UPDATE
Since we've crossed the 10,000 km threshold I figured I would share some thoughts.
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Fuel economy continues to be stellar. On highway trips we get about 5L/100km. This is with the car loaded, travelling 110-120 km/hr and usually a hilly drive. It also includes a lot of passing on 2-lane roads. City tends to creep closer to 6.5-7.0 L/100 km.
The engine revs ~2100 rpm at 120 km/hr. This makes it a sublime highway cruiser.
Range has been 800-900 km on the highway. 650-750 in the city. The most diesel I have put into the tank was 42L (fuel tank is small to make room for the DEF tank)
One benefit of all the torque is that performance doesn't really suffer if you've loaded it with people and gear. In the Mazda you'd immediately notice you were hauling around the extra wight. In the GSW, not at all. Same goes for climbing hills on the highway. It's incredible how steep the grade needs to be for it to drop down to 5th.
No issues to report. Well, I might get VW to adjust the door catch because it's slightly harder to get the front door closed than the others.
The cargo capacity is great for such a small car. Between camping, cottaging and everything inbetween we've never needed more room.
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You get the feeling that a team of engineers sat around and did their best to make the best all around automobile they could. And while they succeeded, there's a lack of personality, character, whatever. The Mazda Protege5 was an eager golden retriever that just wanted to play. Even the Mazda5 had some of that character (except for the e-power steering). This Golf just goes about it's business incredibly well, but without any flair.
My phone has random connectivity issues to the bluetooth. My wife doesn't, so it's probably my older Android phone.
When playing off of the SD card it automatically starts at the beginning of the card whenever you've turned the car off. This is much more annoying that it sounds.
This is my first turbo'd car. Since you're almost always low in the RPM band the turbo lag is noticeable. You get used to it and learn to ride the wave of torque but I miss winding out a NA engine and feeling the immediate response.
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The DSG transmission is the best auto I have ever used. Shifts are instantaneous and it's almost always in the right gear. Still, it's no replacement for a manual. I have no regrets getting the DSG, particularly when my left knee was giving me a lot of pain, but I do miss a manual on occasion.
Headlights are just ok. I raised them a bit and it helped. People haven't been flashing their high beams at me so I presume it's fine. I might raise them a little.
The engine power is perfectly adequate. I remember Turbo Bob saying that his TDI has just the right amount of power for a daily driver. This is exactly the case. But, it does tend to run out of steam a higher passing speeds (120+ km/hr). The low end grunt is awesome in the city. You never feel like the engine is being strained.
