The equipment level is adequate for the price. That means the centre console controls are pointed down from the driver, which hardly helps keep eyes on the road. The dash is a barely dressed-up version of the Astra hatch. With the roof in place there is limited head space, but adequate leg room. That's a pity because the TwinTop can seat two adults almost comfortably in the rear. The standard wind blocker restores calm, but sacrifices the rear two seats. It has a sound-deadening package worthy of a car with a fixed roof.īy contrast, remove the roof and there's an intrusive level of turbulence even with all four windows raised. With the roof in place, the Astra is commendably quiet. It will operate on the move at up to 30 km/h. Using five electric motors, eight hydraulic cylinders and 13 sensors, the automated electro-hydraulic system drops or raises the roof in 26 seconds. To watch the roof open and close is intriguing. Styling is a very subjective area, but it's hard to imagine too many people finding the TwinTop unappealing. It's longer, lower and wider than the Astra hatch sold here since late 2004, but employs the same wheelbase. This is a small price rise over the old cloth-roofed Astra convertible, but it still undercuts the Peugeot, Renault and VW.Īnother area where the Astra does well against its rivals is exterior looks. It is powered by a 2.2-litre four-cylinder engine and priced from $45,490 for the six-speed manual. Then there is the subject of this road test, the Astra TwinTop, a car Holden sources from GM's European division Opel.Ī single model of the second-generation Astra drop-top has been on sale since December. The Volkswagen Eos has just been launched and the Ford Focus CC arrives in August. The hotbed of activity is in the small-medium category, where the Peugeot 307CC and Renault Megane Coupe Cabriolet have been the star attractions. That's because the ability to transform a car from (usually) steel-roofed coupe to wind-in-the-hair convertible at the touch of a button has proven immensely popular. Over a few short years hard-top coupe-cabrios have gone from rarity to necessity.

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