GTP Cool Wall : VW Scirocco

[Joey D]

I find the GTI incredibly boring the in the design department. It looks like a generic hatchback, although I'm guessing that's that point. Driving one isn't boring though, at least as long as it isn't an MKIV.

 

[Philly]

I had always thought they looked great. But it sounds like I could quite possibly be biased. I quite like the combination of aggressiveness and civility the GTI seems to offer.

 

[JCE]

Cool. With a name like that and the profile the way it is how can it NOT be cool?

 

[Northstar]

I would give it a sub-zero vote, but the fact it's not coming to the U.S. knocks it down to cool.

 

[Casio]

Seriously Uncool:

Not a Saab.

 

[Omnis]

Since we're not getting the Scirocco, I'm not complaining at all that the Golf looks more like it.

 

[homeforsummer]

Hold on a sec, what's boring about a GTI?

I didn't mention the GTI. But I'd still prefer the Scirocco with the same powerplant.

And if you're just talking about the Golf, I imagine the Golf is far more interesting than anything else in the segment, save possible the Mazda 3.

Maybe in the States. But over here we have half a dozen or more European and Far Eastern competitors that make the Golf look bland and expensive.

 

[TheCracker]

And if you're just talking about the Golf, I imagine the Golf is far more interesting than anything else in the segment, save possible the Mazda 3.

Mazda 3 interesti......... *snoring sounds*




...sorry, i must have nodded off. Seriously, Mazda might make great coupes and roadsters, but everything else in their range makes the equivalent Vauxhall/Opel seem positively exciting!

 

[YSSMAN]

Did you Brits get screwed over again and get stuck with a lesser version of the same Japanese car in the States?

 

[Peter]

sub zero, sexiest volkswagen since herbie

 

[homeforsummer]

Did you Brits get screwed over again and get stuck with a lesser version of the same Japanese car in the States?

Not really to be honest - I think The Cracker might be exaggerating a little - personally the only Mazdas I'm not particularly interested in are the 3 and the 5, and I like the rest of their range a lot (especially the Mazda2). But regarding the 3 mentioned, it again suffers against competitors offering things that are a bit more interesting. But even then I'd still have a 3 over a Golf.

 

[Stotty]

I like it... seen a few on the road and they look good. Motoring press rate them to drive too.

 

[Jondot]

Did you Brits get screwed over again and get stuck with a lesser version of the same Japanese car in the States?

Nah, it just looks a bit dreary and has a comparatively tacky interior. And now it's been given the Joker's smile, for reasons I can't work out. But it drives well and it's fairly cheap, so it's still a far more interesting prospect than the Golf.

 

[Boffin]

I say it's cool because it's essentially a golf made into a coupe. 'Nuff said - if you buy one, you care more about aesthetics than practicality.

 

[TheCracker]

Did you Brits get screwed over again and get stuck with a lesser version of the same Japanese car in the States?

Not really to be honest - I think The Cracker might be exaggerating a little - personally the only Mazdas I'm not particularly interested in are the 3 and the 5, and I like the rest of their range a lot (especially the Mazda2). But regarding the 3 mentioned, it again suffers against competitors offering things that are a bit more interesting. But even then I'd still have a 3 over a Golf.

Although it's more than competent at what it does, The Mazda 3 is just dull to the point of being invisible. The Golf is also good, but it also has an image. You own a Golf and it says about you that you appreciate quality German engineering (whether that is actually technically correct or not anymore). You own a Focus because it has a great chassis. You own an Astra because you either enjoy understeer and poor feeling through the steering wheel or you got lumped with one as a company car. You own an Audi A3 because everyone else in you modern city centre appartment block drives Golfs. You're a 'sales executive' who aspire's to be a contestant on The Apprentice so you buy a 1-Series. You like the VAG image but want to be a step away from the Golf/A3 crowd so you buy a Leon. You think that all those stories about French cars being badly screwed together are probably untrue, so you buy a 307 or Megane. You are in your 60's so you buy a Civic. You really don't care about cars or what you drive, so you buy a Corrola (or what ever the equivalent is at the moment) because you've heard they are supposedly reliable. At least Joe Public knows of these cars.

The 'hot' Mazda 3 (MPS?) has plenty of power and a chassis that copes with putting all that power down through the front wheels without wrenching the wheel out of the driver's hands, but it competes with the Focus ST and RS, the Megane R26, Audi S3, Golf GTI, BMW 130, Civic Type-R or the Impreza WRX and STi, all of which usually come out ahead of the Mazda 3 in road tests.

 

[homeforsummer]

Although it's more than competent at what it does, The Mazda 3 is just dull to the point of being invisible. The Golf is also good, but it also has an image. You own a Golf and it says about you that you appreciate quality German engineering (whether that is actually technically correct or not anymore). You own a Focus because it has a great chassis. You own an Astra because you either enjoy understeer and poor feeling through the steering wheel or you got lumped with one as a company car. You own an Audi A3 because everyone else in you modern city centre appartment block drives Golfs. You're a 'sales executive' who aspire's to be a contestant on The Apprentice so you buy a 1-Series. You like the VAG image but want to be a step away from the Golf/A3 crowd so you buy a Leon. You think that all those stories about French cars being badly screwed together are probably untrue, so you buy a 307 or Megane. You are in your 60's so you buy a Civic. You really don't care about cars or what you drive, so you buy a Corrola (or what ever the equivalent is at the moment) because you've heard they are supposedly reliable. At least Joe Public knows of these cars.

👍

That's pretty true, though I'd argue that oldies no longer buy the Civic because the Jazz exists (I really don't see many elderly people in Civics any more), and people buy French cars because they're still generally more competitively priced than anything else and they're loaded with huge quantities of equipment that may or may not go wrong at some point and be an absolute nightmare. Though I could easily imagine people buy Citroens at the moment for their looks, as they have quite a striking range.

And I doubt many own a Focus because it has a great chassis. They own it because either a) there's a Ford garage on their doorstep or b) because the company gave it to them because they have a contract with Ford and not Vauxhall. 95% of the population wouldn't know a good chassis if a Lotus Elise aluminum spaceframe crashed through their roof.

The one car you did miss is the Volvo C30, which would be my current choice in that class, and is probably more of a rival to the Scirocco than it is to the Golf or any of the other premium/semi-premium small family cars. The looks divide opinion but I think it looks fantastic. I'll have mine with the 5-cyl turbodiesel, thanks.

 

[TheCracker]

👍

That's pretty true, though I'd argue that oldies no longer buy the Civic because the Jazz exists (I really don't see many elderly people in Civics any more), and people buy French cars because they're still generally more competitively priced than anything else and they're loaded with huge quantities of equipment that may or may not go wrong at some point and be an absolute nightmare. Though I could easily imagine people buy Citroens at the moment for their looks, as they have quite a striking range.

And I doubt many own a Focus because it has a great chassis. They own it because either a) there's a Ford garage on their doorstep or b) because the company gave it to them because they have a contract with Ford and not Vauxhall. 95% of the population wouldn't know a good chassis if a Lotus Elise aluminum spaceframe crashed through their roof.

The one car you did miss is the Volvo C30, which would be my current choice in that class, and is probably more of a rival to the Scirocco than it is to the Golf or any of the other premium/semi-premium small family cars. The looks divide opinion but I think it looks fantastic. I'll have mine with the 5-cyl turbodiesel, thanks.

My 'puter crashed on me before i got chance to post my original reply, so the post above is an 'edited highlights' and my thoughts on the Focus have probably not come out quite how they were intended. I totally agree with what you say about the Focus, like the Astra, being mostly fleet cars, my original post hinted more at the sort of person who actually went out of their way to pick a particular vehicle over another.

I see C30 buyers mostly as ex-A3 owners.

I think Civics are still owned bought by the elderly, just those who still think they are not old enough to buy a Jazz and it's built-in colostomy bag holders. Although the most recent Civic might just be a little too much in the looks department for most pensioners.

 

[homeforsummer]

The most recent Civic is the one I meant. The previous model in 5-door trim is old-person central.

 

[mafia_boy]

I say it's cool but personally find it disgusting to look at because that front looks like a huge paperweight has been squashing the bonnet and compressing the headlights!

It's going to appeal to the boy racer crowd that don't want to be associated with the mum's & dad's who went and bought a Golf GTi in the past couple of years. It's a similar deal to kids who buy Scion's because they don't want to think their car is the same brand as mum's Camry.

So, cool. Only borderline but cool nonetheless.

 

[Jondot]

You think that all those stories about French cars being badly screwed together are probably untrue, so you buy a 307...

...except that now the 308 is about, it's more a case of 'you buy it because the voices in your head made you'.

...and people buy French cars because they're still generally more competitively priced than anything else

*Raises hand*

Though I could easily imagine people buy Citroens at the moment for their looks, as they have quite a striking range.

*Raises other hand*

 

[Robin]

I seriously hate the Sirocco just because its an overpriced Golf for people who just want to look fashionably 1980's. I dont even feel this car does the original one any justice.

 

[homeforsummer]

I seriously hate the Sirocco just because its an overpriced Golf for people who just want to look fashionably 1980's. I dont even feel this car does the original one any justice.

I disagree strongly on all counts. It's not overpriced, given that it doesn't cost much more than the equivalent Golf. In fact, the top GTI is more expensive than the current top Scirocco, so this arguement doesn't wash at all.

Nor would I say it's for people who want to look "fashionably 1980s", as it's not retro in the slightest, and is only recreating a concept - that of a more svelte and attractive Golf, for those wishing for something a bit more sporty. Not to mention something that you probably overlooked - that the original Scirocco was released in the 1970s, not the 1980s...

Lastly, it more than does the original justice, by doing exactly what the original did for the original Golf. Indeed, in the same way the current Golf's styling has been updated in-line with the Scirocco, the Mk1 Golf had been refined after the reception the original Scirocco had got after it's launch. I'm not quite sure how a quicker, more stylish, better handling model doesn't do the name justice, but whatever...

 

[Robin]

I did know that it was released in the 70's but I was refering to the second generation when it got into its stride and a time period roughly half the way through the designs life 1974-1992.

I still feel it does not do the original justice party due to the fact that it bares hardly any resemblance at all! It might be a good looking car but in my opinion its not a Scirocco. It would be like if Audi re-released the original quattro I would expect it to clearly show its lineage in the design, This design looks like a less curvy golf... its more their new corperate face than anything else as the rest of the range is now getting its nose and lights.

As for retro, the first thing that I think when I look at it its Retro!... but I dont see the original in it.

Its my personal viewpoint but it just screams arrogant compared to the golf, which (even as its own ad's suggest) its meant to be an understated yet sophisticated car.

 

[ROAD_DOGG33J]

This design looks like a less curvy golf...

Which is perfect since that is the problem with the Golf. It's too curvy, much like the 3rd generation Taurus.

 

[Robin]

much like the 3rd generation Taurus.

That thing looks like it melted! Ford should stick to angular, suits them way better.

 

[homeforsummer]

I did know that it was released in the 70's but I was refering to the second generation when it got into its stride and a time period roughly half the way through the designs life 1974-1992.

Erm... most enthusiasts would agree that the Mk1 Scirocco was a much nicer car than the 80s version, which lost much of the styling flair and gained some of the nasty plasticness that the 80s spawned. I certainly wouldn't say the 80s one is something to aspire for, other than the fact that it's now dirt cheap second-hand. It wasn't as pretty as the original and wasn't as solid or good to drive as the Corrado (or the Golf GTI of the time, for that matter). In that respect, the new Scirocco is by far the better car as it's supposed to be better to drive than the equivalent Golf.

I still feel it does not do the original justice party due to the fact that it bares hardly any resemblance at all!

It might be a good looking car but in my opinion its not a Scirocco. It would be like if Audi re-released the original quattro I would expect it to clearly show its lineage in the design, This design looks like a less curvy golf... its more their new corperate face than anything else as the rest of the range is now getting its nose and lights.

Why does everything have to be a re-design? I'd much prefer that they came up with a new design, exactly like they've done. Ditto with any Audi Quattro. To be honest, the current TT-S or TT-RS is probably the closest to the original Quattro in spirit. Does it look similar? Not in the slightest. And all the better for it.

If VW want to call it a Scirocco, then it's a Scirocco. It's a sporty coupe based on the Golf. How exactly is it not a Scirocco?

As for retro, the first thing that I think when I look at it its Retro!... but I dont see the original in it.

Really? I'd love to see a straw-poll from everyone else on whether they think it looks retro, I really would...

Its my personal viewpoint but it just screams arrogant compared to the golf, which (even as its own ad's suggest) its meant to be an understated yet sophisticated car.

Translation: Boring.

 

[TheCracker]

Really? I'd love to see a straw-poll from everyone else on whether they think it looks retro, I really would...

Put me down for absolutely non-retro other than in name. And to be fair, Scirocco was always a better name than Corrado IMO.

 

[Leonidae]

Put me down for absolutely non-retro other than in name. And to be fair, Scirocco was always a better name than Corroded IMO.

fixed. in addition, wasn't Corrado based on MkIII golf which was by far the worst of them? I like the looks and the engine selection, but..

 

[YSSMAN]

The Corrado ran on the MKII platform, not the MKIII. VW has a habbit of stretching out the lifespans of certain platforms with new cars, they've done so with the New Beetle (MKIV-based, now into MKVI generations of the Golf), the Cabrio (MKIII-based, survived into the middle of the MKIV generation), as well as some of their various world-market cars... I think its South Africa that still has the MKI GTI available (so awesome!).

 

[exigeracer]

fixed. in addition, wasn't Corrado based on MkIII golf which was by far the worst of them? I like the looks and the engine selection, but..

Ever driven one? Many say it's up there in the best FWD cars ever.