Test drive today
Discussion
After a couple of visits to the dealership I finally got round to a test drive this morning. An hour or so over the moorland routes of West Yorkshire out Saddleworth way in the “standard” model with a few extras.
I can honestly say I could find no fault in any element of the drive, in auto, manual, sport manual the gearbox was wonderful. Sport manual on those roads was perfect, the car had the optional sports exhaust which made just the right noises at the right volume, enough to make its presence known but not knob head loud.
The car is universally praised for its lightness and the way it cuts down the road. This was very evident over some of the choppy surfaces, the car covered ground effortlessly.
The steering was probably the biggest surprise , manouvering was easy with the rack ratio. On the move it was well balanced with plenty of feel. Through the bends a lovely turn in, the car seemed to thrive on double apex bends where extra turning input was needed it responded enthusiastically . Undulations and surface defects through bends never put the car off the line. As we know the car has an open diff and in all honesty I’m not sure an LSD would add to the experience. The car pulled hard out of any bend with no scrabbling for grip.
You find the car is accomplished at tackling almost any route at the National speed limit and above, just glancing occasionally at the speedo often showed speeds beginning with 8 or 9 on the route we covered.
In the cabin the ride felt almost refined, all the controls were to hand. I never at any time found myself wishing I had 3 pedals. My hour spent in the bucket seat was a real pleasure. I suppose the lower seat position might be worth a try but not something I would rush to do.
I have a Lotus Elise SC and a GTi TCR DSG and in honesty the Alpine is probably a good mix of both. It isn’t as raw and madly urgent as the Elise can be but does share some qualities along with some of the concessions to comfort of the VW.
I found the Alpine cabin totally comfortable, probably cosy is a good word but not cramped. Visibility out of the car very similar to the Elise but improved by the addition of park sensors and rear camera.
All in all the drive was everything the mass of positive road test reviews purport it to be. The proof of the pudding of these cars is definitely in the driving experience though.
I can honestly say I could find no fault in any element of the drive, in auto, manual, sport manual the gearbox was wonderful. Sport manual on those roads was perfect, the car had the optional sports exhaust which made just the right noises at the right volume, enough to make its presence known but not knob head loud.
The car is universally praised for its lightness and the way it cuts down the road. This was very evident over some of the choppy surfaces, the car covered ground effortlessly.
The steering was probably the biggest surprise , manouvering was easy with the rack ratio. On the move it was well balanced with plenty of feel. Through the bends a lovely turn in, the car seemed to thrive on double apex bends where extra turning input was needed it responded enthusiastically . Undulations and surface defects through bends never put the car off the line. As we know the car has an open diff and in all honesty I’m not sure an LSD would add to the experience. The car pulled hard out of any bend with no scrabbling for grip.
You find the car is accomplished at tackling almost any route at the National speed limit and above, just glancing occasionally at the speedo often showed speeds beginning with 8 or 9 on the route we covered.
In the cabin the ride felt almost refined, all the controls were to hand. I never at any time found myself wishing I had 3 pedals. My hour spent in the bucket seat was a real pleasure. I suppose the lower seat position might be worth a try but not something I would rush to do.
I have a Lotus Elise SC and a GTi TCR DSG and in honesty the Alpine is probably a good mix of both. It isn’t as raw and madly urgent as the Elise can be but does share some qualities along with some of the concessions to comfort of the VW.
I found the Alpine cabin totally comfortable, probably cosy is a good word but not cramped. Visibility out of the car very similar to the Elise but improved by the addition of park sensors and rear camera.
All in all the drive was everything the mass of positive road test reviews purport it to be. The proof of the pudding of these cars is definitely in the driving experience though.
aea730 said:
Whaleblue said:
Nice test drive write-up. Congrats again. I assume you’re ordering a base model. Which wheels did the demo have?
It had the seracs but I would want the 18” Fuchs Obviously it’s all swings and roundabouts.
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