Eos is a handsome if slightly conservative looking car that seems very well built. VW’s design chief put off releasing the car a number of times until he was satisfied that all the teething problems were fixed (famous last words). While some other cabrios will be creaking in a few years' time Eos should remain pretty solid.
The exterior features the current VW corporate front end with the car’s nose appearing more soft and rounded compared to say a Jetta or Passat. I suppose this makes the car appear less in your face, but hang on a second this is a convertible so it’s meant to be a bit more striking! The side and rear profile is not as interesting as some of the competition but very well crafted none the less. Eos has simple, elegant lines that should stand the test of time.
Inside the driving position is good with a windscreen that sits a decent bit away from the front seat occupants. Too many of the current crop of CCs feature windscreens that almost cover the front seat occupant’s heads so you may as well be in a tin top with a big sunroof! The controls and switchgear are pure VW with only the chrome air vents appearing anyway interesting in what is a dull but well-built interior.
On the road Eos feels tight and weighty (in a good way). The engine range starts with a 1.6 but my test car came with the 2 litre TFSi engine (T is for turbo/ €46K+). This is the same brilliant unit found in the Golf GTi. 200bhp is a healthy amount of power in any front-wheel-drive car but in Eos it means you get to enjoy super performance with the bonus of fresh air. Sitting on fat tyres Eos feels surefooted when cornering and composed with the roof up or down.
If anything goes wrong with a convertible it’s usually the roof. VW teamed up with the famous Webasto brand to design the mechanism. The amount of motors and switches used to raise and lower the roof is frightening but VW assures me that all the components are tried, tested and familiar to VW technicians.
VW Ireland has set up four centres of excellence throughout the country that will deal with any specific roof problems that may arise. When the clever roof is down you will not be able to put anything into or take anything out of the boot as access is blocked by the folded roof.
Parking sensors are standard too, not because VW is being generous (although standard spec is reasonable) but because the roof folding procedure requires the boot to open backwards by about 2ft rearwards of the bumper. The boot is double hinged so it opens for luggage the conventional way. Like all booted convertibles there is a formed tray in the boot that must be in place in order to lower the roof. It ensures that there is enough room for the folded roof to stow. Luggage space is tight and best suited to soft baggage.
Eos is a good investment but be aware that those optional extras do add up.
Michael Sheridan
