Yeah, I just want to buy and drive a car. This level of drama for a consumer product is insane. Its not a car anymore, its a Tom Clancy novel.

There are two kinds of people in the world – those who get the Wankel, and those who don’t.

Ok, so the cheating diesel engines are fixed and the cars are going at bargain rates in auctions. Doesn’t matter, they’re still VWs which will end up costing you half again their sale price in repairs before you get sick of it.

We had a 2013 Passat we ended up selling back. Right when it was decision time, the DEF heater went bad. At that point VW was denying there was a problem (no recall), and the factory repair was a couple grand, mostly for the part. I found out online that the Touareg part was identical, with the exception of a longer…

Is the girl in the trunk standard or an option?

I can’t get over the huge fake grills in the back and front... and the trunk - I mean OK, you can apparently smuggle small asian women in there, but with that shape of the car, that it’s not a hatch still isn’t right.

I agree. Since when did people start whining about cars that can’t do 0-60 in less than 7 seconds?

I’d take a GTI over this, myself.

Other than perhaps not wanting a hatchback, is there any reason to buy this over a base GTI? perhaps assumptions on reliability?

I do my part. I have bought many manuals new and have one in the garage right now (although it is not a DD). You salty, self- righteous jalops better step up to the plate and buy this DD-worthy ride en masse or you can shove your future bitching about ‘no manual, I won’t buy it’ right up where Torch might write an…

“That short-throw manual is the sole gearbox option here. No automatic, no CVT. That’s a good thing, and that red trunk badge should immediately identify the car’s owner as someone who still believes in human driving.”