2008 Saturn Astra
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First official picture of the US version of the Astra. As a Saturn.
The Astra will replace the Ion in late 2007 as a 2008 model.
They have announced earlier that the CC convertible will also make it to the States.
I am not sure if the 4 door will be the Hatchback or the sedan.
I guess we’ll find out soon…
GM is on a Roll! They are doing what Ford needs to do with some of their european cars. Way to go GM/Saturn!!
Of course it all depends on pricing, but i think this car could be a big hit for GM.
And make Saturn a cool brand for young buyers.
wow wow weeeeee wa
i wanna buy one, my 99 accent is almost dying anyway, could wait for a couple of year, gm finally tried to compete in the sub compact car segment!!!!
when i was in europe this summer, i saw quite a few astras, and i must admit that they are very good looking cars. they will surely be a hit…. but at what expense? the cobalt is pure garbage compared to this. how can gm justify giving this car to the saturn brand and leaving chevrolet (one of its main brands with more dealers) with crap like the cobalt??
at least gm knows what they need to do to stay in the game…that’s while they’ll survive…ford on the otherhand……
Vince8:35PM said, “I am not sure if the 4 door will be the Hatchback or the sedan…” _____ tho I’m sooooo glad to have a new & beautiful 3door hatchback choice!, hope they do BOTH a 4d sedan and a 5door – more like the Mz6-sporthatch than the Mz3-waggyhatch.
Finally! It took them long enough.
what a beauty it is gonna be a hit in the states no doubt especially if the pricing is right.
Too little too late. Will already be dated by the time it reaches market here. Should have been a domestic option now.
Great. But why ad the stupid chrome slats on the grille? They add nothing and make the car look less sporty. Now it looks dorky.
GM still has too many brands and too much redundancy among them. But Saturn just might be the one, reasonably priced GM division that sells cars people want.
When the Astra replaces the horrible ION, Saturn will consist of a full line or quite good vehicles. I hope they do sell the hatchback Astras here (badged as IONs or other name).
This is what GM has needed for years. Is the giant finally awakening?
the astra is a good car, clean design and a really solid and quality interior. Our extended family has two. The only downside is dull performance when the 92kW petrol engine is matched with the 4 speed auto and parts cost as they have to be imported from europe and AUS/EURo conversion is weak.
I’ve read where Saturn will offer 3- and 5-door versions, with the newly released 4-door Astra a strong possibility to follow.
Makes the “new” Corolla look old already.
Ive driven the Astra in Germany… It is a great little car. Surprised they need to develope a new engine for an auto transmission. The Europeans prefer manual trannys and if you have ever driven in Europe you will understand why. Sometimes you cant tell the difference between streets and sidewalks there.
GM – Please-Please-Please dont mess with the suspension for the US market !!!!
Wow! This is going to do extremely well here. It’s the nicest design in this class. Not only should they bring this Astra over, but GM should intend to offer each subsequent replacement as well. It would be nice to get the goods when they come out, not two years later like VW does.
It looks like GM is finally going to pull themselves outta the muck!
Don’t get too excited. GM will find some what screw this one up. They always do!
So is this going to be called the Astra, or will it still be the Ion? It would be confusing to to have two Astras under two names.
But it won’t be here for another year or more? That’s so lame and so like GM to treat the American market like a bastard child.
The Astra had better be well-built, a phenominal value, drive well, and come with a very nice price.
Don’t get too excited. GM will find some what screw this one up. They always do!
Kill-Joy !!!! (I mean GM…LOL)
GM says it is going to be called the Saturn Astra. Anybody remember the Pontiac Astra from the 70s ? A rebadged Vega if I recall right.
It is coming in the fall of 2007.
Less than a year.
These are pictures o fthe Opel version, not the Saturn .
Trim and color choices will be different here.
Vince Burlapp said…
These are pictures o fthe Opel version, not the Saturn .
Trim and color choices will be different here.
11:44 PM
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Thanks, Vince.
Hey, you working during the last few weeks of December,(like you did during Thanksgiving)…..during the Holidays?
Or are you going on a short hiatus from the site?
Ok not into this style. GM was doing so well with Saturn, they better make this thing much more attractive to go along with the rest of the line, because this would be an ugly ducking.
No hiatus for the site, or for me.
For those who are “worried” about the size.
The Astra is 2 inches longer than a Golf.
You can’t compare it to cars like the Yaris sedan. Because the Saturn is a hatch with no trunk sticking out.
It is in the same class as the Focus,Golf etc… Not smaller inside than our Civics/Sentra/Corolla crowd.
This is great news! The angle of this particular shot isn’t very flattering. The Astra is a real sport-hatch and much better looking than this picture suggests! Hopefully, GM will come out with a WRX fighter version of this.
Remember the dodge neon now it is called the caliber which is the a 5 Door hatchback, if the caliber is doing well i think the astra will do great too, way to go saturn take chances you will most likely succeed.
I forgot if it was on autoblog, or autoweek, I just read that turbos will be here, and maybe 105HP and 125HP/1.8 liter I-4(these HP numbers sounds Low!).https://www.autoweek.com/news/This is not the article I read, but says a turbo/237HP I-4/150 MPH version.I read 3 and 5 door hatches only, and built Not at Saturn plant, either.Another article said GM is reworking a new engine for auto tranny( I think thye havd a larger ending than 125HP, too, over seas. I Hope!).We’ll find out in 30 days, it appears. and IO read fall of 07 for sales to start.It would take one Excellent 3 door to get us out of the tC.Is this it?
article said Antwarp(????SP???) Belgium for production, and ONLY as HATCHES…. for this Astra(I read elsewhere, maybe autoblog.com, 3 and 5 door).I read this competes with “Golf/Focus”?……I thought the Golf= Rabbit= subcompact and Focus = Compact car?So what is this? Compact, Subcompact, Yaris/Reno- sized sedans(14 feet totla length cars)? What?Ya gotta tell me!
. One dude told me it is like a VW Golf and size of Elantra, etc…so, he said “small car”.I wonder, will the 3 door be Our(U.S. market ) sized Rabbit(golf), and the 5 door hatch the Elantra(last gen) sized “small” car, or what!?Anyone here have a clue? I would not mind a compact 3 door, but rabbit sized? no.
https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a15142566/news-saturn-ion-to-be-replaced-by-opel-astra-in-2007-car-news/ Tiny for me, no matter how fast it is…. 167 inches total length. That is shorter than a Yaris sedan, Accent sedan,reno 5 door, tC 3 door, mazda3(5 door?), C’Mon, GM, if you’re gong to build a sporty car, make it large enough for at least 5 adults( this article, i think it was this one, said 4 adults…the Reno 5 door can hold 5, and it is not much larger….than Astra).Try Again!