1969 Holden HT Reviews

Truly Australian car brands – as in brands that mass manufactured cars locally, regardless of the origin of their overseas parent companies, became a thing of the past in 2017.

The Holden Astra hatch is a five seater that's in competition with the Mazda3, Toyota Corolla and Ford Focus. Both the Ford and the Mazda have had major makeovers this year, so how does the Holden compare?

Australia’s declining new-vehicle market continued its slide in April, with Kia the only top-10 brand to record positive sales growth for the month, according to the latest VFACTS sales data.

The bumpy start to 2019 has continued for the Australian new-car market, but when the music stopped, one brand had been bounced right out of the top 10.

Holden is facing its biggest challenge yet, given its inexorable slide down the national sales charts since it ceased local car manufacturing in 2017. However, one roaring lion fighting this downward trend is the Colorado 4x4 ute.

If not for Allan Moffat, the Falcon GT-HO would not command the same reverence that it does today. Moffat was ‘the man’ when it came to racing and winning in GT-HOs.

I got quite a few comments driving this Holden Calais Tourer around for a week.Dads stopped me on the school run, “Is that the new Holden?” Neighbours  commented while walking past the driveway, “Is that the new Commodore?” It seemed everyone was interested because the Calais Tourer looks good.It’s essentially a five-seat wagon, but it’s not the Holden Sportwagon - similar, but the Tourer is longer and higher. It’s a part of the Commodore family and I was in the Calais which is second from the top of the range.This particular Holden is now built in Germany but still has all the key characteristics you’re used to in a Calais, with a V6 engine and streamlined style.Here’s how it did over a week with my family.

Holden has hung onto 10th position on the sales charts as new car sales bounced back in March.Australians purchased a total 99,442 vehicles in March, up from the 87,102 new cars sold in February.

The Holden Astra 2019 range has been reworked, with changes to the model line-up and car’s equipment, and the six-speed manual gearbox option no longer offered on mid-level R+ and RS models.Still priced from $21,490 plus on-road costs - though currently available for $20,990 drive-away - the 2019 Astra range has seen the deletion of the R+ manual and RS manual, but the R and RS-V manuals remain available. Typically manual models are kept to the base variant, often teamed to a lower-output engine, as is the case with the Astra. In R and R+ guise, it runs a 1.4-litre turbo-petrol four-cylinder, while the higher-spec RS and RS-V models have a more potent 1.6-litre turbo.  But Holden says it will retain the base manual R model, and offer a high-grade RS-V manual to appeal to enthusiasts."The rationale of sticking with a manual transmission in the RS-V was to cater for the ‘purist’ element of driving enthusiasts," said Holden spokesperson, Daniel Cotterill.There aren't many aesthetic changes, but R and R+ variants feature redesigned 17-inch alloy wheels and a slightly redesigned front bumper. Aside from the transmission offer adjustments, the 2019 Astra range continues unchanged in terms of mechanicals. The 110kW/240Nm (auto)/245Nm (manual) 1.4-litre turbo-petrol engine continues to be offered in the R and R+, while the 147kW/280Nm 1.6-litre turbo-petrol is offered in the upper-spec RS and RS-V models. The 1.4-litre donk is rated at 5.8L/100km on a combined cycle, with the larger 1.6-litre engine rated at between 6.3L and 6.5L/100km.Standard equipment continues as before, with the base $21,490 (all prices below plus on-road costs) Astra R offering 17-inch alloy wheels, rear parking sensors with a reversing camera, automatic headlights with LED daytime running lights, a 7.0-inch multimedia screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and DAB+ digital radio.The $23,740 R+ then adds a leather-wrapped steering wheel, rain-sensing wipers, an auto-dimming rear view mirror and Holden Eye, which includes autonomous emergency braking with forward collision warning, lane departure warning with lane keep assist and a following distance indicator.The $27,240 RS adds the larger engine, as well as different 17-inch wheels, blind-spot monitoring, keyless entry and start, automatic parking with front parking sensors and heated and electric-folding mirrors.The top of the Astra range is the $30,740 RS-V, which has 18-inch alloy wheels, leather upholstery, heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, LED tail-lights, a larger 8.0-inch touchscreen with inbuilt satellite navigation, dual-zone climate control, remote start for the automatic and LED ambient lighting. Available optionally on the RS-V is a $1990 Touring Pack with adaptive cruise control, high speed AEB and a sunroof. The previously available Matrix LED headlights have been shelved for 2019.So far in 2019, Holden Astra sales are up by 1.3 per cent to 1,845 units, commanding 7.0 per cent and seventh place in the small car segment. The small car segment has sold 26,302 units so far in 2019, which is down 20.2 per cent compared with this time last year. 2019 Holden Astra pricing (plus on-road costs):R manual: $21,490R auto: $22,490R+ auto: $23,740RS auto: $27,240RS-V manual: $30,740RS-V auto: $31,740

Former homegrown-hero Holden left clinging to the top 10 as the new-car market's woes continue in 2019, with just-released February sales figures showing declines across most major segments.