When Opel presented the new Opel Astra, in mid-2021, it announced that a fully electric version would arrive: The electric Opel Astra is already a reality and it has not landed alone. He is accompanied by Opel Astra Sports Tourer Electric, the first fully electric family car of the German brand. Orders will open in the spring of 2023, although prices have not yet been revealed.
On an aesthetic level, the differences between the normal Opel Astra and the electric one are minimal. Instead of the traditional grill we find a completely closed one, tinted in black and framed by the two front headlights which, by the way, have the Intelli-Lux LED Pixel Light technology: something that is not usually common in the compact segment. The 18-inch wheels have an aerodynamically optimized design and an ‘e’ appears in the lower right corner of the tailgate to indicate the type of car it is.
extra storage
Inside the electric Opel Astra, the driver has at his disposal a pair of screens (both ten inches) arranged one next to the other in the ‘Pure Panel’: both the front E-HUD and the one that presides over the console center (which is oriented towards the driving position) have voice recognition to minimize distractions.
It is also present Intelli-Drive 2.0, an assistant which includes all the driving assistance systems: active lane keeping assistant, semi-automatic lane change assistant, drowsiness detection, cross traffic warning, forward collision warning with automatic emergency braking…
Regarding the load capacity, The electric Opel Astra Sports Tourer offers a trunk with 516 liters, a figure that, with the seats folded down, increases to 1,553 litres. Opel has not yet specified the volume of the five-door model.
More torque and more autonomy than the Peugeot e-308
The electric Opel Astra is based on the latest version of the Stellantis Group’s EMP2 platform, now called EMP2-V3: it is therefore a technical twin of the Peugeot e-308. Its engine delivers a power of 156 CV (115 kW) and has a maximum torque of 270 Nm: ten Nm above its French cousin. That drive force reaches the ground via the front wheels, and top speed is electronically limited to 170 km/h. It also offers three driving modes: Eco, Normal and Sport.
The one in charge of giving life to this mechanical assembly is a lithium-ion battery, which has 54 kWh (51 kWh of useful capacity): it is made up of a total of 102 cells combined in 17 modules. Opel promises an official autonomy, according to the WLTP Cycle, of 416 kilometers: it is, therefore, 16 kilometers higher than the 400 kilometers of the Peugeot e-308. Its consumption is 12.7 kWh every 100 kilometers.
The electric Opel Astra is equipped with an 11 kW three-phase charger and supports a maximum charging power of 100 kW: If your battery was empty, it would take 30 minutes to recover 80% of its capacity.
