ignition barrel needed replacing

Air con packed it in at 60 000.

General Comments:

The Astra Equipe was fantastic for a good 5 years, but when it started to fail, it failed big time.

I was initially impressed with the comfort and ride and thought it performed well. I got rid of it this year because it was just costing too much to maintain. Parts were expensive and often hard to get, servicing costs were high and like I said - things began to fail one after the other. Pity - I didn't really want to trade it in just yet, but I couldn't afford to maintain it.

Faults:

Ignition Switch Failure this year - Key would not turn Ignition switch; Barrel replaced as Warranty item (even though now out of warranty)

Auto gearbox does not disconnect (ie go to neutral) when stopped if air conditioner is switched on. Dealer unable to fix

General Comments:

Performs well

Economical on long trips

Comfortable

Velour upholstery is not easy to keep fluff free.

Annoying rattle caused by movement between the boot (trunk) lid and the contact switch for the boot light