Vauxhall Astra 1.4 VVT Turbo Car Review

Facts At A Glance
Car: Vauxhall Astra 1.4 VVT Turbo
Prices: £17,290-£20,470 – on the road INSURANCE GROUPS: 8-10 [est]
Emissions: 139-164g/km
Performance: max speed 128mph / 0-60mph 9.0s
Fuel Consumption: 36.2mpg (urban), 58.9mpg (extra urban), 47.9mpg (combined)
Safety: Six airbags, seatbelt pre-tensioners, ABS brakes, ESP.
Dimensions: length/width/heightmm 4419/1814/1510

SERVICE CHARGE

Our Rating: 7.9 / 10

A 1.4-litre family hatch is a far more compelling proposition when there’s a turbocharger involved. Steve Walker tries the Vauxhall Astra 1.4 VVT Turbo.

Small turbocharged engines are cropping up with increased regularity in our mid-sized cars and the Vauxhall Astra 1.4 VVT Turbo neatly explains why. It achieves a smooth 138bhp with combined economy of close to 50mpg which is enough to make you question the need for diesel. The Astra itself sets a high standard for comfort and refinement and is at its best with this engine.

The turbocharger was once viewed as a slightly crude means of upping an engine’s power and was used, in the main, to give extra pep to fast hatchbacks and furious saloons. Today, our friend the turbo has been reborn. It does basically the same thing but in these more environmentally-enlightened times, it’s being additionally employed to help small engines power large cars without the expected drop-off in performance. Vauxhall’s Astra still utilises the turbo for purposes of going fast in its sporty guises but its 1.4-litre VVT Turbo models set out to make the fuel gauge as pleasant reading as the speedometer.

This is the sixth generation of the Vauxhall Astra. As a family hatchback, it competes in sector of the market where big volumes and big profits are the norm for the leading contenders so it’s fair to say that this is an extremely important car for Vauxhall. In order to compete with and, ideally, beat the likes of Ford’s Focus, Renault’s Megane, Honda’s Civic and Volkswagen’s Golf, Vauxhall made every effort to improve on the fifth generation model while retaining that car’s core qualities. With the Astra having proved consistently popular with UK car buyers down the years, there was no need to rock the boat too vigorously but the manufacturer claims significant advances in almost every area and is holding up the 1.4 VVT Turbo engine as a highlight.

The 1.4-litre family hatchback has never been a particular focal point of automotive desire. A decent 1.4-litre petrol engine will typically give you around 100bhp and that isn’t a lot for shifting a fully-laden family car up a hill. Vauxhall offers a normally-aspirated 1.4-litre VVT engine at the base of its Astra range and this will be adequate in most situations but the 138bhp 1.4-litre VVT Turbo opens up a world of extra possibilities. A 9.0s 0-60mph time compares very favourably with the 13.1s it takes the 98bhp 1.4, while the 200Nm maximum torque means overtaking manoeuvres and challenging gradients can be

Modern turbochargers are a whole lot more advanced than the blunt instruments that were being bolted onto to engines a few years back. The Astra 1.4 VVT Turbo has a water-cooled unit capable of spinning up to 200,000rpm integrated into its exhaust manifold. It’s designed to bring faster throttle response and a smoother power delivery in stark contrast to worst turbocharged cars of yesteryear which responded to throttle inputs with an extended pause followed by a mule-like kick of power that overwhelmed the tyres. In the Astra, it’s tough to detect a turbo at work as the acceleration pours on seamlessly. The experience would be like that of a 2.0-litre petrol car were it not for the 1.4 Turbo’s superior flexibility and torque in the middle of the rev-range.

The Astra handles with composure and while it can’t quite match the agility and feedback of the Ford Focus, its more relaxed, comfort-orientated approach will be preferable for many buyers. The ride quality is the highlight, with the car staying unruffled even over big undulations and rough surfaces. There’s plenty of grip and a very limited degree of body roll in the corners, so only the rather lifeless steering really counts against it.

The bodywork’s amalgamation of creases and curves works well without offering anything too dramatic to catch the eye. There’s still much to appreciate in the detailing, however, from the bold sill line that lifts over the rear wheelarches to the ruby red taillight clusters with their double chevron design. The Astra’s cabin will be more of a revelation for those familiar with the previous generation car. The themes are shared with the Insignia saloon and the build quality seems robust. The centre console is a mishmash of different buttons that isn’t immediately easy to grasp but the control interface is still a big improvement over the old Astra.

It’s no surprise that at 4420mm, the Astra is 170mm longer than its predecessor because most hatchbacks have been expanding with e