Relationship issues

[seangti]

Having had a 01 forester GT for 4yrs and now the polo GTi - I think both have had a similar "upbringing" in australia. Each make has had some great cars and some duds in there history here, yet since the MkV golf and mid/late 90's subaru's both marques have stepped up to a force to be recond with, much improved build quality and driver involvement - I love going for the underdog that has stepped up. VW has stepped up in the last 5yrs, Subaru did in the mid 90's.

I remember looking at the Polo GTi when it first came out in 06 and thought no way would I spend that asking price on a damn polo. If it wasn't in part for the success of their other vehicles, I probably still wouldn't have looked at them though.

[White Tiguan]

I`ve just come from owning an MY05 Subaru Forester XT . I can`t fault the car mechanically or the enjoyment that it gave me driving it for almost 5 years.
But the handling was ordinary with understeer and body roll. The interior noise level was on the high side and the ride unrefined and bouncy.

When you go and look at the current model ,to me anyway it has taken a step backwards with cheap looking mismatch of plastics ,4 speed auto ,same ordinary handling and noise levels and a styling which didn`t grab me.

The Tiguan on the other hand offered a higher quality and visually appealing interior finish , a smoother more sophisticated ride . Superior handling dynamics,lower noise levels.
Not to mention a 6 speed Auto.

The amount of technological difference continues to surprise me too. Speed sensitive radio volume , dead locking doors , MFD etc.

My first impression was that Subaru gave you the minimum that it had to for the price and VW crammed in the most. (Yes the options are expensive though).

To me It came down to what offered more at the time of purchase.
Next time round ????

[clip]

The Tiguan on the other hand offered a higher quality and visually appealing interior finish , a smoother more sophisticated ride . Superior handling dynamics,lower noise levels.
Not to mention a 6 speed Auto.

The amount of technological difference continues to surprise me too. Speed sensitive radio volume , dead locking doors , MFD etc.

don't forget self parking (love it), remote window activation, voice controlled audio and navigation system, auto anti glare self tinting rear vision mirror, auto hold, interior ambiance lighting (oh ah), plus all the standard stuff like rain sensing wipers and auto headlights with programmable going home and leaving home functions - how did we ever live without this?

But TBH, at the end of the day, it's the haldex controlled awd (that can be user programed after upgrade), the quick remap that punches the Tig up close to 200kW and over 400Nm, combined with wonderful dynamics that does it for me.

But, I'm getting off track. This wasn't meant to be a Subaru v VW. I was just really interested in the link between owners as there seems to be a far greater appreciation of the vehicles between their respective owners than there is between any other two groups of car owners. Thanks again, it's really interesting hearing your comments.