I went out for the day with my brother yesterday (Monday) and we had a bunch of test drives (Toyota Prius and Verso and Golf Plus and looked at the new Auris, Fiat 500, Opel Insignia and Honda Insight).
The Prius is very nice. Driving around without making any sound is great. It really is a different driving experience. The CVT transmission is horrible though. I first drove a CVT car back in the 90s, a Ford Fiesta. The Toyota interpretation is much improved (it doesn't constantly seek for the right revs - with the Fiesta, the revs would constantly go in waves as the CVT slipped back and forth), but it is still disconcerting - you accelerate and the engine revs rise to a crescendo and stay there, until the vehicle's speed has caught up... That is off-putting. The rest of the driving experience is very nice, if placid, it is about as exciting as taking Trazodone.
My brother (sports car fanatic) was in awe of the technology, but just couldn't understand the car.
For me, although a delight to drive, it was painful. One of the reasons I was looking at the Verso and Golf Plus were the higher and more upright sitting position. I have problems with my heels and cannot seem to sit for long periods in the Mondeo any more, hence the looking at different cars.
The Insight is also very interesting, if a little different to drive. Its biggest disappointment is that it feels cheap - well, it is cheap, compared to the Prius, but it "feels" cheap.
Not as cheap as the Fiat 500, but still a disappointment. I sat in the new Accord and it felt luxurious and solidly built. The Civic and Insight, both with the same bonnet badge both felt "cheap". The plastic creaked, the plastic inside the cabin was hard - the plastic in the Toyotas was soft and gave off a feeling of quality.
The Opel Insight is much the same. Something that I also noticed is that, while it has about the same number of buttons and information panels and dials as the Toyotas, it felt "busy".
Anyway, back to the test drives, the Prius felt like a well put together car. I loved sitting in it, the centre console runs into the dashboard and cocoons the driver. It feels very safe and very comfortable. But I just couldn't sit in it for long periods, due to my heels.
The Golf Plus is very nice, it is very well put together and feels very solid, typical VW. It drove well as well, accelerated well and is slightly more economical than the Verso. The sitting position is a bit higher than a normal Golf and was certainly better for me than the Prius and my Mondeo, but it didn't feel completely right. It ticks all the right boxes and, to be honest, I'd rate it just above the Verso, in terms of quality and it drives a bit better.
Then we took the Verso out. It is comfortable, has everything easily within reach. The only negative was that the steering is incredibly light, but apart from that, it is very good. It was also incredibly comfortable.
When we went back to the dealer, they offered me a new Verso Life +, but with a 3 month delay. In the showroom, however, they had a Verso Executive automatic sitting there as a pre-registered car. I got that for the same price as the lower specced Life + and ready for immediate delivery. The colour also worked, the last 2 cars were both black and I didn't want another one, this one is silver - they had a ex-demo Verso out the back, in black, with 6000 KM on the clock for a couple of grand less, but I decided to go with the silver.
Insurance also isn't too bad,140€ a quarter, which is a bit cheaper than the Mondeo - I also get a 10% discount, because the car is brand new...
