Cobolt from the blue: Vauxhall Astra Electric Ultimate

Usually I don’t pay much attention to the colour of a car because, well, you shouldn’t really, because it’s pretty much irrelevant, with the possible exception of resale time when an unfashionable shade can reduce the residual value a bit.

An exception to this is the lustrous cobalt blue “tricoat” metallic finish on my press car, which is a £700 option and worth every penny. The latest Astra is a handsome car as it is, but this striking paint job makes it stand out even more. It deserves to take a bow, and especially now that the latest version, the all-electric battery powered one, is making its presence felt in the market.

This, the eighth generation of Astra, believe it nor not (the first came out in 1980), is easily the best looking, and, with its Opel roots, is made in Russelsheim, Germany, and that probably means decent quality too (the sister plant at Ellesmere Port, once “the home of the Astra” has now been devoted to electric vans).

Both brands are part of the giant Peugeot-led Stellantis group now, so the controls and engineering have much in common with other variants, such as the Peugeot 308, and that is mostly no bad thing at all. If nothing else, this is a Vauxhall that you really should be proud to be seen in, and it recaptures some of that respect and sense of aspiration that the brand had in the 1980s, when the Astra and Cavalier conquered the fleet market and carried all before it.

An Astra GTE in white, or a Mark 2 Vauxhall Cavalier in CD or SRi trim and the two-tone grey and black colour scheme was the mark of someone going places, with full expectation of getting there. From what I’ve seen, the Astra Electric is very much in that spirit.

In top of the range Ultimate trim, the Astra is extremely well equipped. There’s even a voice recognition system, a full suite of semi-autonomous driving aids, some sensible safety systems and a head-up display.

The screens for the instruments and infotainment are attractive and easy to use and can be set up to your own bespoke needs, but with plenty of buttons and switches so that you don’t have to spend your time stabbing at the 10-inch touchscreen. As it’s electric the Astra is also fitted with a heat pump, which helps preserve battery strength on a cold day.

Which brings me to one of the more perplexing aspects of using an electric car, which is the impossibility of ever really knowing quite what the range is going to be.

Vauxhall claim an official figure for this model of 258 miles on a mix of “real world” driving. It sounds a bit optimistic in my limited experience of the vehicle, but let’s go with it. The point is that, according to the excellent ev-database.org website, which I’ve found a reliable source, you can get anything from 140 miles (cold day, motorway) to 295 miles (warm day, pottering around town) from your Astra Electric.

So much depends on the weather conditions, ambient temperature and driving technique that it takes a little getting used to, and, sad to say, it adds to the range anxiety that some people still suffer from. I don’t think there’s much of an answer to this, expect for the government to invest in more fast commercial charging points, levelling down the VAT paid for fuelling up at them, and for the car makers to move as quickly as possible to the next generation of battery technology, which may prove transformative.

Just piling more and more heavy batteries into bigger and bigger (three tonne plus) electric SUVs to boost range, which is what’s been happening at the premium/luxury end of the market, is feels like something of a dead end (well, not literally with a 400-mile range, but you take my point).

In this context, it’s also worth me noting that, on balance, the Astra, in common with the rest of the Stellantis products, is a bit less fuel efficient and thus has a shorter range than the commotion from the VW group, Korean (Hyundai, Kia) and Chinese (BYD, MG) brands.

It’s one of the only real weaknesses in the Astra proposition, but should be made up for by the driving experience, which is really very impressive indeed, though maybe not quite as accelerative to 60 as one might like.

It’ll get to 100mph, where legal, boasts a choice of driving options (economy, normal, performance), and has a comfortable ride. The interior is trimmed in sober, tasteful style, and again very much in line with the best traditions of the Astra heritage.

The major drawback with the Astra Electric is the pricing – about £40,000 plus in top trim levels, or the very attractive estate version. Like all electric cars there is a premium of close to £10,000 over the (also highly capable) petrol version; but the good news is that the current mismatch in the supply and demand for electric cars means that there are some hefty discounts and bargains to be had, even via the official network. This means a new or nearly new electric Astra can be yours for closer to £30,000 than £40,000, with commensurate leasing deals.

This is all because the government is still mandating the car companies to sell lots of electric cars, but has pushed back the date of the ban on new petrol car sales to 2035 (of course there’ll be an ample supply of used petrol and diesel cars for decades to come).

So, with strong supply and weak demand, it’s now a buyer’s market, which makes a refreshing change. The VW ID.3, Kia Niro, MG4 and Renault Megane are all interesting alternatives, but the Astra should be on your shortlist. Especially in cobalt blue.

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