Who's rockin' the Scirocco?
Posted by Tom Ford at 3:07PM on Thursday 06 March, 2008 12 Comments
Just been taking a good hard look at VW's new Scirocco and I'm struggling a bit. So I'm asking for some TG.com help in making up my mind.
Right, here goes: I confess I've been a Sciroccophile in the past (GTX or Storm from the Mk IIs perhaps?) and always had an odd liking for the Corrado and its pop-up rear-spoiler - these things matter when you're 12. So I really want to like this car.
The idea of a pretty vehicle with something more reasonable underneath - not boring, just normal - appeals to me immensely.
The trouble is that while from some angles this car looks great, from others it just looks as confused as I feel. The dead-front, with those slightly slitty eyes (nearly the modifier's 'Bad Boy' bonnet remixed) and bonnet-mounted badge looks great. Very concept, nicely aggressive. More so than the TT which, at late teens/early 20s, it looks like the Scirocco is pitched at.
The interior really does it for me: clean, tidy, unfussy, slightly baggy-looking leather. But at the back and from the side, I'm not sure. Maybe because it's a bit bland. A bit magnolia walls and sand-coloured carpets. A bit white-wine spritzer.
There are bits of A3. Bits of Volvo C30. Not enough spunk carried through to the back. I'm even a little disappointed that it still has a pair of round tailpipes sprouting from the left-hand side of the rump - I wanted something less... less... shared.
I know it's a Golf underneath. I know that's what makes it appeal to me in the first place. But why didn't VW go the whole hog and have something totally mental? Is this a case of not quite enough, or am I just getting picky?
Take a look at an original Giugiaro Scirocco before you tell me it can't be done...
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12 Comments for "Who's rockin' the Scirocco?"
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I don't like it. A coupe with a hatchback boot? It's just a glorified Golf!
I think the VW Group need to review their internal mail systems. It seems as though the drawings were sent to VW when they clearly should have gone to SEAT.
When car manufacturers try to resurrect much-loved models from the past, the new versions must have at least some design cues from the original car. BMW managed it with the 'new' Mini, Fiat with the 500, even VW themselves managed it with the Beetle. But, with this car, I can't see one single design element carried over from the the original '70s Scirocco.
I'll admit, I do like the front end, but, from the door mirrors back, it's all SEAT. At the very least it should have been a fastback. But no, for some reason they seem to think that there's still room in the market for another bland, boring hatchback.
If they insist on naming it after a famous wind, then may I suggest "The Volkswagen Bottom Cough" or "The VW Parrrp!"
The new Scirocco is really quite attractive. Sure, the back end isn't as bowl-you-over beautiful as the front, but it seems pretty enough to keep up. It may not be a carbon-copy of the old version, but it still has a bit of that Giugiaro charm in the vein of their exquisite custom Mustang.
I agree. The concept looked great. I'm not sure it would be my car of choice at the price, but one look at the concept, and I thought I wanted one. Then this arrives and my reaction was one of 'Oh'.
Just that, just underwhelmed really. I think I'll wait 'till Mitsubishi do a 2-door EvoX instead.
I liked the front of VW's 'Iroc' study a lot better, but I could live with what the made of it. What really disappoints me is that they put a bog-standard Golf dashboard inside... That dashboard is as functional, sensible and utterly boring as any car that VW build... except for the Scirocco. Pity.
I find myself feeling that VW could have done more to give the new Scirocco more 'Wow' factor, but I still think what they have done is very easy on the eye.
I like the rear and side profile although I am still unsure about the front. Something aggressive would have been more in keeping with the car's character but instead it has a strange headlamp slit that doesn't say anything.
The original Scirocco was a thing of beauty and not at all like its donor vehicle, which as Tom says was part of its attraction. Overall I think the new car looks a bit too much like a squashed Golf but that wouldn't stop me buying one provided it gets a suitable range topping engine and maybe 4wd.
I might not be the wisest of people but i think it looks too much like an Astra concept with a body kit. The interior as you say is nice and it doesn't looks like it will fall apart after a week or so, but if you are going to get it in white I'm sure it will be a handful to keep clean. But it will keep going for a long time and should keep it's value so you wont regret having it.
This car is boring....maybe not quite as boring as the Golf, but it fails to evoke any emotional response from me. And isn't that the point of a car like this?
It's based on Golf mechanicals and doesn't really look any cooler, so why bother? VW's styling and quality control has been massively disappointing lately, so instead of introducing new models, they really need to focus on the basics. I'll be sticking with my MINI for now.
True they made a hatchback out of it. But the car is quite aggressive and I think it pulls it off. I would much prefer it over a Golf.
I wish they could have carried over a bit more of the concept interior instead of carrying it straight out of the EOS. The rear is not my favorite view but at least it's got flaired fenders. True, it's not a car done by an Italian designer but it's certainly nicer then any smaller VW in recent history.
As a two-time Scirocco owner, I have to say I quite like it in its own right, and I wouldn't say no to one, but as is the general consensus here... it ain't a 'rocco.
For a start, the spoiler is at the TOP of the window, and it's not made out of thick black rubber. Doh!
If you tell me this is the next generation Golf, I'll be excited. But a Scirocco, come on! The original one has character in the design - a sense of individuality and uniqueness that no car at that time can compare (at least at that price range).
This new Scirocco? It is a Golf with new sheet metal and an EOS interior only. The front looks great, but I think this soulless marketing product doesn't deserve the Scirocco name. I think it should just be named as the GTI Variant.
Why didn't they just paint it beige and be done with it?
Duller than a week on a desert island with John Major. NEXT!