Auto Trader

Model tested: 2.0-litre FSI
On the road price: from £19,370-£28,095
Insurance group: 15E
Tested: July 2006
Road tester: Adrian Higgins

There was a time when convertibles made fairly exacting demands on their drivers.

Motorists desperate for some lid-off action would be buffeted, then deafened, by howling winds before having to detach a host of insects from their faces at the end of the trip.

A tiring experience could also be a damp one if the heavens opened mid-journey and you hadn’t yet achieved your black seatbelt in soft top origami.

And that’s ignoring the maintenance issues.

2006 has been the year of the coupe cabriolet and existing models are now competing with big hitters like Vauxhall’s new Astra Twintop with its high-profile ad-campaign illustrating the benefits of being able to switch from no-top to hard-top.

VW’s promotion of the all-new Eos goes under the banner of Rediscover Your Senses with giant coffee-pots, flowers and radios revealing the rewards of coming out from your automotive shell and exposing yourself to all manner of smells, noises and sensations.

So it was with some trepidation that I got into the EOS at the car’s launch, a stone’s throw from Goodwood Racecourse, in the Sussex countryside.

Would the experience include teeth-bound flies and mini-cyclones able to transform an untethered Pringle into an airborne swooping, scything menace?

Far from it.

Raise the wind deflectors (behind the front seats and above the windscreen) and “wind” up the windows and only the most erratic gust of wind or bionic insect is going to spoil your journey.

The outside noise is minimal and the Golf-GTI debuted T-FSI engine means your ride can be quieter than many tin-top cars of a few years ago.

So what about rediscovering your senses?

Well, if the ride is a little detached from reality for your liking, simply shun the help of wind deflectors, wind down your window and hang an arm over the door for the “I’m driving around with the lid off” feeling.

You can have the best of both worlds.

And that sums up the Eos’s selling point – it’s a car for all seasons.

The five-part roof features an integrated sun roof so come rain or shine, or both, the Eos has a solution to keep you comfortable and entertained.

And you still get a boot, 380-litres with the lid up and a serviceable 205-litres with it down.

Looks-wise the VW resembles its stable-mates and borrows from them for the smart, four-seat, interior. No room to stretch out but I managed to make my 5ft 8ins medium frame reasonably comfortable behind the driver’s seat.

We drove the 2.0-litre model but the range stretches from 1.6-litre to 3.2-litre, with the price reflecting a hoped-for broad appeal. Buyers can also choose between automatics and manuals, diesels and petrol-fuelled models.

And performance-wise it’s no slouch, hitting 62mph (100kph) in 10.4 seconds and before accelerating all the way to 126 mph.

The Eos is a very comfortable and competent car with great versatility, even for a coupe cabriolet.

As to whether it’ll help you rediscover your senses, that’s simply a question of the degree to which you want to.

But for veterans of open-roof driving – you won’t miss the flies.

 

More car reviews