The three-door version of the latest Astra was unveiled by Vauxhall last week, and astonished competitors by keeping the same low, coupé-like lines as the GTC concept car that was shown last year. There is a trend to differentiate the three and five-door variants of family cars but no other manufacturer has lowered the roof, extended the windscreen, and given their hatchback the high waist and narrow-window style of a sports car.
Ford, in particular, is viewing the new Astra three-door with concern. The new Focus will be revealed in two weeks’ time and its styling is more conventional: a departure from the “new edge” design of the original Focus. Three-door versions of these cars are a minority purchase, confined mostly to the two ends of the price spectrum — the cheapest entry models and the high-performance versions.
The three-door Astra will be unveiled at next month’s Paris Motor Show and will be on sale next March from about £11,000, with a choice of four petrol and three diesel engines. Three months later there will be a top-of-the-range VXR version with a turbocharged engine producing more than 230bhp.
The five-door Astra’s fine array of options to improve the car’s dynamics, including ESP-Plus stability control, and a sport switch that stiffens the suspension and sharpens accelerator and steering response, will be available on the three-door model.
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Although the arched rear roofline suggests otherwise, the three-door Astra has room for two adults in the back seat. Overall, it looks a sporty success.