Opel Astra Bertone Coupé

This article was edited by 300CVWebzine on 2003 now offline so I just add some part and edited here because my great Opel Astra Bertone after 12 years(August) reach 217000 km , and soon something of new will happen so Enjoy this rare reading.

The new Opel Astra Coupé is born in collaboration with the Carrozzeria Bertone (Now defunct) and adds a new chapter in the long history of sports cars Opel,template like the legendary Opel GT, the Monza, the Manta, the Calibra and the Tigra
The new model was born from the collaboration between the Center of Design of Opel and the Carrozzeria Bertone in Grugliasco (Torino) ,they did not limited to designing the sleek and streamlined but produces the car in a plant designed and build in to Torino.
The designers have taken advantage of the wedge-shaped line of Astra, emphasized through a greater angle of the windscreen. The absence of the door frame and the second pillar of the roof black give the visual impression of a single window, giving greater impetus to the profile of the roof.
Despite the lowered front and the line very aerodynamic( Coefficent of Drag-Cx 0.29 ), Astra Coupe has a spacious interior, comfortable for 4 people and 460 liters of boot.

To obtain a road holding Sports and great handling, without compromising the quality of the alignment, the Opel has lowered the bodywork of about 20MM compared to the saloon,has stiffened springs and the front anti-roll bar and has mounted shock absorbers harder. The suspension geometry to DSa (Dynamic Safety Action) are guaranteed by the system structure/suspension McPherson.
The study of the bodywork has also taken into account the parameters of weight, rigidity and structural solidity. Using a lightweight high-strength steel for almost 70% of the body and metal sheets made specially, The Astra Coupe is not only light ,but also has excellent stiffness values static and dynamic. The body for example, weighs just 256 kg(Unladen Weight: 2755.8 lbs OR 1250 kg),but it has a stiffness of over 18000 Nm per degree higher than that of the Astra 4 door sedan.
In Italy the new Astra Coupe is available in two versions, the 1.8 16V and the 2.0 Turbo,which differ by motorization and staging but they have in common high performance,low fuel consumption and low exhaust emissions(both Euro IV respectively with 185g/km CO2 and 211 g/km). The 1.8 16V adopts an enhanced version of the petrol engine ECOTEC 1800cc 92Kw/125HP compression ratio of 10.5 :1 maximum torque 167/170Nm at 3800 rpm, recently adopted also on Zafira.The features are twin balance shafts,Multi-point fuel injection 1796cc.Bore 80.5 mm (3.2 in)Stroke88.2 mm (3.5 in) That ideal engine for a car brilliant as this,that in this version can reach a maximum speed of 210 km/h and 100 km/h from a standing start in just 9.5 ” .The consumption in mixed cycle is only 7.4 liters per 100 Km(13.5 lt/km)/Economy – Extra Urban 6 Liters per 100 km (17 Lt/Km)-Max City 10.8 liters per 100 Km( 9.25 lt/km)
The Astra Coupé Bertone 1.8 16V mounts the manual gearbox with 5 close ratios ,the same engaged on other versions of the Astra and is equipped with two brake circuits working In diagonal distribution,280mm disc brakes, power windows with automatic opening and closing by closing the doors locking,manual or automatic air conditioning and sport seats ” easy Entry(tilting and pushing the backrest , the seat slides forward and then resumes its original position) ,alloy wheels from 16″ to 6 breeds with DUNLOP SPORT 3000A tires 205/50 R16 87V.
The special windscreen with a thin protective film inserted between the two layers of safety glass which reduces up to almost 50% the heat absorption is going to accomplish the safety equipment that includes front headrests active front and side airbags pedals detachable in the event of a severe impact(patent Opel) ABS and electronic traction-control TC Plus that intervenes when now one or both wheels have lost grip, restoring the traction both by means of an action on the engine going to “cut” power to both wheels precisely, both through targeted action on calipers, to block any slippage of one wheel specifically.