Tuesday, June 1, 2010


First drive 2010 VW Golf TDI
$23,255
Tommeter: 77/100
Lb/hp & Torq./hp ratio: 21.72/12.88
Combined hp/torq. avg: 17.3

Summary:

Positives...

- Incredible fuel economy, downright potent torque and acceleration, GTI based chassis and suspension can handle anything you're likely to throw at it, steering that wrote the book on "communicative", great seats, excellent DSG paddle shifters, quiet engine, Germans know how to make good cars

Downers...

- Extra cost for TDI package is locked up with many other options means you can't strip down a TDI, passenger compartment feels tight, DSG transmission in "D" feels like your driving around at idle (strange) all the time, a bit too much road noise at interstate highway speeds

So my first drive today of the long awaited Golf TDI. I've been a fan of these cars/engines for years...no seriously I first test drove a TDI Jetta back in 1998 and was highly impressed even back then. What 12 years of further development has done for the TDI crowd, in one word....amazing. This car breaks all the rules you've come to know and expect about....well...small cars, diesel engines and performance. This may be the most powerful, fun to drive and yet economic compromise on the road. No, scratch that, it IS the most powerful, fun to drive and economic car on the road. If you have never driven one, I highly recommend you try it. No charge for the smiles, just tell 'em Tom-vroom sent ya'.

Initial findings:

The vehicle I drove was the TDI coupe in Tornado red (looks awesome!) with black interior. It was a fairly well equipped car (as are all Golf TDI's which is kind of a shame actually) including Bluetooth phone, power sunroof, and the upgraded 6 disc CD changer stereo with color touch screen display with menus. I found the black cloth seats to be very nicely crafted with an attractive cross-hatch pattern in white on the seat inserts. The seat comfort is very good, with power adjustable recline and manual adjustable cushion height and fore aft positioning. The steering wheel has tilt AND telescopic adjustment which was really nice to get the wheel in the near perfect position. Once there it's a Zen like feeling to steer the Golf TDI with ease and comfort. The gauges are a nice compact cluster of two large tach/speedo and a smaller fuel & temp gauge. The center (between the tach/speedo) located driver info. center is very clear and legible. Actually better than the Altima's backlit orange LCD, it is a black with white lettering/numbers which matches the main gauges. It's very clean, very slick, and very obviously German. The interior is more pleasing to the eye in person than photos depict, even though it looks as if this could have been the same dash layout VW's have used since the early 90's.

The exterior styling of the Golf is nice, not super sporty, but it has that capable sport-compact look to it with its low profile tires & 17" wheels. It won't turn a lot of heads but it looks good running about especially in the Tornado red color = Sharp! I wasn't actually considering this color until today, but now I'll have to give it some serious thought. It looks like that perfect Ferrari red if you get my meaning.

One of the first things you notice is how quiet the engine is, even on the outside. That familiar diesel clatter is just a memory, the only time you can really tell is under hard acceleration or if you pop the hood while it's running. Even at idle inside the car the engine is quite smooth. Put the 6 speed DSG selector in "D" and step on the gas and you're whisked away with what seems almost no perceptible RPM increase but lots of forward motion. The DSG shifts gears (with light pedal pressure) about every three seconds until it gets to 5th or 6th (depending on your towns speed limits) and then you basically drive around at idle speed all the time, it's kind of weird but cool. Around town if you have some long stretches between stop lights you can watch the instant MPG readout (on a square screen between the tach & speedo) climb to 50 or 60 MPG. Under normal acceleration from a stop light it goes as low as 28 MPG (oh no not that) *laughs*.

Driving impressions:

What really defines the driving experience with this car is the torque. Just a light push of the pedal will bring up the turbo with minimal lag and propel you forward and faster with ease. The most amazing thing is that the engine hardly ever goes above 2k RPM when driving around in town which makes for a very peaceful jaunt to the grocery store. So what's it like when you need to pass someone? Well you just hammer it and hold on to your hat, now you actually can HEAR the engine as you're pressed into your seat, tach needle sweeping from 2-3k on it's way to 4k and suddenly you look at your speedo and you're going 80 MPH. The spectacular thing is even while it's doing this maneuver it's so un-flappable about it. The Golf TDI never seems bothered by your inputs, it just does it with no complaining either as if to say - "thank you sir...may I have another!?"

The DSG transmission does have its quirks; it's a bit unsettling at first because it's shifting so quickly you barely have time to count the shifts especially in "D" mode which is the most economic setting. However then you can also select "S" or sport mode which then acts much more like a standard gasoline engine and automatic transmission, but of course that reduces your economy. When you really want to have fun, put it back to "D" and gate it to the right for shiftronic or manu-matic mode. Now on the steering wheel near the 3 & 9 o’clock positions you have paddle shift buttons a-la true sports car. This will make every person who wants a stick but has to have an automatic for the person in the family who HATES to drive a stick truly happy. Controlling this car with the shiftronic paddles is truly awesome. Taking on ramps in 3rd gear at 15 MPH over the recommended speed limit, the Golf TDI is flat & glued to the tarmac. Hammering the throttle coming out of the curves, up-shifting at about 3,500 RPM and you're up to 80 MPH in what seems like only mere moments of seamless powerful forward motion. The GTI suspension tuning is nothing short of awe inspiring, great job VW chassis engineers!

Under normal interstate cruising speeds (at say 70-80 MPH) there was more road noise than I expected to hear. The road noise was quite livable at 55-60 MPH, but does become pretty noticeable at 70 or above. The Golf TDI has wonderful on center feel, and the most communicative steering I've ever felt out of a compact class car, this was more like go-kart quality with light power assist. For normal commuting at 55 MPH I saw the engine runs at just under 1,800 rpm, and while doing that with cruise control set the instant MPG was reading 50 MPG. Switching on the air conditioning proved to rob about 5 MPG (down to 44 MPG) but the engine didn't even know it was on, you can hardly tell the difference when accelerating with so much torque on tap. The Golf TDI gives you a ton of confidence on the road, like you may be the smallest guy on it but you have the lowest cost per mile and more torque than just about every other car you see. With its superb handling you can get in and out of any traffic situation. The brakes are very powerful but the pedal has quite a bit of travel, which was unexpected based on how tight the suspension feels. However that may have been a quirk of this particular car so I'm not holding that against it.

Overall I'm very pleased and somewhat surprised about the Golf TDI, it's truly an amazing machine. So much so that it feels too good to be true. The pricing is certainly something of a deterrent, and VW's quality issues that haunted it at the turn of the century loom large in my mind. But it's not the same company or the same quality it was ten years ago. The scores reflect my true observations, but my heart says BUY IT you won't be disappointed. Time will tell. Thanks to Rob at Fox Valley VW (Schaumburg IL) for the lengthy test drive to get all this figured out.
Edit update 6/3: I just found out that Hintzie Oil in my town sells bio-diesel from May through Sept! That is awesome 5 months of 45 + MPG and NO PETROLEUM used! Take that oil companies. This definitely ups the "must have score".

The Tommeter:

Comfort - 7
Design interior - 6
Design exterior - 7
Powertrain - 8
Handling - 9
Fuel economy - 10
Electronics/convenience - 7
Engine note - 6
Fit & function - 7
Must have factor - 10

Total: 77/100
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