Volkswagen On Tour

Last weekend I went back to Penang to check out the very first ‘Volkswagen On Tour’, a showcase of Volkswagen with their German-engineered cars that has a reputation of being fast, safe, classy, and at the same time, rather frugal in fuel consumption.

The same showcase is happening at 13 different locations from now until March, 2014, so be sure to check it out when it comes to a location nearest to you.

‘Volkwagen On Tour’, I test drove the VW Golf TSI

You can’t get closer to knowing a car by having a test drive, so the first course of business was to put ourselves in one of the Volkswagen cars and have a little action in it.

You need to have a valid driving license and be tall enough to participate in the drive. As the photo below shows, luckily myself and Ivan, who actually manages the test drives, passed with little trouble.

thank goodness we’re tall enough for test drive!

I test drove the Golf TSI, and I must say that for a car with 1.4 liter engine, it has got pretty impressive performance. The secret is that the TSI engine has both a supercharger and a turbocharger as force induction devices to increase the power and efficiency of the otherwise smallish capacity engine.

With about 140 PS, the 1.4 liter TSI engine performs on par with a 2.0 liter normally aspirated engine, while being lighter and consume less fuel.

The Volkswagen Jetta has ample legrooms, and even bigger boot space!

Tian Chad, who was there at the same time, test drove the Volkswagen Jetta, which also uses the same 1.4 TSI power plant.

The Jetta has a really impressive cabin size. As demonstrated on the photos above, I can comfortably sit crossed-legged at the back after adjusting the driver seat to my driving distance.

If you’re a fan of monthly grocery shopping, the boot space is also one of the biggest I’ve seen on any sedan, big enough to fit 2 of me side by side while still having plenty of room to spare.

with Blue, and we made some simulated human-powered popcorns

Other than the test drive, there were also several pretty fun activities that educate visitors about safety, fuel efficiency, Volkswagen’s distinct philosophy, the ‘Think Blue’ attitude, and innovations that go into making the Volkswagen fleet.

For example, one of the activities was a simulated human-powered popcorns, where we peddled for some fresh popcorns that actually turned out to be rather delicious!

learning more about VW, and driving the Golf GTI simulator

Another one of my favorites was the Golf GTI simulator, a driving simulator rig with hydraulic force feedback set up and 3 big LCD TVs. It would be a really neat set up to have at home, and we each got to race the Golf GTI on a race track, almost as good as the real thing.

Golf GTI, Scirocco (I like!), and the ladies’ favourite – The Beetle 

Of course, there are the cars, Golf GTI, Golf TSI, Passat, Scirocco, and of course, the Beetle are all there for you to take a closer look and get the seats warm with your butt.

The next locations for Volkswagen on Tour is at the following locations, so do go and check it out!

• 13 – 15 Dec 2013 Penang Queensbay Mall outdoor carpark
• 20 – 22 Dec 2013 Perak UO Angsana
• 27 – 29 Dec 2013 Penang Sunway Hotel carpark
• 03 – 05 Jan 2014 Selangor Aeon Bukit Tinggi
• 10 – 12 Jan 2014 Negeri Sembilan Port Dickson TF Value Mart
• 17 – 19 Jan 2014 Melaka Mydin MITC outdoor carpark

For more info, check out www.volkswagenontour.com.my