The Astra Mark 5 was first launched in early 2004 as a five-door hatchback, which by the end of the year was joined by a five-door estate and a sporty three-door hatchback called the Sport Hatch in the UK. The Sport Hatch had the option of a "panoramic windscreen" (unique for a production car at the time of its launch) which extended the windscreen into the roof area.
The main variants were Life, Club, Design, SXi, SRi, Elite, and the flagship VXR (Sport Hatch only), which had 240 bhp. However, special edition models included Active, Energy, Breeze and VXR Nurburgring. The latter was only available in white with a distinctive black (and white) chequered stripe across the bonnet, roof & tailgate.
The Petrol Models included 1.4 90 bhp, 1.6 105 bhp or 115 bhp, 1.8 140 bhp, 1.6 Turbo and 2.0 litre Turbo (VXR).
The Diesel Models included 1.3 90 bhp, 1.7 with either 80 or 100 bhp and 1.9 with either 120 or 150 bhp.
All Diesel models feature the initials CDTI and the majority of engines have 16 valves.
From 2006 the TwinTop 2-door coupé convertible was available in the Vauxhall Astra range, having already been a variant on the Tigra.
The Astra Mark 5 was also the first Astra to feature a Euro NCAP 5 star crash test rating.
The five-door Astra was replaced in late 2009 (although various models were still available throughout 2010), while the three-door Sport Hatch wasn't replaced until late 2011.
The MK5 has was the most successful version of the Astra. It was Britain's second-best selling car in 2005, 2006 and 2007, further narrowing the gap between itself and the market-leading Ford Focus.