VAUXHALL'S new Astra will be priced from £10,995 on-the-road when it arrives in showrooms in May as the company plans to undercut the new Volkswagen Golf across the range.

The entry-level Astra 1.4 Expression includes central locking, ABS, front and side airbags and electric windows as standard, while Club models, priced from £12,995 on-the-road, include air conditioning, alloy wheels and curtain airbags as standard.

The Astra Design, priced from £14,495 OTR, has part-leather seats, rain-sensing windscreen wipers and a trip computer, while Elite models have full leather seats, electronic climate control and electric door mirrors.

On sale from May 1, there will be seven trim levels and six engine options. Petrol engines start with a 90bhp 1.4-litre, rising to a 105bhp 1.6-litre, a 125bhp 1.8-litre and a 170bhp turbocharged 2.0-litre. Two versions of a 1.7-litre common rail diesel will be available initially, with either 80bhp or 100bhp power outputs, both of which will be Euro IV-compliant.

Technical features include the latest generation electronic stability programme and where continuous damping control is fitted, a sports switch to change chassis settings to make the ride softer or firmer depending on the driver's taste.

Compared with the Ford Focus 1.4 LX five-door, priced at £12,150 on-the-road, the Astra is more powerful and better equipped.

Fact file
Engine:	Expression	Life	Club	Design	Elite	SXi	SRi
1.4 16v	£10,995	£11,995	£12,995	N/A	N/A	£13,495	N/A
1.6 16v	N/A	£12,495	£13,495	£14,495	£15,395	£13,995	N/A
1.8 16v	N/A	£12,995	£13,995	£14,995	£15,895	N/A	£15,195
2.0T	N/A	N/A	N/A	£17,645	N/A	N/A	£17,195
1.7 CDTi (80bhp)	N/A	£13,545	£14,545	N/A	N/A	£15,045	N/A
1.7 CDTi (100bhp)	N/A	N/A	£14,895	£15,895	£16,795	£15,395	£16,095

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