JackReacher

Had a brief look over an estate in race blue this morning, looks very good in the flesh and interior much improved. Overall very impressed. Does anyone know what the GFV on a PCP is?

I'm hoping the petrol vrs comes in at late 20s after discount at most, because the mk3 was available for 23k ish through brokers. It needs to stay below £30k because £34k gets you into a BMW 330i touring, and it should be a value alternative.

I'd like to know about the petrol one, but seems like there is no infotmation out there.

Thanks for the offer, yes in Fleet Hampshire so might take you up on that at a later date. I don't actually mind a bit of torque steer, it provides some character. What I would like to avoid is axle tramp or over sensitive traction control kicking in and cutting all power when you want to make a bit of progress. I'm not after a 1st gear traffic light warrior, but something that is reasonable fun on a B-road when the situation allows, so don't want those issues when you come out of a tight corner in 2nd gear for example. My current m240i has it's own sort of traction issues in the wet, but that can be fun, although tyres make a big difference and current PS4 tyres are very good. I had originally discounted the vrs thinking it would be too slow for me, but then I realised it has the same power to weight as my old 350z, and that was ok. Plus the vrs is noticably cheaper than a nearly new Golf R estate or 340i touring that I was also thinking about. Out of interest, what does a stage 1 give, 300bhp?

Is the axle tramp just a first gear issue, or could you also experience it for example coming coming out of a tight corner in 2nd gear?

I'm considering a nearly new 245bhp vrs estate, they seem very good value compared to the other options I'm looking at (Golf R estate and the S4 avant). I understand the recent 245bhp version has the better front diff as standard that was only included on the older 245bhp special edition. There are a few posts on here that mention traction issues and getting the power down. Could I ask a bit more about where that is an issue? Is it only in the wet, or at other times as well? Does it spoil the ownership experience or is it just a minor annoyance? I'm coming from a 340bhp rear wheel drive BMW that struggles in the damp, but not otherwise.

I'd also like a 300bhp petrol Awd version, but doesn't look like it's coming. I need to decide whether I get a nearly new Golf R estate, or wait for the new 245bhp petrol VRS. I prefer the interior and image of the new VRS, but the drive train in the Golf is much more appealing.

I know the current situation is very uncertain, but does anyone have an idea of when the new vrs will be available to order and when the first deliveries will be due?

It's weird that they are so slow with this, yet they have developed new performance diesel engines for some fast Audis. Makes no sense. A karoq with something like a combined 220bhp (150bhp petrol and 70bhp electric motor) would be great if it could also deliver a real world 50mpg.

I think a 1.5tsi sportline would feel slow compared to the VRS tdi. Less power, less torque, and a bit more weight. Only you can decide if that's a problem. I guess the 2.0tsi would be comparable performance.

Does anyone know whether a hybrid Karoq is in the pipeline at all? VAG seem a bit behind in the area given their size.

Thanks that's useful feedback. The other concern is that I understand the DSG in the 1.5 is a dry box verses a wet box in the 2.0. Is the dry generally less reliable long term? We plan on keeping the car for 5 plus years. Not sure whether they offer an extended warranty from new like they used to. I think the 2.0tsi would be easier to justify if it was the 230bhp version available in the Tiguan, as a notable jump from 150bhp. Is the 190/230 2.0tsi engines just mapping or are there hardware changes as well?

Does anyone have a sportline with this engine yet? And are their any plans to produce an SEL spec version? I'd be interested to hear what the performance and economy is like. I was originally looking at the 1.5 SEL FWD, but put off by the feedback on the 1.5 engine. I don't need 4WD, but seems you have to with the 2.0tsi. I worry that once in the move, the 2.0 wouldn't feel much quicker due to the extra weight over a 1.5tsi FWD version. It seems a bit strange that its also only in sportline spec, which I like but don't feel the need to pay for all the extras. SEAT do an xcellence version of the Ateca which could be another option.

Thanks all, I guess some of the extra weight is sound deadening etc. Biggest surprise is that I just checked a 5 seat kodiaq with same engine, and thats still 80kg less than the Tiguan, that makes no sense at all.

I'm looking at the 1.5tsi FWD options between the Karoq, Tguan and Ateca. Looking at the specs, I'm struck by the weight of the Tiguan. It's 180kg heavier in Match trim than a Karoq SEL, and 270kg heavier than an Ateca Xcellence. How is this possible if they are essentially very similar cars? I know the Tiguan is about 10cm longer and has better rear suspension, but still seems a lot of extra weight! And this seems to show up with worse emissions and slower performance.