Holden Astra

Purchased car @ Ventura Autos in Welshpool Western Australia.. James the owner is professional, accommodating and goes beyond expectation of service. Bought a CDX Astra 2006 and it's valued for the price!

Have had a 2018 Astra R+ hatchback for under 2 years with 11k kms on the clock so far.

Pros- it’s a drives like a dream with excellent ride, handling with decent power and kit. Good value for money

Cons- very bad paint quality, chips very easily, almost as if they used crayons for paint.
Headlights are extremely inadequate out of the city or on dark unlit roads
The placement of the reverse camera and the resolution are causes for limited utility

The Hokden Astra is a snazzy little car, very nifty, reliable, and keeps for a long time if cared for properly. I absolutely loved the Holden Astra got me thru alot.

My brother bought a Holden AH astra diesel on the back of the proviso of quality European/German engineering and build quality from a car salesman that recommended it. My brother also liked it and thought it was a good car. After paying $21,000 for it secondhand, the emission control system started acting up, clouds of bluish white smoke, engine misfiring, and going into limp mode, gearbox issues involving not staying in 5th gear, (kept going into 4th and staying there with the engine running at high speed. Only after 80km/h, the ability to hold 5th gear actually occurred. The dealer support was awful. No interest at all in helping him with the problems at all.

The car went through 4 alternators, and 8 batteries in the space of 8 years, cause the car was alwys going flat. (it kept needing to be charged with a battery charger and was a complete loss of $21,000. My brother was ripped off badly, and the service contract that was supposed to be a savior? that was a joke. No help at all.

Stay away from Holden products out of Europe, especially Europe. South Korean cars from Holden maybe better, but my brother was taken down. Don't touch it with a ten foot pole.

Our 2018 Holden Astra Sportwagon is a replacement for a 13 year old V6 petrol SUV.
It comes with a turbo charged 4 cylinder 1.4 litre engine that is as economical as it is powerful. Suburban driving returns 6.8 litres per 100km with the car being used every day as a family workhorse. Clocking over 500 km per week it is easy to drive due to its low centre of gravity and six speed auto gearbox, which has a " Sport " mode.
Rear load space ( with seats down ) is over 1600 litres and by any measure this is HUGE. Four tie down hooks keep Charlie the Labrador well away from where he wants to sit - the front of the car .
Loads of safety equipment including Autonomous Emergency Braking and Lane Keep Assist along with six airbags give this car a five star safety rating. The wipers and headlights are both automatic and as with most new cars rear vision is not great but this is negated with standard equipped Rear Sensors and Reverse Camera
The tech savvy in your family will love the infotainment set up with Digital Radio and includes Apple Car Play & Android Auto.
A very stylish car with Alloy wheels and rear spoiler as standard. A side on view shows lines similar to a well known european brand ( poss BMW ? )
From new it comes with a 5 year unlimited km warranty and capped price servicing. Road side assist is for 1 year but extends to 5 years if serviced at a Holden dealership.
Due to it being classed a " small " vehicle, insurance and registrations costs are lower.

Best points are its outstanding fuel economy , rear load space and overall low running costs.

It could do with rear vents for the air cond and rear cup holders.

Great little car....Had our little blue Astra since 2005...The only thing that eventually played up was the steering pump as I did put bigger wheels on it.We have put down 280,000km on this car and never broke down...Keep the required water pump,belt and coil packs in check along with normal maintenance and they will go for ages...Plenty of torque in our 1.8 the Z18XE engine and does not burn any oil.

I myself rate this car a lot better and safer than the Corolla of the same year ,I have driven a 2006 corolla and do not like the jelly like feeling in the steering wheel not to mention the lack of power...

For a P player these I’d recommend as they are a good solid build and the engine adequate for a first car.

Really like any car they require maintenance..

With this engine the z18xe check that the water pump,rocker gasket,timing belt and coil pack have all been kept in check and you cannot go wrong...

People bag Astra’s but I know what I ‘d rather be in if faced with a collision..

Our’s the cdxi and came with curtain airbags back then,yes 2005 already curtain airbags..the 2006 model added stability and traction control I think but am not 100%...

We have updated the stereo to DAB and have also fitted a body kit along with the sri wheels...

It’s getting old but still turns heads..

The Astra RSV is comfy, stylish and has great features. The Adaptive Cruise Control has failed numerous times and the Bendigo dealership was unable to detect the problem. The features are lacking compared to our Calais V - no front camera, no windscreen display projection and manual seat adjustments. Overall, a good car but getting faults fixed is proving to be a problem.

I bought this car 2017 holden Astra R as demo model 60kms brand new, only done 40,000kms in a year... car was shuttering called dealership and( I piston had failed on motor )....40,000 on clock holden replacing Piston under car Warranty ...holden are not offering any thing else . DO NOT. BUY problems already at 40,000 KMS thinking what else is going to go wrong on this now.

Hi, I just bought an old car and just recently it has some problems:
* Emission and TCS light always on
* Whenever speed back to 0 (red light, traffic), pressing gas takes long time to increase speed
* Engine has a weird noise

Can someone please help and let me know what's going on?

Thanks in advance.

serviced twice a year used for visiting relatives around the state excellent on fuel economy sum long like to sydney or larger regoinal citys liks dubbo or mudgee shopping trips to larger towns mostly over an hour away or doctors appoinments eye or heart specialist, vacation driving to the coast

Purchased a 2007 SRi Astra off the showroom floor from Von Bibra Robina. The car was impressive to start off with, but many issues have tainted my enthusiasm over Holden.
All the problems seem to be recurring, but no product recalls at any point!
First the aircon compressor packed up. Took it to 2 different technicians: "Usual issue with Atra." $550 to replace/repair compressor clutch coil thermal fuse.
Then, at about 120,000km the gearbox started whining in 6th gear. You guessed it! Two different gearbox specialists said it was a recurring problem with the Astra.
At around the same time, the metallic silver paint started fading. I reported it to the dealer, but they said that they'd never seen anything like it before. I took the vehicle in to them, but they just shrugged their shoulders and said I should speak to Holden Australia. When looking on car sale websites, I came across 12 vehicles with the exact same issue. The panel beaters I have taken it to say that it is a common problem with Holden. The clear coat has failed. The car now looks horrendous with large marks on the back bumper, bonnet and roof. Holden Australia say that it is "normal deterioration" and weren't prepared to do anything about it.
The gearlever knob has disintegrated and the gearlever boot has lost all it's cover. The headlights have faded and the horn stopped working at about 50,000km.
When purchasing a vehicle new and looking after it, you'd expect better quality and durability than what Holden has delivered. I purchased a Toyota Corolla approximately 10 months after the Astra and have had no comparable issues whatsoever. It has had 2 recalls which the dealer took care of. Guess who I'll be buying my next car from! Definitely not Holden.

We chose the Astra RSV 1.6 turbo
Terrific car for our small family and recommend it to anyone looking for a reliable performer.
It’s fuel economy around town with Aircon on is about 7L/100km and is quite easy to drive with minimal road noise.
Holden have completed the first two services so far without anything extra needing to be fixed.

We purchased this Astra after having a TS hatch from new in 2005 and needed to update. After looking at the options, we decided to purchase the RSV with touring pack. This included the sun roof and the adaptive cruse control. (couldn't justify the expense for the innovations pack for LED headlights) The must have was the adaptive cruse control. This car is brilliant in features, performance and reliability, it is a real testament to the Opel brand and to the Holden team that tweaked it for the Australian conditions. I did research the vehicle on overseas forum sites before purchase and from what I was reading, the 1.6 L is the pick of the motors. The only thing I can say against this car is the paint is quite soft and chips easily. If I had know this when purchasing I would have got a clear wrap on the vehicle at delivery and then had nothing to complain about. After saying that I would not hesitate in re-investing in the same vehicle given the time over.

I have had my 2006 Holden Astra Station Wagon for 2.5 years. I purchased this particular vehicle because it is a small wagon with heaps of boot space.

Overall I enjoy driving this car. With the 5 speed, the gear between 2nd and 3rd is short meaning you need to get the revs up to around 2800rpm to drop it into 3rd at 2000rpm for the right speed. Mechanically the car is very fuel efficient. On 98 Octane, it will do city driving around 8.2L/100kms. On country driving I have got just under 7L numerous times.

In the wagon, the rear seats can be moved so you can completely fold the rear seat flat. It allows you to store a lot of stuff!!!

Being a German designed car, the handling is very very good along with the brakes. It's responsive in sharp turns and holds the road well on the standard tyres. It has saved me several times in avoiding cars suddenly coming out of driveways to veer off with no body roll. The engine has good torque but requires some additional push in traffic and on hills (perhaps due to the extra weight of the wagon vs the hatch). It isn't quick by any means.

The body quality and interior parts are pretty poor for a car built in 2006. The factory clear coat has completely peeled on the roof and is starting on the bonnet and right side of the car (both drivers and RHS passenger door, front bumper). The left side has no peel. I've seen the clear coat come off other silver wagons but also other AH Astra's in various places (wagon and hatch). It seems to be a problem with early AH models imported into Australia (2005 - 2006). Another common problem is the steering wheel material coming off. You can still use the steering wheel, it just looks like it is falling apart.

The ventilation control behind the heater wouldn't turn the heater flap soon after I purchased it. I figured out this was because of a loose electrical connection. I resoldered some wires and it fixed the problem. The power window button for the driver snapped and I also replaced this (part is about $15 for 5 buttons).

Lastly, turn on the headlights and beep the horn. If it doesn't work, an Body Control Unit may either be not functioning or the connections are loose. There is a fix where Holden / Opal put connectors to push the wires together. I had this done out of consideration as I purchased the car second hand.

You can understand how General Motors who owned Opal are going broke, just not enough attention to the car overall !!!

Would I still buy one? Considering I'd have to get a 4WD to supplement my needs (where this car will put to shame many 4WDs for storage space ) I'd say yes...but only if the paint and trim didn't fall apart!

this car is just enough for myself , small but is put down the back seat the room is big enough for any loading. I service the car once a year but never have problem , i can not believe this car allready been 11 years. never have any big issues,

There are not many convertible 4 seater cars in the market for the price of an Astra. convertible roofs are complex and prone to faults. Astra is not exception. but finding parts for this car is easy in Australia.
My car had these issues since owning it:
- roof stopped working. busted hydraulic pipe cost around 1k to fix
- leaking engine once from rocker gasket and once from oil pressure sensor
- wheel hub and screws and nuts needed replacements
- shock absorbents needed replacement

lots of issues for a car done just 130k. but still cheaper than trying to buy a let's say golf convertible.

Bought it when I was 16 as a learners car, it’s great on fuel economy (I get about 7L/100km Maximum km is 700km and minimum is 450ish km with spirited driving) and very cheap as well ( $50 for full tank depends on fuel price ) With one full tank I can go from Dunsborough to Perth and still have half a tank left! It handles and feels like a big car, the noise on freeway driving is little to none, interior is a bit plastic-ish but it doesn’t bother me, leg room both front and rear is amazing! I can fit 5 people easily, and when I need to haul stuff I just put the rear seats down. I live in the country/coastline and I do take her off-roading/soft-roading every time and she does the job! Very reliable if maintenanced regularly, only thing to look out for when buying is the timing belt/water pump, change it every 50xxxkms. I’ve had mine for nearly 2 years of doing Learners and 18 months of P-plates and did 47xxxkms before breaking down when water pump gave up spunning the timing belt, piston hits the valve. Other than that is great reliable car.

We brought our Astra in June. I’m super happy with it. We originally owned a Cruze and as much as I like it this car is better. The smoothness of it is what I love he most and it’s turbo. The features in it are great (apple car play) the old system was a bit slow but not any more I connect straight away. The boot is large which is great with a pram the back seats are roomy. Have had two adults and a car seat and everyone was fine. For what I paid and what I got I’m over the moon thanks Holden

I absolutely love this car! Great space in the boot as it’s a sedan, plus it also has all the extras you might need in your every day driving apart from an electric engine. Average fuel consumption is around 5.7-6.5l. Really comfortable, easy to use interface, huge screen and wheels which help you to focus more on the traffic rather than worrying about how to operate what.

Very impressed with this vehicle for under $20k, have compared with other vehicles, has day time driving lights, rain sensor wipers, stop start, Emergency Bracking, lane keeping assistance, auto lights, reverse camera and rear sensors, Apple car play, DAB radio, Seven inch touch screen, seventeen inch alloy wheels, leather steering, 1.4 litre turbo very fuel efficient, made in Europe. Great styling with piano finish. Seriously most expensive vehicles don't gave half the stuff. Also 7 year warranty with 3 year roadside (RACV)......