An Astra for the mature time

by Brian Byrne



With a third of all car sales in the first quarter of the year, the compact family segment has both maintained numbers and gained market share in an overall market that has dipped by some 9 percent.

That shows its importance to car distributors here. And explains why, even in a time when we're all being exhorted to think smaller, they're putting substantial resources into marketing them.

And it is also why Opel has decided to bring its 4-door Astra saloon to the Irish scene. It is late in the game, but this is partly because there simply wasn't a sedan variant available in these regions for its most successful car for years.

In fact, the 4-door is more a response to eastern European and Asian needs than for Western Europe, because hatchback and estate versions are by a long shot the preferred options on the more developed parts of the Continent. The sedan Astra will sell much more strongly in Russia and its former satellite countries than in France or Germany or Britain.

But we're an anomaly in this respect, as the Irish car buyer has always had a grá for a car with a boot, and the continuing success of the Toyota Corolla here when that nameplate became a sedan only is the most evident testament to that. It currently is running third behind Ford's Focus and VW's Golf, the first a mix of mainly hatches and some sedans, the latter purely hatch.

Astra is tipping along in fourth place, and having just got out of a stint in the sedan, I'm of the opinion that there could be a significant extra chunk of market here now that the 4-door has arrived.

When the current generation Astra was first launched it caused more than a ripple amongst its direct competitors. For a long time the Golf had been the perceived benchmark in the compact family hatch business. Previous Astras weren't seriously considered as anything more than sold and dependable cars.

Then came Ford's Focus and the new generation Astra, and suddenly the VW car not only had real competition in dynamic terms, it was in many estimates no longer a front runner.

Today, the consensus is that the Golf badly needs some new style and engineering if it is ever to regain its premier position. And as to whether the Focus or the Astra are the best drivers in the segment at the moment, the Ford is generally more favoured but it's really a matter of taste.



To the review car now. To my taste, admittedly one which has always preferred the style proportions of a nice saloon, this 4-door Astra is beautifully shaped. It isn't one to stop you in your tracks, indeed it has much more conservative lines than either of the hatches. But there's considerably more elegance to the lines. The rear pillars of the passenger compartment is always a test, and though the roofline does curve back there's a proper 'notch' to the back window interface with the rear deck.

The boot treatment itself is clean, even to the point of not having a visible latch -- the luggage space is accessed by holding down the 'open' button on the keyfob for a few seconds.



The opening to the boot itself is adequate rather than wide, but there's plenty of space inside, and I guess the car is built on the same rear overhang specification as is the estate.

The inside of the car is standard Astra, and that's a phrase which indicates simple dash lines of a good quality finish. The instrumentation is classic, clear, and doesn't require fancy backlighting for all information to be instantly available even on a very bright day.





The entertainment and heating controls are equally familiar and Opel-definitive by now. The only glitch is the lack of clear hot/cold areas on the temperature selection knob. Manual aircon is standard on the Design specification of the review car.

The seats in this specification are Morrocana-trimmed at the edges, and decently comfortable ... perhaps not as laterally supportive as they look.

In the back, that conservative take to the roofline shows its worth, allowing more than ample headroom even for my 6'2" and plenty of knees space. There's more rear room here than in a couple of cars from the next segment up.

This Astra came powered by the 115hp 1.6 petrol engine, the only one available just now. And I think that's a good choice as a balance between economy and performance. At 11.7 seconds for the sprint to 100 km/h, this isn't a car that is designed to exhilarate. But the acceleration is adequate, and comes with a combined fuel consumption of 6.6 l/100km 0r more than 42mpg. And all this is carried out with a smoothness that is a testament both to the quality of the engine and the slickness in the way the five-speed manual box and its clutch can be used.

There's a good level of specification for your ¢25,160, including smart alloys, auto lights and wipers, fogs and plenty more.

I left back this car with the distinct feeling that it had struck the correct balance between a young family's need for the practicalities of a good hatch and the more conservative preferences of the more mature family whose children are no longer always around. In fact, I could see somebody downsizing quite happily from a Vectra or the now much larger Mondeo to the latest variant of the Astra, and not finding themselves uncomfortable.

This car didn't light my fire in any way. There was no sudden flare of flame. But there's a time in front of a real fire when it radiates a pleasant heat for a considerable time. And that is this Astra's time.

Not my kind of Club, man

by Brian Byrne



I'll be clear from the start. I like the new generation Mini, BMW's take on the car that was one of the enduring icons of the swinging sixties.

They took the theme, and moved it on, and upwards in position. And they have deserved the success they've enjoyed with the car.

In its own way it swings, and it zings. And indeed, doesn't need any reference to its original namesake to be an icon in its own right.

The Clubman version was launched towards the end of last year and for various reasons of my own I wasn't able to take a run in one until recently.

And I'll be clear from the start. I don't like it.

It is a third variant for the modern brand, after the core model and the cabrio that followed. And they are planning an SUV version for some time next year. A Mini for every taste and need is the policy, it seems.

We've seen the Clubman coming since the first concept in 2005. By and large, the production result didn't have any surprises. The idea was to emulate the Traveller, Countryman and Clubman Estate versions of the original car. It was also an attempt to offer solutions to the core model's shortcomings.

'Shortcomings' being the very apt word. For all the comfort which front occupants enjoy, the pair of seat positions in the rear offer at best minimal leg room, at worst none at all.

By making the Clubman 24cm longer, the designers provided 8cm more room in that rear seat area. This also persuaded them to make three seating positions in the rear. And the Clubman got a third side door, which opens on rear hinging, with a view to making access easier. The luggage space got bigger too. And instead of a rear hatch, a pair of vertical doors -- also reflecting the Traveller et al -- are provided.

One objective was certainly achieved. The Clubman looks distinctly different from the core Mini. But different is not always right.

Actually, the aesthetics have been compromised. The external proportions of the core Mini are about as perfect as you can get in a car. For its width and height, the length is spot on. The Clubman just looks too long.

Ah, go on ... surely this is nit-picking, and being precious? Maybe. Maybe not. It is all from one's point of view. And this one is my perspective.



Then there's that 'Clubdoor' for rear access to a space that, really, isn't significantly any more comfortable than in the standard Mini. It's on the right hand side. Perfectly positioned for countries where they drive on the left, where it will open onto the footpath. Here in Ireland, in Britain, in Japan and in Australia, it opens into the flow of traffic unless you've crossed the road to park against the traffic.

BMW say they can't make a version with the Clubdoor on the left. Something about the position of the fuel filler system. Hey, guys, you've concepted this thing for three years, how come an engineer didn't spot this? Especially as the car is built in Britain, and Britain (and Japan) are among its larger markets.

Then, too, the driver's seatbelt mounting is set into the Clubdoor, so that when entering or egressing the rear there's a distinct possibility of tripping over it. Car companies have been sued for millions for lesser situations.



Now, from the driver's viewpoint, there's another serious difficulty. Literally 'viewpoint'. Those vertical rear doors mean that you're looking out back through a pair of windows with a significant piece of doorframes metal in the middle. Depending on the distance of the car behind, there are times when it isn't visible. And at night on a winding road, any following car will be dazzling you wildly with the flicker effect of its headlights criss-crossing those centre frames.

It isn't nice.

I'm not impressed with the latest iteration of the large central speedometer/info cluster either. This isn't a Clubman specific problem, but part of the revision of the new Mini a couple of years ago. For a start, in its position it is far too big. And in spite of that, or partly even because of it, the 'floating' red edge on the review car that indicates the speed is not easily seen. If you want analogue, use a needle on the dial -- and that is available on some versions.

And hey, while I'm at it, the radio controls are a triumph of brash bling design over usability.



A total thumbs down for Clubman? Not completely. The driving position itself is great, the seats really supportive and good-looking, the shifter works beautifully as you wind the car through traffic.

The 1.6 petrol engine in the current generation Mini has been jointly developed by BMW and PSA Peugeot-Citroen and it is a honey, as well as being a quantum better than the one in the first generation. You get 120hp or 175hp depending on whether you buy the Cooper or the turbocharged Cooper S, and CO2 emissions are 132g/km and 150g/km respectively. You could also go for the 1.4 diesel with a miserly 109g/km ... but it isn't as refined a motor.

All versions come with a bunch of eco-gadgetry, including Auto Start-Stop, Brake Energy Regeneration, and a Gearshift Point Indicator ... which latter I feel is overblown in importance, as most drivers don't want the distraction of watching for a light to tell them to shift.

End of story ... I still like the Mini, a lot ... and I still don't like the Clubman, much. But it won't matter -- there's a buyer for every copy of every Mini variant made and as an icon that makes you smile, it will undoubtedly be a significant part of the success story of this BMW junior brand.