Astra sedan gets tough test
rear suspension compared with the Watts linkage from the hatch.
It will be exclusively powered by the 110kw/240nm 1.4-litre turbo-charged four cylinder available in the lower-grade Astra R hatch with a choice of either a six-speed manual or automatic transmission driving the front wheels.
Before the final versions arrive in showrooms, the prototype models we’re testing are called ‘‘65 per cent’’ integration vehicles. They are essentially mechanically relevant to the final production models, with elements that can still be fine-tuned while details such as the plastics used in the cabin don’t have the same level of finish as those that will make it into showrooms.
The two cars at our disposal – one used for testing Holden’s suspension, transmission and stability control tweaks and the other to validate local tuning for electronic systems such as the sat nav and audio system – were hand-built in Germany and shipped to Lang Lang over a year ago when the Australian test process began.
Today, we’ve also got a full production Astra R hatch as a reference point over a series of exercises within Lang Lang – a slalom on a dirt track designed to showcase the stability control intervention and a few circuits around a demanding ride and handling course to assess the suspension and steering improvements – as well as a road loop through the Gippsland hills that Tassone and his team regular use to test in more real-world conditions.
We’ve already driven the Cruze sedan in America earlier this year and was reasonably impressed with its packaging and the overall presentation of its interior, but it clearly didn’t have the dynamic flavour that Holden wanted.
If anything, the prototypes showcase – once again – the impressive results achieved by Holden’s engineering team. While Tassone claims the objective was to ensure the sedan has a more conservative bias towards comfort, rather than the sportier flavour of the hatch, he concedes there also needs to be a common dynamic thread between the two.
The outcome is that Holden may have achieved both. Compared to the hatch, which Holden took virtually unchanged from Europe, the ‘‘ride and handling’’ sedan’s steering is clearly lighter but feels a little more consistent across the ratio with a nice natural feel. The suspension feels more compliant over small, sharp bumps and also reacts better to bigger impacts, and while there is a little more body roll through the bends when driven enthusiastically it is predictable and stable and can be hustled harder than anyone will probably ever push it.
The dirt slalom run showcased how gently, but effectively, its electronic stability control intervened when driven on lowgrip surfaces, as well as the benefits of its torque vectoring system which Holden also reworked to suit local conditions.
Out on the road, the 1.4-litre engine needed to be pushed hard to keep pace during some steep inclines but the automatic worked intuitively enough and responded positively to inputs, shifting down gears smoothly to maintain momentum.
All in all, it appears that Holden has done another cracking job by injecting some dynamic flavour into the Astra sedan in the areas that needed it most.
But we’ll reserve our judgement on where the Astra sedan fits into the booming small car community until we get behind the wheel of one without swirly camouflage and a cloaked interior.