 Jonathan’s newest arrival. Click image to enlarge |
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Review and photos by Jonathan Yarkony
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2013 Volkswagen Golf Wagon
Odometer: 4,284 km
Observed Fuel Consumption: 6.9 L/100 km
Costs: $493.42 (Gas $337.54; Winter tire installation $155.88)
It’s been too long without an update since the 2013 Volkswagen Golf Wagon TDI Clean Diesel arrived in our Autos.ca long-term fleet, but we had another arrival that took precedence. Those of you who follow me on Instagram or Twitter will have seen that there was a new addition to the family Yarkony, and the trusty Golf TDI was there to shuttle him home safely and soundly.
Any parents out there can attest to the busy days immediately following a new baby, and this anticipated arrival was part of what motivated our request for the Wagon version of the Golf. I don’t doubt that we could have survived in the smaller cargo bay of a Golf hatchback (or even a Jetta or Passat sedan), the ability to simply toss in all manner of strollers, bags, and odd and ends in the wide, deep cargo area through the tall wide hatch opening is unbeatable without moving up to larger crossovers, or the ultimate in utility, minivans.
 2013 Volkswagen Golf Wagon TDI. Click image to enlarge |
But I challenge you to name a crossover or minivan as efficient as the TDI Wagon, for which I am currently averaging 6.9 L/100 km, and that is with a majority of city driving and rush-hour commuting. The only one that I have driven in recent memory to even come close is the much larger seven-seat Toyota Highlander Hybrid, at a much steeper price. What’s even more impressive is that as hard as I drive it, it is still beating the Transport Canada estimate of 7.0 L/100 km for City driving for DSG models; highway rating is 4.9 L/100 km. Also impressive is its range, even during its ‘green’ break-in period, averaging about 700 km per 55 L tank, although I’ve rarely put more than 50 L in per fill-up because of the reserve.
Yeah, I’m absolutely loving the efficiency and the cargo space, but not everything is perfect in Wagon-land. Despite the long, sleek profile, backseat space is typical compact and virtually identical to the Golf, a rear-facing infant seat seriously cuts into front passenger space. If not for my wife’s height, the real estate given up would be unbearable, but even so it makes the passenger seat a crowded affair, and squeezing someone in the back between the infant seat and my daughter’s toddler seat is downright cruel.
 2013 Volkswagen Golf Wagon TDI. Click image to enlarge |
Overall the interior is the high-quality version found in the Golf and Jetta GLI, as opposed to the low-rent plastics found in the Jetta and even the Passat. The stereo and auto climate controls are simple and easy to use, and the three-level heated seat buttons nested within the temperature knob have been seeing a lot of use lately with cold mornings rolling in.
The cold mornings have not phased the start-up of the diesel engine, and the car warms up as quickly as any car, although temperatures in Brampton aren’t really dropping too far below zero yet.
