Opel Astra is a family of cars of the famous German brand, famous for their reliability, stylish design and safety. Machines of this series are in high demand, their production is constantly growing. In the near future, Opel Astra cars will be assembled in St. Petersburg.
The American corporation General Motors has carried out a test assembly of the Opel Astra at a plant in St. Petersburg. This model is planned to be demonstrated to the public at the Moscow International Motor Show, which will be held from August 31 to September 9, 2012 and, as always, will present the novelties of the global automotive industry.
Serial production of the new Opel Astra will begin at the end of 2012. Now the St. Petersburg plant produces the Chevrolet Cruze and the Opel Astra hatchback. By the end of 2012, the company plans to produce four thousand Astra sedans - a little more than hatchbacks.
The new Opel Astra is 240 mm longer than the hatchback (wheelbase remains unchanged at 2685 mm). The new car is also 100mm longer than the previous generation Astra sedan.
But the increased length did not affect the volume of the trunk of the novelty, which was 460 liters, which is 30 liters less than its predecessor. The line of engines of new cars for the first time will be the same as that of the hatchback. Along with the base 1, 4-1, 6-liter naturally aspirated engines (101-115 horsepower), the new Opel Astra will be equipped with turbo engines of 1.4 (140 horsepower) and 1.8 (180 horsepower) liters.
In the next 2013, the expansion of the line of power units is planned. It will add turbocharged engines of the new SIDI family, characterized by direct injection of fuel fluid.
Although the debut of the new Opel Astra will take place at the end of the summer, Russian dealers have already started taking orders for it a month ago. The basic configuration with a 1.4-liter engine and a five-speed manual transmission will cost 614,900 rubles, that is, 15,000 rubles more expensive than the same hatchback. The cost of the Opel Astra sedan with a 1.6-liter turbo engine and a six-speed automatic will be 883,900 rubles.
