Looks like we might be heading down the route of a brand new 2.0 170 DSG L&K - a replacement for our elderly '05 1.9 PD130 manual Elegance.

Even though the spec is quite comprehensive, are there any must have options I should consider?

spare wheel would be one for example - maybe towbar prep and/or towbar too?

Electric tailgate, heated washer nozzles, hill hold control, KESSY keyless entry and rear side airbags are pretty much all of the noteworthy options for the L&K.

Towbar/towbar prep obviously if you ever intend to tow with it.

There's also 2 extended warranty options - 4 year/80k and 5 year/100k which are available at the time of ordering.

Definitely get a spare tyre - it's never been used on my 2011 car, but it's peace of mind knowing you won't be stranded by a puncture. Heated windscreen or auxilliary air heater if they're not included. The false boot floor can be useful depending on what you use the car for. The MDI interface is handy if you want to plug USB storage devices or MP3 players in to play music off them. This is about all my elegance doesn't have that I'd pick if I was ordering new. I like the panoramic sunroof on my car too, but probably wouldn't pay the money for it if I was ordering new. If you carry rear seat passengers regularly the rear side airbags might be worthwhile.

 

In terms of upgrades from the Elegance, the main change in the L&K seems to be lots of plates with L&K on them.

 

The combi AFAIK has towbar wiring from the factory. I like the way the OEM detachable towbar is set up - removed there's no evidence it can be fitted at all without examining the underside of the car. The socket for the electrics folds completely into the bumper too.

 

Getting the 4x4 version is another possibility, but again with decent tyres it's surprisingly hard to spin the wheels under power on the front wheel drive, but some of that is the traction control working very well.

 

The extended warranty is probably well worth it too - provided it doesn't cost silly money or exclude a load of things included in the normal warranty.

I will (once again) say GET THE ELECTRIC BOOT!

 

It is a very VERY nice and handy toy to have - VCDS coding enables you to open/close from the fob/grab handle switch/gearstick button and it makes carrying the shopping to and from the car so much easier.

 

And it's fun to see people stare

Thanks for all the replies! I should have pointed out that we're getting the twindoor (not estate) so electric tailgate is off....

 

I was planning to load music onto an SD card, so MDI not needed?

heated windscreen is now standard, don't know about aux air (can't find that option)

heated nozzles (presumably for the windscreen??) sounds like a good idea

 

not sure about hill hold - doesn't the DSG hold itself on a hill anyway - or I use the handbrake?

 

not sure about hill hold - doesn't the DSG hold itself on a hill anyway - or I use the handbrake?

 

No the DSG does not hold itself on a hill and using the handbrake, instead of the brake, causes the DSG to engage the clutch(es), as the car wants to move.

Hill hold allows you to remove your foot from the brake and hold the car for a few seconds to allow you time to get to the accelerator.

Left foot braking is another option, something I am not comfortable with.

DSG is not a conventional auto.

Edited 28 March, 201412 yr by ddyer79

Electric tailgate, heated washer nozzles, hill hold control, KESSY keyless entry and rear side airbags are pretty much all of the noteworthy options for the L&K.

Towbar/towbar prep obviously if you ever intend to tow with it.

There's also 2 extended warranty options - 4 year/80k and 5 year/100k which are available at the time of ordering.

 

 

 

 

 

I had the above (but not electric tail gate obviously) plus 5 year warranty, AutoGlym and MDI outlet. Very happy with it after nearly two years and 26k miles. I did bartered on the price of everything apart from the warranty on which they would not budge mind you I only bought and paid for the warranty on the day of collection and payment.

The MDI option is almost obsolete now. You have an SD slot on the Columbus to load 20GB of music onto it, a 'dumb' aux connector in the centre cubby under the arm rest and you have bluetooth streaming from a suitable mobile phone, a recent upgrade I found over my MY11 car is the ability to change tracks via the steering wheel buttons as well as pause/resume.  

 

If all else fails, I'm told you can listen to music via a 'compact disc' - whatever the hell one of those is.....

 

Opting for the twindoor obviously kills the electric boot option. Can we tempt you into considering a Combi? It's an awesome load lugger and will be invaluable if towing a caravan as you can load the back of the car to the hilt. You also get standard shiny roof rails and panoramic sunroof. The former means you can easily mount a roof box - the mother-in-law has to go somewhere. 

The file transfer is so slow onto the Columbus hard disk and the file management tools so poor that it's a waste of time transferring music to it in my experience. The 16 GB SD card I'm using at the moment is excellent and provided you get at least a class 6 card the transfer time is more than acceptable while writing files to the card with a PC.

 

I'd always go with the estate too - more space (The twindoor and estate are more or less exactly the same length, though so not much if you stay below the parcel shelf) and much better looking, though the manual combi is 0.1 l/100km worse on fuel than the twindoor. There's quite a nice looking spoiler available for over the back window that is worth getting thrown in by the dealer when you order. Mudflaps will keep the bodywork a bit cleaner too.

 

Also the combi is much easier to park as you have windows on both sides of the C pillar rather than the rear window and a huge expanse of very opaque metal on the side. Coming from an Octavia hatchback I'm blown away by how much easier the bigger Superb is to park thanks to this - when I'm not getting it to park itself while giggling uncontrollably of course. Never tell your passengers you're letting the car park itself for the maximum comedy effect though...

 

The other thing is that if you use the saloon opening in the twindoor all the time the insulation on the wiring passing through this hinge wears through, so not as reliable as the combi AFAIK.

My car has no hill hold and so far I had no situation where I would need it. Living in rather flat country, that is probably the reason. On inclines car is not rolling down because even on idle engine has enough torque to move car forward. On very steep drive aways to parking garage or so - I move foot from brake to accelerator without letting car to roll down. Probably thats because I used to drive manuals for many years.

Talking about options:

- kessy is a nice thing, I like push button engine start

- sound system - it was a must for me

- auxiliary heater - good thing in cold climate

The L&K comes with a spare wheel,at least in Ireland it does. The only extras you can add is a heated windscreen and aux heater,neither I would be too bothered with. They are also preped for a tow bar so fitting one is very easy. Hill hold is also a handy option and very cheap too.

What the hell.... do what I did... order the lot Apart from sunroof

The L&K comes with a spare wheel,at least in Ireland it does. The only extras you can add is a heated windscreen and aux heater,neither I would be too bothered with. They are also preped for a tow bar so fitting one is very easy. Hill hold is also a handy option and very cheap too.

I think the UK spec is a little different to what we get here and thewindcreen is probably standard there. Pity the pricing and the tax system are so different too!!

Looks like we might be heading down the route of a brand new 2.0 170 DSG L&K - a replacement for our elderly '05 1.9 PD130 manual Elegance.

Even though the spec is quite comprehensive, are there any must have options I should consider?

spare wheel would be one for example - maybe towbar prep and/or towbar too?

What colour did you decide, or is that decided yet?

We've ordered a twindoor 2.0CR 170DSG L&K in petrol blue - a little different to the regular silvers, greys and blacks - with spare wheel and heated washer jets. Lead time was 10-12 weeks but I'm getting confirmation of that next week.

Nice colour and as you say a bit different from the usual colours. What about the interior? Long enough wait but it will be worth it.

We've ordered a twindoor 2.0CR 170DSG L&K in petrol blue - a little different to the regular silvers, greys and blacks - with spare wheel and heated washer jets. Lead time was 10-12 weeks but I'm getting confirmation of that next week.

 

I was told by the dealer that Petrol blue had been dropped from the list.... 

we were told that it was Storm Blue that was delisted. Interior will be ivory which should be a good contrast.

we were told that it was Storm Blue that was delisted. Interior will be ivory which should be a good contrast.

 

Mmm I had a feeling that that may be the case... I may have ordered petrol blue :( The demo car was in it looked fantastic! 

 

I did read they had issues with Storm Blue... 

 

Although I think that the Cappuccino will look nice with the brown leather:)

I have the L&K 170, 2 months old now : spare wheel a must used it first week out. Hill Hold ordered as I have been driving tip auto for 7 years, nice not to have to think about stopping he car rolling back. Yes it does without hill hold. Disappointed that it is not included in a car of this spec and price range. Hey Ho.

we were told that it was Storm Blue that was delisted. Interior will be ivory which should be a good contrast.

Great choice, that combination will look fantastic and the L&K wheels will add the finishing touches!