Great channel you’ve built, Tom and a great team. John and Ponch are excellent and you all complement each other really well. I see this channel becoming THE pre-eminent Aussie motoring channel - real soon.
I've got the 2023 model the last ones to be imported to OZ. Gotta say I'm so happy with it as it just does everything so well. Whenever my friends hop in they say WOW what a nice interior. Then I put my foot down at the lights and take off. My passengers are always blown away by the performance of the wagon.
"If you're going to race track a lot", this one alsways gets me. A dedicated track car is where it's at if you do that all the time. Something that actually feels like a race car.
Yeah these fill some kind of niche I'm less and less inclined to go for. A fast car that isn't all that engaging at roads speeds sounds exactly what I don't want with low speed limits and big fines for doing 3kmh over. I'd prefer a slower car that is more engaging - or just a nice SUV for commuting.
@@Daniel-dg3np I'm in the same boat nowadays, superfast road cars are a good way to waste money on fuel and lose your licence. I have a dedicated car for using on race tracks, and my roads cars are the family SUV and Toyota 86. The 86 is plenty fast enough, super fun to drive and is comparitively cheap. Flogging around a road car, even a high performance one on a race track can soon cost you a fortune to up keep. I can however understand the people that can only have one vehicle that has to serve all purposes.
I was heavily tossing up the Golf Mk8 R wagon. Couldn’t justify the price of almost $80k AUD for a VW. Ended up getting a Mk4 2021 Skoda Octavia RS wagon and I absolutely love it. Way better than the mk3 VRS and has a lot more go to it. It’s $18k less driveaway than the Golf R wagon… the golf just isn’t worth that much…
Nice review John. I looked at a number VAG cars to put my $70k on. The big killer is tombstone seats and microsuede fabric, both of which i prefer NOT to have. So I fully loaded a Skoda Kodiaq Style with tow bar and 7 year service deal. I will use the 2000+ litres of load space most weekends so the wagons were just too small. While Skoda should be called “Simply Cheapskates” for what they have removed (umbrella, ice scraper, rear light that becomes a torch.) they are still a much better proposition that a VW. At 4700mm its the perfect fit for my garage, business and lifestyle. Plus my dealer was able to supply one fully specced with minimal wait. Lloyd
Yeah, I miss my 7.5 R but I jumped into a MY2021 Kodiak Sportline last year and I'm really happy with it. I'm not a huge fan of where VW are going with the infotainment and the car seems like a massive step backwards. The Kodiaq also seemed nicer than the Tiguan as well. I'd love a wagon as a primary car though but I can't see that happening now - the Mrs is another convert of the SUV craze!
The Skoda vRS is no longer a true performance car. Softer sprung, way off the current pace. You buy this car for the performance, of which it trumps its Skoda offerings. Compared to an Audi RS4 Avant or other high performance station wagon it’s a steal. In AU we get Napa leather and the dynamic pack all included.
Worth pointing out that the Octavia RS definitely isn’t softer sprung than before - particularly not if you have the optional 15-stage adaptive dampers that go far firmer (or far softer) than the old car giving you greater ride/handling bandwidth. That said, unsurprisingly adding 55kW/50Nm/twin-clutch AWD makes the Golf R a higher level of performance at a circa-$17k higher price
“ ambitionz az a ridah “ ahahahahahaha Much prefer the Tiguan R… the Mk8 wagon doesn’t look as good as the previous 7.5R wagon and yes i do actually like the way the 8R hatch looks
By the way the first golf with dsg was the golf 4 r32. At that time it was a 6speed dual clutch. The 7speed dual clutch starts at golf 7 facelift in 2017. Kind regards from germany.
I don’t get the ‘lack of volume button’ comments, theres one on the steering wheel! I do agree the HVAC should have physical buttons and knobs. Other you soon get used to the UX. Most reviewers complaints around the UX is lack of seat time, an owner soon gets used to how to use the infotainment and car functions… it just like getting a new phone or changing between windows and IOS, theres a transition period where it’s frustrating then it just seems normal.
Since you are reviewing an estate, it would have been great to go into more detail on its key feature (over the hatch)... the boot. We can read litres in the brochure. It only takes seconds to whip out a tape measure and provide some length, width height numbers that people can directly compare with what they drive currently. Also, I'm sure the boot floor is height adjustable? It would have been great to see some of that.
I'm waiting to see the .5 update, and if VW add physical buttons to the interior. As literally. every. review. states - VW products have an interior with terrible UX.
Looks even worse in the flesh, John nailed that about the interior and the door cards, s as ll feeling much cheaper than my 7.5…..which I’ll be keeping 😂
First, it is anything but premium inside. Second, I prefer the more rounded wheels rather than these angular "spider web" type used in the video. Anyway, no wagons available for North America.
VW have done a great job, but for me I'd take the 7.5 Wagon and not have to deal with all the faffing of the touch screens - still has all the tech you need, as quick if not quicker with a stage tune and $20k less! Plus with the huge waitlists and production issues VW are now facing, crucially you can actually buy a 7.5 (although they are becoming increasingly difficult to source) Perhaps people realise how good they actually are!
I picked up a 2020 7.5 R wagon in Dec 2020 and I don't think I'll be making the jump to this new Gen. The price increase along with all the changes to the interior are too big a turn off. Paying low 60s for a last of the line mk7.5 and have seen quotes well into the 80s for these. May as well go a level above and hop into an Audi for that price..
Have you driven one? That may be true on paper - but in my experience the superb is a completely different beast. Slow to react to driver input and feels very large on the road. I went to a dealership intending to buy the 206 superb, but left with an Octavia RS.
I’ve owned the Superb Sportline 206kw for just on 5 years. Super comfortable, super , super quiet & super quick. Yes I’ve surprised a few VW GTI’s. 😉 And yes it handles, especially in sports suspension setting! The stuff I can carry is brilliant! I shopped it against its VW cousin & it won hands down for me. I was not worried one bit by the so called Skoda badge. It’s a bloody terrific sports wagon which I continually recommend when asked.👍🏼
@@andrewd7586 in that case things have substantially changed over the past 5 years and you need to drive some of the VW groups smaller cars. The superb may be a superb family barge, but it drives like one too. No doubt it’s faster than a Gti in a straight line, but that’s where any fun or enjoyment ends.
This would be a good step up from my Octavia RS wagon in a few years time. Although with one kid flying the coop, it could finally be RS3 time. That 5 cylinder….🤔😘
VW always use cheap looking leather. That "carbon fibre" effect material is surely all synthetic and makes me think the entire seat is made from fake leather. I'd need convincing otherwise. Same ugly material on the Kodiaq RS - a step down from the regular model leather seats. I can't see myself paying this kind of money for a not-quite sports car (I thought the mk7.5 R wagon wasn't value either and just paid $20k less for Octavia RS). For a fast do-it-all daily sporty hatch-type thing I'd prob spend my money on a 3yr old BMW X3 40i (not the Audi RS4). Also what are the measurements on that boot in floor area? You really can't take the manufacturer word for boot volume, they measure it however they feel like. Kodiaq is 110 x 105cm seats furthest back. Mk8 wagon is 100 x100cm, with seats in fixed position (less leg room than Kodiaq with seats at rear position). No the Golf 8 boot is not bigger. It's obvious looking at them.
@@user-vk4vd7vr5t actually all drive reviews I’ve seen state it has a very good CVT - I suspect many people who don’t know it has a CVT before driving, wont be any the wiser after as it has stepped ratios and also blips throttle on the manual downchange
@@user-vk4vd7vr5t it actually doesn't have a terrible CVT. I'm the biggest CVT hater on the planet and the transmission in this car acts and performs like no CVT. So much so I actually bought one, thats how much I stand by my comments after spending a bit of time with the car before I bought it. The TS WRX Wagon IS the pick of he wagon bunch. Is it perfect, no, but no car is, its missing things it should have at that price point. For me, its the perfect balance of practicality and performance. VW doesn't even get look in imo
@@user-vk4vd7vr5t because it isn’t a WRX wagon in reality - it’s still a Levorg, badged WRX here because…reasons. It has a softer suspension tune and by all accounts is a different drive to WRX sedan. The Levorg isn’t offered as a manual anywhere, and assume the dozen people in Australia desperate for one doesn’t justify investment
@@user-vk4vd7vr5t I'm sorry but you're still wrong. Its not a slug box by any means. I've driven it hard and urban driving and it performs really well. I firmly believe it should have a traditional auto and a manual option, but it doesn't. For me, it stands head and shoulders above all wagons on the market and will enjoy every minute of it
@@rotoehu9266 A dozen people, its clear you really don't know what you're talking about. The first allocation sold out and 70% of that allocation was for a Wagon variant. Yes its basically a levorg, but so what. Its a better investment than a VW R wagon by a long shot. The only other wagons worth a damn are the Mazda 6 Atenza and the Peugeot 508, while thise two are better optioned than the WRX wagon, front wheel drive just doesn't cut it for me.
