Vauxhall Astra VXR – 280 horses 400Nm hot hatch!

Vauxhall Astra VXR – 280 horses 400Nm hot hatch!

GM’s European Vauxhall unit have revealed the first details on their new Vauxhall Astra VXR, a high performance version of their recently unveiled 3-door Astra GTC.

Under the hood you’ll find a powerful 2.0 liter turbocharged four cylinder direct injection engine producing 280 horsepower and 400Nm of torque, sent to the front wheels through a mechanical LSD differential. The car comes with a manual transmission, as you can see in the photo gallery below.

Vauxhall Astra VXR – 280 horses 400Nm hot hatch!

Vauxhall has also equipped the hot hatch with a customised version of the FlexRide system, which now features not only a Sport button, but a VXR button, offering drivers the choice of two, more focused stages of damper, throttle and steering control.

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Paul Tan

After dabbling for years in the IT industry, Paul Tan initially began this site as a general blog covering various topics of personal interest. With an increasing number of readers paying rapt attention to the motoring stories, one thing led to another and the rest, as they say, is history.

 

Comments

  • JeremyNg on Nov 07, 2011 at 4:05 pm

    280 horsepower and 400Nm for a FF car ??!! OMG ~I don think the LSD will help much for the handling

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • TurboMan on Nov 07, 2011 at 4:55 pm

      Sounds like another Mazda MPS.

      BUt having driven the MPS, its quite a fun car to drive and torque steer doesnt come in until you mash the throttle.

      With that kind of HP torque available, don think will mash the throttle all the time.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • mangata on Nov 07, 2011 at 5:05 pm

      now tis is a hot hatch

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 1
    • iseeyou on Nov 07, 2011 at 7:53 pm

      proton satria heavily mod(400bhp),can run straight drag without a problem….how u thk that will a problem for a modern ff car like astra?they have sofisticate lsd system that reduce torque steer..yeah they will still have it,but it won’t effect too much….

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • nebula87 on Nov 07, 2011 at 10:34 pm

        and terus masuk longkang jugak if emergency turned 2 left/right…XD

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • TurboMan on Nov 07, 2011 at 11:27 pm

        You said it yourself. Straight race.

        Try taking a corner in a 400hp satria.

        I wouldnt take a sharp corner in a 400hp satria at more than 60kmh. ANything more and if im not careful with the throttle, im sure i will end up probably upside down by the roadside.

        That is when the roads are dry and the sun is shining.

        Now imagine when its raining.

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
        • Kumar san on Nov 09, 2011 at 7:14 pm

          I agree with you TurboMan,long ago when i was really young and still getting the hang of tuning rides before i went to the U.S for a very long time,i plonked a Mitsubishi Starion engine into a A174 Lancer.

          These were the days when nobody had a proper dyno in malaysia in the early 80’s and tuning parts was very little,not even a bloody exhaust!not what we have now,heck the turbo engines of those days did not even come with an intercooler.I threw what i knew at that time at it and had it dyno’ed in Singapore,it put out 220bhp at the crank,which was bloody huge in those days(Forget about the blow off valves,turbo timers,boost controllers and etc)-You had jack.Not even a boost gauge,only the shove and very large testicles to handle all that afterwards.

          On the way back,met a pretty sharp corner,got a little excited and got on boost mid corner.Naturally i went straight off the road and into a waiting tree with open arms,the road was bone dry.Car was wrecked and so was myself.

          Now,400bhp front wheel drive on boost mid corner? even with the best LSD with all that grunt you will still axle tramp and torque steer straight off i reckon,and i have seen some very nasty accidents here because of this very application..

          Anyway,Cheers bro.

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 2 Thumb down 0
      • Jolly_idiot on Nov 07, 2011 at 11:31 pm

        Lsd is not everything. Too much porny on ff still over killing. Big horses car normally go for fr or 4wd. Better grip

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 3 Thumb down 0
    • Jolly_idiot on Nov 07, 2011 at 10:09 pm

      A direct compete to renault megane rs

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Wallstreet on Nov 08, 2011 at 7:25 am

      Trust me, torque steer can be fun to drive. That’s where all the fun. It will be tough though if you race it on the track.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • In Mal Autocar’s Nov report of UK’s best handling car, this car took the test track few tight corners JUST 1kmh slower than MP4-12c (which hold the lap record), at exact speed as Exora S, and faster than Cayman R. What a value car, because there in UK it’s cheaper than Megane RS by quite a margin. Anyway, personally, I prefer Megane design over this.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • H4dRi on Nov 07, 2011 at 4:08 pm

    understeerr………..

    except for that ugly front grill, the car look quite good, will this car come to our shore, interested to see this car compete with mk6 & megane

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • jalan54 on Nov 07, 2011 at 4:25 pm

    Never gonna have it here in Malaysia. Even if it does, it’ll be expensive like hell.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Honda Power on Nov 07, 2011 at 4:41 pm

      Yup, u r rite. Just be contented with Honda CR-Z which is affordable.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • lol honda power again.. :D

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • Kiddo on Nov 07, 2011 at 7:30 pm

        A 2-seater that costs RM115k, and you call that “affordable”. hmm~

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
        • xavier lert on Nov 07, 2011 at 7:38 pm

          yess

          Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
          • hehehe…over here ppl worship honda’s vtec, to most msian vtec is THE most powerful engine EVER…hahahaha….

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
          • Anyone feel that VTEC seems to downgrade to VTakEC becoz of ppl like this.. macam CamTakPro… lol..

            Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 1
      • Jap hothatch power can eat shit when they go against this beast. LOL.. Still think jap the best?

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • limaunipis on Nov 08, 2011 at 10:43 am

        chances of this vauxhall making it to our shores is the same as hoping for snowfall in this country — unless someone willing to pay top ringgit for it.

        now, the word paranoid has a new definition: honda power / honda.

        pffftttt!

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • mentari-o-korea on Nov 08, 2011 at 12:15 pm

        good, n my koup 2.0 will eat ur CR-Z for breakfast !!

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • CR-Z is affordable? not on this time of my financial level.. in other words, owning it stays in my ‘power of dreams’..

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Ahmed on Nov 07, 2011 at 5:01 pm

    Excellent .

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Lucifer on Nov 07, 2011 at 6:31 pm

    Can someone explain which tax, what legislation and who do we need to get rid of to get the car price of that the people of UK pay for??

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • sukasuki on Nov 09, 2011 at 10:39 am

      get rid those fuel subsidy, sugar subsidy, flour subsidy, gas subsidy, and u can get ur dream car within UK price. u want?

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 1 Thumb down 0
  • thebosssedangbercakap on Nov 07, 2011 at 6:46 pm

    this is what i call a true sports car. 280 horsey’s, damn that’s tight.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • 4G63T DSM on Nov 08, 2011 at 5:53 pm

      ‘cept is missing rwd.

      Having that much power going through the front wheels sure not fun.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • xavier lert on Nov 07, 2011 at 7:40 pm

    i like

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • insperut on Nov 07, 2011 at 9:56 pm

    280 horse… nice
    400Nm… excellent!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Crasher on Nov 07, 2011 at 9:58 pm

    That car is so hot!!!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • kl fella on Nov 07, 2011 at 10:03 pm

    did i see a toyota prius front and an elongated gen2 headlights?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Foster on Nov 07, 2011 at 10:06 pm

    The most affordable hatch back and fun to drive is Fiesta, manage to beat Polo GTI and Magane… Why Malaysian needs to spend many on Vauxhall that may be expensive and still questionable the reliability could be worse than VW Polo.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • TurboMan on Nov 08, 2011 at 6:10 am

      There is a difference between a hot hatch, warm hatch and a damn f#$@king scorching hot hatch

      To shed some light to your poor soul, the warm hatches are cheaper while the damn f#$@king scorching hatches are much more expensive.

      However some warm hatches are fun to drive too. That i agree with you.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Oh please la…….just keep quiet and drive your Fiesta. Adult talking about power here, go play far far.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • sumhow i cant help thinking u noe nuts about cars.fiesta beats a Polo GTI?and its Renault Megane,not MAGANE.n fiesta does not even qualify to be in the same category as GTIs and Meganes

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Angely on Nov 08, 2011 at 9:56 am

      Some of your point I might agree especially affordability. Fiesta might not beat Vauxhall but Fiesta has alot things to offer latest gadgets, performance and beauty. Fiesta easily win against Kia Forte 1.6, Polo, City, Vios,Swift, and Mazda 2 but for VW GTI I don’t think so different segment.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
      • as usual lah on Nov 08, 2011 at 5:49 pm

        waiting for chevy sonic 1.4 turbo to beat fiesta…heheh

        Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • nebula87 on Nov 07, 2011 at 10:33 pm

    This wat i call powerful hot hatch….unlike CRZ…lol…wait for mugen or other third parties 2 tune it…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • niceone on Nov 08, 2011 at 12:10 am

    i wish our very own Satria Neo will have the engine performance (even 200hp is ok edi), specs, and quality interior like this. let’s just hope that the next satria neo will be even better than the current one, and then we can call it a proper hot hatch!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • MeGane on Nov 08, 2011 at 7:54 am

    See a lot of Hyundai styling cues in the Vauxhall ….Renault RS is still the sexiest !

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • adultaver on Nov 08, 2011 at 8:27 am

    jus dun get it why they made it a FF? just for the sake of lower cost? but the targeted market dun really care much bout cost.. Probably ter figured out a way to hav it performed jus like a FR in a large extent.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • kwing on Nov 08, 2011 at 12:19 pm

    all the hot hatches… hope the Abarth Punto coming too….

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • jay8393 on Nov 08, 2011 at 2:30 pm

    280 bhp and 400 Nm was the Lancer Evolution IX’s performance figures! I can’t imagine the kind of understeer cause by all of them being deployed just to the front wheels…

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Slick on Nov 08, 2011 at 11:27 pm

    Similar power output to the Mazda MPS. I feel this car would be in direct competition with MPS and Megane RS rather than the GTI. With such power figures, the GTI is out of it’s league man.

    Driving an MPS is way more fun than the GTI. Perhaps they made this car FWD to make it more engaging for the driver. Compound that with the fact that this is in manual transmission. Anyone including my grandma can drive a GTI. Not that its a bad thing, but I feel that this car is targeted as purists rather than the mass market.

    For people that keep lamenting about the fact that it’s better of as an AWD, I am sure they have their reasons. Cost and weight savings? Giving consumers a different experience?

    My 2 cents.

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
    • Wallstreet on Nov 09, 2011 at 8:08 am

      Agree with u. I mean we all buy this type of car to feel the torque. Unless someone buy this car purely for track racing then I think this car may lose some ground. What is better than having a front wheel and manual trans for maximum feel? Thats where the fun begins. Any P driver can drive a GTI but not many even experienced drivers can handle this car if it’s pushed to the max. Torque steer is fun but it’s a big challenge on racing track.

      Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Thumbs me up ! on Nov 09, 2011 at 1:26 am

    Omg the rims… I just want them as display!

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
  • Mater on Nov 12, 2011 at 1:37 am

    Better than CR-Z?

    Like or Dislike: Thumb up 0 Thumb down 0
 

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