Well first serious road test today, my daily 100 mile round trip into Leeds along the A64 and M1, I can't say it was the most enjoyable experience, I'm not sure what was the worst thing.
The engine drone above 60 was enough to send you to sleep if the interior hadn't already done the job for you, the wallowing into every corner, the lack of any obvious braking power when stopping the car or the back ache from the incredibly uncomfortable seats.
But....what is amazing about this car and I know its a cliche about VW reliability, this car has no concept that it is 15 years old and nearly 120K on the clock, everything works they way it was designed when it left the factory (both good and bad). Every button does what its supposed to, engine just keeps going (droning), all of the trim is where it should be, there are no annoying broken bits / switch / clips, it just works, for better or worse.
Now that's all incredibly boring, but my none boring Clio would randomly decide what was going to work, any clip I had touched had broken, don't ask about the electrics and it had 5 non boring road side recoveries in the last twelve months in some parts of Leeds you really don't want to break down in.
The frustrating thing about this car is that it could actually be car great, its well made, its a nice size, it runs well, but its let down by a drab sensible interior and an complete and utter lack of handling. Although to be fair, once you get used to the wallowing, it doesn't actually understeer, you might slide off your seat sideways or bang your head on the side window but it does actually hold the road.
So, the drab interior I can cope with, but maybe with a decent set of wheels and some Bilstein B4's (no I'm not lowering it), I might actually start to enjoy this car.
