In summary, it's a good, practical, family car. It handles well without being sporty, and is super comfy on long trips, while being cheap to run in the mix.
The Good:
- It has a huge boot/trunk with all sorts of tie down points and handbag/shopping bag hooks. Very very practical car. And it's actually the same length as the wagon's load area.
- Very comfortable cruising on highway - exceptionally stable and quiet.
- Economy around town is about average 7.0L/100km, but this drops down to about 6.0L/100km within a few minutes of cruising at 100km/h. Even when fully loaded with 4 adults and luggage.
- Seats seem hard initially, but are actually very comfortable, even after an 8 hour journey.
- It has more convenient cubby holes and cup holders than any other car I've driven, and all nicely lined. So I can keep the interior tidy, and without rattles.
- The stereo is awesome. Big, easy to read touch screen. Sounds good too. I can control all my iPod's functions from the factory touchscreen and show song titles on the dash. Very convenient.
- The diesel has tremendous torque, good in-gear acceleration. Lazy driving style preferred.
- The brakes are strong, the handling is actually very good for a family car. The DSG makes driving smooth and easy (with one exception - see below)
The Bad:
- The DSG can be jerky at speeds of between 20-40km/h. Particularly if you are going around a roundabout or something. It cruises in 3rd. But when you go to accelerate, it hesitates, then suddenly drops back to 2nd.
I get around this usually by recognising the type of intersection where it will happen, and locking it into 2nd or 3rd as I approach. That seems to help on the exit. Alternatively accelerating like I have an egg shell under the pedal seems to help it decide better.
- The DSG doesn't hold gears like a true manual would, even in 'manual' mode. If I plant it in 5th from 60km/h, it drops back to 3rd, even if 'locked' into gear. Some don't mind this, but I don't like it.
Otherwise, nothing to complain about. Although I might be fitting a rear sway bar soon. The suspension has settled now, and is a little softer than it was when new. My point? If you think the suspension is a little too soft when testing a demo, by 15,000km it will be way too soft for you.
