The 2008 Saturn Astra three-door XR certainly does not look like a car that costs less than $20,000. Made in Belgium and sold in Europe as the Opel Astra, this is a good looking hatchback.

The Astra is well equipped with standard air conditioning, power door locks and windows and cruise control. Despite having excellent seats, this is pretty much a low-rent interior. The plastics and switch gear feel flimsy.

An optional $600 CD changer is awful - both in sound and controls.

The standard five-speed manual is a smooth gearbox, but GM's 1.8 liter Ecotec four-cylinder with 138 horsepower feels underpowered in the Astra.

For a small hatchback, the rear seat is actually useable, even by adults on a short trip. Cargo room for a car in this class is average. The rear seats fold to haul bigger items.

The Astra's real strong point is that it's a very fine handling car. On the downside, it is a noisey cruiser, but with excellent brakes and headlights the Astra is fun to drive.

As equipped, the sticker price on our test car is $19,090. Fuel economy averaged 30 miles to the gallon.

If you can overlook the interior shortcomings and road noise, the 2008 Saturn Astra is an excellent value.

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