WORLD OF WHEELS
OPEL ASTRA PUNCHES ABOVE ITS WEIGHT
THIS week we spend some time with the Opel Astra. What a fantastic car! And it’s easy to see why the Astra, the reigning European Car of the Year, has been selected as a finalist for the 2017 Wesbank South African Car of the Year (Coty) competition.
The Astra has also won many other international awards as well.
This is the second successive year in which an Opel has been named Coty finalist in South Africa after Adam and Corsa were voted as finalists last year.
The Astra is boxing above its weight in this segment and is packed with options usually only found in more expensive cars.
On the road and in town, the car is very sporty and packs a punch that will leave some of its main competitors stone cold.
The Astra which was launched in South Africa last year, has received great accolades from local as well as international media.
Packed with segment leading safety, infotainment and driver aid technology, the Astra is a game changer in the mid-size hatchback segment giving buyers access to technology usually reserved for luxury vehicles.
“We’ve won the big European prize and it would be a real honour to add the local trophy to our cabinet,” vice-president vehicle sales, service and marketing GM Sub-Saharan Africa Brian Olson enthused.
And there’s no getting away from it, the Astra is a front-runner in the SA Coty competition.
“There’s no doubt that Europe’s top automotive communicators found the Astra to be the best of the best and we hope that evaluators from the South African Guild of Motoring Journalists reach the same conclusion.
“Local customers have certainly recognised the Astra as the best in its class, so far demand has far outstripped supply with the new Astra achieving its best market share in 20 years,” Olson said.
Of course, Coty success is not new to the Opel brand, both here and abroad.
In 1985 a previous Astra generation was the European Coty, while on the local front Opel products were chosen by the SAGMJ evaluators as their benchmark car in 1991, 1994 and 1995.
Past and present Astra models clearly have got what it takes to win.
The SAGMJ Coty jury will evaluate the Astra and the other finalists early next month, with the winner announced on March 15.