Post by Roadsterstu on Aug 25, 2017 8:42:39 GMT
The V60 was finally in for repair last week, a month after being damaged in the car park at work by a colleague in a job car. My employer's insurance claims handlers sorted it with minimal fuss, thankfully, despite the lengthy delay.
Their rather grand claim was that I would get a similar car to my own, based upon engine size. Lovely, I thought. That was bound to mean something from Mercedes or BMW, right? Well, no, not quite. Europcar arrived with a Passat saloon. With a 1.6 diesel motor. The upside here was that I'd booked the repairs on mine to coincide with a weekend away, so at least there would be a saving on fuel and mileage.
The Passat in question is the S spec car, sat right at the foot of the range so it was missing some of the niceties that I now wouldn't like to be without. Making do with basic AC rather than climate, no cruise, no nav, no auto lights or wipers, the S does at least have a reasonable DAB audio system, keyless start (but not keyless entry, bizarrely), plus all round electric windows. Where the interior of this car really impresses, however, is materials quality. The interior really is nicely put together with nicely finished surfaces and a solid feeling. I cannot imagine a 3 Series or A4 is going to be much, if any, better than that. And it is very roomy. The rear seat space is huge compared to the V60, which is distinctly compact in the rear, as is the boot. That long rear overhang pays dividends in terms of boot space. The estate must be vast. The only major downside in the interior of the S is the poverty-spec cloth trim and the over bearing black and grey. I'm also not a massive fan of the full width "vent" styling on the dash. I could certainly see that in a good spec the interior could be a very nice place to travel.
As for the outside, it's pretty standard current VW fare. Sharp lines and neat styling give an air of quality. No fancy lights on this car, just twin halogen headlights and halogen DRLs, set low in the bumper, alongside mirrored finish blanks in place of fog lights. The headlights, though halogen, really impressed with their even spread of light, although they lacked reach compared to the xenons of the V60. This spec comes on shirt button 16" wheels, shod with 215 60 16 tyres. Not great for looks but definitely aid ride quality and comfort. As for handling, it was better than I expected it to be but not really up there in the "entertaining" bracket. Safe and predictable, perhaps. Always comfortable, certainly, and those high profile tyres meant that even on poor surfaces the car rode nicely. The steering had a modicum of feel but you really can tell those tyre sidewalls can squirm about under hard cornering. Decent sized wheels, lower profile tyres and a firmer suspension set up would really help and I suspect models further up the range might be a half decent punt along a good road. The only odd thing I noticed was that the steering had a degree or so of nothingness either side of dead centre. This was noticeable on the motorway, where I felt that I was making constant corrections to the direction, particularly exacerbated by a strong side wind. It did load up quite nicely just beyond the dead point but it never felt as settled as it should have on the motorway.
And the performance? Well, it gathers pace reasonably well for its 118bhp but you do notice the limitations somewhat at higher motorway speeds and overtakes had to be very well planned. The engine is tractable at very low revs and linear in its delivery. There's a good spread of torque and the 6 gears are nicely matched, with a smooth gearchange and light clutch. It gets a bit gruff under acceleration but it pipes down at a cruise. And blimey, is it economical. I suppose anything seems economical after a 3 litre Volvo but the 220 mile round trip to Norfolk saw a 57mpg trip average and over the 335 miles I covered in the car I used just slightly over half a tank of diesel costing 32 quid which equated to about 47mpg in mixed driving.
Would I buy one? I'd certainly look closely at a better specced, more powerful version in estate form. As a roomy, quality family wagon, it is appealing. However, the play it safe handling and lack of any real sparkle behind the wheel could stop me. But then I drive a V60, so what would I know?
Not a C350 Cdi as hoped, then, but there could have been worse cars to have spent commuting time in for a few days.
Their rather grand claim was that I would get a similar car to my own, based upon engine size. Lovely, I thought. That was bound to mean something from Mercedes or BMW, right? Well, no, not quite. Europcar arrived with a Passat saloon. With a 1.6 diesel motor. The upside here was that I'd booked the repairs on mine to coincide with a weekend away, so at least there would be a saving on fuel and mileage.
The Passat in question is the S spec car, sat right at the foot of the range so it was missing some of the niceties that I now wouldn't like to be without. Making do with basic AC rather than climate, no cruise, no nav, no auto lights or wipers, the S does at least have a reasonable DAB audio system, keyless start (but not keyless entry, bizarrely), plus all round electric windows. Where the interior of this car really impresses, however, is materials quality. The interior really is nicely put together with nicely finished surfaces and a solid feeling. I cannot imagine a 3 Series or A4 is going to be much, if any, better than that. And it is very roomy. The rear seat space is huge compared to the V60, which is distinctly compact in the rear, as is the boot. That long rear overhang pays dividends in terms of boot space. The estate must be vast. The only major downside in the interior of the S is the poverty-spec cloth trim and the over bearing black and grey. I'm also not a massive fan of the full width "vent" styling on the dash. I could certainly see that in a good spec the interior could be a very nice place to travel.
As for the outside, it's pretty standard current VW fare. Sharp lines and neat styling give an air of quality. No fancy lights on this car, just twin halogen headlights and halogen DRLs, set low in the bumper, alongside mirrored finish blanks in place of fog lights. The headlights, though halogen, really impressed with their even spread of light, although they lacked reach compared to the xenons of the V60. This spec comes on shirt button 16" wheels, shod with 215 60 16 tyres. Not great for looks but definitely aid ride quality and comfort. As for handling, it was better than I expected it to be but not really up there in the "entertaining" bracket. Safe and predictable, perhaps. Always comfortable, certainly, and those high profile tyres meant that even on poor surfaces the car rode nicely. The steering had a modicum of feel but you really can tell those tyre sidewalls can squirm about under hard cornering. Decent sized wheels, lower profile tyres and a firmer suspension set up would really help and I suspect models further up the range might be a half decent punt along a good road. The only odd thing I noticed was that the steering had a degree or so of nothingness either side of dead centre. This was noticeable on the motorway, where I felt that I was making constant corrections to the direction, particularly exacerbated by a strong side wind. It did load up quite nicely just beyond the dead point but it never felt as settled as it should have on the motorway.
And the performance? Well, it gathers pace reasonably well for its 118bhp but you do notice the limitations somewhat at higher motorway speeds and overtakes had to be very well planned. The engine is tractable at very low revs and linear in its delivery. There's a good spread of torque and the 6 gears are nicely matched, with a smooth gearchange and light clutch. It gets a bit gruff under acceleration but it pipes down at a cruise. And blimey, is it economical. I suppose anything seems economical after a 3 litre Volvo but the 220 mile round trip to Norfolk saw a 57mpg trip average and over the 335 miles I covered in the car I used just slightly over half a tank of diesel costing 32 quid which equated to about 47mpg in mixed driving.
Would I buy one? I'd certainly look closely at a better specced, more powerful version in estate form. As a roomy, quality family wagon, it is appealing. However, the play it safe handling and lack of any real sparkle behind the wheel could stop me. But then I drive a V60, so what would I know?
Not a C350 Cdi as hoped, then, but there could have been worse cars to have spent commuting time in for a few days.
