In essence, it might just seem a three-door version of a car that seeks attention in a market crowded with the likes of the Ford Focus and Toyota Corolla and Renault Megane to name a few. But this Opel Astra looks distinctly more purposeful with a crouching eager-to-go sort of posture. It looks like an invitation to sporty motoring.
A year after the five-door Astra made its debut, Opel is seeking to bring fresh excitement to the line-up with the three-door offerings and that has meant a radical reshaping of the metal. In former times, three-door models were simply that bit more downmarket, being less expensive entry-level and with metal that stayed much the same. Now Opel has decreed that they should look alluringly different, no doubt because sales clearly need an uplift. (In 2003, the old three-door accounted for just 10 per cent of total Astra sales here).
Welcome then to the Astra Sport Hatch. Actually GTC (for Gran Turismo Compact) is the nomenclature for mainland Europe but because Ireland is part of Vauxhall-land (in spite of the retention of the Opel badge), we apparently have to take the British-inspired name which applies to the British and Irish markets. Why not just one badge, GTC which sounds far more appealing? No one in the Opel/GM organisation can give an explanation.
Our Sport Hatch test drive car came with another badge, SRi, sitting in the middle of spec options that begin with SXi and are topped with Design. Surprise, surprise, it was also a diesel which, of course, is no hardship.
It didn't take long to discover that the diesel is the brightest and newest in the Opel firmament, the 1.9 litre Fiat-derived common-rail unit that delivers 150bhp. That power makes for 0 to 100km in 8.9 seconds and a top speed of 208mph.
At low revs, there's some clatter but once the turbo kicks in, it smooths out and from 2,000rpm it displays life and vigour that can last to the 5,000rpm red line. In fourth gear, it will take you from 48 to 80km/h in just over six seconds, enough to pass out the slow movers with confidence. (That's 30 to 50 old-fashioned mph if you are still struggling with the new metric order).
Dieselheads don't talk performance, they talk torque or mid-range thrust and this was one of the delights of this Astra sport hatch. They will tell you its most important statistic, 315Nm at 2,000 rpm. In simple terms, whatever the speed, it responds with immediacy when extra urge is needed.
The excitement of the performance is matched or complemented by the eager sporty profile. The good news too is that there are in all 11 three-door sport hatch versions, using the same engine power as their five-door counterparts. Irish prices start at €22,695 for the 1.4i petrol model. Prices are the same as for the five-door cars. Our test car was at the top of the pile in pricing, at €30,495.
Opel expects the sport hatch to appeal to younger buyers, uncluttered with family considerations. But how does it acquit itself as a four or five-seater, given that Opel actually makes this commodious claim? It must to a large extent depend on the size of the rear passengers: certainly six-footers wouldn't be comfortable. Three in the back, of whatever shape, isn't a realistic possibility.
With smart coupé-inspired styling that has meant a sloping roofline 32mm lower than the five-door Astra, something has to give. There simply isn't the same head or leg room, the same aura of spaciousness.
From a driver's point of view, the smallish rear window diminishes rearward vision. Otherwise we were happy enough with the driving seat. The cabin ambience of the SRi was reasonably opulent, although it didn't indicate to us that we were in a GTi sort of machine. The brushed aluminium sets off the facia which predictably carries the same controls and instruments as the five-door siblings.
There's still much Astra familiarity about the sport hatch. Like the five-door, it has a torsion beam rear suspension arrangement and it can't match rivals like the Ford Focus for chassis superiority. But it shows firm adhesion to the road in most circumstances.
A long drive from Dublin to West Cork and back was our biggest testing opportunity and in early morning open road conditions, it offered easy and relaxed motoring with virtually no hint of the diesel pedigree. Fuel consumption worked out at 6.5 litres per 100 kilometres which is 43.5mpg in the old imperial parlance. Official figures are 7.4 urban, 4.9 extra urban and 5.8 combined, the equivalent of 38.2, 57.6 and 48.7mpg.
Opel identify as key competitors the Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Renault Megane and Toyota Corolla. The 1.9 SRi diesel on a lofty price perch at €30,495 would be viewed by BMW as one of its competitors for the 1-series. The 118d is €33,100.
The specification list includes air conditioning as standard on all versions. SRi means 17-inch spoke alloy wheels, ESP, a driver information centre that incorporates a trip computer and a body-coloured rear spoiler. Astra already has a five-star Euro NCAP safety rating: all models feature six airbags.
The five-door Astra that's now a year old is a smart and assertive looking car. But the three-door that's the sport hatch hugely enhances the Astra footprint with the sort of boldness and eagerness that many believed wasn't around at Opel any more.