Wheels articles
Volkswagen Scirocco loco
After a heated debate, the verdict is that the Volkswagen Scirocco is a hatchback. Whatever. It looks fantastic, goes like stink, and it's ours for two months.
- By Dejan Jovanovic, Reporter, Wheels
- Published: 00:00 November 20, 2009
- Image Credit: Supplied
- We wanted the loud, luminous green, but in the end settled for a blue one. Still looks good, though
You might already know all about the internal squabble over the Scirocco here at wheels. One side of the gang argues it's a coupé, the other lone campaigner (that'd be Amit, the editor) argues it's a hatchback.
Whatever you want to call it — and we've given in to the hatch thing, naturally — it's a hell of a looker. And not just for a Volkswagen. Oh, and it's our newest long-termer, so you'll be seeing a lot of it over the next two months as we divulge the ins and outs of ‘Rocco ownership.
VW says this third-generation version of the firm's coupé is surprisingly spacious, and it actually is. I immediately put it to the test ferrying my mother-in-law and my wife to and from shopping malls, and the ‘Rocco just quietly went about its business. All the little details of the car's features will show their heads soon, but what we can say so far is that the 2.0-litre TSI engine mustering up 207bhp is lively, like a real V-Dub lump should be.
It loves to be revved to smithereens and it's keen to be pushed like something a quarter of its size and with two strokes less. The front tyres are also being put hard to work, though they screech off the line with the slightest of throttle touches.
But, and I know I'm a broken record, the DSG — like all double clutch ‘boxes — is nothing but a glorified auto. Why even bother with the paddle shifters?
Good thing then that it handles like a daschund on a badger trail. So, one week in, and I'm still grinning.
Facts
- Driven by Dejan
- Start mileage: 5,800km
- Recent cost: None
- Average fuel economy: 28mpg
- Highs: Awesome handling, pretty spacious
- Lows: Auto box
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