Holden Owner Reviews

Mostly good, but as mentioned previously, the omission of active crusie control while almost all the other safety suites are included - such as lane-keep assist, blind-spot monitoring, and radar-monitoring forward collision means that the omission of ACC was either a bean counter being cynical or that the technology was not available - I’m going to guess it was the former. Cargo space in the Equinox is brilliant - the seats fold perfectly flat and the access is simple. The rear compartment, however, does not come with a cover - meaning my scooter is always exposed to potentially being stolen, so I need to cover it with a blanket.The Equinox is a relatively fast and smooth vehicle. Noise suppression is excellent for the price and the car steers and breaks with confidence. The engine is slightly overpowered for the available traction to the front wheels, but a smooth driver will overcome this, even in the wet. Overall, I really enjoy how the Equinox moves.I recently drove a modern Honda SUV and when I got back into my older vehicle I was surprised how it holds it own in the company of much newer car. Clearly GM made this model as world car and it shows. This is a very decent car to drive - not perfect, but I never expected perfection. For most part it’s exceeded my expectations as far as refinement and comfort as well as handling and road manners.So far it’s been pretty good. I’ve only needed to do scheduled maintenance.Never had anything that remotely resembles unreliability. I woke to a puncture one morning. That is as close to the car letting me down as I have experienced. Of course, it was a nail in tire, so as far as the car goes in the reliability stakes it scores a perfect score.

The Astra comes with a 7.0-inch touchscreen with wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Its easy to use and I've had no problems with it. Safety-wise it comes with six airbags, stability and traction controls along with lane assist and AEB (which can be overly sensitive at times). It can seat four comfortably, however there are no rear air vents. There are cupholders and decent sized door bins. The boot is also a good size but has a large loading lip with no adjustable boot floor and no 12-volt outlet. There is, however, a space-saver spare wheel under that boot floor. Being a 1.4-litre turbo it has enough go but at times can feel breathless if you have four adults on-board and the air con at full blast. The Astra rides on 17-inch alloys and has a good balance between ride and handling. The 1.6 turbo on higher spec Astras would offer better performance for spirited drivers. The engines offered are newer compared to contemporary rivals. Running cost are reasonable with the trip computer reading 6.7L per 100km on regular 91 RON unleaded. Servicing is required every 15,000km. At the time of purchase I was given a five-year factory warranty and three years' free servicing by Holden. Despite Holden's closure there are still previous Holden dealers (who have changed brands) that can take care of servicing. Reliability hasn't been so good. I've had engine problems as well as rattles and the paint quality is very poor. The engine problem was covered under warranty but forum feedback confirms these 1.4 turbos are prone to issues.