OT: sportwagen

[mcteague]

Originally Posted by palincss

Actually, as far as the practicality that counts here (i.e., carrying a bicycle inside) the Acura wagon was very poorly designed compared to other wagons. The rear shock towers intrude into the cargo area, so you have to thread a bicycle between the shock towers through a rather narrow opening. By comparison, BMW, VW, MB and Volvo wagons all have a flat cargo area with no humps intruding, making it easy to get a bike inside.

Totally agree. I like my TSX wagon but fitting the bike in back is a PITA. With the front wheel removed I still have to fiddle to get it to fit. And, as the back slopes down there is very little room to reach in when positioning the bike.

As much as I dislike SUVs, I would consider something like a CR-V or CX-5 for my next car. VWs are nice but not nearly as reliable as Honda/Toyota, etc.

Tim

[YoKev]

Originally Posted by BikeNY

We bought a CPO '13 or '14 Subaru Crosstrek for my son, and every time I drive it, I tell myself I'll never own another Subaru! It's so crude, loud, & slow, I just don't get the attraction. Maybe the newer ones are better?

I used to be a major obsessive fan of Subaru. Obsessive. Somewhere along the way, my enthusiasm stopped.

It is my opinion that the newer one are not better.

Every time I get a new loaner while my 2013 2.5l Outback is serviced, I feel so underwhelmed by their product.

That being said, our other car is a 2014 3.6R Outback with a 5-speed automatic (not CVT). I find it quite enjoyable to drive. Super nice power delivery and the interior materials are nicer. Highway mileage is a reliable hand calc'd 27.5mpg...the best I've ever seen in any Subaru I've driven or owned.

That being said, I am planning a breakup with my 2.5l Outback and get back into a TDI Sportwagen...we will see how this goes.

[echappist]

Originally Posted by mcteague

Totally agree. I like my TSX wagon but fitting the bike in back is a PITA. With the front wheel removed I still have to fiddle to get it to fit. And, as the back slopes down there is very little room to reach in when positioning the bike.

As much as I dislike SUVs, I would consider something like a CR-V or CX-5 for my next car. VWs are nice but not nearly as reliable as Honda/Toyota, etc.

Tim

unfortunately, nor are Volvos. changes to their CPO program make their wagons even more of a headache...

[thwart]

Another data point... my '17 S with manual trans and 4-motion is getting 27-29 mpg in cold sub-freezing winter weather, city driving. Consistently gets 34-36 mpg on the highway.

And with snows mounted, it's pretty amazing.

My butt appreciates the (heated) cloth seats when it's bitter cold.

I do miss the heated outside mirrors that I had with my old Audi, and also the fog lights and turn lighting not included in the base lights package.

I'd buy another.

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by thwart

Another data point... my '17 S with manual trans and 4-motion is getting 27-29 mpg in cold sub-freezing winter weather, city driving. Consistently gets 34-36 mpg on the highway.

And with snows mounted, it's pretty amazing.

My butt appreciates the (heated) cloth seats when it's bitter cold.

I do miss the heated outside mirrors that I had with my old Audi, and also the fog lights and turn lighting not included in the base lights package.

I'd buy another.

yep. I get 29mpg no problem.... 17 S manual. Also with snow tires on 17in rims. I can get easily mid 30s highway.

When I got the car and I was driving under 65 mpg highway to try to get best mpg I got 40mpg average. Tanked on the highway, cruise control from NY to Chicago, hit 40 for a good while.

Now I usually go 75-80 on the highway and the mph drop quickly.


About the cloth seats. They are terrible. Literally, along with the lights (which should be illegal) they are the worst thing with this car.

Back on the lights. THey are aweful and I cannot belive VW put them on this car. They barelly illuminate the road, very dangerous in rural areas. I had to upgrade to HIDs, ED Golf R replicas with HID kit. Not only looks amazing now but I can actually see stuff. The brights on the Eds are also amazing, 1000x better than stock. Really recommend the ugprade to people that do not only drive in the city.

As far as the seats, they are aweful. Not very comfortable and lets be honest, cloth seats look cheap. its a shame that VW does not let us have a freaking manual car with "leather" seats. NO NO NO North America can't have it, unless you buy the more expensive (and uglier) all track...

ok, /end of rant I love the car.

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by thwart

Another data point... my '17 S with manual trans and 4-motion is getting 27-29 mpg in cold sub-freezing winter weather, city driving. Consistently gets 34-36 mpg on the highway.

And with snows mounted, it's pretty amazing.

My butt appreciates the (heated) cloth seats when it's bitter cold.

I do miss the heated outside mirrors that I had with my old Audi, and also the fog lights and turn lighting not included in the base lights package.

I'd buy another.

oh one more thing. that car does have heated outside mirros. you just move the little knob that lets you move the mirros left and right, move it down and the mirrors defrost

[Hakkalugi]

Originally Posted by thwart

Another data point... my '17 S with manual trans and 4-motion is getting 27-29 mpg in cold sub-freezing winter weather, city driving. Consistently gets 34-36 mpg on the highway.

And with snows mounted, it's pretty amazing.

My butt appreciates the (heated) cloth seats when it's bitter cold.

I do miss the heated outside mirrors that I had with my old Audi, and also the fog lights and turn lighting not included in the base lights package.

I'd buy another.

I’m getting the same mileage, even with new Hakkapelittas. I bought nice seat covers and the heaters still toast my rump nicely. I love the car, it’s so much better than any Subaru I had (3). The mirrors do heat, but I never use them. I’ve got almost 50k miles in it in 23 months, I figure I’ll keep driving it until the new bus becomes real.

[Mzilliox]

Ive obviously never owned a car with nice seats, i think the seats are comfy!
Im currently getting 35.7mpg with mostly country driving.
its already coming in handy having the fold down seats and big storage in back.

my wife loves driving it when she has to commute to the next town over, more than her 2010 camry. I have a feeling she will put as many miles on it as me.

taking it on its first fishing trip this weekend, stoked.

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by Mzilliox

Ive obviously never owned a car with nice seats, i think the seats are comfy!
Im currently getting 35.7mpg with mostly country driving.
its already coming in handy having the fold down seats and big storage in back.

my wife loves driving it when she has to commute to the next town over, more than her 2010 camry. I have a feeling she will put as many miles on it as me.

taking it on its first fishing trip this weekend, stoked.

Ah, maybe I was too harsh. Seats are fine if you drive here and there, I drive a lot. I have 34k miles in the past year and half. I would have prefered "leather" and some more side support but what can you do. I appreciate that the car comes with heated seats.

[fmradio516]

whats the current consensus on modern day "cloth" seats? All I know from cloth seats is that they were thick and ugly in the 90s. How is the new stuff. the two cars ive owned had leather, and while looking for a new car, im wondering if i should consider modern synthetic cloth stuff.

[pjm]

I’ve noticed lately a lot of $50K+ German cars with faux leather seats. I wonder if the use of animal hides is becoming non-pc nowadays? By the way, I prefer cloth seats for all around comfort. I wish I could have gotten them in my BMW. I think they are available in other countries.

[R3awak3n]

Originally Posted by fmradio516

whats the current consensus on modern day "cloth" seats? All I know from cloth seats is that they were thick and ugly in the 90s. How is the new stuff. the two cars ive owned had leather, and while looking for a new car, im wondering if i should consider modern synthetic cloth stuff.

imo, still ugly, cheap looking, harder to clean, harder to make have support. Again my opinion. That said, they serve a purpose and work fine.

As far as faux leather, that is all good with me and prefer it, afaik VW does not even sell real leather, its all leatherete or whatever they call it

[many_styles]

Originally Posted by R3awak3n

yep. I get 29mpg no problem.... 17 S manual. Also with snow tires on 17in rims. I can get easily mid 30s highway.

When I got the car and I was driving under 65 mpg highway to try to get best mpg I got 40mpg average. Tanked on the highway, cruise control from NY to Chicago, hit 40 for a good while.

Now I usually go 75-80 on the highway and the mph drop quickly.


About the cloth seats. They are terrible. Literally, along with the lights (which should be illegal) they are the worst thing with this car.

Back on the lights. THey are aweful and I cannot belive VW put them on this car. They barelly illuminate the road, very dangerous in rural areas. I had to upgrade to HIDs, ED Golf R replicas with HID kit. Not only looks amazing now but I can actually see stuff. The brights on the Eds are also amazing, 1000x better than stock. Really recommend the ugprade to people that do not only drive in the city.

As far as the seats, they are aweful. Not very comfortable and lets be honest, cloth seats look cheap. its a shame that VW does not let us have a freaking manual car with "leather" seats. NO NO NO North America can't have it, unless you buy the more expensive (and uglier) all track...

ok, /end of rant I love the car.

Those are two mods I’d perform right away if I bought a GSW S 4M!

[GScot]

I'll admit I haven't researched it in depth but a quick ebay search gave me the idea you could get a full seat seat from an upgraded MQB platform car, even GTI fronts for less that $1,000. Gotta figure it would be a bolt in plug in swap and if you're in them all day it might be worthwhile to some.

[eddief]

My GSW came with pleather seat covers. Feels fine and no care hassles, but the bolsters were a bit too narrow for my big butt, so I raised me up a bit with these sheepskin pads. Did the job for basic comfort and the pad makes the seats much less pleathery and warm in all conditions. I actually have a smaller one for the drivers side and it fits between the bolsters and a bigger one as shown in the photo for the passenger. They blend better than shown in the photos:

https://www.desertbreeze.co/minidoka...-distributing/