Holden Opel Astra Turbo SRi

The NZ$40,990 Astra SRi turbo is no V8, having exactly half the number of cylinders, but it does have an intercooled turbo that produces a nice healthy 147kW and a slick six-speed gearbox that moves the vehicle as quickly as your average huge V8, while not using nearly as much fuel.

Yes, you have to put up with less interior room, and a couple of doors, but the Astra SRi turbo is an entrant in the small performance car market that just may have the chance to out-shadow the big bent eights as petrol prices become more uncertain.

You also get a touch of high technology, in the form of the CDC suspension. Five sensors around the car sense the body movement and adjust the damping effect of the shock absorbers constantly.

On normal mode the car rides pretty well and resists body roll well, but hit the IDS Plus sport button and everything sharpens up - not to the point where your teeth are threatening to come loose from your gums - but you do get a good mix of performance handling and ride, and thanks to a sharper throttle response the car feels much more lively, especially as the power steering is also sharpened up.

It's a pity though that when you hit the sport button the stability control, but more importantly the traction control is turned off. There's no half house where you can get the sharp throttle response and stiffer suspension with the restraining hand of traction control.

The problem is that with traction control off, torque steer makes an unwelcome appearance, even in the dry. In the wet it's like trying to reign in a wayward rodeo horse. That means the only traction control lies in your right foot, and while that's okay by me it's the amount of torque steer that's a worry. There are plenty of other powerful front drivers in the market that don't get nearly so unruly.

The torque steer is not helped by a clutch pedal that engages right at the end of its travel. It's hard to smoothly engage the clutch while your left leg is hanging in the air, and because I'm rather short the problem is exacerbated - either over-extend my leg to get the clutch pedal all the way to the firewall for disengagement, or put up with banging my knee against the steering wheel every time I change gear.

And whole I'm on the moaning bandwagon, why did the engineers decide that the indicators that return to the same position were a good idea? They are fiddly to operate, and it's all too easy to engage the 'three flash' lane change function, try to cancel it, only to engage the lane change function on the other side of the car.

You end up driving down the road looking like you're having a fight with the indicator. You'll find this in all Holden Astras, so forgive the drivers if they appear to be constantly indicating.

Spec is reasonably comprehensive in the SRi, with ESP, traction control, ABS with brake assist, dual front and thorax/pelvis side airbags, curtain airbags, height and reach-adjustable steering wheel, Blaupunkt seven speaker, six disc MP3 compatible CD stereo, steering wheel mounted stereo controls, climate control air conditioning, cruise control, leather upholstered heated sports seats and 18" Alloy Wheels.

But you can't avoid a certain badge from Wolfstadt looming on the horizon.
The Golf GTi may cost an extra $9000, but it's got the same power and 18 more Newton Metres of torque than that Astra. It's also much more fun to drive and the downsides to the Astra - the fiddly indicators, the wayward front wheels, and the three door body merely underline the difference.

If you can afford another nine grand I'd say take the VW, but the Astra turbo is nearly as good as the Golf GTi, and as the Golf GTi is so ultimately good it's something of a compliment that a Holden can get close in driver appeal.