I bought a new 2006 Volkswagen GLI on 10/12/2005 at Pignataro Volkswagen in Everett, Washington. I was able to negotiate the price via phone call and email by cross shopping among several different dealerships in the region. I then had them match the price to the lowest provided until I found a deal I was pleased with. Overall the purchasing experience was painless thanks in advance to some very helpful car buying tips I received from VWVortex. Our sales representative was more than accomodating to price negotiations and left the dealership open beyond regular working hours so I could come in, inspect the car, and finalize the deal. The car is a Deep Black Jetta GLI, Package 2 in anthracite interior which includes the following standard equipment:
- DSG transmission with integrated steering wheel paddle shifters
- Top sport heated leather seats
- Sunroof
- Dual Zone Climatronic air conditioning system
- Premium audio system with 6 disc in-dash CD changer & mp3 readable
- 17″ alloy Classic X rims
- High Intensity Discharge (HID) headlights
- Foglights
- Leather wrapped multi-function steering wheel with sport perforated leather handles
- Aluminum sport pedals and cabin trim
- Black-Anthracite headliner
- Leather wrapped shift knob, e-brake handle and DSG shifter
Coming off my previous MkIV Jetta into a MkV GLI was quite an upgrade. The GLI is the sport version of the Jetta, much like the GTI is the sport version of the Golf. These are the enthusiast-oriented trimmed vehicles from Volkswagen and they don’t disappoint. First impressions after the page brake.
Handling on this car is superb compared to the more flexible MkIV. Even with stock suspension, the car handles amazingly well on hard cornering. The power delivered by the 200HP 2.0T FSI engine is also amazing. Torque is available very early in the RPM range and is well distributed throughout all the way up to redline. Against my idea of breaking in the car easy at least for the first 600 miles, I had a lapse of spirited driving in which I was able to test the cars limits and I wasn’t disappointed. Pairing this engine with the DSG transmission is unbelievable. There is absolutely no lag and shifts are instantaneous; power is completely linear from 1st all the way up to 6th gear (Thanks to its electronically controlled wet dual clutch system, DSG switches gears in 8ms (milliseconds) which is faster than any manual transmission can do even under control of a professional driver). Throwing DSG into Sport mode makes for some serious transformation; The best way I can describe it is as if the car has suddenly become pissed off and is viciously trying to eat asphalt… truly exhilarating. Rowing your own with the paddles is also quite amazing. Shifts are equally instantaneous and seamless. It feels like you’re behind the wheel of an exotic supercar. You also have the option to row gears with the shift knob in regular tiptronic fashion… make no mistake though; this is no tiptronic transmission.
Interior fit and finish is top notch. The cabin is well designed, solid throughout all panels and well illuminated. Two red LEDs illuminate the center console cascading from the sunroof control panel down on to the shifter. The signature Volkswagen blue gauges are back in all their glory but the instrument panel is much better designed this time around and feels more organic and natural to the lines of the car. The GLI comes equipped with all sorts of goodies from the factory, such as the stainless steel badge insert in the sports leather-wrapped steering wheel, trim throughout the cabin and doors and pedals which give the car a very sporty and upscale feel. All plastics are rubberized and are soft to the touch. Everything has a hefty feel to it and nothing feels flimsy or easy to break, from vents to handles and latches, everything is top notch inside the car.
I’ve read early complaints of vibrating door panels with the speakers. I can say I have no complaints at all in this regard. Even though there is no external amplifier on this sound system, power delivery is good albeit a tad high on the treble. There is more than enough volume to comfortably listen to music over anything else, road noise and passenger talking included without any distortion or rattles. Having an mp3 readable 6 disc changer built into the head unit is a nice thing to have as I can carry most music I could ever want to listen to and iPod and auxiliary input connections are quickly being supported by 3rd party manufacturers as well.
Cargo space is great; the trunk is simply cavernous. I don’t have the figures in front of me at this moment but cargo space is simply amazing and much improved over the last generation. This is also true for legroom for rear passengers. The interior dimensions of the car are more in line with the previous generation Passat rather than the old Jetta. Five adults can comfortably ride this vehicle with absolutely no issue at all. The rear passenger seats also have an awesome feature; there is a small door between the seats that opens to allow large, long items to pass through. This is called the “ski pass-through”. However, this same compartment has built-in storage and cupholders. Sitting on the back of the car suddenly feels like you’re inside a luxury car rather than a sports sedan.
Overall, I am very pleased with the vehicle. It is clearly a step up over the last generation of Volkswagen sedans. Exterior looks take a bit of getting used to. The car has some sporty lines that are not commonly found in German sedans. However, once the car is seen in motion and in person, you can tell that this is unmistakably a German engineered vehicle. Wide front fenders are obvious, more so than the rears because the body is already so wide on the back. The car has some very strong and muscular hood and fender lines that make for an aggressive look. Coupled with the new Volkswagen “face”, including black shinny shield, red stripe (very much a throwback to the early GTI) and honeycomb trimmed grilles, you can see where the design of the car was headed. It all makes sense once you observe the final product.
More to come.
Published under: Miscellaneous
