So I decided to fly to Mexico City to check out the car I was thinking of buying. A white 2016 SEL TDi MT.
In my first post I was reluctant to get a low/firm suspension car for the roads in Mexico ( which are rough to say the least ).
I arrived at the VW dealership and the car was still wrapped in plastic and was very dirty. It was obvious that it had been parked for a year or more, and not inside.
As I suspected, this was a USA spec car which never made it north due to dieselgate. Speedo is in MPH, manual is in English etc.
The Adblue tank is capped with a non removable one Labeled "not in use"
Mexico city is at about 7000 ft elevation, so I'm sure that had some effect on my initial driving impression which was that the motor had plenty of power but not much below 2k rpm. I actually stalled it a couple of times trying to pull away in second gear, this was surprising to me. When I "think" diesel I think low end torque, but this motor behaves more like a gas engine that any diesel I've ever driven.
After resetting my brain, I made sure to extend first gear more and then I didn't stall it anymore.
Yes the suspension is firm but not a whole lot more than most cars. It still had the 18" rims with 40 series tires when I test drove it.
So here are some of my thoughts:
At $15,800 "out the door" this has to be one of the best deals of the century ! Thanks dieselgate!
Things I love:
Interior is fantastic, Shifter/clutch is fantastic, steering is fantastic. Interior space is excellent, I already removed the rear headrests and will be removing the rear lower seat in order get a totally flat floor.
Upgraded Xenon headlights are amazing. Smart cruise is excellent, as is the smart wiper system ( all three came in very handy on my 600 mile drive through occasional rain at night )
I traded my 18" rims for 16" ones off another sportwagen they had in stock, they look fine and the ride is smoother, they also corner good enough for me even with eco 205/55/16 tires.
This motor is as quiet as the new direct injection gas ones, which have a "clatter" at idle, once I'm driving, I don't hear the motor at all.
My average fuel consumption for the trip was 46 mpg, fantastic!
The seats are just right for me, I'm 6-2 , about 190. I would think these seat would be to tight for anyone much larger.
The only interior discomfort is that my right knee contacts the hard edge of the center column...I'm going to have to install a small foam pad there.
Wow, so may features on this car, its going to take time to earn them all.
"Upgrades" planned:
Changing rear tires to 225/60/16's which will ride smoother and look better as well as give a small rear lift.
Try to find taller same rate rear springs for additional lift.
Roof bars, rear hitch, cargo pad, front protection from rocks, front skid plate ( already cracked the oil pan on my 2001 jetta in the middle of nowhere once )
In order not to congest this thread, I will ask questions about particular upgrades in separate threads after I search first...
One manufacturing flaw which I will try to get fixed under warranty: at high speed there is a loud wind noise coming from only the driver side window. I was able to mostly silence it by jamming a folded napkin between the glass and the short vertical window frame, essentially pushing the window out.
Well, that's all I can think of now...
driving very slow over speed bumps and cobblestone roads, but flying on freeways !
In my first post I was reluctant to get a low/firm suspension car for the roads in Mexico ( which are rough to say the least ).
I arrived at the VW dealership and the car was still wrapped in plastic and was very dirty. It was obvious that it had been parked for a year or more, and not inside.
As I suspected, this was a USA spec car which never made it north due to dieselgate. Speedo is in MPH, manual is in English etc.
The Adblue tank is capped with a non removable one Labeled "not in use"
Mexico city is at about 7000 ft elevation, so I'm sure that had some effect on my initial driving impression which was that the motor had plenty of power but not much below 2k rpm. I actually stalled it a couple of times trying to pull away in second gear, this was surprising to me. When I "think" diesel I think low end torque, but this motor behaves more like a gas engine that any diesel I've ever driven.
After resetting my brain, I made sure to extend first gear more and then I didn't stall it anymore.
Yes the suspension is firm but not a whole lot more than most cars. It still had the 18" rims with 40 series tires when I test drove it.
So here are some of my thoughts:
At $15,800 "out the door" this has to be one of the best deals of the century ! Thanks dieselgate!
Things I love:
Interior is fantastic, Shifter/clutch is fantastic, steering is fantastic. Interior space is excellent, I already removed the rear headrests and will be removing the rear lower seat in order get a totally flat floor.
Upgraded Xenon headlights are amazing. Smart cruise is excellent, as is the smart wiper system ( all three came in very handy on my 600 mile drive through occasional rain at night )
I traded my 18" rims for 16" ones off another sportwagen they had in stock, they look fine and the ride is smoother, they also corner good enough for me even with eco 205/55/16 tires.
This motor is as quiet as the new direct injection gas ones, which have a "clatter" at idle, once I'm driving, I don't hear the motor at all.
My average fuel consumption for the trip was 46 mpg, fantastic!
The seats are just right for me, I'm 6-2 , about 190. I would think these seat would be to tight for anyone much larger.
The only interior discomfort is that my right knee contacts the hard edge of the center column...I'm going to have to install a small foam pad there.
Wow, so may features on this car, its going to take time to earn them all.
"Upgrades" planned:
Changing rear tires to 225/60/16's which will ride smoother and look better as well as give a small rear lift.
Try to find taller same rate rear springs for additional lift.
Roof bars, rear hitch, cargo pad, front protection from rocks, front skid plate ( already cracked the oil pan on my 2001 jetta in the middle of nowhere once )
In order not to congest this thread, I will ask questions about particular upgrades in separate threads after I search first...
One manufacturing flaw which I will try to get fixed under warranty: at high speed there is a loud wind noise coming from only the driver side window. I was able to mostly silence it by jamming a folded napkin between the glass and the short vertical window frame, essentially pushing the window out.
Well, that's all I can think of now...
driving very slow over speed bumps and cobblestone roads, but flying on freeways !
