Vauxhall Astra VXR

Vauxhall has released the first pictures of its stunning new 155mph Astra VXR which is the most powerful production Vauxhall ever built. This 280PS coupe is based on the Astra GTC platform and is powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged direct injection engine.

It has a had a raft of bespoke chassis modifications and a specially developed mechanical limited slip differential, which works on the front wheels. Working with the High Performance Strut system, the VXR offers exceptional grip and traction through bends. The car also has specially adapted Bembo brakes, Vauxhall’s adaptive FlexRide system featuring not only a Sport button, but a VXR button too.

Astra VXR - rear view

Outside the VXR gets a specially sculpted front and rear bumper, side skirts, roof spoiler and two exhaust tail pipes in a trapeze shape. Inside the VXR the bespoke performance seats have embossed logos in the backs, a flat bottomed VXR steering wheel and upgraded instruments. The UK is likely to be the biggest market for the VXR in Europe and more details will be released next year.

Vauxhall car accessories

If you drive a Vauxhall and you are thinking of driving your car on your summer holiday this year then you might be interested to know that Vauxhall has launched an exclusive range of journey enhancing accessories.

For example Vauxhall’s iConnect FM plays your tunes from your iPad or MP3 player through the radio and costs just £130 (this includes the fitting as well). Removeable window privacy shades ensure your young children can be protected from the glare of the sun and prices start from only £42.

Or, if you have an active lifestyle and need vehicle-specific roof bars, designed for your Vauxhall (Insignia, Astra, Corsa etc) then the Vauxhall base carriers start from £110 with bike and kayak racks starting from £65. Full details of all Vauxhall vehicle accessories can be found at www.Vauxhall.co.uk/accessories

Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer

The Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer 1.7 CDTi (125PS) SE ecoFLEX has won the Green Award at the Practical Caravan 2011 Tow Car of Year awards. Each car was tested by a panel of six judges for its towing ability, buying and owning costs, drive quality when not towing and also practicality.

The judges commented,”The Astra Sports Tourer impressed everyone who drove it. In spite of having just 123bhp to call on, it took a respectable 19.2 seconds to tow from 30-60mph. The Astra Sports Tourer is an excellent small estate with impressive economy and low emissions”. Vauxhall car leasing on all Astras is on the site now.

New Astra 2.0 CDTi Start/Stop

Vauxhall has launched the new Astra 2.0 CDTi Start/Stop hatchback which replaces the current Astra 2.0 CDTi Hatch. This new Start/Stop version offers 62.8 combined mpg, CO2 emissions of 119g/km and reaches 0-62 mph in just 8.5 seconds, which is a great performance all-round. The Start/Stop facility is also available on the Sports Tourer version as well, offering 60.1 combined mpg.

By Spring 2012, most of Vauxhall’s models will fetaure Start/Stop technology on ecoFLEX models, including many petrol models as well. The system first appeared on the Corsa 1.3 CDTi ecoFLEX last year with this model offering a combined mpg of 80.7 and CO2 emissions of just 94g/km for the three-door version. Vauxhall contract hire leasing prices on the new Astra Start/Stop models are on the site now and offer great value for any fleet operator.

Toughbook PC in Astra

Vauxhall is now offering customers the option of a built-in Panasonic Toughbook CF-19 PC in its Astra model. This is a market-leading, rotating screen, convertible notebook and is aimed at fleet professionals, using WiFi and 3G broadband to connect to the Internet.

The new option is primarily aimed at the police service but Vauxhall thinks the new option would be of interest to any business that employs field-based employees working in a customer service environment.

Dick Ellam,Vauxhall Special Services Manager, explains,”Service and maintenance is another good example of an industry that requires its workers to be constantly out on the road responding to customer call-outs. Communication and access to information is critical so a built-in system that can save time and maximise staff efficiency would be an asset”.

Vauxhall sees businesses in engineering, transportation, construction, military and any other field based environment, finding the new option of interest. The Toughbook fits into a docking station, which is mounted in the glove box of the Astra, so it can be easily removed when the driver is not in the car, and has an 8.4-inch high resolution touch-screen positioned in the dashboard.

New car registrations fell by 11.5% in January to 128,811 units which was in line with the SMMT (Society of Motor Manufacturer’s and Traders) expectations. Interestingly the market share for cars with a CO2 figure of less than 100g/km increased again by 65% . Average new car CO2 emissions were 141.5g/km which compares favourably to the figure in 2010, which was 144.2g/km.

Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive commented,”New car registrations fell by 11.5% in January. This is in line with SMMT forecasts and marks the beginning of a challenging year for the UK motor industry. Consumer confidence is low and it is important that government uses the March budget to help relieve some of the financial pressure on motorists by freezing fuel duty,while providing stability and certainty on motoring taxes. Despite the challenging conditions, the demand for low CO2 emitting and highly fuel efficient cars continues to grow”.

Some other interesting facts;

• In terms of market sector, Private Registrations were down by 20.8% to 51,570, Fleet (25+fleets) is down by 3.1% to 70,448 and the Business sector (under 25 fleets) fell by 11.1% to  6,793.
• Diesel new car registrations continued to grow with 65,079 vehicles registered, an increase of 8.3% year on year.
• Petrol cars fell by 25.9% (61,932 units) and AFVs (alternatively fuelled vehicles) by 2.4% (1,800 vehicles).
• The top selling car in the UK was the Ford Focus, followed by the Ford Fiesta and then the Vauxhall Astra.
• Demand for the mini and supermini segments fell (following the loss of the Scrappage Incentive Scheme) however demand for executive, luxury, MPV and dual purpose segments cars recovered strongly.

Further details can be found at the SMMT website.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has published the December and full year car, van and truck registrations with 2010 new car registrations up 1.8% on 2009. The 2010 car market rose by 35,847 units to 2,030,846 with the fleet market (25+ vehicles) rising by over 10%. Registrations in December fell by 18% to 123,817 units.

Private volumes slipped however due to the end of the Scrappage Incentive Scheme (SIS). The 2011 market is expected to decline by around 5% with a forecasted UK car registrations figure of 1.93 million units.

Here are some other highlights from the SMMT about new car registrations in 2010;

• Diesel penetration rose to a record 46.1% which was helped by the increase in MPV and SUV sales, which are usually diesel, and also due to the fall in private retail car sales due to the Scrappage Scheme, which tended to be smaller petrol models.
• The Ford Fiesta was the biggest selling new car in the UK for the second successive year and Ford was the best selling brand.
• In December however, Vauxhall was the best selling brand with the new Astra the best selling model.

Van and truck registrations

Van and truck registrations climbed by 16.4% in 2010 with full year up to 257,373 units and in December there were 20,260 registrations, up 25.6%. Vans were up by 21.7% to 17,086 in December with the full year figures finishing at 222,915, up by 19.6%.

However truck registrations rose by 51.6% to 3,174 in December with the full year down by just 0.8% and 34,458 units registered. Further details about 2010 vehicle registrations can be found at the SMMT website.

The SMMT has released the data on new car registrations which fell by 11.5% in November to 139,875 units. This was ahead of the forecast and new car market registrations remain up by 3.4% over the first 11 months of the year, at 1,907,029 units. The final 2010 year figure is expected to be around the 2.03 million unit mark, up by 2% on the 2009 figure. The SMMT also forecasts that the market will fall in 2011 by 5% to 1.93 million units as consumers and businesses alike react to the impact of the Government’s austerity measures and the squeeze on spending.

The market is still trying to adjust to the removal of the Car Scrappage Incentive Scheme, however the better than expected performance was due to an improvement in the fleet volume sector (25+ vehicles), which was up by 10.7% over the year to date numbers.

Diesel car volumes also rose sharply to 53% in November, plus alternatively fuelled cars jumped by 83.5% in the month to gain an overall market share of 1.3% of the November car registrations. The Ford Fiesta was once again the top seller in the month, followed by the Ford Focus and the Volkswagen Golf. Year-to-date the top three sellers are the Ford Fiesta (98,453 units), Vauxhall Astra (75,276) and Ford Focus (73,973).

Paul Everitt, SMMT Chief Executive, said,”New car registrations fell by less than expected in November with demand from the fleet sector helping to offset the market rebalancing following the end of the Scrappage Incentive Scheme. Registrations are expected to fall next month, but demand may benefit from motorists looking to avoid the January VAT rise. This factor, coupled with the strength of the first half of 2010, means year-end volumes are expected to lift to over 2.03 million units, 2% up from last year. Next year will continue to be challenging as consumer spending tightens and government’s austerity measures take effect”.

Astra reports for duty

The new Vauxhall Astra is ready to enter Police service after a comprehensive testing programme. The Astra has been the backbone of policing across the UK’s 54 Police forces since its launch in 1979. Nearly one in five of all “panda” cars are Astras with most equipped out by Vauxhall’s specialist Police preparation facility (Special Vehicle Operations -SVO) based at their Millbrook proving ground.

Vauxhall Astra

The Police liveried Astra features increased capacity for fitting many emergency services equipment, including mobile data terminals, video capture and multiple transceivers plus a large range of emergency lighting options including LED lightbars, headlamp flash, grille lights, bumper interceptor lights and rear reds.

Vauxhall has recently won the Fleet Manufacturer of the Year award and one of their exciting models is on offer on Vauxhall business contract hire from £208.00+VAT per month. The Vauxhall Astra 1.7 CDTi 16V 3-door diesel Sport offers 56.5 combined mpg and CO2 emissions of 135g/km and offers this package with great looks and styling too.

The Vauxhall business contract hire deal is based on the following;

- Non-maintained business contract hire over a three year term at 10,000 miles per annum.

- Only three months rental in advance followed by 35 subsequent rentals. (38 equal payments in total)

- “With maintenance”, metallic paint and all other vehicle options can be added at an extra cost to the rental shown above.

- The image shown may not represent the exact model.

-  Pricing is subject to change at any time and must be verified directly with each leasing supplier.