Which is the best diesel engine in the Opel Astra?

Opel Astra 1.3-1.7 diesel engines: which is the best one?

John Delaney (Mountmellick)

Jun 2013 Filed under: choosing new car

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Expert answer

Hi John,

I'd go for the 1.3. True, it's not as grunty as the 1.7, but the 1.7 is a truly ancient engine, able to trace its roots all the way back to the early nineties when Isuzu first designed it and no-one in General Motors knew what the heck this de-hee-zel stuff was and they sure weren't going to put it in a car. The 1.3 by contrast was co-developed with Fiat in the early 2000s so is a much fresher, more high-tech design and it's a better engine all-round.

Both are a touch noisy compared with the best latest-gen diesels, but again the 1.7 is far worse in this regard and also has an annoying tendency to stall when pulling out of junctions. So go for the 1.3. A cracking little engine.

Hope that helps

Neil Briscoe - Complete Car Adviser
@neilmbriscoe