Words by Marcus Boothby
Until Vauxhall were bought out by Stellantis a couple of years ago, they were making some truly shocking cars in terms of looks and reputation. However, since being freed from GM ownership, Vauxhall are actually making nice looking cars. Shocker isn’t it?
It all started with the current Corsa which is now based on the same platform as the Peugeot 208. The previous Corsa was one of the most boring looking cars you could buy, plus the image it had (and still has), was less than desirable. The latest Corsa has at least fixed the styling problem as it is now somewhat interesting to look at and has a decent interior.
Since then, Vauxhall has updated the Grandland, Crossland, Mokka, Insignia and the recently revealed Astra to make them more likeable. Sure, they’re no Mercedes but you have to remember that Vauxhall isn’t a luxury brand.
However, the recently revealed Mokka and Astra genuinely look really good. They feature Vauxhall’s new design language which has a signature front end treatment which looks sharp and modern. Dare I say, they’re being bold, which is welcoming as for the past 10 or so years, Vauxhall’s have been some of the most mediocre looking cars on sale.
The new Astra should be the turning point for Vauxhall though as it is one of their best selling cars in the UK. It is key to stand out in the family hatchback segment and the new Astra certainly does stand out. As mentioned above, it has the new design language as first seen on the new Mokka, with the front being dominated by the “Vauxhall Vizor”. This design feature incorporates the grille, lights and logo into one, solid piece. It finally brings the company into the 2020s.
The new Astra has a completely redesigned interior too, with two large screens dominating the dashboard, with the rest of the dashboard being clutter-free. Again, this is considerably more modern than the previous Astra which in comparison, looks dated and drab.
So, what’s next for Vauxhall’s new line-up? Well, nothing is certain yet but we can be sure that there is an all-new Insignia in the works, along with a facelifted Corsa. We’ve seen rumours of a new coupe from Vauxhall but we would say their priority at the moment is to fix up the current range to bring it inline with the new Mokka, Crossland and Astra.
Time will only tell though, but hopefully, Vauxhall will fix its image in the UK with these new models.