Off Topic UP experience was a let down

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Off Topic UP experience was a let down

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After my comments on the Start Stop thread about the 3-cylinder engine in the VW being a ‘wet rag’ curiosity get the better of me and I went out for a test drive in an UP. Picked a garage that was beside where the OH got her MiTo with ‘open roads’ so I wasn’t just driving 'around the block'.

To get a drive I had to produce a copy of my driver’s licence. Test drive was duly dated and timed :eek: with a photocopy of the licence attached to the application form with my details on it. Salesman let me off on a solo drive. It was a white one with the 75PS engine with no frills and no bluemotion.

Felt very spacious and high up – bit like a 500 but with a bit more width. Felt a bit tinny – not really like a Fiat 500. Engine had good low down pull but you have to concentrate a bit on the ‘take off’ which was either ‘all or nothing’. Drivetrain seemed a bit harsh with a grating noise. Gathered speed quite quickly and headed for the motorway. Speed climbed to 120km and held a smart cruising speed. Once it settled, the noise didn’t seem to go away with a constant harshness all round. Is this what’s we’re going to end up with – in buzz boxes? :(

Took the exit off the Motorway and swung back onto the empty back roads. Ride is good and handles the bumps and the potholes quite well (y) – better in fact than the 500. Noticed the little rev counter and conscious of the 162 Km on the clock didn’t stay too long up in the revs which climbed at a respectable pace to 4K revs and then seemed to ‘slow down’. Bobs along with a good turn of speed but it feels like you sitting on top of a Bosch washing machine that’s getting up to the 1000 revs per minute with worn bearings.

Car feels light and the power to weight ratio would be good compared to a 500 1.2 but it’s soulless. I reckon in the hands of a spirited driver the harshness of the engine would soon become unbearable with ‘wear and tear’. Went past a VW Golf on the dual carriageway approaching the Dealership and it felt as big as it with a higher sitting position. (y) All round the car feels thin and questionable quality. You hope that the airbags galore will ‘save the day’. It doesn’t feel like a small car but what happens if I put a bit of weight in these cars with some passengers & luggage. Does that explain the solo drive ?

Back at the VW garage, handed the key back. On the ‘little follow up chat’ that I had with the Salesman he knew less about the car than any Fiat salesman that I’ve ever met and there was no passion. Stepped into PCP (for lower monthly payments) & HP and the offer of a 3.9% APR will expire at the end of June. My eyes glaze over when it comes to Finance and guaranteed residual values :eek: but at €11,745 including delivery charge for Irish prices it’s not the ‘end of the earth’. No Bluemotion model will be sold here and we’re not importing the 60PS model. If you want Bluetooth you can buy ‘Maps& More’ for €370. After requesting to see one I was presented with a picture of one in a brochure. It looked a lot like a Tom Tom 2 Live but I would be sceptic on the sound quality for a handsfree since it wasn’t clear where the sound came from. White & Red are free he thinks with €533 for either Metallic (and Pearlescent). 2 year warranty (3 in the UK ?) with a further 2 years on a 'Goodwill sheet'.(n)

On the way home in the T-jet 153bhp with boost control and half the economy of a hyper miler ‘VW Up’, the traffic slowed down behind a yellow classic 500. It eventually ‘found it’s feet’ and got up a bit of pace.When I overtook it at 100km with it looking a bit bow legged it was possibly maxed out at 80km. :cool: Now that looked like a bit more fun but whenever happens don’t ask it to stop.

Personally for me ‘when the time comes’ it will have to be an ugly Nissan Leaf or hopefully Fiat will release an Electric 500 like promised in the US for the end of 2012. ‘Range anxiety’ can be dealt with by a friendly house with a 30 minute ‘plug in’. At least it will be a more satisfying experience than this eco friendly 3 cylinder affair. :)
 

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I went and had a look at one and did not even bother asking to drive it, it looks like a cheap and nasty poverymobil. I did buy a Lupo when they were new for an ex girlfriend and that was a well put together car that had quality components but the up was just nasty.
 
We too had a quick look at the Up for the wife a couple of weeks ago, boring, no character inside or out, no style, absolutley no USP and as we'd already looked at the 500 the wife wasn't having any of it, didn't bother with a test drive either!
 
I think I mentioned on another thread that my Fiat dealer had said he had been very busy with people coming in to look at the 500 after they had tried an UP.

Apart from the spec being poor, most comments were that it was a disappointing drive.
 
the only one of these that is of any interest to me is the forthcoming Up GT, the lupo was a completely unforgettable car apart from the GTI version

i sat in one when i picked up my golf a few weeks back which was poverty spec, driving position felt like you sat in it rather than on it as you do in 500
 
After my comments on the Start Stop thread about the 3-cylinder engine in the VW being a ‘wet rag’ curiosity get the better of me and I went out for a test drive in an UP.

Great review. I'm planning to have a go myself soon, just for interest's sake & to see how the car stacks up when subjected to a bit of committed ecodriving.

If I could get my hands on a run-in one for long enough to put a couple of tankfuls of fuel through it, I think I'd be in a pretty good position to compare its eco credentials to my 1.2 (which probably has the best real world economy potential of the petrol 500s).

Any VW dealers out there fancy taking on the challenge?

I reckon in the hands of a spirited driver the harshness of the engine would soon become unbearable with ‘wear and tear’.

I can see absolutely no point whatsoever in a spirited driver buying a true ecocar (I'm not talking about the TA here - IMO that is a fiscally canny warm hatch).

They'll be continuously frustrated by its failure to respond to spirited inputs, the car won't like it & may well wear out prematurely, and, driven this way, it's probably not going to be that economical either.

Equally, there's no point in a dedicated ecodriver buying a fiscally canny warm hatch like the TA, since the car won't be comfortable being lugged up hills at the recommended ecodriving rpm & if you use a lower gear, economy will fall through the floor the minute the turbo even thinks about cutting in.

I've said it many times, but there's a lot to be said for buying a car that's a good match for your preferred driving style - and giving any potential contender a full & sufficient test drive to ensure it's properly fit for its intended use.
 
I think the UP is more budget than the Fiat 500 and considerably cheaper. I think pricewise the Polo is close to the Fiat 500, but they are much different cars. It seems VW does not have an answer to the Fiat 500.
 
UP is trying too hard to be like 500 inside, it's a letdown as the clean lines and the perfect knobs laid out in true German style just don't work on something this small. Mini is better but 500 design is rustic with loads of charm.
 
I'm reserving judgment until I've driven one, but I'll just add the paintwork on the showroom car I saw looked like it had been prepared with an angle grinder (n) - I've got fewer swirls on my 2yr old 500.

The dealer experience was in a different class altogether (y) - nice free coffee in decent cups & a 'soft' area to sit in comfort to drink it - and I'd already confessed I'd only gone in because it was raining & I was waiting for a lift. By contrast, my local FIAT franchise gives the salesfolk a few free tokens to put in the instant machine for 'selected' potential customers.

There's plenty of evidence of penny-pinching; a 2+1 FIAT-style warranty & £50 if you want a spare wheel being two that were immediately obvious.

Pricewise, I guess you're paying something for the VW name - the badge-engineered Seat Mii & Skoda Citigo look like being better value.
 
Pricewise, I guess you're paying something for the VW name - the badge-engineered Seat Mii & Skoda Citigo look like being better value.

'In gear' mentioned the 2 cars above in the 'same sentence' on a review of the Panda 1.2 giving the Panda the thumbs up. Had to do a 'double take' on some of the compliments paid to the VW Up being fun, high quality, etc. The Daily Telegraph did a review and stated that the Up was refined ! I'm beginning to wonder 'who is paying who'.:rolleyes:

In Top Gear this month Captain Slow has a conversation with a fictional 'Monty Python' on the 'Up verus the new Panda'. From the quick read that I had, I picked up that the Twin Air engine is too expensive in a Panda and that the 'other Twin Air' engine without the turbo is a 'good way off'. He did also mention that Fiat make great little cars & I ignored the last bit.

An economic car is not just about mpg. It's about cost of ownership. Time will tell if the UP has the reliability and 'engine life' when compared with a 500 1.2. What are the long term effects of not having a balance shaft for the missing cylinder ? IMHO the sacrifies that you have to make are too high for what would appear to be another 10 miles to gallon.

I'll await your feedback on the test drive.(y)
 
sFair report on the Up!

I started looking at changing my Hyundai i20 for a 'city' car and took a Seat Mii for a test drive. I found the ride and handling ok, interior space good and equipment ok on the mid range model SE 60. however I did feel it was underpowered but the 75 engine is only available on the sport model which had a firmer set up which I felt would compromise comfort.
I took a testdrive in the VW Up! 75, altogether a better car, comfort, handling, ride quality and much more wiling to go. However a 3 month wait for a factory built car led me to test driving the 500, which though not as good a ride or interior space up front (IMHO) just made me want one. Now I can't understand why I didn't get one years ago!

BTW the 'face' of the Up! is awful, Polo is a much better looking car IMHO.
 
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