Comments by "Stephen Hendricks" (@stephenhendricks103) on "" video.

@simplicated99 Wheelbase comparisons are less critical in this case than overall length and interior room.
53
I own both a KIA (Sorento) and a VW (GTI). I love them both so there's no brand bias here in a choice between the Arteon and the Stinger. I've driven both vehicles and if I were choosing between the turbo4 engines in each, I'd opt for the Arteon without question. Comparing the Arteon to the higher spec 3.3L V6 in the Stinger and the choice is more difficult. I think Mr. Biermann and his colleagues at Hyundai/KIA have done a remarkable job of building an American-ized version of a European GT sedan at a reasonable price. But I think the differences between the Stinger and the Arteon highlight the different perspectives of Americans (both north and south of the Canadian border) and Europeans in terms of what "performance" means. There's a reason that Americans invented drag racing while Europeans invented rallies. Road racing in America often means circling high banked ovals in stadiums while Europeans think of road racing on public roads or tracks designed to emulate them. For Americans "performance" often begins and ends with straight line acceleration to 60 mph and quarter mile times. For Europeans "performance" in a GT sedan often means traveling in comfort at 100 mph+ on superbly maintained highways or threading roads often laid down originally by the Romans two millennia ago. VW has a history of trying to interest Americans in the Euro-spec vehicles with almost no success. Americans want larger, cheaper VW's than Europeans. The Arteon represents still another effort along that line. (One exception for the Arteon. The North American version uses a conventional 8 speed transmission while the Euro version has a DCT.) I have no doubt that more Americans will choose the Stinger over the VW. But for those who value a true European GT driving experience with accommodations for four the Arteon outpoints the Stinger.
45
The Passat GT was an excellent budget choice if one was willing to give up a number of features. Unfortunately, it no longer exists.
3
There's always the old (American) saying that there's no substitute for cubic inches. But having owned a couple of (100% reliable) GTI's with Stage 1 APR tunes I'd agree with your sentiment. As noted in another post here, Americans think of "performance" as beginning and ending with straight line acceleration from a standing start. Europeans have a different perspective.
3
@chocolatewheelchair The "void the warranty" comment is made often but it represents a misunderstanding of reality. In fact, the warranty is voided only if a modification can be shown to directly result in a component failure. That won't necessarily result in a fix under warranty but numerous court cases support that interpretation. Furthermore, many VW dealers (including mine) actually offer tuning services and honor warranty claims without question. Finally, tuning companies such as APR offer low cost warranties that mimic the full factory warranty protection.
3
Богдан Кондратов Having put about 40K miles on a Stage 1 APR tuned MK6 GTI putting it altogether at over 100K miles before trading it for a MK7.5, I'd have to dispute that characterization. So would the other members of the Golf R/GTI owners group here in the Pacific NW.
2
@FlowStateNewOrleans I'm sad to see the Alltrack disappear (at least in the North American market and probably elsewhere.) It's a fine compact, affordable, good handling wagon. I tried to interest my wife in one a year ago but like many short stature consumers (i.e. females) she preferred the higher driving position afforded by a crossover. I can't say I blame her when daily driving consists of being surrounded by humungously tall SUV's and trucks. It's much like an arms race. The only defense is to emulate the enemy.
2
VW substituted a conventional 8 speed torque converter transmission for the DSG in North American versions of the Arteon. The claimed rationale is that many Americans are uncomfortable with the behavior of a dual clutch transmission both when stopped on an incline and in terms of the "manual" like shifting behavior. Personally, I find the DSG to be a superior choice.
2
That's a pretty important life choice to be based on the requirement for a 6"x9" piece of metal.
2
Богдан Кондратов I'm not sure how you can pack more misinformation and unsupported proclamations in such short posts. I'm very fond of KIA's having owned two over the last decade but their 4 bangers are simply not strong engines either in terms of fuel efficiency or performance. As for the Arteon's engine being "overboosted," that's simply ridiculous. The E888 engine in the GTI, Golf R, and the Arteon is a very strong engine and capable of extensive tuning with virtually no impact on reliability except for the need to upgrade and/or replace the clutch in a manual transmission version.
2
Not for the North American market. The Atlas has replaced the Touareg here.
1
Like many (North) Americans you want VW's to be more powerful (on paper) and cheaper. That often goes with "bigger." Europeans tend to prefer smaller displacement more fuel efficient engines and are prone to be more careful about maintenance in vehicles they pay a premium to purchase in the first place.
1
@jmoore4156 It's important to understand that VW doesn't expect to sell many Arteons in North America. In fact, there was a question whether it would even be offered in the North American market, at all. The new VW CEO, however, has said that regardless of sales he felt it was worthwhile to offer it as a sign of VW's European roots. In fact, however, it has done somewhat better in the US than VW expected. When I drove one of the first ones available here in the Pacific Northwest, my local dealer said they expected to receive only 3 units before the end of 2019. As it happens, they've sold nearly a dozen. The Seattle market is a relatively strong one for European sedans so that doesn't necessarily say much about the overall marketplace. Nevertheless, the Arteon is outselling the Audi A7 nationwide. (Not surprising considering the price difference.) But it's worth noting that KIA's hopes for the Stinger haven't lived up to expectations. In the last few months they've sold only about a thousand Stingers a month. That's about three times Arteon sales but sales are down significantly compared to 2018. All in all, of course, sedan sales have tanked in North America. So neither KIA nor VW is likely to put many more eggs in the baskets of either the Stinger or the Arteon. And given the relatively strong sales of the Arteon in Europe North America will remain a sideshow.
1
VW has experienced repeated challenges for their Euro-spec vehicles in the North American market. The excellent Euro Passat was replaced by the larger, cheaper (both in price and features) American version and sales zoomed. Same story with the Tiguan. The Touareg has been replaced in the US with the Atlas. The current larger, cheaper Jetta is not even offered in most of Europe. And the base Golf isn't slated for export to the US.
1
Богдан Кондратов What nonsense. Having put over 100K miles on a GTI with VW's DSG and another 20K miles on my current GTI, I've encountered virtually no problems with either vehicle.
1
Богдан Кондратов The current owner of my previous GTI has put about 3OK miles on my previous MK6 putting it at 130K miles. When should he expect the transmission to fail?
1
@chocolatewheelchair That's correct. The Ford Fusion Sport (and other Fusions) are gone. Have to say though that having seriously considered the Fusion Sport about a year ago it handled like an overweight pig.
1
@chocolatewheelchair I've never had a warranty issue with either of my Stage I tuned GTI's but several of my acquaintances have and have never encountered an issue with a warranty claim. My VW dealer even offers APR tuning with full warranty coverage. And as already noted, if that's not good enough for you or you can't find a "tuner friendly" VW dealer, you can purchase a warranty directly from APR with the same coverage as the VW factory warranty.
1