Volkswagen's Eos, the goddess of fun
— -- Can't sit here much longer without attracting too much attention. The guy who runs this Exxon, or the other patrons, are pretty soon going to get steamed about the jerk hogging the middle pump.
OK, raise the hood. Act as if the oil's being checked. Use the windshield washer squeegee.
Try not to look as if the VW Eos has up and quit at the gas pumps and you're waiting for the rescue guy. Which is exactly what's going on.
PHOTOS/AUDIO:Volkswagen Eos with Healey's comments
Running fine when shut off to fill the tank. No electrical power at all once topped off.
How frustrating, embarrassing, aggravating. How much like a VW driver's worst dreams, all those stories about shoddy quality coming true right there at a busy station.
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Hold on there; clearly an aberration, VW says. The test car did rigorous duty at international exhibits, VW says, and the battery cable no doubt was unhooked to meet fire regulations at some display hall somewhere along the line. The cable wasn't retightened properly, VW says its dealer's mechanic reported. Thing is, the dealership also found a missing seal in the air-intake system. That's harder to explain.
Not at all, VW demurs. No doubt related to all the exhibits the car went through before being put into the media motor pool. It could happen; some guy takes apart the air-intake snorkel system for some reason.
All that's after-the-fact talk. At the pump, a nervous and unthinking push on the remote-control fob ka-thunks a lock. That means there's juice. Quick, try to start it. Rrrrr, vroom. Engine's running. Drop the hood, close the trunk, drive straight home, skip the errands that would have required shutting off the car.
How cruel for such matters to taint the otherwise marvelous Eos, named for the goddess of dawn. Because, boy, was the car nice when it wasn't broken.
It's tempting to think of Eos as a replacement for the Cabrio, which was a convertible version of the Golf. But Eos is more distinctive (and expensive) than that.
Eos not only is a retractable-hardtop convertible, it's also one with a sunroof that opens for times when you don't feel up to the whole exposed top-down thing. The roof is five panels, including the glass sunroof. The front pieces slide under the rear pieces as the top is lowered and stored under the trunk lid.
Neat to watch. Impress the neighbors, wow the kids.
VW is good at making swell cars: classy, fun cars that have the tight, German feel you sometimes can't get even from the more-expensive German cars that supposedly invented the German engineering and driving ethos.
Here's what the Eos test car had in its favor.
•Engine. VW's turbocharged, 2-liter four-cylinder is perhaps the best turbo engine on the market. There's no apparent turbo lag. The engine provides enough scoot just off idle that you don't feel importuned waiting for help from turbo boost. And when it arrives, the engine gets strong fast but not explosively.
Engine is easygoing enough that if you find yourself in the wrong gear — third instead of second or fourth instead of third are common oopsies — pushing the throttle results in easy, seamless acceleration.
Here's the gravy. VW's engine not only delivers the performance that makes turbo engines fun, but also delivers decent fuel economy — 23 mpg in town, 32 on the highway, according to the feds. About 21 in the burbs, according to the test car.
Premium fuel, though. Turbo engines either need it or run a lot better using it. If you're anticipating a turbo's satisfying performance, get it out of your mind that you're going to buy lower-octane fuel to save 20 cents a gallon. That's less than $150 difference a year for most drivers. Suck it up, buy high-test, be happy.
•Transmission. The six-speed manual in the test car shifted easily, smoothly, with just enough mechanical feel to satisfy the tactile-infatuated.
•Comfort, convenience. Seats are quite comfortable. VW is good at that. The brand's signature blue-light gauges are classy and pleasant.
Top raises or lowers in about 28 seconds, a bit slow in the abstract, but competitive among retractable hardtops. Takes up most of the trunk but leaves room for a couple of pieces of luggage or briefcases. Getting them out when the top is down can be awkward because they fit under a divider.
Air management around occupants is pretty good when the top is down. Not the kind of air blast that makes some convertibles unpleasant top-down. (And how absurd is it for a drop-top to be disagreeable with the top dropped?) Top up, it's warm and winter-tight.
•Room. It doesn't have a lot but manages to feel as if it does, even top-up.
•Features. VW's generous array of safety equipment and its unusually long warranties are juicy bait. Nice touches include front seats that remember where they were and return there after rear riders exit.
•Fun. Present in immense amounts.
All you need to fall irresistibly under Eos' spell is faith that VW's quality is good and willingness to part with $30,000, more or less, for a smallish car that probably nobody will recognize.
2007 Volkswagen Eos
•What is it? Small, front-wheel-drive, two-door, four-passenger retractable hardtop convertible. Available with four-cylinder turbocharged engine or, since Nov. 20, a V-6. Based on modified VW Golf platform using mainly Passat suspension. Manufactured at Lisbon, Portugal.
•How soon? On sale since August.
•How much? Base model, called simply Eos, starts at $28,620 including $630 destination charge. Midlevel 2.0T starts at $30,620 with six-speed manual transmission, $31,695 with six-speed automatic. Top model, 3.2L V-6, starts at $37,480, comes only with automatic.
•Who'll buy? VW is targeting men and women equally, college-educated, 40-plus years old who are buying a vehicle to reward themselves, or one to replace several as they shrink the family fleet.
•How many? 13,000 a year.
•What's the drivetrain? 2-liter turbocharged four-cylinder rated 200 horsepower at 5,100 rpm, 207 pounds-feet of torque at 1,800 rpm; six-speed manual; traction control; electronic differential lock.
Available: 3.2-liter V-6 rated 250 hp at 6,300 rpm, 235 lbs.-ft. at 2,500 rpm; six-speed automatic.
•What's the safety gear? Expected bags and belts, side impact and head-curtain bags for front only; anti-lock brakes; anti-skid control; pop-up rollover protection bars behind back seat.
•What's the rest? Power folding hardtop with built-in sunroof; air conditioning; AM/FM/CD/MP3 stereo with MP3 auxiliary input jack; power steering, brakes, locks, windows, mirrors; tilt-adjustable and telescoping steering column; cruise control; rear-window and side mirror defrosters; remote-control locks.
•What's the promise? Basic warranty: four years or 50,000 miles, whichever comes first. Powertrain: five/60,000. Corrosion: 12/unlimited.
•How big? Subcompact: 173.5 inches long, 70.5 inches wide, 56.8 inches tall on a 101.5-inch wheelbase.
Passenger space is listed as 77.4 cubic feet. Cargo space is listed as 10.5 cubic feet top up, 6.6 cubic feet top down.
Weight is listed as 3,505 pounds to 3,686 pounds, depending on model and equipment. Rated to carry 893 pounds of people and cargo.
Turning circle is listed as 35.8 feet, curb-to-curb.
•How thirsty? Four-cylinder is rated 23 miles per gallon in town, 32 on the highway, 27 in mixed driving with manual transmission, 23/31/26 with automatic. V-6 is rated 22/29/24.
Four-cylinder, manual transmission test car got 21 mpg in brisk suburban driving.
Tank holds 14.5 gallons. VW recommends premium (91 octane) gasoline "for maximum performance" in both engines. VW says 87 octane won't harm the engines but will cut performance and fuel economy, especially at high altitude or in high temperatures.
•Overall:Glorious, joyful as befits the namesake goddess of dawn. But under-the-hood problems in the test car, however plausibly explained, give pause.