Opel Astra H (2004–2010)

What Opel changed after the Astra G

The H was longer than the car it replaced by roughly 10 to 23 cm, depending on body style, according to German Wikipedia. Sources disagree on what to call its platform: German Wikipedia names GM's Delta architecture, also used by Vauxhall, Holden and Saturn, while English Wikipedia describes an updated version of the older GM T platform. Either way, the mechanical layout stayed conventional, with transverse engines and front-wheel drive.

The bigger change was in equipment and chassis electronics. German-market cars came with six airbags, ABS, ESPplus stability control, TCplus traction control, Cornering Brake Control and brake assist as standard. Options included IDS+ electronic damper control, adaptive forward lighting with bi-xenon headlamps, a DVD navigation system, Bluetooth hands-free, tyre pressure monitoring and parking sensors. That list put the H closer to the class leaders of its day than the more basic G.

During its run the 10-millionth Astra was built, in 2008, a figure German Wikipedia gives for the whole Astra line. How the H compares with the five other Astras is summarised in the Opel Astra model overview.

Body styles from 2004 to 2010 and the 2007 facelift

German Wikipedia gives these production windows for the European cars:

• Five-door hatchback: March 2004 to September 2009.
• Caravan estate: August 2004 to September 2010.
• GTC three-door: March 2005 to September 2010, sold as the Sport Hatch in the UK.
• TwinTop: May 2006 to 2010, with a folding steel roof; English Wikipedia says the last cars were built in November 2010.
• Saloon: October 2006 to March 2010, aimed mainly at Eastern Europe; it reached German showrooms only in October 2008, with the 1.6 Twinport engine.
• Astravan: a three-door panel van added in 2006.

The facelift of February 2007 swapped the body-coloured rear lamp lenses for clear ones and changed both bumpers. The GTC and TwinTop received only a new grille with a rectangular mesh insert. A diesel particulate filter, optional at launch, became standard with the late-2006 update.

In Germany, list prices in June 2007 ran from 16,360 to 30,150 euros, according to German Wikipedia. After the J arrived, a cheaper Astra Classic III kept the H going in Germany until December 2014. In North America the car was sold as the Saturn Astra for 2008 and 2009, built in Belgium with a 1.8 engine.

Twinport, CDTI and turbo engines of the Astra H

English Wikipedia lists outputs in PS; the kW values below are converted from those figures, except where German Wikipedia gives kW directly. All versions are front-wheel drive.

The 1.3 CDTI won its class (1.0 to 1.4 litres) in the International Engine of the Year awards in 2005. The 1.7 CDTI came from Isuzu, and its 92 kW (125 PS) version arrived in 2007.

A five-speed manual was standard, with a six-speed manual on stronger engines. Opel also offered four- and six-speed automatics and Easytronic, an automated manual with five gears; German Wikipedia mentions a six-speed Easytronic for the 1.3 CDTI. Every version had a 52 L (11.4 UK gal) tank.

OPC and VXR: the 177 kW flagship

The Astra OPC went on sale in autumn 2005, based on the GTC body. Its 2.0 turbo engine produces 177 kW, quoted as 240 PS in most sources and 241 PS in some. German Wikipedia gives 6.4 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h and 244 km/h (152 mph). In Britain the same car was the Astra VXR.

Wider bumpers and sills, a centre-exit exhaust, 18-inch wheels (19-inch optional) and Recaro sports seats set it apart. At the end of October 2005, Manuel Reuter lapped the Nürburgring Nordschleife in 8:35.93 minutes, beating the previous class record by four seconds. A Nürburgring Edition of 2008 was limited to 835 cars with 19-inch two-tone wheels and IDS-Plus2 damping. The 2009 Race Camp, painted white with black details, used the mechanical chassis of the British VXR and had less equipment. The OPC was built until September 2010.

Astra H size by body: GTC, Caravan, TwinTop

The figures mix two sources: five-door length and height are rounded values from German Wikipedia, the other bodies come from English Wikipedia. Boot volumes are German Wikipedia figures (rear seats up / folded).

German Wikipedia gives the GTC height as about 1.44 m, so the two sources do not agree on that figure. The Caravan is the practical choice here and competes with other estate cars of the period, including the Skoda Octavia Combi.

Astra H in the 2004 Euro NCAP test

The car Euro NCAP crashed in 2004 was a left-hand-drive 1.6 Enjoy. English Wikipedia lists the result as 34 points for adult occupant protection, 39 for child occupants and 3 for pedestrian protection. We could not open the Euro NCAP record itself, so this page does not state a star rating. ADAC also crash-tested the H in 2004, but its result is not given in our sources.

The US-market Saturn Astra was rated by the IIHS, but it is a different specification and those results should not be read across to European cars. What can be said with confidence is the standard kit listed above: six airbags and ESPplus on German-market cars from launch.

Buying an Astra H today

The H is old enough that condition and history matter more than the badge. A few points come from the sources we used:

• Gearbox: German Wikipedia says the six-speed M32 manual fitted to the 1.7 CDTI (Z17DTH) is more failure-prone than the five-speed F23. Listen for gearbox noise on a test drive.
• Diesel particulate filter: the filter regenerates roughly every 1,000 to 2,000 km. While it does, fuel use rises by 5 to 10 L/100 km for a few kilometres.
• TwinTop roof: with the roof folded, the boot shrinks to about 200 L, so check that the mechanism opens and closes fully before buying.
• Easytronic: an automated manual rather than a torque-converter automatic, so it shifts differently; drive one before deciding.

For performance, the OPC is the pick, and the Nürburgring Edition the rarest version. For everyday use, the 1.8 with 103 kW (140 PS) or a 1.9 CDTI in the Caravan are the more versatile options. Rivals of the same era included the Ford Focus, while the larger Opel Vectra sat above it in the range. Current models are listed in the Opel catalogue.