2019 Volkswagen Eos Review
While there may be other retractable hardtop convertible models on the market, the Eos stands apart for being the only one to offer a full-width, power-tilt-and-slide, panoramic glass sunroof integrated in to its hardtop. The Eos provides an affordable alternative to four-place convertibles from European luxury automakers. Production on the Eos ends in November. The front bumper design incorporates a deep, restyled air dam with horizontal blades matching those of the grille. Mounted at the edges, halogen reflector-lens fog lamps have a corner-illuminating feature. In the 25 seconds it takes for the top to lower, the five elements stack neatly and elegantly on top of each other so as to take up minimal space inside the trunk. The mechanism itself is activated from the front seat by a press-and-hold lever beneath the center armrest. Thanks to the way the mechanism operates, the roof can be opened or closed in most garages.
Once the switch is pressed, the sunroof section slides backwards and the side windows are lowered. Almost simultaneously, the entire rear section of the roof, from the C-pillar up to the 鈥渋maginary鈥?B-pillar is lifted upwards. The sunroof then slides under the rear area of the roof. Now the hydraulic control system folds the entire roof cover deck lid, along with the lid of the trunk, backwards. Then the lateral roof spars of the windshield frame slide back as well. The sunroof and the rear part of the roof are completely lowered into the rear of the car, while the roof spars slide into separate cavities (covered by lids) near the rear side window. In total, the Eos鈥檚 roof is made up of 470 components, including an eight-cylinder electro-hydraulic pump located under the luggage compartment cover behind the spare wheel. A unique feature of the folding roof is its sliding glass sunroof that鈥檚 integrated into the car鈥檚 metal roof.
At 44 inches wide and 22 inches deep, it is far larger than a traditional sunroof. At the touch of a button it can be tilted and partly or fully opened. There鈥檚 also an integrated, manual sliding sunshade to help reduce sunlight glare. A key design element of the roof is that the section behind the sunroof is made of matching tinted glass, giving the visual impression that the Eos鈥檚 entire roof is made from glass. To help reduce wind-buffering when the top is lowered, the Eos comes with a removable, foldable wind-blocker that can be mounted behind the rear seats, plus a neat pop-up mesh wind deflector that deploys from the top of the windscreen. The Eos is equipped with a leather-wrapped multifunction steering wheel and shift knob, in addition to standard dual-zone Climatronic climate control system. The system allows driver and front-seat passenger to adjust their air temperatures individually and independently. The Climatronic system even takes into account the amount of sunlight coming into the cabin, and makes separate calculations to help compensate on both the driver and passenger sides.
From the sporty, side-bolstered front seats with standard 12-way power adjustment for the driver (eight-way manual adjustment for the front passenger), to the supportive individual rear seats, the Eos is exceptionally comfortable and accommodating. To help make it easy for passengers to climb in the back, the driver鈥檚 seat in the Eos has an electric easy-entry feature. Pressing the rocker switch allows the seat to power forward so passengers can step in, and then return to their original position. With the Eos鈥?top raised, the trunk offers a generous 10.5 cubic feet of storage space. With the roof fully-retracted, there is still a usable 6.6 cubic feet. For longer items, a lockable pass-through is integrated into the rear Eos seats. The Car-Net Security & Service also offers Family Guardian, a suite of features that help families. Features including speed alert, which notifies the owner of the vehicle when the pre-determined maximum speed limit is exceeded; and boundary alert, which lets you know when the vehicle has traveled outside of a pre-set virtual boundary. Diagnostics and maintenance information is also available through Car-Net.
A Vehicle Health Report allows Volkswagen customers to quickly check to see if their vehicle is in proper running order. When it鈥檚 time for scheduled service, Car-Net Security & Service not only notifies the customer, but provides a simple way to schedule a dealer visit. It can even identify the closest dealer in case you need a recommendation. Available later this year, the VW Car-Net app for Apple Watch will allow VW customers to control a host of features and functions available through the iPhone app and Customer Web Portal, directly from their wrist. Apple Watch wearers can keep an eye on their vehicle from afar, remotely locking and unlocking doors and viewing the status of doors, windows and sunroof (open or closed). Consumers will also be able to find a parked vehicle quickly, with a map of the current vehicle location, walking or driving directions to the vehicle, and the ability to honk the horn and flash the lights remotely. Drivers of gas Volkswagen vehicles will be able to check their fuel level directly from the Apple Watch.
