but we get 40+ degrees summer and thats enough to cook an engine if it is overheating...
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The thing about the Astra diesel that ground me down when I took one for a long test drive was the noise and vibration. Diesel engines are seldom silky smooth and quiet, and the Astra doesn't have the smoothest engine around by a long shot. For me, it was too noisy.
Have you considered the 2.2? It is a lot quicker than the 1.8 you have now, and the engine is exceptionally smooth and quiet. The SRi is a good looking car, especially the 17" wheels. And you get heated sports leather seats, extra airbags, climate control and so on.
I can understand it would seem that way, particularly at first. It is also completely dependent on the type of driving you do most. As I have said elsewhere the CDTI can be a bit of a chore in stop-start traffic.
If you are on flowing roads and freeways it's as quiet and smooth a 4-cyl as I have been in, anything over 40 km/hr and it's sweet. Its also very quiet accelerating from 40 and up...deceptively so.
digifish
You are onto something here.... don't know all the ins and outs here and cannot comment on the 2.2 nor the diesel for that matter, but I do know the 1.8 is quite frankly gutless, and really requires attention to get it to do anything above pedestrian (partner has a 1.8l AH Astra CDX auto.. dear me).
Anyway I digress..... bornwild this is my suggestion.... get a loan CDTi for a week or even 2 weeks if you could.... and drive it on your roads, in what is normally your life.... live with the thing for 1 - 2 weeks and then see if it is the ride for you.
My 2 cents....
Actually some of the nice things about the CDTi in traffic...
- You really can launch the car on idle (no need to fiddle with the accelerator) and pootle along like a tractor in 1st on idle thereafter.
- You don't know wether the air-con is on or off from a performance point of view.
digifish
Ahh I've driven the CDTi and bugger the noise, doesn't affect me that much. I'm probably gonna follow your advice Tfer and get my old man to bring one back from work for a few days.
Cheers,
NM
Not a worry at all.... cause regardless of what all the "experts" say, the only person who has to live with the purchase is you.... what one man's junk is another man's treasure.... so to speak. If it just doesn't "work" for you... then the right decision is not to... and only you can make that call.
Good luck with the decision, and let us know how you get on!
Tom :)