• New Cars
    • First Impressions
    • Road Tests
  • Classics
    • Classic Profiles
    • Classic Driving Impressions
    • Classics Information
    • Events and Days Out
  • Motoring For Fun
  • News & Views
  • Bookshelf
  • Technical
    • Grumpy Old Mechanic
    • Kim’s Tips
  • Features
    • Visits
    • Track Days
  • Contributors
    • About our contributors
    • Kim Henson
    • Chris Adamson
    • Kieron Fennelly
    • Ant Henson
    • Rachel Henson
    • David Miles
    • Gerald Morgan
    • Dave Moss
    • Dave Randle
    • Robin Roberts
    • Tom Scanlan
    • Glen Smale
    • Jeremy Walton
    • Keith Ward
    • John Price Williams
  • More…
    • About Wheels Alive
    • Tips for using this website
    • Useful Links

Wheels Alive

Old cars, new cars, borrowed cars & blue cars. If it steers it's here!

Old cars, new cars, borrowed cars & blue cars. If it steers it's here!

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.

To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy

New Vauxhall Astra GSe – First Impressions

19th October 2023

Chris Adamson test drives this newcomer in the Astra line-up from Vauxhall… (All words and photographs by, and copyright, Chris Adamson). One of the longest established names to be found in British showrooms is the Vauxhall Astra, a venerable and big-selling model that has been at the heart of the Vauxhall product line for eight generations since 1980 with many of them being built at Ellesmere … [Read more...]

Latest Vauxhall Astra (‘Mark 8’) – First Impressions

10th June 2022

First Impressions of Vauxhall's 'Mark 8' Astra, by George Loveridge (Driving Around)... Vauxhalls are virtually a right of passage in the motoring world. They really are one of those brands where most people can say they’ve had, been in, passed their test in, or even may still own one. I can almost guarantee that if you walk down your street, you’ll be able to find one. Just in 2021, there were … [Read more...]

Testing Times – Brief Impressions from the SMMT Test Day South 2015

25th November 2015

  BRIEF FIRST IMPRESSIONS – CARS DRIVEN AT THE SOCIETY OF MOTOR MANUFACTURERS AND TRADERS’ 2015 TEST DAY SOUTH Kim Henson was there… The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) hosts an annual driving day specifically for motoring writers from the southern part of Britain. Without exception I find this a very useful occasion for driving a variety of vehicles from different … [Read more...]

Tip: For improved search accuracy, enclose search terms for multiple words in quotation marks. For example:
"Land Rover".

Advertise with us

Recent Posts

Young mechanics presented with award certificates for VW Beetle restoration

Celebration day for Standard Triumph Aficionados – Tuesday 10th February 2026

TV chef Nick Nairn describes automotive adventures in his youth

UK Government publishes long-awaited Road Safety Strategy

Skywell BE11 – Road Test

High Standards for the 2026 NEC Restoration Show

Trans-Atlantic partnership announced by the National Motor Museum for the World Land Speed Record Sunbeam 1000hp tour

January car sales figures in the UK – a mixed bag of numbers

Contributors

contributors

Our well-respected contributors live and breathe motor cars; aren’t we lucky?

Contributors to the site include talented, highly-respected people (so they tell me) on the hallowed membership list of the Guild of Motoring Writers, and from the similarly well thought-of Western Group of Motoring Writers. In addition there are valued contributions from other knowledgeable and capable motoring writers who have something useful to say about all aspects of driving and running vehicles in the 21st Century. All of our team are passionate about motor cars!


Read about our contributors  ››

Tags

Hybrid large SUV EV crossover The Motor Ombudsman estate Electric PHEV saloon British Motor Museum luxury SUV hatchback road test Compact SUV Suzuki Beaulieu Coupé City car Estate car MPV First Impressions 4x4 Seven seater SUV Tyres Kia SUV plug-in hybrid five door hatchback all-electric National Motor Museum

All Tags ››

Like us on Facebook

Like us on Facebook

Wheels Alive Social

  • E-mail
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Please share our website

Contact us

We welcome your questions, comments and feedback. Please click here to contact us.

Advertising Opportunities

Please contact us if you would like to discuss advertising opportunities on Wheels Alive.

Copyright © 2026 Kim Henson, Wheels Alive