New Vauxhall Astra UK prices announced

Vauxhall has announced UK prices and specifications for the newly facelifted Astra, which start at £18,885, rising to £29,310.

Earlier this month, the ‘new’ Vauxhall Astra was revealed, but it’s not a new Astra, it’s a titivated version of the model we’ve had since 2015 as PSA hasn’t managed to deliver a new Astra based on PSA underpinnings yet. And when it does, it may very well not be built in the UK.

But despite (or because) this is an updated version, Vauxhall is offering a bewildering array of engine and trim options and prices, starting at £18,885 for the Astra SE with the smallest petrol engine rising to £29,310 for the Ultimate Nav 1.5 diesel.

Engines on offer include three versions of the 1.2 litre three-pot turbo petrol with 108bhp, 128bhp or 143bhp, a 1.4 litre petrol also with 143bhp and 103bhp and 119bhp versions of the 1.5 litre diesel.

Starting point is the Astra SE with a choice of all the engine options, with the Business Edition Nav (from £19,585), SRi (from £21,895) and SRi Nav (from £22,595)all offering the same choice of six engines too.

Move up from the SRi Nav (yes, there are lots more trim levels to go) and the SRi VX Line Nav (from £24,195), Elite Nav (from £23,995) and Ultimate Nav (from £26,775) only offer the 143bhp version of the 1.2 litre (but all the others.

You can also opt for the Astra Estate in SE trim (from £20,335), Business Edition Nav (from £21,205) or SRi Nav (from £24,615) with a more restricted range of engine options.

 Sales of the facelifted Astra start in November, just in time for Brexit and PSA to decide not to build the new Astra at Ellesmere Port.

But do we really need so many versions of the new Astra?