Need advice on new CDX Astra Wagon

[littlered]

Hi

Currently the wife and myself have a 04 TS CDX auto. Looking to get a wagon so naturally looking at CDX Astra as the current one has been a fantastic little car. Am looking for advice from those who currently have an Astra wagon on what they like/dislike. Will probably be getting an MY7.5 with the 103kw motor. Has anybody driven one yet ?

[EL BURITO]

not the new but the earlyer wagons feel underpowered.

[kojarena]

we have the 05 CDX wagon in auto/. Was one of the first off the boat I believe. Its a great little car which my wife likes and has loads of useable space, is sexy and well built.

the engine is underpowered, hopelessly to be honest and the 4sp auto is a disaster in a car with this little power and this much weight. Fuel consumption never falls below 10.6l/100kms which is more than my CDXi Vectra. as such she has only done 17500 in 18mths - she takes my car everywhere she can.

that being said I am looking to changeover the veccy in November, buy her a VE for her to drive locally with the kid(s) and I was thinking of getting a new 7.5 manual cdx wagon pending a test drive of the new engine with a proper choose your own cog box.

good luck - let us know how the new ones go but make sure you buy the manual and not the auto. even recent reviews on goauto have been harsh on the new engine (with any gearbox in the wagon) with the auto in the hatch.

wish we got the new sedan !

[littlered]

we have the 05 CDX wagon in auto/. Was one of the first off the boat I believe. Its a great little car which my wife likes and has loads of useable space, is sexy and well built.

the engine is underpowered, hopelessly to be honest and the 4sp auto is a disaster in a car with this little power and this much weight. Fuel consumption never falls below 10.6l/100kms which is more than my CDXi Vectra. as such she has only done 17500 in 18mths - she takes my car everywhere she can.

that being said I am looking to changeover the veccy in November, buy her a VE for her to drive locally with the kid(s) and I was thinking of getting a new 7.5 manual cdx wagon pending a test drive of the new engine with a proper choose your own cog box.

good luck - let us know how the new ones go but make sure you buy the manual and not the auto. even recent reviews on goauto have been harsh on the new engine (with any gearbox in the wagon) with the auto in the hatch.

wish we got the new sedan !

Thanks for the feedback. Unfortunately the wife can only drive an auto :( One a postive note this will be the 2nd family car and are only upgrading as we need more room with the kids.

I know the old version is under powered so am going to test a 103kw one this weekend. What about other areas? One thing I am a bit funny about is lack of temp gauge. Have they gone back to "oh shit lights" ? Also, we have climate control in the current car. What is the Semi auto climate control like ?

[Poogene2001]

Thanks for the feedback. Unfortunately the wife can only drive an auto :( One a postive note this will be the 2nd family car and are only upgrading as we need more room with the kids.

I know the old version is under powered so am going to test a 103kw one this weekend. What about other areas? One thing I am a bit funny about is lack of temp gauge. Have they gone back to "oh shit lights" ? Also, we have climate control in the current car. What is the Semi auto climate control like ?

There is a little trick where you can access the on board computers diagnostics screens which tells you exact oil temp.
Just hold down the settings button for 5 second (till you hear a beep) and then press the BC button repeatedly to access the diagnostics screens.

[rjastra]

Would a Mazda 6 wagon do the job better? MOre exxy but at least comes with a decent sized engine and a 5 speed auto.

[J]

I can vouch for the fuel economy of the Mazda 6.

My Mum owns the new model Classic sedan with the 5 speed auto. There is enough power to spin the front wheels in the dry in a standing start, if you are a little deliberate with the throttle (due to a short 1st gear. In fact, if you ever kickdown into 1st, the tacho swings around faster than the windscreen wiper!). Car has done almost 20,000kms now, and fuel consumption is just below 9.5L/100km on RON98 fuel, 100% city driving (half of which is stop-start). The auto is extremely well programmed: shift shock is non-existent even at full throttle (except when it upshifts down a slope with no throttle input), plus it can go into full torque converter lockup in 3rd AND 4th as well as 5th, from about 40km/h onwards. You do feel it coming in and out of torque converter lockup as you coast to a stop, though :) Drive one and see for yourself...it's fantastic :)

There might still be stocks of the '06 models around. Since you are cross-shopping from a CDX, the price jump may not be quite as steep as you think. Great resale value, too :)

Indeed, small (and underpowered) engines mixed with non-CVT/non-DSG autos in a heavy-ish car don't bode well for fuel economy, because of great drivetrain losses, which you need to offset by regularly keeping their engines on the boil to maintain a reasonable level of performance. Our Corsa C 1.4 auto (Powerchipped) does 8.5-9.5L/100km (again, RON98 and 100% city driving), compared to my near-stock Astra SRi-T (manual of course), which is hardly doing any more at 10.2L/100km under the same conditions, according to the trip computer. I know which one I prefer to drive :)

[maloo97]

I HAD A 05 CDX wagon in auto. Its a great little car, Heap of room and stylish at the same time.
I found a couple of down sides underpowered engine, Sluggish 4sp auto.
But some good stuff to. My mum could get 650ks to each tank. witch i found really good. i think it only ever cost lest than $50 to fill up to.
I like the cdx Alloy wheels , colour coded strips. 6 disc dc player.

We had since new (18months ago) cost like $26,500 and we sold it last month with 9,000ks for $24,000 Pritty happy with that.

Id say with a little more power should be a great little car.

[entice]

I got one, it's a manual though.
Good points:
for its price, quality of fit, finish and comfort. Love that MFD
Size. that boot is brilliant... easily could fit in a 4 drawer filing cabinet with one bank of seats down (Actually, did that yesterday).
Economy. My lifetime average is 8.6L/100ikm's, and it's no freeway bunny (33km/h av speed over 16,000Kms)
has good resale

Bad points:
Yes, it is underpowered. But, I've never seen a car that I've thought had enough power. I guess u can say it's as underpowered, as, say, a 1.8L NA MX5 is... still is a brilliant sports car, but can handle bags more power.

Same platform with a 2.2 would be a really nice car, or, even a diesel (if you overlook it's shortcomings). But that would significantly impact its purchase price. Heaps more style than a corolla, easier to service/maintain than a peugeot, and.. well lets not even consider the Lancer...

So, when you consider what it is really up against, it's a good package

[kojarena]

well I took ours to an LS1 tuner today and he removed two of the MAF's (there are three) and put a new K&N air filter in as well as the 15,000klm service.

feels more spritely, not as laboured. I still would not have it as my daily driver and we are still selling it but its much better. Now I know if I get the 103kw engine in a 5sp and remove two of the MAF's and put a k&n in it should actually be a good little run around car.

ours doesnt have semi auto climate control - just regular aircon. Put it this way - if the engine was a 2.2lt direct injection petrol this would be the perfect second car.

[littlered]

paid a visit to the local dealer yesterday. Car felt 'heavy" simiilar to the way the new commodore feels "heavy". After the drive I found out it wasn't a 7.5 so I now have to wait a week or two for one to come in. At least I will be able to compare the two.

What I liked was the blinkers are now back on the "correct side" and it felt solid. Has anybody else driven one ?

[digifish]

the engine is underpowered, hopelessly to be honest and the 4sp auto is a disaster in a car

...if only they sold the CDTi in the wagon, that would seem to be a great combo...

digifish