Skip advert
Advertisement

2016 Vauxhall Astra review – new Astra is best yet, but can it excite? - Interior and tech

With an excellent engine and an outstanding ride the new Astra has some great attributes, but sadly it isn’t a drivers’ car

Evo rating
RRP
from £15,295
  • Great engine, unexpectedly fast and feels well built
  • Overall, just not very exciting

Interior and tech 

The Astra’s interior seems light and airy. The dash is littered with touches of chrome that nicely breaks-up the amount of black. The plastics used do feel luxurious and pleasant to touch. However you do find these plastics where you’d expect to find leather or metal, the gear knob in particular. Overall though, it feels very durable and well built.

Advertisement - Article continues below

The seating position is good, if a little bit too high. Find me a car that doesn’t feel like that, though. The steering wheel has a decent amount of adjustment, so getting comfortable isn’t difficult.

The main satnav screen seems to be angled upwards towards the roof of the car. It’s not difficult to see because of this, but you don’t expect the main source of the infotainment to be pointing in a different direction to the occupants. However, with DAB, satnav, Bluetooth it adds to the Astra’s pleasant environment.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

The 'sorry little vehicle' that became the subject of a literary classic
MG Metro
Opinion

The 'sorry little vehicle' that became the subject of a literary classic

Forget Catcher in the Rye, says Porter, Secret Fords is the real must-read
11 Dec 2025
Latest Rocketeer Mazda MX-5 will best the Ferrari F40 on power-to-weight
Rocketeer MX-5
News

Latest Rocketeer Mazda MX-5 will best the Ferrari F40 on power-to-weight

Rocketeer’s been stuffing V6 engines into MX-5s for a few years now. Its operation is now expanding
11 Dec 2025
EU petrol car sales ban to be axed. What does it mean for the UK?
Aston Martin Victor – exhaust pipe
News

EU petrol car sales ban to be axed. What does it mean for the UK?

The EU appears to have opted against an outright ban on the sale of petrol and diesel cars with more flexible emissions targets coming instead
12 Dec 2025