Holden cuts new Astra hatch pricing

Holden has re-adjusted the pricing of its new Astra hatch, barely a month after the small car going on sale in Australia.

Astra hatch models will be between $250 and $1700 cheaper under the re-alignment, effective immediately. According to Holden managing director Mark Bernhard, the price cut was necessary in order to make the Astra more competitive within its segment.

"We launched the Astra at the start of December – what we've done over the last month is listen to feedback from media, from dealers and we've looked at customer enquiry," Bernhard said.

"Based on all that feedback we're taking an opportunity to re-align where the pricing is and part of that will be a price rollback."

Customers who already purchased a new Astra before the price re-alignment – believed to be several hundred – will be reimbursed the additional money they might have paid, Bernhard confirmed.

Under the move, the Astra R automatic variant receives the biggest price chop, with a $1700 discount bringing its RRP to $22,490 plus on-road costs. The equivalent R manual drops $500 to $21,490 plus on-road costs. Both cars have had their side skirts reduced to a smaller size as part of the move.

Elsewhere in the range the R Plus manual variant drops to $22,740 plus on-road costs (a $250 discount). The R Plus automatic price is now $23,740 plus on-road costs, a $1450 discount. At $26,240 plus on-road costs the RS manual has been discounted $250 and the RS automatic is slashed by $1450 for a new price of $27,240 plus on-road costs.

Flagship Astra models are also cheaper than before. The manual RSV comes in at $30,740 plus on-road costs (down $250), while the RSV automatic has been re-aligned to $31,740 plus on-road costs, a $1450 price cut.

Bernhard said Holden would continue to evaluate whether more "unnecessary equipment" could be deleted from the Astra. As it stands, most pricing revisions have been introduced without any impact on specification. However, with a $21,490 entry price, the Astra still isn't the cheapest in its segment.

Even so, with the re-alignment in place, the Holden boss believes the Astra hatch can be a strong competitor within its segment.

"It really makes it the most compelling vehicle in the small car segment, it stacks up exceptionally well against all other product," he enthused.

"I don't think we got the pricing wrong [the first time around]. We were very confident with the pricing of our product and as you look at pricing, it's not a science, there's a lot of art in the way you price a vehicle."