Hello! My name is Ron and I live in San Antonio TX. This is my 2nd post to the forum, and I am literally going to test drive the GTI, TDI, and Tiguan in a few hours. I currently drive an Infiniti G35 and it is the best car I have ever owned. My lease will be up in a few months and now that my wife and I are "empty nesters" I am looking for something a little more practical for the occasional long road trip but yet still be sporty enough to zip up limited onramps to freeways. Something powerful enough to inspire confidence that the car will respond exactly as you need it to should you need to execute an avoidance maneuver at high speeds.
The GTI SEEMS like it will be the best at this by getting great gas mileage, being comfortable (I'm 6' 3" and about 240 or so) and accommodating (backpack, and carryon luggage for trips to the airport - I travel a lot) and still being fun to drive (trips to the hill country with twists and turns, or a golf (no pun intended) getaway.
The TDI, I have never owned a diesel in my life. So it's a new ordeal, but because it scores very high on the comfort and practical charts I have to at least give it a test. Really curious to see how much difference there is in performance feel when test driving this and then the GTI.
The Tiguan, I've actually done a short test drive in this - today will be a serious one. Right off the bat I didn't like that it took premium gas (so does the GTI, as well as my current Infiniti G35) and there were other small SUV's out there that got similar gas mileage and didn't require premium gas. Well, the one thing I remember writing down was that it had surprising torque at take-off and NO small SUV out there had that. So I am going to put it through the paces today.
I will clarify, I am certainly not a "speed demon" but I have enjoyed the "blistering acceleration" delivered by my G35 and the handling that equals that power. Once you pilot something like that on the road it is hard to give up. I will admit that freely and honestly. I do not expect the GTI for example to equal the Infiniti in many areas, I am going in expecting to compromise a bit. But, I also am looking forward to hopefully finding a nice mix of practical with a heavy dose of fun for a daily driver.
Because of my travels I use a lot of rental cars - and there is no worse feeling in the world than driving something like a Dodge Caliber and trying to merge from a dead stop onto a freeway with cars zipping around at 85mph, your foot burried in the gas - engine screaming louder and louder - and yet the speedometer needle seems to be stuck in a vat of syrup as it strains to hit 21 - 22 - the tack is at 4,500rpms, the decibel level is at ear rupturing highly likely measurements, and the whole car seems pretty frightened about getting on the freeway all together, like it would rather be sitting in a parking lot somewhere with the engine sleeping. Instead, you need it to respond and get you safely merged into what could be a very hazardous situation - and it's responding like a teenager searching for the snooze button on a school day!
I will never own a car that leaves me with that feeling! And that's why at the end of the day I expect the GTI to deliver across the board. High expectations - maybe - but according to forums and blogs across the country like this one - it should be able to deliver.
Thanks for having me.......
Ron
