A new TDI Sportwagen owner (actually, the wife's) a new 2014, sunroof, nav, 6sp DSG.
I've owned two other VW in my past - seemed a century ago. Wait, it was! Mr. Bus, a school-bus yellow (the name of the color on the paint can) Westfalia camper, I had in the 80s. Also had a '80 Rabbit diesel (normally aspirated, 1.6l about 45 hp).
Loved both those guys. I used to joke about the rabbit being the best snow and ice car, because it did not have enough power to spin tires on glare ice.
On the Washington beltway, we gave an area referred to as the Snake Pit - after Connecticut Ave exit, up the hill to Ga Ave. Get a good run on the low flat, kill the a/c just before hitting the hill, and I'd only lose 10mph up the hill. Good times.
An after facelift car (original diesel Rabbits ONLY came in the Monkey dirt brown), I had a beautiful silver, champaign edition, with a dark blue interior.
So, I was reading an Autoweek article on insurance rates - how Porsche was in a +1 tier, etc. So at the time I had the Rabbit and a Hundai Excel - another underpowered wonder. So I looked them up on the insurance thing. Both were insurance tier 2 vehicles, which made them more expensive to insure than a Porsche (not in actual dollars, but compared pound for pound, so to speak)
So I bought a couple used BMW 5 series cars, and insurance went down. And they were a whole lot more fun to drive.
So the last two were a used 99 528IT Wagon w/5 speed in 02, and an 01 740i in 06 for my wife.
The 7 started to cost too much - a rebuilt dash module, ABS module, window regulator, new nav unit (did you know, if the nav goes out, the radio will play for 2 minutes, then shut off?) The old unit succumbed to a leak in the trunk...
So Friday when I couldn't engage reverse, it was time to say goodbye.
My wife found the Moonrock Silver/black JSW TDI, and we went to see it. She had said a couple weeks earlier, no diesel, gasser only. So when I pointed out it was a TDI in the ad, she said she'd compromise.
Coming from the 4L BMW V8 to a diesel, I wasn't sure she'd find the TDI with enough power (remembering the Gen 1 normally aspirated diesel). After test drive, she was grinning.
So we took it to Lancaster the next day, her reading the manual to me as we drove.
As you all now, but as it was a huge surprise to me, the TDI drove extremely well. Now, I'm a stick kind of guy, but an automatic is right for her car. I commented many times navigating the hills of southern PA, this was the best matched automatic to an engine I've ever driven. I found out later the DSG is basically an auto-shift manual utilizing a dual clutch technology.
So far, so good.
At least I stayed with a German car. Very happy to be back with VW. BMW has gone technology bonkers - the whole IDrive nightmare, having to feed exhaust noises in over the stereo (really? Gimme a break!!) The TDI seems to be a good balance of technology, yet remain a driver's car.
So here we are. Moving forward.
frank