VW Scirocco Rocks With A Simple, Understated Style
If there was a prize for an understated high performance car, Volkswagen鈥檚 Scirocco(with android 2 din car stereo) would be up there on the podium. If there was a prize for an understated high performance car, Volkswagen鈥檚 Scirocco(with android 2 din car stereo) would be up there on the podium. It carries no flashy spoilers or distinctive body stripes to catch your attention. Instead it relies on stunning timeless lines with its classic wedge shaped front, sharply angled roof and distinctive wide rear end. Even the blisteringly quick flagship R model doesn鈥檛 shout about its prowess. There鈥檚 just a simple R on the grille. Admittedly this version has sporting side skirts and deep air scoops beneath the bumper but nothing really over the top. And in some ways that鈥檚 part of its attraction. No one unfamiliar with the model would suspect just how well this car can perform. This is a coupe crossed with a hot rod, and driving it you have to keep a constant watch on the speedometer or its points not prizes you will be getting. The Scirocco R is powered by a 280bhp, 2.0-litre engine but it鈥檚 a power plant which feels much, much bigger.
Mated to a DSG gearbox it propels the car to 62 miles per hour in just 5.5 seconds before reaching a top speed of 155 miles per hour. This is not a hot hatch - it鈥檚 a molten lava one. And the nice thing is all that power is delivered so smoothly as the six-speed auto box zips seamlessly from one to six. And while the exterior of the car doesn鈥檛 shout about the performance it can deliver the twin exhaust pies do, roaring out a note that sends a tingle down your spine. The Scirocco was born in 1974 and the latest is the fourth incarnation of a car which has always been much loved by British drivers. In fact in the UK we buy more Sciroccos than any other country in the world except China. The latest version, which is built in Portugal, has a more refined and modern shape with new headlights and tail lights as well as new look bumpers with 鈥渂lades鈥?on the outer sections like the VW Golf GTI. If installing an Android car DVD in your car, that would be great!
When you鈥檙e introducing something that is a top of the line model, make sure you incorporate these extra musical instruments and make it madly vocal and then charge the customer for an arm and a leg. A wonderful recipe to 'untung sakan' or profit tremendously. Anyway what matters most can be found under the bonnet. VW has opted for the more familiar and bulletproof Mk5 FSI 2.0 engine as donor coupled with uprated blocks, pistons, conrods, camshafts, injectors, intercoolers and K04 turbo. The end result is a CDL engine rated at 255bhp and 350nm harnessed by a 6-speed DSG with Gen4 Haldex system. Strapped the car for baseline dyno at GT Auto Sunway, my 6R registers a healthy 227 whp and 328 nm. Sounds good on paper but all these have significantly contributed to the bottom line of 1,521 kg. To make things rather interesting, I鈥檝e overlaid dyno charts of both Mk6 R and my ex Polo GTI.
As you can see below there鈥檚 nothing much between them but the Polo has definite edge when it comes to weight at 1,195 kg. But unlike the Polo GTI, the Golf 6R comes with a very much wider footprint. It carries over the old Mk5 floorpan with MacPherson strut for front, Ford Focus-like control blade links for the rear. Torque bias to all wheels is automatically distributed via Haldex controller & pumps. Another welcoming feature is Adaptive Chassis Control (ACC) providing three choices of different level of damping stiffness, steering and throttle responses. And to shave speed from what is already a bloated hot hatch, VW fitted single pot 345mm brakes for front and single pot 310mm rear. That鈥檚 about the appearance and specs, now I want to move onto the way it moves on the road. I want to start with the veggies. The starter 鈥榞rinding鈥?noise in my view is a reminiscence of the 90s hot Hondas.
Iwhen ignited, the Golf 6R feels distinctively sweet and an appetizing treat to unsynthesized Sounductor-free deep but still politically correct sounding exhaust note. Yes there鈥檚 a bit of drone at low speed but as you build up the revs, it sobers down sedately as timid as the GTI. 6R doesn鈥檛 like to get stuck in traffic much. I purposely tendered WB 8487 E registration plate for the car that carries the meaning of Blue Baby Elephant and I don鈥檛 mean it lightly, not the slightest. It is a heavy car for a hot hatch and together with obvious K04 turbo operating range, you can easily get tired driving this thing trying to maneuver around the city below 2,500 rpm. On stock form at least, the power delivery and throttle response feels absolute lethargic. When you do get stuck in traffic, its thirst for fuel can go up as high as 13 litres/100kms. And If I can go on further, VW did a mediocre job in setting up the DSG.
