Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by diesel engines and utilizing the 5-door hatchback body style within the same 'Small family car' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (rear for the BMW and front in the case of the Opel). The first one has a BMW-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 3-cylinder, 12-valves 116hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 110hp engine designed by General Motors.

Both vehicles got tested by European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP), with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. Both vehicles belong to the small family car segment, which is generally classifying them somewhere in the middle safety-wise, but it doesn't do much to help us decide between the two. On the other hand, taking kerb weight as an important factor into account, Astra offers a marginal difference of 4% more metal.

I don't like generalizing things when it comes to reliability, although it does seem that Opel does have a slight advantage, all the models observed together. That's the official data, while our visitors describe reliability of BMW, as well as Opel, with the same average rating of 4.2 out of 5. Independent research findings rank 1 Series as average reliability-wise, and Astra is more or less at the same level.We should definitely mention that owners of cars with the same powertrain as 1 Series rank it on average as 4.5, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 3.6 out of 5.

BMW is a bit more agile, reaching 100km/h in 0.7 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 200 kilometers per hour, 5km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy things look pretty much the same for both cars, averaging around 3.7 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (76 mpg), in combined cycle.

BMW appears just a bit more reliable, although the difference is truly marginal. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, Astra offers slightly better overall protection and takes the lead. From there things take a different direction, with BMW offering somewhat better performance, just enough to call it quicker. Fuel consumption is more or less the same. At the end, as much as I'd like to give you a winner here, it's simply a pure tie if you ask me. Nevertheless, let's not forget that people have different preferences and needs, so what really counts is your personal feel. I'm only here to help. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.