Vauxhall Astra GTC Coupe (2011 - 2018) 2.0 CDTi 16V SRi 3d (2011/61) Owner Review

What does this car say about you?

That I love driving the tight and twisty back roads on a Sunday but have a sensible streak through the week.

What do your friends / family / neighbours think of the car?

They all love it, although my mother still thinks I'm showing off!

Would you buy this car again and why?

Probably not because I need a car that gives me reduced running costs and higher family practicability. 3 doors and young kids isn't always great! But it has been a great few years - highly recommend.

What are you likely to buy next?

Either a 4 door saloon or a high model hatchback - haven't decided yet.

Type of dealer you bought from?

Franchised

Did you buy this car new?

No

What price did you pay?

£15,000

When did you buy the car?

December 2012

Did you get a good deal and why?

Yes, the car was a 1 year old demonstrator, with extras like sat nav, front and rear parking sensors, Bluetooth phone and upgraded alloy wheels.

Is there any special reason why you bought this car?

I wanted a sports car and this fitted the bill in just about every way! - plus it was on special offer and needed to be sold.

What was the dealer like?

Clearly wanted to make a sale, was very smiley and charming, until I bought the car, afterwards they couldn't give a damn about me.

What's it like to drive?

The 163bhp 2.0L Diesel is a great engine, lots of torque between 1750-2250rpm. Gives a satisfying shove in the small of your back when you race off from the lights. On the back roads this thing is great, the Bridgestone Protenza S001's are amazing. Couple that with the Hi-Per Strut suspension and the car corners superbly with masses of grip. On the motorway, the car calms down and is comfortable and relatively quiet. The engine gives very good fuel comsumption and I've managed 650 miles on a tank. There is a bit more tyre roar than I would like. Round town, the car does feel big and those large pillars coupled with tiny back windows do make visibility an issue. Just drive carefully for a bit.

What's it like to park?

The width of the car is large and the doors a re huge, add in limited visibility and this isn't shaping to well. However I have front and rear parking sensors which I feel are a must. I lived down a tight street for a year with this car and it was parking on the side of the road. You get good at parking quickly in that scenario. Just take it slow for the first few attempts until you learn the limits of the car and get parking sensors!

Have you had any problems with the car?

Nothing has gone wrong mechanically, but I have had trouble with the paint lacquer on the alloys flaking off. This led to a big complaint at the dealer and eventually got sorted - shouldn't have happened though. Make sure you check this at the dealer before you buy!

What's most practical about your car?

The car has a great size boot and folding the rear seats down makes it very accommodating, although there is a big lip to the boot so getting heavy stuff and pets in the boot isn't the easiest, but day to day I don't notice it. The doors are huge, so getting in and out of the back is easy but watch out when in car parks as that size does mean that tight spaces are to be avoided. I average 50mpg out of the 2.0 Diesel engine on my 20 mile daily commute which isn't bad and not far off the 55mpg combined claim in the handbook. Also I can live with the £36/week fuel costs which is practicable.

Favourite gadget, option or accessory?

The 19" Alloys on this car are the bees knees. They look fantastic and I get compliments on them where ever I go. Sat Nav is good, but does have a habit of changing to German for no reason whatsoever, easy enough to change back though. The interior is a great place to be and the usb slot for playing music is very nice, although be warned, it does only play .mp3 files and only loads 1000 tracks at a time.