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reviews posted below are by John Mellor one of Australia's leading
motoring experts. We are in no way affiliated with John Mellor
or Go Auto, we have simply found that this information is the
best available & we have made it easy for germanauto.com.au
customers to find.
Volkswagen
Beetle, 2.0 lkon 3-dr hatch, launched 2000
IT'S always good to see a new car that breaks fresh styling ground
while successfully re-interpreting old styling themes. The VW
Beetle is a bold, likeable design that brings smiles to frazzled
drivers in peak-hour traffic. It is a quality car, very much like
a Golf to drive (it shares mechanicals) although it's no rocketship.
The downsides are a lack of back seat space, the small boot and
a rather lofty price.
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Volkswagen Beetle Cabriolet, launched 2003
WE knew it was coming right from the start, and now that the new
Beetle Cabriolet is finally with us, we can say it turns out to
be perhaps more appealing than the hard-top model – not
just for its extra-dimensional aspects, but also because, to most
eyes, it’s cuter. For all its fetching looks and fresh air
appeal, though, it’s less practical than the hard-top, with
a tiny boot accessed through an even tinier lid, and a laughable
rear seat. For a significant premium – it’s the most
expensive of Beetles, with the six-speed auto version nudging
$50,000 - the cabriolet throws in some extra equipment, although
it certainly fails to break into the luxury sector. Wisely, VW
makes the 2.0-litre engine standard.
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Volkswagen Beetle Caddy Life range, launched 2003
HOW nobody has offered a diesel-powered seven-seat people-mover
for under $40,000 in Australia, until now, is a mystery. Realising
this opportunity, niche-segment specialist Volkswagen steps in
first with its Caddy Life TDI, a Golf-based, van-derived people-mover
aimed at frugal urbanites. There’s also a $28,000 1.6-litre
opener to create Australia’s cheapest seven-seater. How
the Caddy Life performs in the market place, VW admits it has
no idea. However, we do know that Kia, Hyundai and even Honda
should start worrying.
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Volkswagen Caddy Maxi Van range, launched 2008
VOLKSWAGEN has been growing its commercial vehicle range since
it introduced its Caddy van in late 2004 to sell alongside the
Transporter. Discovering a ready market for its front-drive, Golf/Touran-derived
light commercial van, Volkswagen also saw the opportunity to fill
the gap between the Caddy and the T5 Transporter by introducing
an extended platform version of the Caddy called the Caddy Maxi
van. The Maxi takes all the attributes of the Caddy - a light,
manoeuvrable body, economical engine and relatively low purchase
price - but and adds more carrying capacity and cargo access with
a 470mm increase in body length.
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Volkswagen Eos coupe convertible range, launched 2007
IT'S taken precisely three years for Volkswagen's stunning Concept
C to progress from show car to production car but, now that we've
driven it on home soil, the wait appears to have been worth it.
Joining the growing throng of coupe-convertible models on sale
Down Under, Eos has some hot competition in Renault's Megane CC,
the Puegeot 307 CC and, not least, Holden's new Astra TwinTop.
But with a clever sunroof system incorporated into its five-piece
folding hard-top, plus sharp sub-$50,000 pricing and the choice
of turbocharged petrol and diesel engines, the sylish, solid and
safety-packed Eos should find at least as many homes as the Golf
Cabrio it replaces did.
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Volkswagen Eos, TFSI-cabriolet, launched 2007
IF THE fantasies of the past are yet to come to fruition –
flying cars, swimming cars – at least we have the coupe-cabriolet.
Here is a concept that can be a full-blown convertible one minute,
and an enclosed, metal-roofed coupe the next. Car-makers cannot
get into the act fast enough. Mercedes-Benz started the modern
trend with its two-seat SLK during the 1990s and now just about
everybody wants a piece of the action. And – when you consider
some of the early and even still-current attempts at getting the
styling right – they are starting to look good too. But,
until VW’s Eos came along early this year, nobody had devised
a coupe-convertible that virtually closed the gap to regular coupes
by designing-in a sliding glass sunroof. In a market niche where
ingenuity abounds, the four-seat Eos stands at the front of the
pack.
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Volkswagen Golf 2.0 TDI Confortline 5-dr, launched 2004
A slick-looking new Golf enters the bottom end of the prestige
market and rewrites the rules on exactly what to expect in a classy
small Euro car that opens with a pricetag in the mid-$20,000 area.
The Golf is bigger, and better, and looks a lot smoother than
we’ve come to expect from Volkswagen’s biggest-selling
model. It also introduces interesting new technology, including
a brutally powerful 2.0-litre direct-injection, multi-valve turbo-diesel
engine and the intriguing six-speed DSG transmission which is
a new take on automatic gear shifting. Its safety credentials
aren’t to be sneezed at either.
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Volkswagen Golf 5-dr hatch range, launched 2004
THE Golf is an iconic name in world motoring. There have been
more than 23 million sold in 30 years of production and it surpassed
the Beetle as Volkswagen’s number one seller two years ago.
Now, almost a year after it went on sale in Europe, the fifth
generation Golf is on sale in Australia. The first iterations
we see are all five-door hatchbacks, but there is plenty of other
choice with two petrol and two diesel engines, three transmission
types and three specification levels to mull over. Stronger, safer
(a five-star Euro NCAP performer) and cheaper than its predecessor,
Golf V is an evolutionary but compelling entrant in the small
car category.
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Volkswagen Golf GT 5-dr hatch, launched 2007
VOLKSWAGEN has redefined the small capacity petrol engine with
its innovative supercharged and turbocharged TSI engine, giving
the new Golf GT remarkable performance that is completely out
of keeping with its apparently insignificant 1.4-litre capacity.
As well as consistently high engine performance throughout the
rev range, the TSI returns amazingly low fuel consumption, especially
when cruising, as well as meeting future emissions standards.
Combine that with the Golf’s other well-proven attributes
and this GT is a winner.
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Volkswagen Golf GTI 5-dr hatch, launched 2005
THERE’S nothing raw about the latest version of the legendary
Volkswagen Golf GTi. In fact, despite being the most powerful
GTi ever, the Golf 5-based five-door hot hatch is a great example
of how to build solid torque into a front-drive chassis without
rendering it virtually undriveable. Even though the engine punches
out a (very) useful serve of torque, the GTi’s chassis does
a splendid job of containing torque steer. The whole car is similarly
well balanced. As a five-door, it’s as practical as any
other decent-size hatchback, while the styling – particularly
at the front-end – is enough to advertise its status in
the Golf hierarchy. Order books for the Golf GTi are overflowing
and, with a pricetag under $40,000, it’s not hard to see
why.
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Volkswagen Golf R32, 3-dr hatch, launched 2006
VOLKSWAGEN’s Golf continues to delight us with its broad-based
range of options for the driver – whether it’s the
city commuter who wants the easy driving convenience of a safe,
quality-built hatchback able to challenge the Japanese in value-for-money,
or the enthusiastic driver craving a little behind-the-wheel excitement.
After the delightfully-quick Golf GTI and the surprisingly appealing
Polo equivalent comes the latest Golf R32. It takes VW into hyper-hatch
territory where a rousing 184kW and 320Nm of V6 is wielded via
the 4motion all-wheel drive system to dismiss any questions concerning
torque-steer or wet-weather traction. Most importantly, this fastest
of Golfs comes to market with a huge price advantage over the
also-delightful Audi A3 3.2 quattro that can cost as much as $10,000
more. That’s before we even start thinking about BMW’s
beautifully refined 130i, or Alfa Romeo’s highly desirable
147 GTA, which are also priced well above the VW.
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Volkswagen Jetta sedan range, launched 2006
VOLKSWAGEN is taking on three interesting mid-sized sedans –
Mazda6, Liberty and Accord Euro – with its new Jetta. Spanning
the $30,000 range and spun off the ubiquitous Golf V platform,
VW hopes the Bora replacement’s high equipment levels, unique
model choices (a diesel’s included) and freshness will overcome
smaller dimensions and an unproven track record. It’s a
good deal better than the middling Bora, and the Golf connection
equals high dynamics and refinement, but does the Jetta have the
elusive ‘X’ factor that all three of its Japanese
foes have in spades?
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Volkswagen Jetta TDI sedan, launched 2006
THE Volkswagen Golf has a new sedan brother with a new name –
Jetta. Bigger than the Bora that it supersedes and in possession
of a mighty boot to compensate for its lack of hatchback versatility,
the Jetta satisfies those not wishing to think beyond conventional
sedan design. The Jetta greets passengers with a measurably more
spacious interior than the Bora and accesses that boot via a split-fold
backrest so it’s not all that impractical. And it comes
in three versions: the smooth, refined 2.0 FSI, the punchy 2.0
FSI turbo and the enticingly thrifty yet powerful turbo-diesel
TDI. Generally a little more refined than the Golf because that’s
the way sedans are, the Jetta extends the VW range and will undoubtedly
fill the order books with increasing rapidity.
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Volkswagen Kombi Beach 4-dr people mover, launched 2006
THE great outdoors is an alluring image for marketers of utilities
and SUVs, but what about the great indoors? Surely car-makers
do not expect buyers to actually sleep comfortably and securely
in the back of their pick-ups and 4x4 wagons? Well, you can in
this VW van, once again, after decades of being denied a successor
to the types of classic VW Kombis you now only hear about or see
on old episodes of TV’s The Wonder Years. The new Kombi
Beach is all this, and, with good vibrations coming from its TDI
engine, a whole lot more to boot.
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Volkswagen Passat R36 sedan/wagon range, launched 2008
VOLKSWAGEN is building up its R portfolio of high-performance
cars in Australia with the arrival of the Passat R36, an all-wheel
drive V6 family car with a powerful V6, high equipment levels,
and great build quality. It isn’t particularly subtle, and
perhaps the looks are not quite matched by some aspects of the
car’s overall dynamics, but the latest Passat makes for
an intriguing and ultimately rewarding drive.
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Volkswagen
Polo GTI 3-dr hatch, launched 2005
VOLKSWAGEN is keen to leverage as much of the newfound Golf GTI
goodwill it can, so it is no surprise to learn that there is now
a Polo GTI – complete with an Audi-sourced 110kW turbocharged
four-cylinder engine, sporty stripes and tartan seats. And while
it may not quite have the performance or sheer chuckability of
the current light-car hot-hatch king (Renault’s fabulous
Clio Sport), VW’s junior GTI makeover makes the latest Polo
a very persuasive argument when you consider the $6000 price difference.
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Volkswagen
Tiguan 5-dr wagon range, launched 2008
THE Volkswagen Tiguan is a late entrant to the compact SUV market,
but it arrives with its distinctly European flavour in a segment
dominated by the Japanese marques. Tiguan has perhaps the most
sophisticated features and options in the category, a competitive
price and one of the very few in the segment to offer a diesel
engine. While volume is limited by supply for the first calendar
year it is on sale - and only the diesel version is offered until
the petrol models become available in October - the Tiguan is
a credible player in this highly competitive segment, and one
that Volkswagen believes will become its second-best selling model
here after Golf.
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Volkswagen Touareg 5-dr wagon range, launched 2007
THE Touareg has always been a competent and comfortable prestige
SUV. It has not lived up to sales expectations, but the poor showroom
showing cannot be blamed on the car itself. Rather, most Australians
were not ready in 2003 to pay the type of money that could almost
get them a Mercedes or BMW for something with the Volkswagen badge
on the nose. The company trimmed back the prices to make the big
Vee-Dub a more realistic competitor and replaced the slow selling
V8 petrol model late last year. Now it has updated the Touareg
with fresh styling, increased safety, new options
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