Vauxhall's Tech Line is aimed primarily at C-segment company car drivers wishing to lower their bottom line costs.

The kit-rich spec for the Astra exploits its economical, low-polluting ecoFlex engine line up to bag bigger benefit in kind (BIK) savings compared to other models in the range as well as key models from arch rivals Ford.

With a 1.7 CDTi ecoFLEX diesel engine in the line-up capable of 76.3mpg and 99 g/km of CO², it's easy to appreciate the strategy.

Tech Line spec is available virtually right across the Astra's engine range but, clearly, it's most effective when teamed with the ecoFlex powerplants, so we'll concentrate here on the star diesel in the line-up, the 130PS 1.7 CDTi which offers a compelling blend of performance, economy and emissions. It develops 5PS more than the regular 1.7 CDTi and supplements it with a meaty 300Nm of torque. But it still manages to take you further on every litre, while keeping the air cleaner.

A tweaked ECU, different fuel injection system, a lower compression ratio, energy recuperating brakes and stop-start team up with low friction piston rings, tappets and piston pins to make the difference. Additionally, the six-speed gearbox has been revised to reduce friction and tuned specifically to the revised engine. It qualifies for zero Vehicle Excise Duty and falls within the lowest 13 per cent benefit-in-kind diesel tax band. It also qualifies under the 110 g/km threshold for 100 per cent first year capital allowance and is exempt from London's congestion charge. The bottom line tax saving over, say, a Ford Focus Zetec 1.6 TDCi (115PS), is £200, based on 40 per cent BIK over three years.

The Astra has other attractions for the driver, of course, with a well-judged balance between taut, responsive handling and a pliant, quiet ride. It's a shame the steering isn't a little crisper about the straight ahead but the gearchange is fast and precise and the powerful brakes are nicely weighted. Overall, the Astra flows over the ground with little fuss or drama and is an enjoyable steer.

Available in five-door hatchback or Sports Tourer estate body styles, the Tech Line Astras don't advertise their tax-weaning ways with anything too showy on the outside (hard to see how that would fit with the approach) but they do have 17in alloy wheels and chrome-effect window surrounds which set off the Astra's sleek, curvaceous shape very well.

Choose your Astra model carefully and Tech Line makes obvious business sense to the individual. It should also help Vauxhall stand its ground in the cut-throat C-segment company car market. Extra kit and lower costs are undoubtedly the watchwords in this 'age of austerity'.

Even without the Tech Line incentive, the Astra stacks up well.

It may not be the fastest thing on four wheels in the 1.3-litre CDTi diesel guise but the 1.7 and 2.0 models are a lot more lively and rewarding to drive than you might expect.

Indeed, the notion of a 130PS family hatch that can do over 75mpg on the combined cycle and emits just 99 g/km of CO² is both powerful and enduring.