Since the Kadett of 1936, until the penultimate version of the Astra which left us in 2015, Opel has systematically offered a compact coupe in its range. Imagining a new Astra in coupe mode is therefore not entirely heresy.
At the start of 2022, Opel will market the sixth generation of its compact Astra. The model will first be offered as a five-door sedan and then, in the spring, the blitz brand will launch the wagon bodywork, Astra Sports Tourer, which will be unveiled in November 2021.
TO READ. Opel Astra (2022). Price, range and equipment of the compact
Finally, a version of the station wagon sporting an adventurer look and powered by a 100% electric engine will finalize the offer by 2024.
But the silhouette of the coupe, the Astra GTC is no longer on the program for a generation already. The current Opel Astra (type K) born in 2015 and crowned car of the year in 2016 had separated from it justifying a lack of profitability. She won’t be making a comeback.
80 years of the compact coupe at Opel
This formula was however well anchored in the DNA of Opel. Since the first version appeared in 1991, called Opel Astra type F, the three-door bodywork is on the program. A long tradition that goes back even much further in the history of the brand with the ancestor of the Astra, the Kadett born in 1936 and already available in three doors.
TO READ. Opel Astra Saga. The history of the compact at l’Éclair since 1991
A virtual Astra GTC
This did not prevent the Russian illustrator Nikita Ghuicko from imagining with the help of Photoshop software and his graphic palette that it could have been the look of a future Opel Astra GTC. The result is rather flattering. The wheelbase has been shortened and the thickened rear quarter pillar is more inclined to add dynamism.
Indeed, the Opel Astra GTC appeared on the Astra G (2004-2009) and then continued on the Astra J (2009-2015) had a specific body at the level of the rear part and was also distinguished by a roof placed more low. While at the front, the shield sported more aggressive lines by means of more openwork air intakes. This is indeed transcribed on the illustrations of Nikita Ghuicko who has, however, not modified the design of the stern which remains consistent with that of the sedan. It was not necessary. The whole does not lack consistency and presence, a pity that the financiers of Stellantis focused on their calculator are not sensitive to it.
