VW: She's a smooth operator

The VW Scirocco delivers torquey performance from a 2-litre motor - with a sporty exterior. Photo / Jacqui Madelin

What, another VW? Yep, but this week it's the 2-litre Scirocco, a touch overshadowed by its award-winning if less powerful sibling.

Not that the Scirocco is easily overshadowed. It turns heads like no VW has since I drove the first new Beetle around Auckland with under 40km on the clock.

It may be loosely based on Golf underpinnings but it's longer, wider and lower - with a stance that means business. Especially in the acid green of this test car, which exaggerates its demeanour.

Those lines might demand a ducked head every time you drop into the driver seat. And they do make for a deep boot lip that will annoy on those rare occasions you've got a heavy suitcase to extract. But those are small compromises to make.

When VW first launched Scirocco it thought this 147kW car might be the biggest seller, the 118kW the wallflower at the sales chart party. That Volkswagen NZ uses the power tag, not the engine size, delivers the crucial clue as to why.

Kiwis almost invariably think bigger is better, and the 118kW car uses the twincharger engine. That means only 1.4 litres, albeit with the benefits of small-engine economy in low-stress situations, and the advantages of both supercharging and turbocharging when you want to go hard.

That's the engine which snaffled the World Engine of the Year award, and Kiwis have embraced it - VW has sold out.

But the 118kW Scirocco's 147kW, 2-litre sibling is hardly the booby prize. It delivers more power, more torque and at 7.1 seconds to 100km/h, faster acceleration.

Yes, it drinks more fuel, but the claimed 7.6 litres/100km thirst is hardly Alcoholics Anonymous territory.

That it doesn't guzzle more is in part due to the clever double-clutch DSG transmission. The 1.4 has a seven speed to eke the last drop of performance from the powerplant.

The 2-litre has the six-speeder, and as usual it's robotically efficient in most circumstances - only the occasional rapid downchange on a particularly demanding road requiring driver input before the gearbox second-guesses you.

Meanwhile, that surging power delivery suits the car. This motor delivers peak power from 5100 to 6000rpm, and torque from 1700 to 5000 - a broader spread than the 118kW.

You can trickle around sensibly or hurl her through bends, this engine making light work of the job. Scirocco specialises in a sporting approach to corners without compromising everyday comfort.

That real-world focus is repeated in the cabin, with good side support from the sporting seats yet VW's sensibly restrained layout, only those pews and the ostentatiously odd door handles signalling this car is a little different.

As for the six grand price difference over the 118 (setting you back $50,590), this 2-litre Scirocco gets a bit more fruit as well as its additional power and crisper performance.

Which car is better? Frankly, I'm struggling to decide. Perhaps I need to get them back for a longer drive ...

VW SCIROCCO

We like:
Individual looks, broad spread of power

We don't like:
Those lines compromise entry and egress, cabin a bit staid for car's character

Powertrain:
2.0-litre turbo, 147kW at 5100-6000rpm, 320Nm at 1700-5000rpm, six speed DSG twin-clutch auto drives front wheels

Performance:
0-100km/h in 7.1 seconds, 7.6l/100km

Safety:
Stability control, ABS, six airbags

What it's got:
Multi-function wheel, 17-inch alloys, Park Pilot rear, Media Device Interface

Vital stats:
4256mm long, 312/1006-litre boot, 50-litre tank