SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.
*To read one of our road tests, just select from the menu on the left.
*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.


Mini test: We get to know the 2011 VW Passat 1.8 TSi m/t a little better

Pics by author

Quiet, refined and well equipped

The engine: It’s basically the same 1800 cc, TSI version of the EA888, DOHC, 16-valve motor with VVT and Audi’s patented ‘valvelift’ technology that proved very popular with buyers of the previous range. Some work has been done to reduce fuel consumption from the old car’s claimed 7,6 l/100 to 6,9 l/100 km despite an increase of about 128 kg in overall mass. Gearbox on the test car was a six-speed manual.

The body: This new Passat takes on a fresh appearance, inside and out, with every panel and glass surface apart from the roof being new. It’s the same height and width as before, but four mm longer, not that any but the most dedicated fan would notice.

VW says it’s the quietest and most refined version yet.  Thicker glass is fitted to the side windows while the windscreen features a thin plastic film sandwiched between two layers of the glass to help reduce noise transmission.  The front bulkhead, wheel arches and dashboard incorporate increased sound deadening material to keep the interior even quieter than previously.

Six airbags, ABS, ESP and WOKS (whiplash-optimised head restraints) are standard. We won’t make any oriental cooking jokes about the woks, will we? Thank you. An automatic fatigue detection system monitors driver inputs and emits audible and visual warnings when fatigue is detected.

Our test car was fitted with R61 740-worth of accessories including a foldaway tow bar, parking assistance with rear view camera, fog lights in front, satnav and leather seats. Not everyone would need all these toys, but it’s nice to know what’s available. Other options include keyless entry, bi-xenon headlights, an electric rear sunblind, a sunroof and different alloy wheels.

The experience: The car goes well, doing the zero to 100 dash in 8,5 seconds and topping out at 220 km/h. Its steering is nicely weighted with good feel and feedback. Being turbocharged, throttle response in almost any gear and from almost any speed is instantaneous and satisfying. Handling, considering that it’s a fairly big family car, is reassuringly competent.

The boot is big and square with 565 litres of usable space. Loading height is at mid-thigh with a sill depth of about 150 mm. Both rear seatbacks can be folded down by means of release catches in the boot, and the load-through hatch can be accessed from there as well. The optional tow hitch is released via a button in the boot but needs to be pushed back manually. The spare is a full-sized alloy item.

Rear seat accommodation rates 8 out of 10 for headroom, 9 for foot space and a full 10 for knee room. Three belts and three head restraints look after passengers’ safety while a 230-volt, 150-Watt Euro socket is there to recharge electronic equipment. A central armrest, two cup holders, a pair of reading lights, air vent repeaters and a fair amount of storage space looks after their comfort. Entry and exit is easy.

In front, both chairs are heated and ventilated, adjust for height, reach, recline and lumbar support and are well shaped and supportive. Most controls are manual, but the driver’s seat has electrically operated recline and lumbar functions.  Control pedals are well spaced for big feet while the left footrest is comfortably placed. Storage space, lighting and controls are typically VW and up to the standard expected of a car in this segment.

The Passat is being offered at “teaser” prices to lure buyers of the big three entry-level luxury sedans over to the VW camp. With its undeniable build quality, comfort and spaciousness, it deserves to succeed.

The numbers
Basic price: R294 000
Engine: 1798 cc, four-cylinder, turbopetrol
Power: 118 kW at 5000 – 6200 rpm
Torque: 250 Nm at 2500 – 4200 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 8,5 seconds
Maximum speed: 220 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 7,6 l/100 km
Tank: 70 litres
Warranty: 3 years/120 000 km
VW Automotion plan: 5 years/100 000 km
Service intervals: 15 000 km

To see the launch report and more detail, click here

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

My articles appear every Wednesday in the motoring pages of The Witness, South Africa's oldest continuously running newspaper, and occasionally on Saturdays in Weekend Witness as well. I drive eight to ten vehicles most months of the year (press cars are withdrawn over the festive season - wonder why?) so not everything gets published in the paper. Those that are, get a tagline but the rest is virgin, unpublished and unedited by the political-correctness police. Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so I do actually exist.

I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax.
So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!

Comments?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you thoroughly disagree with what I say? That's your privilege, because if everybody agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place. All I ask is that you remain calm, so please blow off a little steam before venting too vigorously.