French flavoured Astra heading to New Zealand

Tuesday, 10 September 2019

Holden New Zealand's commitment to an updated Astra will give Kiwis first chance to try out a Holden with a French engineering flavour.

The company has confirmed it will release the refreshed model, but is giving no clues as to when a changeover already affected by Opel and Vauxhall will occur here.

'As with the launch of the current model, there will be a lag between on-sale date in Europe compared with right-hand-drive markets, which we anticipate to be quite some months,' general manager corporate affairs Ed Finn said.

Only small exterior tweaks, but underneath the Astra now packs French engines.

Holden NZ volume is down 6.3 per cent year on year and Astra has done little to help, with just under 500 registrations for the year to date, the range-topping RS-V hatch being most popular, with 200 of those sales.

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That tally includes short-lived sedan – which was only an Astra by name, being in reality a Chevrolet Cruze given a rebadge for expediency – that was axed late last year and the wagon that has just recently been discontinued in Australia.

Vauxhall and Opel already have the updated Astra. How long will Holden have to wait?

The hatch (and wagon) remain in production for the European and UK markets, where the facelift editions are now on sale, but Finn would not comment on whether this country could continue with the latter without Australia's support. The current model is still available here but it was 'too early to speculate' on range revisions that might or might not associate with the update.

The big story in respect to the freshen is a change of heart.

Not many styling changes inside either, but new soft-touch surfaces will up the Astra's game.

The car delivers less powerful but leaner, more frugal petrol engines from Peugeot and Citroen parent PSA, which now owns Opel and Vauxhall.

France has supplied two turbocharged mills, a 1.2-litre three-cylinder in three states of tune - 81kW/195Nm, 96kW/225Nm and 107kW/225Nm – and a 108kW/236Nm 1.4-litre four-cylinder, as replacements for the current 110kW/245Nm 1.4 and 147kW/300Nm 1.6-litre Opel units sold here.

The under-bonnet transplant also steers the car in a new gearbox direction, with PSA's 1.4 marrying to a constantly variable transmission with seven stepped ratios.

The drivetrain alterations required little re-engineering within the engine bay but bring some altered shrouding that makes the still highly-familiar body shape more slippery. It's claimed to be the most aerodynamic car in its class.

The French touch has also been felt on the suspension, with new dampers.

Whether Holden was again able to influence the suspension tune, as occurred with the original model, is unclear. However, PSA says the spring rates have been tweaked for extra comfort and control and the steering calibration altered to offer more alert responses.

An engine swap was expected, PSA having signalled last year that it intended to implement as much of its own technology into Opel as soon as it could.

PSA claims the switch delivers a cleaner experience, pointing out that the CO2 emissions for these new engines run from 120g/km to 136g/km on the new WLTP test procedure. This represents a 19 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions compared to the previous engines. The engines also get GPFs, or gasoline particulate filters, to further clean up the exhaust.

French brands are also heavily invested in diesel tech so, unavoidably, the Astra update heads in that direction too, with a 1.5-litre three-cylinder in 77kW/260Nm, 90kW/285Nm and 90kW/300Nm guises. The 285Nm unit gets a nine-speed automatic, while the others are only available with a six-speed manual.

This diesel gets an electric turbocharger, with variable geometry vanes, and there's AdBlue exhaust treatment to drive down NOx emissions; between 117g/km to 139g/km on the WLTP cycle.

Finn has confirmed the diesel is not on Holden's agenda.

Styling-wise, little has changed. The Vauxhall edition seen here sports a new grille at the front and the ride height is 10mm lower. And that's about it. But there are now soft-touch plastics in the cabin.

Finn has expressed confidence the update will continue where the outgoing car leaves off, delivering 'an outstanding driving experience.

'We certainly anticipate the new model will further enhance this proposition. It's exciting to read developments associated with the new range.'