The
Astra GTE's of the 80's were much lusted after at the time and favourites during
the depths of the joy riding epidemic. Keeping one on your driveway was a brave
move.
The GTE eventually evolved into the GSi and Vauxhall are hoping to recreate
the desire for their hot hatches with a new high performance three door GSi
version of the Astra.
This latest hot hatch attempts to combine comfort, convenience and safety
whilst taking the battle to the other manufacturers with a 200hp turbo charged
engine. The GSi sprints from 0 to 60mph in seven seconds and it powers on to
150mph.
Development was carried out by engineers at the General Motors OPC
performance centre in Germany. Styling was done elsewhere with the front of the
car looking reasonable purposeful but the rear view lacks punch, with that rear
spoiler looking out of place amongst the other relatively subtle design cues.
That spoiler is there for a purpose maintain Vauxhall, providing downforce at
speed.
Other
exterior include special 17-inch alloy wheels, other distinctive features
include a GSi grille and front and rear lower skirts. Viewed from the front, the
enlarged air intakes, black engine grille and air cooler are the main focus.
Ducts located next to the round fog lights :banghead:, integrated into the
bumper, channel cool air to the brake system.
Side sills, body-coloured side moulding and door handles, ‘carbon-look’
B-pillars and dark tinted rear lights finish off the distinctive look of this
Astra model.
The chassis has been lowered by 20 mm in the front, with stiffer springs and
a combination of switchable Electronic Stability Program (ESP), traction control
(TCPlus) and ABS all scrabble to control the chassis when under pressure. At
215/40 ZR17, the GSi wears fatter tyres than its sporting SRi brother, fitted to
light alloy wheels measuring 7.5 J x 17. Large discs – 308mm ventilated front
/ 264 mm rear – ensure it can stop.
Much of the testing for the new chassis was carried out on the demanding
Nurburgring in Germany. "We have meticulously fine-tuned the
chassis," says Volker Strycek. "The new Astra GSi is very agile, a
quality which makes cornering great fun. But despite the sporty set-up, the ride
chosen for the Astra makes travelling over a long distance a pleasant experience."
The 3-door Astra GSi is being built in Antwerp, Belgium with the final
assembly taking place at Opel’s Rüsselsheim plant in Germany. On the road
price is £16,495 pitching it right into the battle of the hot hatches.
Links: [links]Astra|astra[/links]
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