Which Car Do You Recommend? My ideal car would be a wagon, manual trans, and diesel for 15k.
Car question from an Iguida.com reader.
Gentlemen:
I enjoy your website! It's very well done.
Any chance you may be checking on the new Golf tdi, or Suburu Impreza, in the near future? Is there any possibility of another company (besides VW) bringing a small diesel engine into the U.S. in the near future?
I seem to recall reading, somewhere, that VW replaced their wiring harness supplier with the same supplier that Toyota uses. If this is true, might it improve VW's reliability?
I am considering the following cars:
2010 Mazda3
2010 VW Golf TDI
2009 Hyundai Elantra Touring
2009 Subaru Impreza Wagon
2009 Honda Civic
My ideal car would be a wagon, manual trans, and diesel for 15k. Obviously, anything I choose is a compromise (why can't Honda bring it's civic hatchback diesel?...I'd buy tommorrow). Any suggestions as to which might be best for me? I'm looking to stay sub $20k and drive 10-15k per year.
Iguida.com Answer
Thanks for your interest in Iguida.com. We’re happy you find it useful.
In answer to your questions:
We did review the 2009 Volkswagen Jetta TDI, which is basically the sedan/wagon version of the Golf. We may have a Subaru Impreza review slated for the Giametta’s Driveway section of our site. Watch for it.
I couldn’t turn up any information on a common supplier for VW and Toyota wiring harnesses. But note that VW has responded to reliability issues with the “Carefree Maintenance Program.” It provides free maintenance parts and service for 3 years/36,000 miles on all new 2009 vehicles. This includes free oil changes and tire rotation at 10,000, 20,000, and 30,000 mile service intervals. Not a bad deal, though the introduction of the program coincided with VW shortening its basic bumper-to-bumper from 4/50,000 to 3/36,000. The powetrain warranty remains at 5/60,000.
The five cars you mention are all fine choices, and it’s great to see you’re oriented toward efficient hatchback/wagon body styles. Of the cars you mentioned, the Civic is the best all-around long-term value. The Impreza is a fine design that comes standard with all-wheel drive. I find the new Mazda3 over-styled and underdeveloped for a nearly all-new model. The Golf TDI is a wonderful driving machine with fantastic mileage, but VW reliability still isn’t quite up to the Asians’. The Elantra Touring is a gem and one of my favorite new compact cars.
Of those, the VW Golf/Jetta TDI comes closest to your manual-transmission/diesel ideal. VW’s are the only small diesel cars now available in the U.S., though they’re apparently in short supply. Honda has apparently tabled its plans for a diesel four-cylinder in the Accord and CR-V, but may revive them if gas prices spike, the economy recovers, and if federal fuel-economy standards mean diesels are needed to meet fleet mileage requirements.