MKI to MKVII

[Yusee]

A hefty DSG to completely wreck the experience with its dim witted TCU.
Nah.
Those ‘boxes belong in big heavy stuff.

Exactly. DSG is for Seat Alhambras.

The thread is a lament at the demise of the small, light, agile, engaging motor car.

Even the makers of the mini and the fiat 500 can’t be bothered anymore- they’re making the tanks that most people want. Shame.

[Adam T7]

One of my daughters teachers has just gone from a Mercedes CLK to a huge Landrover discovery.

It is quite entertaining watching her try to manouver it around the school car park (which is quite small)

Totally unnecessary IMO, it seems to me that larger SUV's are nothing more than a status symbol for some. They cannot be for driving pleasure as they are just too big and heavy.

I've seen the hapless owners trying to move them round tight car parks.

Encountered this wonderful demonstration of the behaviour I've come to expect of these types of vehicles only this last weekend:



Comes as no surprise that a total of 3 people alighted both vehicles.

They were so big that they couldn't turn into the bays and if they could, they would have blocked half of one of the entry/exit lanes.

Hey, look at me - I've got 4WD and I can park on the grass.

In the interest of balance, I owned 2 Discoveries for 14 years in total. Off road (not often) and in snow and bad weather (often) they were simply superb. Taking kids stuff to Uni, taking dog in his cage, moving fridges and assorted furniture, not a problem.
Sold the last D4 in 2018 and got the GTI as needed to do none of the above any more and they are seriously expensive to maintain and run.
The image is also a bit sh*t.
Large EV’s are a necessity if they need anything resembling a decent range as the batteries are a bit large and heavy😂

[Exonian]

A hefty DSG to completely wreck the experience with its dim witted TCU.
Nah.
Those ‘boxes belong in big heavy stuff.

I haven't driven one, but the box is available on other model Polos, so presumably it must work okay?

The box works fine for what it’s designed for but unless in (jerky, unpredictable in anything other than flat out driving ) “sport mode” it changes up a gear very early in normal give and take driving, which works against the ethos of the car. The 115PS engine itself I’m very familiar with and it needs to be revved quite a bit higher than the 2.0 motors to get the turbo on boost.
It’s not the fault of the gearbox designers, it’s a legislation thing (emissions).
The 1.0 GTI engine is a peppy thing that works perfectly with a manual box in the lightweight up! to give it its character, but I really think a DSG would dumb it all down too much unless you’re really ‘on it’.

A 1.0 TSI DSG Polo is a different beast and the type of people who would buy one aren’t really the same clientele as an up! GTI.

Personal opinion mind you and as ever I’d love to be proven wrong.

A 115bhp E-up! with GTI interior would float my boat!

[Yusee]

Of course whilst we all fondly remember the smaller lighter cars of yesteryear, I don't think I'd like to have a major accident in one today. Saw this over on Facebook recently. Car rolled then hit the trees and amazingly even for a "mini" the driver (whilst battered and very sore), walked away from this accident. Not sure we could say the same if he was in an 80's Nova, Fiesta, Escort etc ?

I’d like to argue that modern cars encourage risky driving by unskilled drivers, but I think the graph speaks for itself.

[SRGTD]

Of course whilst we all fondly remember the smaller lighter cars of yesteryear, I don't think I'd like to have a major accident in one today. Saw this over on Facebook recently. Car rolled then hit the trees and amazingly even for a "mini" the driver (whilst battered and very sore), walked away from this accident. Not sure we could say the same if he was in an 80's Nova, Fiesta, Escort etc ?

I’d like to argue that modern cars encourage risky driving by unskilled drivers, but I think the graph speaks for itself.

It’d also be interesting to see a graph or data showing the ratio of deaths to the total number of vehicles on the road. IMHO would be quite a powerful statistic in illustrating how much vehicle safety has improved over the years.

[Yusee]

Yes exactly. Busier roads, more cars- yet far fewer deaths

[Adam T7]

Speaking as someone who was a gnats dick away from killing himself in a 1972 Triumph 1500 TC as a stupid 19 year old back in 1983 I concur.
I flattened the steering wheel with my head and the clutch / break peddles smashed my legs. I would have walked away from that in an airbag / restraint system / crumple zone equipped modern car.

[AGB]

A hefty DSG to completely wreck the experience with its dim witted TCU.
Nah.
Those ‘boxes belong in big heavy stuff.

The fun is in the lightness and engagement.

[AGB]

Of course whilst we all fondly remember the smaller lighter cars of yesteryear, I don't think I'd like to have a major accident in one today. Saw this over on Facebook recently. Car rolled then hit the trees and amazingly even for a "mini" the driver (whilst battered and very sore), walked away from this accident. Not sure we could say the same if he was in an 80's Nova, Fiesta, Escort etc ?

I don't think I'd like to have a major accident in anything at all to be honest! 

Cars are safer than they've ever been and accidents do look more dramatic because of the physics of crumple zones but I think a reminder of one's own mortality might help with the invincibility complex that some idiots on the road seem to have when they're behind the wheel. You certainly felt more at one with what was going on in older cars but they didn't have as much power either.

I suspect we'll see some spectacular accidents with electric as you don't have the same interaction and indicators of speed and when the market opens up and the true idiots arrive.

It is possible to make smaller cars with modern safety and still achieve high NCAP figures but sadly, the desire for these type of cars doesn't fit prevailing tastes, manufacturer design aesthetics or production efficiency.

[Sootchucker]

That's a very important point AGB, the quietness and comfort of modern cars with all it's safety systems, does lead to a disconnect with speed at which you are travelling. Going back just 22 years, I remember when my wife got her first Renault Clio, it had airbags etc, but when you went on the motorway, you knew when you were doing 70mph, as not only did the road and wind noise and the engine complaining it was going too fast tell you, when you were overtaken by a 38 tonne HGV, you knew about it as the side draft use to blow the car all over the road.

Fast forward to today and my wife's current Polo Blue GT (which itself is nearly 7 years old), is a completely different beast and travelling at 70mph seems like you were doing 50mph in the Clio, and it's much more planted to the road. It's really easy to speed in modern cars if you are not paying attention. I mean the little Polo is capable of over 130mph - in a Polo (and it's not even the GTI) !