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Test drove a golf sportswagen last night

H

Herr Kutz

Platinum Member
I went to the VW dealership last night to test drive a golf sportswagen. When I arrived, the dealership was completely deserted except for a couple salesman.

They only had the base model, but it has just about everything I want/need save for power forward/backward on the driver seat (they have power tilt which is the least useful power option on a seat imho) and automatic lights, although neither of these would be deal breakers. Even on the base model there were a lot of nice little touches like carpeting in the storage areas on the side of the doors, pass through rear seat, carpeted wheel well (really helps with road noise imho), lumbar support, side mirror turn signals, and a few other little details most manufacturers would skimp on, at least in a base model. Unfortunately I didn't get to take it on quite as long of a test drive as I would like, but it did seem fairly quiet on the interstate. It wasn't like a coffin, but probably very competitive with a lot of midsize, mainstream sedans. Fuel economy was okay, and if the INST fuel economy gauge is to be believed, it did excellent on the interstate with readings staying in the upper 30s-lower 40s at 70mph cruise. And of course, being a wagon, it had plenty of room on the inside.

One thing that could possibly be a deal breaker is the turbo lag. When accelerating from a complete stop it felt like it took half a second to a second to start moving which would get really annoying in stop and go traffic. Is this normal for a VW? I test drove a 2.0t 2016 malibu a few weeks ago and it was completely smooth to where I couldn't really tell much of a difference between it and a naturally aspirated engine.

When I got home I did a little more research and think I would step up to the limited edition because it really does have a lot of content for only an extra 2 grand more.

Would it be crazy to get a VW? TBH, I'm scared like heck of their reliability, or lack thereof, and I'm guessing their maintenance is more expensive.
 
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German cars, including VW didn't get their "reliability" reputation out of nowhere. If you like it a lot and have money to spare, then buy one. If you're really scared to heck about reliability, then buy something else.
 
What drove you to this car over the chevy? If it was just to compare... Well I think you got your answer.
 
z1ggy said:
What drove you to this car over the chevy? If it was just to compare... Well I think you got your answer.
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I would rather a wagon or suv so I can throw 2 bikes in the back (and lock them inside) or haul other crap for road trips.
 
I tested out a golf with the same motor and do not recall issues with throttle response. Very appealing vehicle, I liked it alot. Healthy engine, communicative chassis, basic but solid interior, and versatile with the hatch. I can only imagine that the wagon takes that cargo capacity up a notch without really hurting the handling dynamics.

As for reliability.....I think we have gotten spoiled. Some respectable auto journalists have written that it's hard to get a "bad" car any more. I tend to agree. Our parents and grandparents survived with much worse cars. Buy what you like and if you are worried get an extended warranty.
 
monkeydelmagico said:
I tested out a golf with the same motor and do not recall issues with throttle response. Very appealing vehicle, I liked it alot. Healthy engine, communicative chassis, basic but solid interior, and versatile with the hatch. I can only imagine that the wagon takes that cargo capacity up a notch without really hurting the handling dynamics.

As for reliability.....I think we have gotten spoiled. Some respectable auto journalists have written that it's hard to get a "bad" car any more. I tend to agree. Our parents and grandparents survived with much worse cars. Buy what you like and if you are worried get an extended warranty.
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I will try to test drive a couple more this weekend to see if it was just that car or if it's similar on their other vehicles.

Yes I think if I bought a VW I would wind up buying an extended warranty.
 
I went to another dealer in the area and test drove a Limited Edition which solidified my decision that it would be the trim to get if I decide to go with the sportswagon.

The only thing missing from that trim that I want is power forward/sliding seats. It has everything else I wanted. I did some reading last night and before heading in to the dealership today and everything I read seems to say that there is no, or at least nearly non-existent, turbo lag. After the second test drive I think I might agree with this. What I'm feeling with accelerating from a stop is a very heavy throttle tip in which I am not a fan of at all and would take some getting used to since my versa has a very sensitive accelerator. Points would go to the outback 3.6r for a better feeling powertrain (imho). Yes, the CVT in my versa has ruined me. It turns out I prefer smooth over jerky acceleration. However, when it comes to storage I will have to give the nod to the outback. Yeah the outback has a cavernous rear hatch, but there are surprisingly few nooks and crannies to store your normal car stuff.
 
For reference I have a 2015 gti, apart from an annoying sunroof screen rattle issue it has otherwise worked flawlessly for the past 10k miles and roughly 10 months. I went into this knowing I could be in for issues, and it probably won't be a long term car. So far though I've no reason to believe it won't last awhile. I'll list good/bad below that would transfer over between models.

Good:
I routinely meet or exceed the stated mpg on the hwy (interestingly rated the same), it's quiet there, and cruises well. Sound system is amazing. Lights (bi-zenons) are also incredible. The cabin feels semi-luxury when in it and there's numerous nooks to stash stuff.
Bad:
Lack of thigh support in the seats (I think the base golf seats are better for straight comfort), auto up/down on all windows gets confused sometimes (such as pressing two at once), a/c is not very happy when just sitting but on the hwy it's ice cold (heat will roast you though and quickly).

What I would honestly recommend, if you could swing it, is to go up one more model. The reasons are if you care about sound the fender audio is amazing. Also the SE let's you option the lighting package. The stock lights I've heard are not so good and the zenons are like a mini sun in front of you, plus cornering lights and curve adaptive (it's awesome when you see it).

Now with dieselgate things haven't been so good at vw dealers and you should be able to get a good deal. I wouldn't take anything over invoice pricing, and bet if you timed it right you could get decently under it. Because I was an scca member I was able to get a flat $500 under invoice on my car, at a time when most dealers weren't willing to deal on gtis. Golf's are of course less in demand to most people, so I'd imagine most dealers would love to move one.
 
Herr Kutz said:
Nothing in particular, but it's not sold anymore (new) and if it were it would be much more expensive than the VW in upfront cost and insurance.
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True that it's not sold new anymore, but that should work out to your advantage 😉.

You should try to look at a CPO one, probably a better deal than a new VW wagon.
 
Just did a quick search on the TSX wagon and as I expected it seems very mediocre for an entry level luxury car. Pretty weak 4 cylinder, recommends premium gas, not very good mileage for a 4 cylinder, infotainment is now outdated, and it's not very quiet on the highway (which is something I'm reallllllly looking for). It looks like the TSX was offered with a V6, but I did a nationwide search on cargurus and no used wagons turned up with a V6 so I'm not even sure the wagon form was offered with it. With the TLX, I think Hondacura is finally starting to figure out that people who pony up so much money for a car want a quiet ride and they can no longer continue with the loud rides they are known for.
 
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Herr Kutz said:
Just did a quick search on the TSX wagon and as I expected it seems very mediocre for an entry level luxury car. Pretty weak 4 cylinder, recommends premium gas, not very good mileage for a 4 cylinder, infotainment is now outdated, and it's not very quiet on the highway (which is something I'm reallllllly looking for). It looks like the TSX was offered with a V6, but I did a nationwide search on cargurus and no used wagons turned up with a V6 so I'm not even sure the wagon form was offered with it. With the TLX, I think Hondacura is finally starting to figure out that people who pony up so much money for a car want a quiet ride and they can no longer continue with the loud rides they are known for.
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Im reading these replies and I sit here shaking my head.

GTI
TSX
Outback

all vastly better vehicles than your versa. You are comparing your easy mac, mac and cheese to decently prepared steak..
 
I dunno about the Golf engine. Maybe it's several years old. Seems like all the new turbo 4's (including really small ones like GM's 1.4 and Ford's 1.5/6) tend to drive like larger NA motors, with significant torque down low and not much lag. Though not all turbo motors sold in new cars are particularly modern designs (I'm looking at you, STI) and drive like turbo 4's of old. Maybe the VW 1.8 is one of those.

The slower response VS the Malibu would mostly be because the 2.0 in it, while only .2 larger than the Golf, is the equivalent of 3.0-3.5 V6 motors you got in midsize sedans of years past (and some still). So while the Malibu is larger and heavier than the golf, it isn't 90hp/60tw heavier so it's gonna be a good bit quicker. Part of it may just be the tuning of the auto to slow throttle response at low speeds to get a smoother acceleration.
 
yh125d said:
I dunno about the Golf engine. Maybe it's several years old. Seems like all the new turbo 4's (including really small ones like GM's 1.4 and Ford's 1.5/6) tend to drive like larger NA motors, with significant torque down low and not much lag. Though not all turbo motors sold in new cars are particularly modern designs (I'm looking at you, STI) and drive like turbo 4's of old. Maybe the VW 1.8 is one of those.

The slower response VS the Malibu would mostly be because the 2.0 in it, while only .2 larger than the Golf, is the equivalent of 3.0-3.5 V6 motors you got in midsize sedans of years past (and some still). So while the Malibu is larger and heavier than the golf, it isn't 90hp/60tw heavier so it's gonna be a good bit quicker. Part of it may just be the tuning of the auto to slow throttle response at low speeds to get a smoother acceleration.
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The engine is fairly new actually, but I suspect the issue he is referring to has more to do with the auto trans tuning than anything else. That's been a semi-common complaint about the base golf, but the acceleration 'issues' aren't present in the manual variants. Sadly the dsg isn't an option (apart from the diesels, but you can't buy them anyways).
 
Demo24 said:
The engine is fairly new actually, but I suspect the issue he is referring to has more to do with the auto trans tuning than anything else. That's been a semi-common complaint about the base golf, but the acceleration 'issues' aren't present in the manual variants. Sadly the dsg isn't an option (apart from the diesels, but you can't buy them anyways).
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Yes, see post 9.


In other news, I test drove a 2016 Edge 3.6 SEL and a 2016 Edge 2.0t SEL last night. Both rode very well and were nice and quiet. I need to go on longer test drives to get a feel for which is better for my type of driving, but I'd probably lean towards the 2.0t for the better fuel economy. On my 12-14 mile test drives I got 25.4mpg in the 4 vs 21mpg in the 6 according to the computer readout (not 100% scientific of course). The edge has a ton of extra nooks and crannies to store things compared to the outback, and I especially love the large storage area under the rear floor by the spare tire. It would easily fit my tool bag and probably my car battery jumper/air compressor too. It's obviously quite a bit more expensive than the sportswagen.
 
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I drove a Cruze with the 2L turbo and it had bad turbo lag. I'm guessing they are getting better about that with the newer cars. We had a 2005 Jetta TDI and it was a fine car. Went over 120k miles before trading it in without any issues. Solidly built. We were looking at a Golf Sportwagen TDI and then the diesel issues happened. There isn't much choice for a reasonably priced wagon with good mpg.
 
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