The Ellesmere Port plant has commenced assembly of the new Opel/Vauxhall Astra Sports Tourer.

Workers at the facility were joined by VP Manufacturing Opel Group Peter Thom and Ellesmere Port Plant Director Stefan Fesser as the first vehicle left the production line.

Just like its five-door hatch sibling, the new Opel Astra Sports Tourer is based on an lightweight architecture, it brings a new design, technology and powertrains. The slightly arched sloping roofline gives it a longer appearance and the car stands out furthermore with its divided C-pillar.

The newest generation of the Opel Astra Sports Tourer has almost the same dimensions as the current version, with a length of 4,702mm, a width of 1,871mm and a height of 1,510mm. However, it offers an additional headroom of 26mm for the driver, rear passengers have 28mm more legroom and total cargo capacity is 1,630 liters.

Depending on the version and trim level selected, the vehicle is up to 190kg lighter than its predecessor and its body shell weight alone was reduced by roughly 85kg. Powertrain outputs range between 95PS (94hp) and 200PS (197hp) and CO2 emissions vary between 89 and 142g/km.

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