Volkswagen Eos 2007 News

Bluetooth and media connectivity are notable absences in the current car. They weren't a big deal when the car launched here in 2007, but the take-up of both technologies in the intervening years means they are now expected as standard features. So they're in, along with a facelift to give the Eos the wide horizontal grille that marks the latest VW look, a sharper edge to the bootlid and new LED tail lights. The extra features come at a $500 premium to the existing models, putting the 103kW/320Nm turbodiesel at $49,990 and the 155kW/280Nm petrol engine at $51,990. Fuel consumption on both engines is down by 200ml to 5.9 litres/100km for the diesel and 7.7 litres/100km for the petrol. There is no manual gearbox with either engine. VW spokesman Karl Gehling said the uptake of manuals on the 5500 cars sold here since launch showed only 15 per cent of buyers opted for a clutch, so it was deleted for the update. That makes the six-speed DSG semi-automated transmission the only choice, but it's not a bad one. The five-piece hardtop roof includes a sunroof so owners can choose between a coupe look, coupe with the sunroof open or pure open-air convertible. The opening/closing process takes around 25 seconds. There's a 205-litre "chute" in the centre of the boot that is spacious enough to take soft baggage, providing they can be squeezed through the fairly narrow opening. Options run from metallic paint at $700, to $900 for the self-parking software, $1500 for electric front seats, $2000 for a premium 600W sound system, $2100 for bi-xenon headlights with dynamic cornering mode and $2500 to add satnav.

Toni Pearen loves the convertible lifestyle.  The 35-year-old host of Australia's Funniest Home Videos, who recently married Sydney bar owner Will Osmond, is a fresh-air fan who has been won over by the Volkswagen Eos.What was your first car?A white Honda AccordWhat do you drive now?A blue VW EosDo you have a favourite drive and who would you take?I love road trips. They give me a sense of freedom. I love driving along the Great Ocean Rd. I've done it once and the only thing I took was my guitar, but in the future I'd definitely take my husband.How far would you drive in an average year?About 20,000km.Do you have a favourite motoring memory?About six years ago, I travelled the country for six months with a play called Stories from Suburban Road by Tom Hungerford. Every day, five amazing actors and myself would jump in a van and travel to another far-off destination to perform. We performed in Alice Springs and Darwin. We travelled the WA coastline and inland to Kalgoorlie. It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.What would you buy if money was no object?An island.What music is playing in your car?Right now I'm loving Katie Noonan's new album, Skin, Brandi Carlisle and Feist.How much is too much for a new car?When you live in your car instead of your house!What should be done to make driving safer?Better education of young drivers.Are you sponsored by a car company?Yes. I'm a VW ambassador.

Yes, I know it's a fashion no-no, but, girls, I just couldn't resist. I went topless in winter and it only took 25 seconds. I have to admit though, the timing was all wrong but typical. I mean, just when I get my chance to drive around in a sporty open top, it rains. I got to drive around town in a Volkswagen Eos and was pleased with my first impression. The car has a chic and funky body design and I knew it would attract some looks. The best feature, without a doubt, is the roof. At the press of a button, the Eos adapts to your mood . . . and the weather. Its five-piece retractable roof takes it from coupe to convertible in about 25 seconds. It has been cleverly designed with parking sensors and a windscreen-mounted wind deflector preventing the roof from accidentally opening. But even with the roof closed, you can still enjoy the warm weather with an integrated glass/sliding/tilting roof, which lets in natural light and air. Volkswagen has named the Eos hardtop convertible after the Greek goddess of the dawn. And I felt like a goddess, spoilt for choice. The car really does have it all. It gave me a new driving experience, lots of freedom and luxury, comfort and space, safety and, most importantly, performance. The car is jam-packed with luxury items including leather steering wheel, cruise control, climate control air conditioning, electric front and rear windows, front cloth sports seats, ABS brakes, a six-speed gearbox and a dual clutch. Then there are the safety features  such as; driver's and front passenger's airbags as well as combined head and side impact airbags for front passengers. For music fans, there is a six-disc mounted CD changer with eight speakers. The car was smooth on the road and had a two-litre diesel turbo engine, which was a little clunky but very powerful and economical. Friends and family were queuing up for a ride, despite the back seats being a little squashy. But whether you sat in the front or the back, it didn't matter, you still got to experience style and luxury at its best. To sum up, fun, fun, fun. If only it was in the sun.   Love it or leave it Volkswagen Eos 2.0 TDI From: $47,990 Love it  Choice: transfers from coupe to convertible in 25 seconds. Comfort and style: lots of chic and funk. Leave it Not much room for passengers.  

Convertibles are something the German carmaker knows a thing or three about, with more than one million VW convertibles – Beetles, Karmann Ghias, Golfs and New Beetles – sold worldwide to date, so the Eos has a fine pedigree. The four-seater is equipped with a revolutionary five-piece convertible, sliding and coupe (CSC) roof. It's a convertible you won't hate over winter – and a coupe that won't stifle you in summer. Top-up noise levels are low and anti-theft security enhanced substantially, compared to a traditional ‘ragtop'. The CSC roof opens or closes rapidly, in 25 seconds, offering technical finesse and visual sophistication. It even incorporates a substantial sunroof for those times when you want an each-way bet on letting the light in. It can be opened completely or tilted up along the trailing edge. And the structural integrity of the CSC design negated obvious convertible compromises that hamper other designs, such as windscreen support location, and overall style with the top up. When closed, the CSC roof forms a smooth arc between the rear deck and the windscreen. With the roof open, the clear-cut classic coupe proportions are obvious. The Eos's windscreen frame is also the roof cross-member. It projects far less into the interior than that of many convertibles, so there's nothing but sky above the driver and front passenger – a design which makes front seat entry a breeze. The Eos is 1.79m wide, 4.41m long and 1.44m high. The effect is a wide, low, purposeful stance. And the 1.55m track fills the guards and facilitates good handling and steering response. Internationally, the Eos is available with no lees than five different engines ranging from 85kW to 184kW 3.2-litre V6 screamer (with awesome DSG gearbox) recently released in the R32 Golf here. The 2.0-litre common-rail turbodiesel engine with standard diesel particulate filter, also available here on Golf, is part of that range, developing 103kW and 320Nm. Inside, Eos clearly passes the Volkswagen DNA test. However, unique design touches abound in cockpit, doors and rear seats – as well as in a unique air conditioning system specifically designed for the convertible. For the first time Volkswagen optionally features electrically activated 'easy-entry' seats: they store the driver's and front passenger's longitudinal seating position in memory and return to it – at the push of a button – after the rear passengers have been taken care of. The new Eos will be positioned between Golf and Passat.

Mazda MX-5From $42,870NOW in its third generation, and with a hardtop option, this the car that revived the roadster. It looks good, drives like a go-kart and has loads of zip. The interior is well designed, and even tall people have plenty of legroom. The manual transmission is close and the suspension firm. Sporty steering and enthusiastic acceleration from the two-litre four will have you heading for the hills.BEST COLOUR: RedBEST ACCESSORY: A mountain-road map Jaguar XK$221,900A REVIVED sense of Jaguar style is complemented by a 4.2-litre V8 with a heartful of attitude, and a paddle- shift sequential six-speed gearbox that leaves the old J-gate for dead. It's billed as two-plus-two, but the backseats just can't be taken seriously — consider them a deterrent to the barrage of requests for a ride.BEST COLOUR: Gunmetal greyBEST ACCESSORY: A silver-service picnic hamper Holden Tigra$34,990ODDLY for a car aimed wholly and unapologetically at young women, the Tigra lacks an auto option. But if the young lady can stand shifting for herself, she'll love this cute two-seater. With competent dynamics and excellent packaging, it's a good alternative to the harder, more focused Mazda MX-5.BEST COLOUR: Lipstick redBEST ACCESSORY: Your bestest gal pal Volkswagen EosFrom $47,990ALTHOUGH options soon shoot the long-awaited four-seat CC past the $60K mark, this VeeWee's value is as hard to fault as its performance. With four-cylinder turbo diesel or turbo petrol engines to choose from, you can get where you want on the back of a mighty wave of torque, or rev high and mighty like a GTI. The only "problem" is that it arguably looks even better when the wonderful metal-and-glass folding roof is up.BEST COLOUR: CrimsonBEST ACCESSORY: Just about anything you care to carry Porsche 911$218,000THE yardstick by which other sports cars are measured. Its potent engine gets you to 100km/h in around five seconds, with pin-sharp steering, athletic handling and a delicious noise. It could do with more room in the back, and the fuel tank could be bigger too. But these are minor niggles dismissed by true fans.BEST COLOUR: BlackBEST ACCESSORY: An IWC Portuguese watch Mercedes-Benz SLK350From $110,900ELEGANT styling and the practicality of a hardtop that, although heavy, hasn't damaged the power-to-weight ratio too much. A muscular 3.5-litre V6 engine that offers slingshot acceleration, plus point-and-shoot steering and tremendous grip,result in a thrilling drive. The cabin is snug, but it's also very comfortable and kitted out in signature Merc style. The COMAND system control interface, however, is needlessly complicated until you master it.BEST COLOUR: SilverBEST ACCESSORY: A Prada briefcase Nissan 350Z Roadster$73,990MORE retro cues here in Nissan's reincarnation of the legendary Z-car, with 1970s lines from the 240Z matched with an enthusiastic and refined 3.5-litre V6. Agile handling and a ride that sits perfectly between firm and compliant make up fora sometimes unforgiving manual transmission.BEST COLOUR: BlackBEST ACCESSORY: A black iPod Ferrari F430 Spider$425,000WITH a chunky V8 sitting in the middle of its chiselled body, the F430 is an aerodynamic marvel with exceptional handling. Much of the design has been borrowed from the race shed, and extensive use of aluminium helps with weight distribution and lowers the centre of gravity.It will rocket to 100km/h in 4.1 seconds and to a top speed of 305km/h. And even just sitting at the lights, it will send all the attention your way. Sex on wheels, really.BEST COLOUR: Need you ask? RedBEST ACCESSORY: A smug smile

Nine stars of the Melbourne International Motor Show took a quick spin from City Hall to Federation Square to rev the city up for tomorrow evening's big opening at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre.Led by a beefy Chrysler 300C police car, about $2 million worth of auto exotica cruised down Swanston St.Lord Mayor John So rode James Bond-style in a $360,000 Aston Martin DB9 Volante convertible.Immediately behind him was a Bentley Continental GTC convertible worth $400,000, but even that was trumped moments later by a Ferrari 599 GTB, costing $600,000.Others in the column included a Maserati Quattroporte, the new convertibles from Volkswagen and Volvo, and a top-of-the-range Lexus LS460.Most unusual was the Bonning B3 three-wheeler, the personal project of designer and artist Brad Bonning.But there would be plenty more to see at the show itself, said the extravaganza's director, Russ Tyrie."That's just to give people a taste of what they will see on Friday," Mr Tyrie said."The parade is a great way to bring the show to Melbourne and to give people an idea of what an exciting and dynamic thing the car industry is."The covers will come off quite a few new cars at the show."With some of them it's going to be as much a surprise to us as it will to everyone else."

The 2006 Australian International Motor Show heralded the opening of open-top motoring season, and summer could not then have been celebrated in a better way than with a hefty V10-engined super-cabrio, a stylish sultry Italian, some topless European flair and some ‘home-grown’ hotties.Many flocked to the BMW stand to spend what will be a rare moment with the new BMW M6 Convertible.The wild Chris Bangle styling of the 6 Convertible is matched to the German marque’s phenomenal five-litre V10 engine.With 373kW and a sprint time of 4.8 seconds from 0-100km/h (just 0.2 behind the more aerodynamically-friendly Coupe), there is nothing soft about this soft-top.Unfortunately for those interested parties with a spare $295,000 to spend, the global allocation of the M6 Convertible for 2006 was completely sold out.Fifty additional Limited Edition M6 models made for the infamous Nieman Marcus Christmas Catalogue in the USA recently sold out in 1.5 seconds of the magazine’s online release. Another eagerly-anticipated convertible is the new Alfa Romeo Spider.Born of the beautiful new Brera coupe, the Spider misses out on the Coupe’s sublime behind and its two (compromised) rear seats, but strikes an equally imposing, aggressive stance with the roof down.The Spider was launched at the show in two engine and drive layouts - but for the moment transmission choice is manual only.This is a move that has proved disastrous for convertibles in the past (most recently, the Holden Tigra), but automatic transmissions should follow in 2007.The 2.2-litre petrol will set you back $76,950, but the flagship 3.2-litre V6 AWD strikes six figures at $100,950.The Eos is the next big thing from Volkswagen, and while it may be based on an old favourite, the trick folding roof is a completely new concept, it looks hot, and comes with a choice of two-litre turbo petrol or diesel drivetrains. It almost makes up for the Beetle convertible. Almost…Sharing much of the platform and DNA of VWs biggest seller, the Golf, it actually commandeers the suspension of the larger Passat sedan and wagon to carry the weight of the five-piece retractable hardtop.The first cutaway section acts as a sunroof when only a hint of UV is required, but folds a further four times into the boot like a deftly dealt deck of cards in a decent 25 seconds.The innovative roof, called a CSC or ‘convertible sliding coupe’ roof, still leaves room for luggage, while the design is resolved and solid with or without the roof down in coupe or convertible guise.The retractable hard top (RHT) is the emerging trend in the burgeoning convertible market. Even the second-gen Volvo C70 Convertible drops its traditional cloth roof in preference of the retractable hard top; the new version of Holden’s best selling Astra Convertible, the Astra TwinTop, does the same.Both the new TwinTop and opposition Ford’s new cabrio, the Ford Focus RHT (due here mid-2007), are designed and built in Europe where the trend obviously fired up – in a region of vastly fluctuating weather through the seasons, it makes sense to take the top off or completely shut out the cold.But for now, with these exciting new models coming to or on the Aussie market, we can all take the chance to enjoy a little ray of sunshine. And with a RHT, it seems that style does not go out with the seasons…

Alfa Romeo stepped up straight after the Peugeot unveiling of a woman, I mean a car. A 207 apparently.

It is, in its way, the best show for ages, with a quotient of concept vehicles and exotica balanced by real world stuff you'd actually consider buying.Highlights?It's hard to walk past Audi's R8, a fully-fledged supercar likely to come in with a "bargain" tag of substantially less than $300,000. Next to it is the second generation Audi TT, mightily improved and not screamingly unaffordable from $68,500 the entry model and about $20K more for its 3.2 V6 quattro sibling. We drove both of these through the Austrian Alps in June 2006, and will hazard the guess that Audi will struggle to meet demand for this superbly executed coupe.And, just for show, is a model of the R10 – the amazing V12 diesel that took first and third at this year's Le Mans.The great thing about concept cars is that they needn't conform to such tiresome criteria as Australian Design Rules - hence the lack of an A pillar on Saab's Aero Concept X. The lack of any pillars for that matter. Slightly more tangible is the 9-5 bio ethanol-powered wagon - a car to gladden the hearts of sugar cane growers.Lotus has revived an iconic brand name with the Europa S, a car that should affirm two-seater motoring can still be an unadulterated and largely unconstrained experience. When the product of mainstream manufacturers seems to keep getting fatter, like a choc-addicted neurotic, the mere existence of Lotus serves to remind us of (hard) core driving verities.Mazda's Kabura sports compact - with its cute 3+1 seating arrangement - is a concept from which the theme and shape of Mazdas to come can be divined. Ditto Honda's Sports 4 Concept for that marque. Or so we hope. While Honda's SH-AWD system is damn clever, it'd be neat to see it attached to something a little more athletic than the globulous Legend.A few metres away from the Kabura is the CX-7 - the crossover SUV with much of the Mazda 6 MPS's drivetrain - which you'll be seeing on our streets soon. It's one of two vehicles that perfectly defines what marketing types like to call the "zeitgeist" of the Australian buyer at the moment.The other, you may or may not choose to believe, is a Volvo. The S80 all-wheel-drive V8 luxury sedan might be the Swedish marque's new hero model, but their decidedly groovy 2+2, the C30, could be the car that finally puts paid to those ancient "bloody Volvo driver" cliches.It also points firmly in the direction that Australian private buyers are going ie: those of us not enamoured of soft road SUVs are downsizing but up-speccing.And speaking of good things in small packages, those who have queued long for the Volkswagen Golf GTI will be delighted to see that not only is demand being addressed, but the new to Australia three door-model starts $1500 under the five door at $38,490. VeeWee's highly desirable Eos CC, the big drawer at last year's Frankfurt motor show, finally made its Australian debut ahead of its release early in 2007.And yes, that's a turbo diesel variant you see parked near the turbo petrol. If diesel seems anomalous in a (part-time) open top car, it works.Given the mudslide of Holden hype this year, it comes almost as relief not to see some lurid concept jobbie from them for once, although unveiling the Hummer H3 did at least provide comic relief.With the pomp and circumstance we've come to expect from Holden on the opening day of the show, the covers were hauled off to anything but the reception they've come to expect.Far from the rapturous and somewhat sycophantic applause that greeted their Torana and Efijy creations, there was … well, the sound of no hands clapping. In fact, the silence that greeted this spectacularly pointless and ugly apparition could best be described as stoney.Nissan's Foria is a concept car we’d very much like to see come into fruition. Apart form the corporate grille, this is an elegant Lancia-like coupe intended as an MX-5-like alternative. 

The Volkswagen Eos, BMW's M6 Convertible, Volvo's second-generation C70 and the Alfa Romeo Spider all debuted at the Show."Australia's deepening love affair with convertibles reflects the strong growth of the market segment," says FCAI chief executive Peter Sturrock."The Australian International Motor Show is the perfect forum for the latest convertibles to hit our shores - to showcase to the public their individual advances in technology, styling and performance," he said.Volkswagen is setting a world first with its new Eos - a four-seater with a five-section CSC hardtop convertible roof.Together with its length and height, the vehicle's width lends the Eos a powerful stance that contributes to the car's extra agility and safe handling.Another four-seater to be revealed at the motor show is BMW's M6 Convertible, featuring its internationally acclaimed five-litre V10 engine.Producing a massive 373kW, the M6 engine accelerates from 0-100km/h in 4.8 seconds.The M6 Convertible has the same performance package as its coupe counterpart in addition to the styling cues that clearly identify it as the work of BMW.Volvo's much anticipated second-generation C70 convertible, to be unveiled for the first time in Australia at the motor show, features a three-piece folding hardtop, which converts the car from coupe to convertible in less than 30 seconds.The new C70 offers comfortable interior space and world-first safety for four passengers.The motor show will also see the return of the Alfa Romeo Spider in a new-generation form.The rear of the new version of the classic two-seater sports car has been redesigned to focus attention on its open-top character.