As a Canadian, I appreciate hardtop convertibles more than most. Sure, cloth-tops are cool, but in our uber-cold winters, I'd rather have a solid roof over my head. And the solid roof offered by VW in the Eos is fantastic, mostly because of its sunroof. It is the only folding hardtop convertible in its class to offer such a feature, and it's a great option to have. However, the lever/button system to retract and replace the roof is a bit confusing and slow.
What I like most about the retracted roof is how well it's integrated into the body. Everything is sealed away and contained, there are no open gaps or lingering bits and pieces hanging around, as is the case with some convertibles. Everything is neatly tucked away.
Now, of course that means it's neatly tucked away in the trunk. With the roof down, the trunk diminishes from 290L to 180L, and while that doesn't make the trunk completely useless, it does make it impractical for some things (read: Costco trips and airport pickups).
The interior of the Eos follows the same simple, sophisticated rules as the exterior. The creamy beige interior of my tester was pleasant on the eyes and blended well with the dark exterior and the brushed chrome and black accents of the dash.
Thankfully, the Eos features a functional back seat. While it is a two-door coupe, the Eos has room for four total, and the back seat is actually comfortable. Top up or down, your buddies in the back will enjoy the ride – of course, with the top down the fun level goes up.
And the engine in the Eos helps add to that fun level as well. With a turbocharged 2.0L L4 turbo, the VW Eos pushes out 200 hp and 207 lb-ft of torque. Coupled with VW's 6-speed DSG system and the Eos really is a joy to pilot. It goes when you ask it to, and handles extremely well for a drop-top thanks to the extra rigidity of the hardtop.
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| The solid roof offered by VW in the Eos is fantastic, mostly because of its sunroof. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour/Auto123.com) |
What I like most about the retracted roof is how well it's integrated into the body. Everything is sealed away and contained, there are no open gaps or lingering bits and pieces hanging around, as is the case with some convertibles. Everything is neatly tucked away.
Now, of course that means it's neatly tucked away in the trunk. With the roof down, the trunk diminishes from 290L to 180L, and while that doesn't make the trunk completely useless, it does make it impractical for some things (read: Costco trips and airport pickups).
The interior of the Eos follows the same simple, sophisticated rules as the exterior. The creamy beige interior of my tester was pleasant on the eyes and blended well with the dark exterior and the brushed chrome and black accents of the dash.
Thankfully, the Eos features a functional back seat. While it is a two-door coupe, the Eos has room for four total, and the back seat is actually comfortable. Top up or down, your buddies in the back will enjoy the ride – of course, with the top down the fun level goes up.
And the engine in the Eos helps add to that fun level as well. With a turbocharged 2.0L L4 turbo, the VW Eos pushes out 200 hp and 207 lb-ft of torque. Coupled with VW's 6-speed DSG system and the Eos really is a joy to pilot. It goes when you ask it to, and handles extremely well for a drop-top thanks to the extra rigidity of the hardtop.
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| With a turbocharged 2.0L L4 turbo, the VW Eos pushes out 200 hp and 207 lb-ft of torque. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour/Auto123.com) |