2012 Opel Astra GTC Review

Compared to the five-door Astra, the ride height of the GTC is lowered by 15 mm while the basic dimensions of the chassis slightly increase. Due to extended control arms in the rear, the wheelbase grows by 10 mm, from 2,685 to 2,695 mm. Both tracks are wider, at 1,584 mm (+ 40 mm) in front and 1,588 mm (+ 30 mm) in the rear.

The Opel Astra GTC can be ordered immediately with a choice of four powertrains – one diesel and three gasoline units. The upgraded 2.0 CDTI common-rail turbo diesel engine with output raised to 121 kW/165 hp is fitted with a diesel particulate filter and a six-speed manual transmission. Opel’s new Start/Stop technology which reduces fuel consumption in urban stop and go traffic is standard equipment. The 2.0 CDTI combines excellent performance with high efficiency. It delivers up to 380 Nm of torque thanks to an overboost function and allows the Astra GTC to reach 100 km/h in 8.9 seconds. Top speed is 210 km/h. The combined fuel consumption does not exceed 4.9 liters of diesel per 100 km and CO2 emissions are 129 g/km. With its 56-liter fuel tank, the Opel Astra GTC 2.0 CDTI can cover over 1,100 km.

 2012 Opel Astra GTC 

Start/Stop is also standard with the two 1.4 turbo-compressed gasoline engines with 88 kW/120 hp and 103 kW/140 hp outputs. Both have a six-speed manual gearbox, deliver 200 Nm of torque and require 5.9 liters of fuel per 100 km (139 g/km CO2). The gasoline offer is currently topped by the 132 kW/180 hp 1.6 turbo with six-speed manual transmission, which has a top speed of 220 km/h.

Four powertrains and two trim levels can be ordered as of June 7, 2011. Prices so far range from 21,750 euro (Opel Astra GTC Enjoy 1.4 Turbo 88 kW/120 hp) to 27,855 euro (Astra GTC Sport 2.0 CDTI 121 kW/165 hp).

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2013 Opel Astra OPC Review

The Opel Astra OPC comes with a four-cylinder gasoline engine, which sets higher standards in terms of power and specific engine output. With 206 kW / 280 hp, Opel’s most powerful gasoline engine, the turbocharged direct injection 2.0 liter unit, has now been made even more powerful. At 400 Nm (200 Nm per liter), the engine offers 25 percent more maximum torque than its Astra OPC predecessor and also boasts 40 hp more power. This translates into 140 hp power output per litre, compared with 120 hp in the previous Opel Astra OPC. The specific output of 200 Nm per liter even outclasses high-performance sports cars. The new Opel Astra OPC can sprint from standstill to 100 km/h in just six-point-zero seconds – faster than the previous version (6.4 secs). The latest Astra OPC engine already delivers its maximum torque at 2450 rpm. In addition, the torque plateau is very wide and stretches all the way to just under 5000 rpm. This ensures the four-cylinder engine in the Astra OPC can deliver power in a wide range of situations and provides the highest specific output of any four cylinder gasoline engine ever produced by Opel.

Opel has designed a high performance chassis package geared especially towards lateral dynamics and superb handling qualities for its new Astra OPC, to complement its powerful 206 kW/280 hp, 400 Nm engine. The chassis with dampers made by ZF Sachs benefits from several decisive elements that all enhance the car’s driving dynamics: high performance struts (HiPerStruts) on the front wheel suspension, the mechatronic FlexRide chassis system, a mechanical multi-plate slip differential and Brembo brakes. The chassis has been further sharpened with 19″ alloy wheels as standard together with 245/40 ZR sized tires. In addition, the Opel OPC (Opel Performance Center) team fine-tuned the chassis to OPC standards by modifying the dampers and stiffening the springs and bushings.

 2013 Opel Astra OPC 

The braking system has been tailored to fit the high performance requirements of the Opel Astra OPC – even under maximum load. OPC engineers and the Italian specialist Brembo designed an 18″ brake booster solution with larger ventilated, additionally cooled and cross-drilled 355 x 32 mm discs and 4-piston callipers in the front. The Opel Astra OPC also uses special high performance brake pads.

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2012 Opel Corsa Review

Opel is expanding its European market Corsa's range with a 118hp (120PS) 1.4-liter turbocharged ecoFLEX gasoline engine equipped with a Start/Stop system and two new special editions named 'All Black' and 'All White'.

 2012 Opel Corsa Review

Available across the range, the four-cylinder ecoFLEX engine delivers an output of 118hp (120PS) and a peak torque of 175Nm (129 lb-ft).

It drives the front wheels through a five-speed manual gearbox and enables both the three- and five-door versions of the supermini to reach a top speed of 195 km/h (121mph) and accelerate from standstill to 100 km/h (62mph) in 10.3 seconds.

Thanks in part to the fuel-saving start/stop tech, the Corsa 1.4L Turbo returns a combined fuel consumption of 5.5 lt/100 km (42.8mpg US or 51.4mpg UK) with CO2 emissions of 129 g/km.

Moving on to the special edition variants, the All Black model is finished in a Carbon Flash shade and the All White in a Casablanca White paint. In addition, the logo bar across the front grille and the 17-inch alloy wheels are finished in the same color as the exterior, while there's also a chrome effect exhaust tail pipe.

Inside, there are white air vent rings for the All White Edition and matt chrome rings for its All Black counterpart. Both models get unique seat fabrics with silver colored seams as standard along with sport pedals, a multi-function leather steering wheel, and dark tinted windows.

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