Next-gen Astra?

[saturnd00d]

Hey everyone...I think I found some renderings based on the next-gen Astra in Europe which will come here in 2010. Take a look.

Found here: http://www.astraforum.ro/forums/p/7869/40627.aspx

[Oracle of Delphi]

Hmmmmmm?

[regfootball]

there are some nicer images even on autoblog i think. i just looked at them actually a few minutes ago, but lost the links.

it may be a nice product to move into in a couple years, switch one astra for another.........

[ocnblu]

The same boring been-there-done-that Mazda3/Vibe greenhouse. Who is going to break that tired trend?

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

Hey, it's a Mazda, judging by the side!!!

No.. Wait... It's a Nissan at the front...

Actually, on second glance at the nose, maybe this is an upmarket Toyota Yaris. A Lexus version of that car maybe?!?!

Hell, who knows what it is. Sure is ugly though.

Edited October 8, 2008 by FUTURE_OF_GM

[Oracle of Delphi]

Hey, it's a Mazda, judging by the side!!!

No.. Wait... It's a Nissan at the front...

Actually, on second glance at the nose, maybe this is an upmarket Toyota Yaris. A Lexus version of that car maybe?!?!

Hell, who knows what it is. Sure is ugly though.

Don't know about all that, all I know is the current one is selling like hotcakes here. The next gen will sell just as much if not more. Remember, GME makes money, GMNA does not.

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

Don't know about all that, all I know is the current one is selling like hotcakes here. The next gen will sell just as much if not more. Remember, GME makes money, GMNA does not.

Don't worry, I remember the days of GME bleeding to death (Not too long ago, in fact) while GMNA showered in SUV profits.

[Oracle of Delphi]

Don't worry, I remember the days of GME bleeding to death (Not too long ago, in fact) while GMNA showered in SUV profits.

Yeah, but the shoe is on the other foot now!

[AAS]

I posted some links to other renderings and info here a little while back.

[regfootball]

i MIGHT be buying an Astra soon........any chance a loyal C&Ger who might be on a trip in europa could maybe talk some of your Euro folks into getting me a proper Opel grille, airbag/steering wheel cover, and keychain?

[A Horse With No Name]

i MIGHT be buying an Astra soon........any chance a loyal C&Ger who might be on a trip in europa could maybe talk some of your Euro folks into getting me a proper Opel grille, airbag/steering wheel cover, and keychain?

I thought the Astra thing was off for you?

But seriously, I like the refresh/redesign.

Again, I think GM is getting on the right track here, folks.

Chris

[regfootball]

the big loyoff happened here today at work, fortunately for this second round, i was spared again. However, in three months again, who knows.

but its obvious to me, if i get anything i better do it now while loans are attainable and am employed, you still need a car no matter what. And since the Astra is the best offer on the table for me right now, with all my incentives, it might make more fiscal sense than anything...replacing 95,000 miles with a new ride with 50% better mpg, probably less payment as well, and a 100k warranty.

Funny you mentioned SVT focus, in the paper today is a used SVT Focus with only 11k miles on it.

I got a killer Saab 9-3 quote yesterday which i would be on in a heartbeat if this wasn't just a second car. Less than 20g for a new 9-3. Yikes. people want to sell cars, apparently cars from GME. Maybe Carl Peter and PCS are conspiring.

in any case, an Astra now would be a nice entry into the fold for a couple years until this new one comes out.....hopefully with 60 more hp and a 6 speed tranny.

One thing I learned recently.....the current astra is a euro top pick in safety, and also C/D gave astra one of its ten best safety cars under 25k as well. Big plus! It even has active head restraints!

Edited October 8, 2008 by regfootball

[02ChevySS]

Remember, GME makes money, GMNA does not.

Yeah, things are really all happy and rosey over there:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=206...&refer=home

Don't know about all that, all I know is the current one is selling like hotcakes here.

Yeah, selling like hotcakes so fast, they're cutting production:

General Motors' temporary shutdowns also affect plants in Ellesmere Port and Luton, in England, as well as Zaragoza, Spain, reducing production of the Astra, Corsa and Zafira models, Kroemer said.

[Drew Dowdell]

Don't know about all that, all I know is the current one is selling like hotcakes here. The next gen will sell just as much if not more. Remember, GME makes money, GMNA does not.

Well you'd think they'd be making some money since the new Camaro has been on sale for 3 years and they brought the Chinese Park Ave and SLS over here right at release. The Chevy Beat sure has been selling well ever since it replaced the Aveo in summer 2007. Of course with gas prices the way they are, it's no surprise that the 2-Mode hybrid has about a 50% adoption rate on all new GM cars. When the Cruze goes on sale in January '09 sales will probably take off pretty quick. </mirror universe>

GME makes money in spite of itself... not because it does anything particularly well.

[carman21]

Well you'd think they'd be making some money since the new Camaro has been on sale for 3 years and they brought the Chinese Park Ave and SLS over here right at release. The Chevy Beat sure has been selling well ever since it replaced the Aveo in summer 2007. Of course with gas prices the way they are, it's no surprise that the 2-Mode hybrid has about a 50% adoption rate on all new GM cars. When the Cruze goes on sale in January '09 sales will probably take off pretty quick. </mirror universe>

GME makes money in spite of itself... not because it does anything particularly well.

Too Funny, yet sad at the same time.

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

Yeah, but the shoe is on the other foot now!

Ya know... It's a good thing the Asstra sells over there, because it's virtually non-existant here.

I've seen less Astras on the road than G8s. And to be honest, I don't see all that many G8s.

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

Yeah, things are really all happy and rosey over there

Yeah, selling like hotcakes so fast, they're cutting production

Well you'd think they'd be making some money since the new Camaro has been on sale for 3 years and they brought the Chinese Park Ave and SLS over here right at release. The Chevy Beat sure has been selling well ever since it replaced the Aveo in summer 2007. Of course with gas prices the way they are, it's no surprise that the 2-Mode hybrid has about a 50% adoption rate on all new GM cars. When the Cruze goes on sale in January '09 sales will probably take off pretty quick. </mirror universe>

GME makes money in spite of itself... not because it does anything particularly well.

LMFAO.

[regfootball]

Ya know... It's a good thing the Asstra sells over there, because it's virtually non-existant here.

I've seen less Astras on the road than G8s. And to be honest, I don't see all that many G8s.

its weird, the last couple weeks I've seen a few G8's every day.

soon, decent chance i may have an astra to look at every day in my driveway soon.

I am just wondering, you think cadillac might revive the Cimarron and rebadge an Astra ?

Edited October 9, 2008 by regfootball

[A Horse With No Name]

The Astra is a great car, we can just write off its lack of sales to Americans being dumbasses.

Chris,

(current resident of dumf@#kistan.)

[regfootball]

cupholders, an armrest, an mp3 jack, some added hp, and less sensationalized press would help.

Edited October 9, 2008 by regfootball

[A Horse With No Name]

Yes, they would.

However, it is still a MUCH better car than say the corolla, which is still selling.

Chris

[regfootball]

i think the biggest liability in this market for the astra is no sedan. and no advertising.

funny, i just got an email from salesguy and he is screwing with me. i thought saturn was no haggle. Jeez. why do you have to be so blunt with these people?

"i need you to tell me the price of the car"

[PurdueGuy]

i think the biggest liability in this market for the astra is no sedan. and no advertising.

funny, i just got an email from salesguy and he is screwing with me. i thought saturn was no haggle. Jeez. why do you have to be so blunt with these people?

"i need you to tell me the price of the car"

Saturn is (or should be) no haggle as far as the price of the car. Dealerships often find ways to work with a customer on accessories, though. In the week or so I was a salesman at Saturn, I heard/saw no method of haggling down the price of a car. The only things that could be negotiated were accessories and financing.

[regfootball]

an email quote from the saturn dealer that only includes payment quotes and not an actual quote on the price of the car? where is the straight forwarded ness there?

[Blake Noble]

I am just wondering, you think cadillac might revive the Cimarron and rebadge an Astra ?

In light of recent decisions we've been hearing and seeing GM make, it's only a matter of time until this particular nightmare becomes a bold-faced reality.

(Now, I feel like going into a brief rant ...)

You know, the price of gas is going down ... and since GM is now focusing on solely building small, front-drive tin cans that no one in the North American market really wants, and also since it is a given that you will see people once again going back to SUVs and so on in light of such a change, I wonder what sort of position that will leave the company in over a few years time? I'll be so bold as to say that, because GM as a whole mostly let the Europeans slowly gain too much of a say in a lot of things that they do not have much knowledge in over the last few years, and because there is a chance that gas prices will continue to go down, GM will be holding the bag for not having the ability to build capable vehicles for all segments, for all people, for all wants and needs.

It was Alfred Sloan who said something to the effect of "a car for every purpose and purse" and that was the mission GM followed best during it's glory years. Sadly, it hasn't followed it in almost three decades or so now. It's obvious what GM should be doing, but oddly, it isn't. Now the mission is of a horribly narrow-minded focus to build products on a basis of market fashions, to build whatever sells best at a given time as well as you can and just stick everything else on the back-burner. It's because of that GM is being run into the ground. The executives who are so short-sighted as to follow such a method should be handed pink slips by the top brass ... but sadly even the top brass at GM is shamefully guilty of this fatal error as well.

GM management is still mostly stuck to adhering to the flawed, deranged ideals set up by the moronic Roger Smith in the 1980s and there is no denying that. May God help GM and it's executives survive throughout the next decade, that is if they can last that long.

Edited October 11, 2008 by YellowJacket894

[FUTURE_OF_GM]

In light of recent decisions we've been hearing and seeing GM make, it's only a matter of time until this particular nightmare becomes a bold-faced reality.

(Now, I feel like going into a brief rant ...)

You know, the price of gas is going down ... and since GM is now focusing on solely building small, front-drive tin cans that no one in the North American market really wants, and also since it is a given that you will see people once again going back to SUVs and so on in light of such a change, I wonder what sort of position that will leave the company in over a few years time? I'll be so bold as to say that, because GM as a whole mostly let the Europeans slowly gain too much of a say in a lot of things that they do not have much knowledge in over the last few years, and because there is a chance that gas prices will continue to go down, GM will be holding the bag for not having the ability to build capable vehicles for all segments, for all people, for all wants and needs.

And that's what it boils down to.

GM has 8 divisions that should cater to every corner of the market, regardless of whats hot.

Yet, GM now has 4 divisions (channels) that insist on producing (and fighting) over mid-size and compact FWD sedan sales.

GM management is still mostly stuck to adhering to the flawed, deranged ideals set up by the moronic Roger Smith in the 1980s and there is no denying that. May God help GM and it's executives survive throughout the next decade, that is if they can last that long.

[Blake Noble]

And that's what it boils down to.

GM has 8 divisions that should cater to every corner of the market, regardless of whats hot.

Yet, GM now has 4 divisions (channels) that insist on producing (and fighting) over mid-size and compact FWD sedan sales.

Exactly.

What's really sad is that people outside of GM, most of the average enthusiasts and loyalists of the automaker, most of the well-educated critics, and most of the arm chair CEOs, actually "get it," actually understand what GM should be doing, and would be in a better mindset to lay down some framework to actually getting each and every end of the company to work a little closer to the way they should while the actual people in charge of GM are always constantly scrambling to, as the saying goes, get their &#036;h&#33; together.

It never fails to disgust me anymore. Where are the John Z. DeLorians at GM? Where are the Zora Arkus-Duntovs at GM? Bob Lutz isn't enough to instill the change needed at General Motors, there needs to be way more creative executives working at America's largest automaker to actually get the wheels going again, and they need to have some experience outside of GM (read: cut down the number of "lifers"). The company is nowhere near undergoing the "awakening" it needs to return to greatness again.

I hate to say it, but if GM goes under due to the stupidity of its management, then that's what deserves to happen to the company. I don't have much pity for stupidity, and I'm not going to let my favorite automaker be an exception to that personal rule of mine, sorry.

Edited October 12, 2008 by YellowJacket894

[RjION]

Bob Lutz ........ he changes faces with the wind.

[PurdueGuy]

Would you quit drudging up old threads just to add nothing to them, please?

[Blake Noble]

I'm going to go ahead and call it really, really, really early on RjION: inb4 b&

Edited January 25, 2010 by whiteknight

[RjION]

Would you quit drudging up old threads just to add nothing to them, please?

Dear Sir ......... was this thread CLOSED? Did I in some way hack into the system and open the thread? Call it.

[Intrepidation]

At least when Satty digs them up he puts something witty in his necromance post, as opposed to pointless posts that contribute nothing to the original thread...and he doesn't do it on a daily basis. No one would care if you didn't do it on a daily basis. You're free to do it if you've got nothing better to do (unless you start spamming these and flood the new posts section, then we have an issue), but don't cry when members start complaining about it.

[RjION]

At least when Satty digs them up he puts something witty in his necromance post, as opposed to pointless posts that contribute nothing to the original thread...and he doesn't do it on a daily basis. No one would care if you didn't do it on a daily basis. You're free to do it if you've got nothing better to do (unless you start spamming these and flood the new posts section, then we have an issue), but don't cry when members start complaining about it.

Best part about it is ........ you guys came on here to cry about it. No you didn't need to read the post, no you didn't need to reply, but you did find the need to cry cry cry, and I'll say Bob Lutz changes faces with the wind.

[Drew Dowdell]

I don't think Bob Lutz had anything to do with the decision to kill Saturn.

[RjION]

You don't think ............ ok.

Chandler will be holding the Ostrich Festival again this spring, the desert is full of sand.

Edited January 25, 2010 by RjION

[SAmadei]

At least when Satty digs them up he puts something witty in his necromance post, as opposed to pointless posts that contribute nothing to the original thread...and he doesn't do it on a daily basis. No one would care if you didn't do it on a daily basis. You're free to do it if you've got nothing better to do (unless you start spamming these and flood the new posts section, then we have an issue), but don't cry when members start complaining about it.

I was waiting for someone to dredge up a thread from the new Ford Model T and someone to post that it'll never sell. Then someone would complain about the quality of the interior materials.

[Drew Dowdell]

Bob wasn't making those sorts of calls. He didn't make the call to kill Pontiac. He didn't make the call to sell Saab.

[Justin Bimmer]

Bob wasn't making those sorts of calls. He didn't make the call to kill Pontiac. He didn't make the call to sell Saab.

Last time I checked, it was Lutz who was trying to SAVE both of those brands with new and fresh products.

[Intrepidation]

I was waiting for someone to dredge up a thread from the new Ford Model T and someone to post that it'll never sell. Then someone would complain about the quality of the interior materials.

[Robert Hall]

I was waiting for someone to dredge up a thread from the new Ford Model T and someone to post that it'll never sell. Then someone would complain about the quality of the interior materials.

And don't forget the limited color palate and lack of options..no gramophone? No in-car telegraph? ....

[Justin Bimmer]

Have you ever tried to drive a Model-T it's crazy with the pedal sequences.

[Robert Hall]

regfootball am just wondering, you think cadillac might revive the Cimarron and rebadge an Astra

I'm assuming the hidden secret plan for the rumoured Cadillac 'ATS' is that it will be on Delta II like the Cruze and Astra.

Edited January 25, 2010 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[Intrepidation]

Bob wasn't making those sorts of calls. He didn't make the call to kill Pontiac. He didn't make the call to sell Saab.

Last time I checked, it was Lutz who was trying to SAVE both of those brands with new and fresh products.

Both true. What started Saturn's death was GM not redesigning the S-Series for so long, and then replacing it with the Ion, which had so many problems at launch has been widely regarded as one of the worst cars in recent history. The there was the L-Series which IIRC had quality problems and sold poorly. Then GM tried to move a brand that had been conceived as inexpensive and fugal way upmarket with a lineup of cars that were good and better than the cars they replaced but not class leading and most of them flawed, at much higher price points than many people were willing to pay.

[Justin Bimmer]

Really, the Ion is one of the main reasons why Saturn failed in my opinion. Consumer Reports ranked it as like one of the worst cars they had ever tested.

This is what Forbes had to say about the Ion:

Least Safe American Car

Saturn Ion coupe and sedan

Base price: $12,490

The Ion is the only American car to have the worst Insurance Institute for Highway Safety crash-test scores in its weight class and a "substantially worse [i.e., higher] than average" frequency of injury claims filed, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute. On its Web site, the HLDI states that "vehicles with high death rates often have high frequencies of insurance claims for occupant injuries."

[RjION]

Well you are right ......... the problem with GM is GM not the brands. But really go read about Bob and Saturn, read about Bob and Pontiac.

[Justin Bimmer]

Well you are right ......... the problem with GM is GM not the brands. But really go read about Bob and Saturn, read about Bob and Pontiac.

Do you have any links to articles which will help prove your Lutz/Pontiac/Saturn conspiracy?

[RjION]

Do you have a search engine

[Drew Dowdell]

Do you have a search engine

On this board, those making accusations that have not been previously discussed need to support their accusations with evidence, articles, links, etc.

[Blake Noble]

Come on kids, gather 'round. Let's sing the Necromancer's theme song!

Hump, hump, hump the corpse gently in the grave ...

Edited January 26, 2010 by whiteknight

[daves87rs]

Do you have a search engine

Which one would you like?