Car conundrum

Snap

dunno what the fuss is about. When I was nipper, our family of five would go on hols from the n west to cornwall in a ford escort Mkll 1.1. all this palaver about space and convenience!! Eesh, you don't know you're born etc etc.....

What about those massive BMW GTs based on the 7 series platform, that were discontinued? They are huge.

Jimbro66

strtdv said:

The Ateca has the same platform as the Karoq and the T-roc (MQB A1), but not the Tiguan, Kodiaq and Tarraco which use the larger MQB A2.

The Tiguan is an unusual one because it's smaller than the Kodiaq and Tarraco but uses the same platform, which weirdly the bigger Tiguan Allspace uses as well.

The thing that makes the biggest difference to the Touareg platform over the Kodiaq/Tarraco platform (apart from being a bit wider) is that the engine orientation is longitudinal in the Touareg rather than transverse, which lends itself to having a proper 4WD system with locking differentials rather than a front biased Haldex system which is fitted to the cars with transverse engines.

Basically if you just want a nice spacious car with a high driving position you're better off saving some money and going for a Tiguan or similar, but if you're doing serious off-roading or need the towing power of a 6 cylinder engine then it's worth looking at a Touareg.

Hey, that’s all interesting info @strtdv. Are you in the trade or simply a keen enthusiast?

The Tiguan looks outwardly very much like the Ateca and the interior of the Tiguan I recently peeped in was virtually identical to my Ateca’s interior (a Tsi Xcellence) so, although I knew the rear suspension of the two cars is different I didn’t realise the platform is too.

Apologies to OP for slight thread derailment.

strtdv

@Jimbro66 ;Just an enthusiast.

I'm actually looking at an Ateca TSi Xcellence tomorrow.
Was yours the 1.4?

My wife has driven nothing but VW Golfs for over a decade (between the two of us we've owned 4 of them!).
Her current one is a lovely GTD but a combination of things mean it doesn't really meet our needs anymore. She's gone from doing 12000+ miles a year to doing less than half that, so we're getting into issues with the car constantly trying to run DPF regeneration cycles, which in turn is making it use oil. As well as that, the boot is about 2 inches narrower than our baby stroller.

The Ateca gains about 160 litres of boot space over the Golf so will fit all the kids stuff, and when you're putting a child in a booster seat the extra headroom makes life easier.

Ideally we'd get a Tiguan but we're also planning a house purchase and possibly a renovation and extension, so spending £30k+ on a Tiguan when £17k will get a low mileage used Ateca doesn't really make sense at the moment.

Jimbro66

@strtdv I picked up the Ateca Xcellence at two years old and 15k miles in great condition for about £18k. Yes, it is the 1.4 turbo which performs surprisingly well for the engine size - as long as the revs are kept up. Coming from diesels I initially missed the low revs torque but soon adjusted to it. It has much sharper handling than the Qashqai I test drove. The ride can be a little harsh* but not uncomfortably so (unlike the FR SEATs). Realistically it returns 40-42mpg at most but less around town. I've owned it for two years now and very happy with it.

See what you think tomorrow.

* A Tiguan would give a more compliant ride but at a premium.

meltedbuzzbox

Given the price of the toureg I would seriously look at the alternatives. 
I haven't been in one for a few years but I don't recall them being massively spacious and they are a bit meh to drive.
Not sure about it being the same platform as a Q7, maybe the Q5 (which again isn't all that big on the inside)
Ymmv and all that

strtdv

Sorry for the thread hijack, but @Jimbro66 we went for a test drive this morning and bought the Ateca.

It feels pretty much the same to drive as a Golf, which is very much a good thing. There's a hint more body roll in the corners from the higher centre of gravity, but nothing serious, and it's actually got better cabin refinement than the Golf.
The 1.4 TSI pulls well, is refined and was economical too on the test drive (it seems to have cylinder deactivation which I hadn't realised). I got over 40mpg without trying at all.
The infotainment system is as quick to react as the new VW ones, and comes with Android auto and wireless phone charging.

I have to say the dealer was good too, car was on their system priced £200 less than it was advertised, so they took that off the price immediately, and I got £750 more than expected for the trade-in, and Autoglym lifeshine thrown in too. Not too much of a hard sell on the extras and I did actually pay to extend the factory warranty by a year as I was £950 better off than expected.
All in all very happy, and would go back to them.

Jimbro66

@strtdv yes, the engine runs on two cylinders, eco mode, when cruising. Glad you liked it enough to buy. I've been very happy with mine. Likewise I got paint protection included and also a skinny spare wheel which is a very worthwhile addition IMO.