Category: Small Family 
Price Range: £14,865 to £21,490
Well-equipped, smart design, good quality, pleasing petrol engines, agile chassis
Diesels a bit noisy, steering a little numb
A big advance on the last-generation model and the most competitive Astra yet - it's not quite a Golf-beater but it's almost there
The signs are good. General Motors claims to have spent an enormous £700 million on modernising the production facilities for the new Astra, and improving quality was high on the list of priorities. And while we can't yet say how reliable this Astra is going to be, the previous generation (1998-2004) fared reasonably well in customer satisfaction surveys.
Build quality on this new model seems respectable; cabin materials are good, with soft-feel plastics in most places. The sun visors make a hollow thud on the roof when flipped up, though, so perhaps more sound-proofing is needed up there, especially as there's some wind noise from around the top of the A-pillars, too.
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