Couldn't agree more, Steve; except that new S4 is not as good either as it's
got the worst mileage in its category. Who wants a thirsty 344PS V8 if they
could have made a 3.2 biturbo that would make some more power (in the region
of 370PS) and much better torque when chipped?
>
> I find it plain stupid. VW has spent so much time over the past 2 years
trying
> to come up with Audi/BMW/MB competitors that it's lost sight of building
models
> which are truly competitive in VW's normal areas. The Passat loses sorely
to
> the current competition in most areas as do most of the other VW models.
> They've fitted the New Beetle TDi and 1.8T cabrio with the 6-speed DSG but
> they've kept the Jetta, Golf and Passat TDi and 1.8T models stuck with the
> not-anywhere-near-as-good 5-speed Tiptronic. And what about the Audi
models?
> The G35 and Acura TL have got the A4 beaten hands down on the
price
erformance
> ratio, the 3-series and IS300 are both better driver's cars and VW's W8
Passat
> is equivalent to or better than the A4 3.0 in most every way for about the
same
> money. And does anyone really believe the A6 will be able to match the new
> 5-series? The A8 may very well be the best luxury sedan in the world of
it's
> size, type and price, but it pales in comparison to the 7-series where
driving
> dynamics are concerned and it's thousands more than the Jaguar XJR which
is a
> much better performer and not much smaller. The S4 and RS6 are the only
> stand-out models they make and the RS6 is really only marginally better
than
> the E55 - but it's a lot more money. The Toureag may be as good as the BMW
X5
> and MB ML500 in V8 trim, but it's nearly as much money (it actually goes
over
> $50k fully loaded) and doesn't carry the prestige. The 3.2 powered model
is
> underpowered and over priced and if memory serves me, is fewer than $1,000
USD
> less expensive than the more powerful and prestigious Cayenne V6. I own a
2002
> VW that I like quite a bit, but I can all but guarantee that it's the last
VAG
> product I'll ever buy. There are simply to many other better products on
the
> market for the same money. The S4 is the only exception to this IMO.