Vauxhall has released teaser photos of the new Astra (shared with European unit Opel) due to make its public debut at Frankfurt next September.
According to just-auto's Product Life Database (PLDB), first customer deliveries of the next generation model are due in the fourth quarter of 2015. Production will be based at two European plants, rather than the existing three. This was confirmed by General Motors in May 2012, when it said the car would be made at Ellesmere Port in England's northwest. Gliwice in Poland is the other plant, meaning the end of Astra build at Rüsselsheim, Germany.
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The five-door hatchback makes its public debut at Frankfurt. The estate might also be there, in prototype form, but the production debut venue is more likely to be Geneva in March 2016.
Opel-Vauxhall management said in May 2012 each of the two European plants building the new car would operate production on three shifts. The Astra would eventually be one of the many GM models to be available with a new 1.6-litre diesel engine. In February 2014, Opel said its Tychy engine plant in Poland would produce the new engine from 2017. The new six-speed gearbox and turbocharged 1.0-litre three-cylinder petrol engine from the Adam and Corsa will also be available.
Outputs from the car's engine range at launch will vary from 70kW/95hp to 147kW/200hp.
The five-door is smaller than the current car. With total length of 4.37m, it is almost 5cm shorter than its predecessor, and at 1.46m in height, sits 2.6cm closer to the ground.
The Astra is claimed to be up to 200kg lighter than the outgoing model. Bodyshell weight was reduced by 20% from 357kg to 280kg. Additional, chassis-related measures resulted in another 50kg of weight reduction; these include high-strength and ultra-high-strength low-weight steels, compact subframes as well as weight reductions to the front and rear axles.
In June 2014, Vauxhall told media the start of next generation Astra production at Ellesmere Port would be in "autumn 2015"'. The next generation Opel Astra OPC and Vauxhall Astra VXR would be launched in 2016 or 2017, powered by a turbocharged 1.6 litre petrol engine. The OPC and VXR will change body styles and have five doors as the GTC (three-door) will not be replaced.
This will be the first new Opel/Vauxhall to be available with OnStar, GM's personal connectivity and service assistant.
OnStar also makes the Astra a 4G LTE mobile Wi-Fi hotspot. Up to seven devices, from smartphones to tablets, can be connected simultaneously.
A new generation of the IntelliLink infotainment system will make its debut in the Astra. It is compatible with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
Product details: Glenn Brooks/PLDB
