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Old 12-22-2019, 08:07 PM   #21
equ
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This will see some action at the slopes this winter, no? Is it your only awd now?
I hope so... but no, it's the first time we've both had awd, I have a 340iX.
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Old 12-31-2019, 10:23 AM   #22
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I hope so... but no, it's the first time we've both had awd, I have a 340iX.
Does VW do a good job with a flat power curve or is it a little peaky?
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Old 01-01-2020, 12:15 PM   #23
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Does VW do a good job with a flat power curve or is it a little peaky?
2.0l in my GTI is decent to rev out, doesn’t fall off like my old audi 1.8t for a long time ago.
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Old 01-01-2020, 01:13 PM   #24
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It will be good to tack your ownership/service/dealer experience, too, as I recall that aspect drove JST crazy.
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Old 01-01-2020, 01:13 PM   #25
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Does VW do a good job with a flat power curve or is it a little peaky?
I don't know how to answer this. The car is smooth, there is not much power so not much curve to feel or to be annoyed by... It does need some revs 3.5 to 4k to get moving, sometimes a double downshift. It's also geared quite tall... I wonder if VW did going from Golf Sportwagen to Alltrack what Porsche did going from 987 to 981: keeping the box and rear-end internals the same while adding 1" to the total diameter giving an instant 4% taller gears. Alltrack rides on 1" taller wheels/tires than the other GTI/base Golf or even the R.
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Old 01-01-2020, 01:37 PM   #26
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It's sad that these are going away. I used MT one of these is a good option as a first car for the kids in a few years.
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Old 02-01-2020, 08:11 AM   #27
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Any more thoughts on this car, Equ? There are a couple of manuals in my area. I’d have to see if my troublesome knee could handle it, but it’s better these days.
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Old 02-01-2020, 10:53 AM   #28
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Any more thoughts on this car, Equ? There are a couple of manuals in my area. I’d have to see if my troublesome knee could handle it, but it’s better these days.
2220 miles today in just about a month. Cara's car history has been Focus hatch, Impreza wagon, Civic Si hatch, e39 528i, Golf TDI and finally GTI. She never ached for luxury or power, she likes a manual transmission, good mpg's, low running costs and the hatch/wagon form factor (dislikes sedans and SUV's). Beyond that she's never commented on 130hp in the Impreza, or RWD vs. FWD, or the 290hp in the GTI that she liked but rarely used. She thinks about cars about as much as I think about our washing machine.

The Alltrack is a good utilitarian machine for her commute and for driving the dog around. It's really just a normal car, how good cars used to be 10-15 years ago. It would compare with an e46 325xiT if you could buy one new. It's a bit retro in that you have to drive it to extract performance, so I'm not sure you'd like it after 240i's or boxsters, just not in the same category. Think a better, German, Corolla wagon. Or a quirky option to getting a RAV4. Compared to SUVs, CUVs... It's no Macan, but it's dramatically cheaper, simpler, lighter without losing space, perhaps gaining some. If you are interested in effortless A-to-B speed or the feeling of being coddled in BMW-luxury, look elsewhere.

The steering is good enough; perhaps better than the f30 3-series. Two assist levels available. Suspension is firm and yet has some lean, definitely prefers slow-in to corners, the chassis is easy to feel though and doesn't introduce unpredictable slop (I'm looking at you Jeep GC). The clutch is light, catches low and reasonably progressive. I will complain about throttle response, the usual VAG crap, I'm kinda used to it since my 2010 a4, doesn't make it good though. Might be worse than BMW's, which is not great to begin with. Not sure why only Porsche seem to be able to make a modern direct injection engine with great throttle/fueling. Perhaps they care about mpg's less. The awd system is imperceptible. I did a hill start on ice and while I didn't hammer it, I also didn't notice power shuffling around or even a hint of wheelspin. The car just went.

Ours is the bottom S spec, sure it kept the msrp low but the real reason was to avoid the dreaded sunroof (leaked on our GTI and had an even worse reputation on the Alltrack/Sportwagen). Unfortunately, this meant forgoing the better stereo, headlights and keyless entry. Cara doesn't mind at all, she still loves it.
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Old 02-01-2020, 11:16 AM   #29
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Originally Posted by equ View Post
2220 miles today in just about a month. Cara's car history has been Focus hatch, Impreza wagon, Civic Si hatch, e39 528i, Golf TDI and finally GTI. She never ached for luxury or power, she likes a manual transmission, good mpg's, low running costs and the hatch/wagon form factor (dislikes sedans and SUV's). Beyond that she's never commented on 130hp in the Impreza, or RWD vs. FWD, or the 290hp in the GTI that she liked but rarely used. She thinks about cars about as much as I think about our washing machine.

The Alltrack is a good utilitarian machine for her commute and for driving the dog around. It's really just a normal car, how good cars used to be 10-15 years ago. It would compare with an e46 325xiT if you could buy one new. It's a bit retro in that you have to drive it to extract performance, so I'm not sure you'd like it after 240i's or boxsters, just not in the same category. Think a better, German, Corolla wagon. Or a quirky option to getting a RAV4. Compared to SUVs, CUVs... It's no Macan, but it's dramatically cheaper, simpler, lighter without losing space, perhaps gaining some. If you are interested in effortless A-to-B speed or the feeling of being coddled in BMW-luxury, look elsewhere.

The steering is good enough; perhaps better than the f30 3-series. Two assist levels available. Suspension is firm and yet has some lean, definitely prefers slow-in to corners, the chassis is easy to feel though and doesn't introduce unpredictable slop (I'm looking at you Jeep GC). The clutch is light, catches low and reasonably progressive. I will complain about throttle response, the usual VAG crap, I'm kinda used to it since my 2010 a4, doesn't make it good though. Might be worse than BMW's, which is not great to begin with. Not sure why only Porsche seem to be able to make a modern direct injection engine with great throttle/fueling. Perhaps they care about mpg's less. The awd system is imperceptible. I did a hill start on ice and while I didn't hammer it, I also didn't notice power shuffling around or even a hint of wheelspin. The car just went.

Ours is the bottom S spec, sure it kept the msrp low but the real reason was to avoid the dreaded sunroof (leaked on our GTI and had an even worse reputation on the Alltrack/Sportwagen). Unfortunately, this meant forgoing the better stereo, headlights and keyless entry. Cara doesn't mind at all, she still loves it.
Perfect. Just what I was looking for. Thank you. And good tip about the sunroof...My head tells me go stripper utilitarian; my heart says I'd be happier with something like a 3 wagon--even if I have to go used and a bit more expensive.

EDIT: Having searched for awhile for used 3 wagons, I think I'm going to have to be patient and wait for a bigger crop of 2018s to come on line.

Last edited by wdc330i; 02-01-2020 at 04:35 PM.
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Old 02-13-2020, 11:05 AM   #30
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There is a SportWagen 4motion that is the same car but lower
Hmmm. Manual SportWagen 4 motion not too far from me. It's kind of hard to beat a new car at this price. (And I'll bet there's still bit more play in it.) I haven't had cloth seats, though, since 1985...

https://www.jimellisvolkswagenkennes...150d9a9a8d.htm

One thought is this could become my son's first car when he goes off to college in 4-ish years. So the long warranty would be welcome.

Just not really ready to pull the trigger on anything until I've found my next living situation.

Edit: There are also quite a few used Jetta TDI wagons being sold with extended warranties. But, they are getting long in the tooth at this point (most are 2014) and they are FWD. If I'm to add a practical family car, I'd like it to be AWD.

Another edit: Has anyone driven a Subaru Crosstrek? It's available in a manual. I would never do a CVT....

Last edited by wdc330i; 02-13-2020 at 11:21 AM.
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