 |
|
Pulling up to the local gas station and pumping unleaded gasoline is as American as baseball, hot dogs and apple pie. It's only been in the last 20 years or so that nameplates outside the big three have become real options for most of us here in the Midwest. Powering our cars with anything other than gasoline has not been a real option. I remember a friend of mine had a Volkswagen Diesel Rabbit back in the 1980's. Watching him drive this odd car was almost painful. For as much as he extolled its virtues he was still the object of ridicule as the car could barely pull itself through an intersection before the light changed. This anemic little engine spouted the foulest odor and black smoke as it struggled to keep up with traffic. Even though European automakers have long embraced diesel for passenger cars, here on this side of the pond diesel is the fuel for industrial generators, tractors and over-the-road truckers. It's just not American to drive a diesel passenger car. So I guess that's why I decided to take the most European of cars, the 2003 Volkswagen Jetta TDI (Turbo Direct Injection Diesel) to the most American of activities, a minor league baseball game. The T-Bones baseball club opened their home season recently next to another all American sports venue, the NASCAR track in Kansas City Kansas. The new stadium is tight. It's clean and new, easy to get into and out of with seats that put you close to the action. Sure there are some entertainment moments that you won't see in the big leagues like the beer pitcher race around the bases, but this is a great family entertainment venue. As a big fan of this entire entertainment, retail and lodging development I wanted to check out how the T-Bones experience matched up to the big league across town. Just like driving a VW diesel, choosing to attend the T-Bones rather than the Kansas City Royals, requires one to think outside the box and do something different that everybody else. Matt Brickell, the Volkswagen Diesel evangelist at Baron VW in Merriam, had me believing that this was nothing like the 80's Rabbit Diesel I remembered. As a personal owner, he explained this had the power and acceleration of a gasoline vehicle. Gone was the smoke and odor of previous diesels and this to him was an almost perfect vehicle. He was almost right. Like any true believer, the guys at Baron VW love their work and encourage their product. This 2003 Jetta TDI does have much more power than the old Rabbit, but it is not a muscle car. It is rated at 90 horsepower because that's all it has. I realize that 155 lb. ft. torque will get this car moving much faster than expected but this power plant requires one to adapt expectations over some of the high horsepower cars that Americans love. I had no problem leaving stoplights or accelerating to highways speeds, as this vehicle is a real alternative for those that believe fuel economy is the patriotic choice for American Drivers. Rated at almost 50 MPG on the highway this car will drive forever on a single tank of fuel. Creature comforts are ample and while very functional, the interior is not flashy with unnecessary frills. My car had an upgraded Monsoon sound system on par with anything I have heard to date. The simple styling lines of the exterior evoke the same useful but uncluttered look of the interior. With an MSRP of $20,800.00 including the upgraded sound system and diesel engine this car is not only inexpensive to purchase but cheap to operate. Now I don't know about you, but that's pretty American to me. Much like our trip to the T-bones. It may not be the choice for most people but for the ones who value money over prestige this is a great alternative. So go ahead try the Jetta Diesel, you may just feel like you hit one out of the park.
Vehicle:
Providing Dealership:
Destination:
Additional Web only Information and Resources For Additional Reviews: |
©2003 - Stan Risener