Road test report ---- April 2009 --------------------- by Kevin Fenix.

Volkswagen Scirocco
2.0 TSi 6 speed DSG

On the morning I went to collect this car, I knew that I was going to have a problem on my hands. The difficulty was that my previous test car, was so utterly superb in every way, that anything else was going to feel and appear to be mundane in the extreme. The two did share some common ground, in that they were both Volkswagens and they were both built on the same basic platform. They also both had Volkswagen’s pressurised induction with direct fuel injection engines and both used the DSG, twin clutch manual gearbox. There were also some major differences in that the previous car had a 1.4 litre engine and this one had a 2.0 litre. Then there was the transmission, the latest seven speed unit on the previous car and the older six speed on this one. Finally there was the major difference in that the previous car was a five door family hatchback and this one was a very sports oriented, two door coupe.
Away back in the nineteen eighties, when I was a lot younger, I had been a very committed Scirocco enthusiast, so I was anxious to know if this new version was going to rekindle that old spark within me. First indications were promising, as I liked the exterior styling of this new model very much. Sitting into the car, it was similar to the Golf I had just given back, with the exception that it had a chunky leather covered steering wheel with a flat section at the bottom. I certainly liked the feel of the leather, but I was not enamoured with that flat section on the wheel, as I found it to be annoying on an Audi TT roadster I tested some time ago. As I said initially, I was highly impressed by that Golf 1.4 TSI I had just returned, so this Scirocco was going to have to earn its laurels the hard way.

On driving off, I very quickly appreciated the quality and feel of the leather on the steering wheel. The flat section was mildly annoying at first, but not nearly as bad as I remembered it on the Audi TT and as time progressed, I got used to it, so by the end of the test I hardly noticed it. What I did notice was the much harder suspension. It took me several days to get used to this, which I came to accept in view of the fact that this was intended to be a sports coupe, rather than a comfortable family hatchback. Fingal unfortunately, has truly pathetic road surfaces in far too may places and on one section from Rush to Lusk, along the coastal road, I though the car was going to go into orbit. Then in another section from St. Margarets to Mulhuddart, I thought that the potholes were going to completely demolish the left hand side of the car.

Above : Fingal’s notorious potholes, the above in a built-up area of Malahide

The other features of the Scirocco that I noticed immediately, were the throaty burble from the exhaust and the audible change in the engine note as the car changed up and down through the gears. This six speed gearchange was not nearly as smooth or silent as the seven speed in the Golf. However, this is a sports oriented coupe and the audible engine note and gearchanges were fully in keeping with the car’s sporty image. As time went by I became entirely comfortable with it. It all helped to underscore the car’s sporting credentials.
The Scirocco has many sides to its character, but performance is high on the list of its priorities and specialities. It will crawl along in congested traffic without complaint. It will trickle along at suburban speeds without difficulty, but when the road opens up, or the lights change to green, just the merest pressure on the accelerator, is sufficient rocket you away, like a jet fighter being catapulted off an aircraft carrier’s deck. It is exciting, it is scintillating and it is what this car is all about. Pure, exciting, driving pleasure, is its forte.

Its potential top speed is 233 kph (144 mph), but that is purely academic, as it is well above the maximum speed limit in Ireland and most countries within the European Union. It will accelerate from 0-100 kph in just 7.1 seconds, which is excellent. Now before you yawn and say that a Porsche Cayenne will do it in less, let me remind you that the Porsche is massively more expensive.
Looked at in perspective, the Scirocco is not the fastest car in its segment, nor is it the slowest. Volvo’s C30 is about the same size and has a 2.0 litre engine. It manages 200 kph (124 mph) with 0-100 kph in 10.8 seconds. It is in the same price range as the Scirocco. The Opel Astra opc also has a 2.0 litre engine and dashing good looks. It has a top speed of 244 kph (151 mph) with 0-100 kph in 6.4 seconds. It too is in the same price range. Ford’s Focus ST has a 2.2 litre engine and offers a top speed of 245 kph (152 mph), with 0-100 kph in 6.8 seconds. While it is in the same price range, it makes do with the Focus three door hatchback body, so it does not offer the same visual stimulus as the Scirocco and the others already mentioned.

The Mazda RX8, only has a 1.3 litre engine, but its rotary design gives a splendid performance, with a top speed of 235 kph (146 mph) and 0-100 kph in 6.4 seconds. In addition its unique four door design allows much easier access to the rear seats. Needless to say it is around a third more in price. Finally the BMW 123d coupe, has a 2.0 litre diesel engine. It has a top speed of 238 kph (148 mph) with a 0-100 kph acceleration time of 7.0 seconds. The BMW is vastly more expensive, costing half as much again as the Scirocco. On that basis the Volkswagen Scirocco offers good value for money.
It also has that excellent DSG gearbox, which allows effortless automatic changes, or if you insist, you can push the gearlever over to the left, which puts it into manual mode. When manual is selected you have the choice of Formula One style changes, using the paddles on the steering wheel, or you can flick the lever forwards for upward changes and backwards for downward changes. The choice is yours. However, I found the automatic changes suited me perfectly and made the driving so much more effortless and pleasurable.

Automatic gearboxes are not normally flavour of the month, with driving enthusiasts, so it may be as well to explain that the DSG is actually a normal manual gearbox. In cars with a manual gearchange, the driver depresses the clutch pedal with his/her left foot, which then uses hydraulic pressure to lift the clutch plate off the flywheel, thus disconnecting the drive. The driver then manually uses the gearlever, to disconnect one set of gear wheels and connect another set. In the DSG gearbox the manual and hydraulic pressure is dispensed with and electric force does it all. The advantage is that it can be done quicker and faster than the old manual/hydraulic method. This results in a smoother and faster performance, which can also be used to aid fuel consumption.
On the urban cycle this Scirocco is credited with 26 mpg (10.5 lt/100 km), which improves to a magnificent 47 mpg (5.9 lt/100 km) on the extra urban cycle. This gives an average of 37 mpg (7.6 lt/100 km) on the combined cycle. Considering the performance available that is excellent. It is considerably better than the Opel Astra opc, Ford Focus ST and the Mazda RX8. It is on a par with the Volvo C30, but the Scirocco has a much better performance in both top speed and acceleration, than the Volvo. A lower fuel consumption translates into lower exhaust emissions. The Scirocco recorded 179 gm/km, which puts it into Irish category E, which, at current rates, costs 630 euro per year in road tax.
There are cars with similar levels of performance, but a lower tax rating : last week’s Golf 1.4 TSI is a splendid example, but it certainly lacks the exciting and sporty looks of the Scirocco. Acknowledging that beauty is very much in the eye of the beholder, I was surprised at the wide diversity of people who remarked on the styling of the car. Everyone expressed a very favourable view.

The steering uses electro-mechanical power assistance. It is geared to give 3.0 turns from lock. This tends more towards the relaxed and comfortable, rather than the quick and sporty, but once driving it always felt direct and positive. Sharing a platform with the Golf, the ride and roadholding are excellent, although, as already mentioned, the suspension is considerably stiffer. This does give a much more bumpy ride on Fingal’s notorious road surfaces. On good surfaces it is fine, on poor surfaces it leaves you in absolutely no doubts as to the quality of the road surface.
As befits a sporty coupe, it has large diameter ventilated disc brakes at the front, with good sized plain discs at the rear. The system uses anti-lock, with electronic brake force distribution and emergency brake assist. The electronic stability programme incorporates an anti-slip regulator with an electronic differential lock. It always gave a very sharp and reassuring response. In fact I quickly learnt to depress the brake pedal very gently.
Like many cars today, the Scirocco comes as standard with a Spacesaver spare wheel. I am not happy with this provision. The reason is simple. The Spacesaver puts around half the amount of rubber down onto the road. This has to have a detrimental effect on ride and roadholding, especially in a car designed to provide a very spirited and satisfying performance. Even if you cut back drastically on the performance, these tyres have an upper speed limit of 80 kph, they are still very compromised on wet and slippery roads, especially if used on a driving wheel. In these conditions, if you get a puncture in a front wheel, you may have to first jack the car up and take off a rear wheel, replacing it with the Spacesaver. You then have to jack it up again to take off the punctured front tyre and replace it with the full sized wheel removed from the back.
These wheels may save a bit of weight and space. They are possibly also quite suitable for pottering around town, but if you are touring in the country, or undertaking a longer journey, they can become a complete nightmare. I say this with bitter experience.
To its great credit, the Scirocco makes no attempt to be anything other than a four seater. The two front seats are well bolstered and superbly comfortable, with an ample range of adjustments. The two rear seats are reasonably comfortable, but are really only suited to shorter journeys. Apart from their firmer padding and less generous headroom, passengers in these two seats tend to have a very restricted view of the outside world. This is because the side windows are rather narrow, while the passengers sit somewhat higher than those in the front. As a result rear seat passengers have to look down, to look out, which greatly reduces their field of vision.

For normal everyday living, the Scirocco’s luggage space is more than adequate. It offers 0.292 cubic metres of space. For touring, you would normally only have two people travelling, so the two rear seats can be folded flat and this then gives 0.755 cubic metres of space. That should be more than sufficient for all normal needs. The Scirocco was never designed, or intended to be a versatile family carry-all. Supreme driving pleasure is what it is all about and it provides that in full measure. By the same token it is not designed for towing trailers or caravans, so no recommendations are given for maximum weights allowed on that score. About the only concession to additional versatility, is the acknowledgement that, if necessary, up to 75 kg can be carried on the roof. But ask yourself seriously, who would want to spoil the gorgeous lines of the Scirocco, by sticking a box on the roof ?

Above left : Normal luggage space ------------------ Above right : Maximum luggage space

The most difficult part of my whole Scirocco driving experience came at the start of the next week, when I had to give the car back. It was heartbreaking ! I thoroughly enjoyed it after the first few hours, when I had to adapt from the superb car of the previous week to this very different one. Do not ask me to choose between the two, because I cannot. The Scirocco perfectly suits my present needs and circumstances. The previous car also perfectly fills those needs, plus it is more versatile, but it does not have quite the same panache as the Scirocco. In its favour it is also less expensive, but as I hope I indicated earlier, the Scirocco is not overpriced for what it offers and one must always compare like with like.

Technical data