2006 Vauxhall Astra VXR from UK and Ireland - Comments

No I don't think the Astra will handle better than the Impreza. I personally don't like the Astra or the Impreza. Just saying a huge amount of Imprezas are seen week in, week out driving around town with a baseball-capped youth behind the wheel trying to impress the young girls with the volume of their dump valve, and the 5 inch tail pipe poking out the back. Face it, the Impreza has a chav image.

The cars might be more readily available because the amount of time they have been in production; you can buy old ones for a few thousand. But the insurance is still sky high, no matter how old the car, putting it out of reach of a lot of young people. I don't see them very often; the sort of people you describe I usually see driving a Corsa or Clio.

I am about to order a new Astra VXR, I have been a VW man for the past 4 years but I have really gone off the new cars as they seem too bland in looks and performance (yes the ed30 is just as fast as the VXR but you pay the price for those and they still seem bland on the outside). Don't really fancy a Leon as the new one looks rubbish (love the old Cupra R) and as for the ST, I just don't like the way they look. After test driving the VXR I just fell in love, the build is on a par to VW and I love the way you have to really work at driving the car fast, the VW I have at the mo has 180bhp which is all well and good but the ride is far too soft for a 'warm' car and is sooooo bland round bends.

So all in all I can't see what all the stick the VXR seems to get from the likes of Top Gear, it's a great car, and is by far the best looking 'hot hatch' you can buy.

Can't wait to get it!

I have owned a VXR since Jan 2006 and it is by far the most enjoyable car I have ever owned.

It has never broken down and only visited the Dealership for minor faults i. e seat belt sticking etc etc.

I have have mine running at approx 300hp with uprated suspension and wheels and it is rapid to say the least with excellent handling.

I normally get bored of a car within 18 months but this brings a smile to my face everyday.

Get over the snobbery of its badge and you will have a car that looks and performs far better than all of its competition.

The Astra VXR is the worst handling car in its class (the Golf GTI, CTR, Focus ST, Ibiza Cupra etc) because it has too much power, so imagine how it would be with 300bhp LOL.

Didn't the 197bhp Civic Type R beat the 240bhp VXR around the the Top Gear track? Vauxhall don't make cars that handle well.

These newer Vauxhalls are far better. As to the Civic, it has similar power to weight ratio to the Astra (166bhp per ton against 172bhpper ton I think) so really the extra 40bhp is misleading, and the fact that they lap the track in such similar times is a credit to the VXR given that the Civic is commonly viewed as one of the best handling hot hatches built.

The Astra has put some impressive times around different tracks. I think that rather than adding 60bhp, stripping weight would have been more beneficial, or adding a LSD with the extra power.

The VXR is quicker as an Impreza STi, Evo any day.

No it isn't, it hasn't got the running gear to be as quick as EVO or STI, it could never put its power down like they could.

Trust me it's not, the Evo and STi are in a different league.

Oh yeah, the VXR is just as quick if not quicker; it is rapid.

A VXR is as quick as an Evo LOL. 240bhp FWD against 300bhp 4WD, the evo goes around the Top Gear track a massive 5 seconds quicker than the VXR, and that's the 300 bhp Evo; even the 197bhp CTR is quicker round a track than the VXR.

The VXR is far quicker than them all.

"The VXR is far quicker than them all"

The VXR is similar to the Civic Type R, but Evos and Scoobys with 300 bhp plus will leave it far behind in a drag race or around a track!

Original reviewer here. Thanks for all the positive comments. Still have the car now. 42,000 miles on the clock and it's needed nothing other than servicing and tyres. Apart from the way it seems to attract dodgy looking kids around it whenever you park it up (not the car's fault), it's been totally painless to own. No plans to get rid yet.

Re the Evo/Subaru question, a friend has a factory standard Evo 8 FQ300 and it would leave the Astra for dead in any scenario. Trust me on that. 0-60 in 4.9 seconds vs the Astra's 6.2. totally different world.

I've driven the Evo and it's not just the straightline speed, but the whole package. It's a rally car for the road. It can corner pretty much as quickly as you dare chuck it in, and point to point on a good road, would leave almost anything for dead.

That's all great, but on the flip side, the Astra will do an easy 30 mpg in daily driving. The Evo, struggles to do 20. The Mitsi needs servicing every 4500 miles against the Astra's 20,000 miles. The Astra has Vauxhall parts costs, the Evo, um doesn't. And that's without the hideous matter of insuring an Evo, something that brings tears to my mate's eyes even being the wrong side of 30 with full NCB and an impeccable history. I have almost the same credentials and my insurance premium is about a third of his.

The Astra is a quick car with Vauxhall ownership costs. The Mitsi is a VERY quick car with supercar ownership costs. Different car, different market.

What sort of MPG do you get from a VXR.