[PalmerGA]

Originally Posted by 5150 Maro

Waiting to hear how your test drive went. Post some pics too if you have em!

Well, the 2SS I test drove was absolutely loaded and had a MSRP of $46,895 (destination charge included). It was black, so I wasn't in danger of doing a spur of the moment deal today. It was the first Gen6 into the dealership and my salesman said it was held up for 41 days in Quality Control (not real comforting to hear). They have another 2SS coming "sometime soon" (the best they could say) and it is SIM, which is what I prefer because it shows dirt/dust the least.
I met with the Order Workbench guru and we worked up a 1SS with some options I would want. The base model 1SS has a MSRP of $37,295 including destination charge. The options include: Low gloss 5 spoke wheels, Sunroof, Magnetic Ride Control, 8-speed auto trans, and dual Mode performance exhaust which ran the price up to $42,480. That's $4,415 less than the 2SS - I can have a lot of fun w/ 4 grand.

About the 2SS I test drove. EXTERIOR: Obviously, we all know how good it looks on the outside although I am really not crazy about the rear end, the hodge-podge looking front grille work, the clunky looking (compared to Gen5) sideview mirrors, or the three post rear spoiler. These things though I'm sure I could grow to like, if not love. TRUNK: The trunk space sucks. It's considerably narrower than the Gen5, though it may be a tad bit deeper. I had to remove the driver AND 3-wood out of my golf bag to fit it in the trunk (at an angle). INTERIOR: It's beautiful, but there sure are a crap-load of buttons all over the place. And lights and gages all over the place too, which are actually kind of distracting initially. Didn't take the time to play with all of the buttons. The seats are every bit as comfy as on my Gen5, maybe more. I only drove it about 10 miles so it's hard to say what a lengthy ride would feel like. The individual climate control is a great feature. Position of the seatbelt shoulder strap fits (me) better than on the Gen5. I'm 6'-3" so I have the seat pretty far back and this means I can't recline the seatback very much due to interference with the back seat. There is no way anybody could sit back there with me driving - there's less room than the Gen5. The upgraded Bose music system sounds GREAT, but it's really just one more expense I can live without - the basis one in my Gen5 works just fine for me. Lastly, the console is considerable smaller than even the miniscule one in the Gen5 - guess I'd be putting more crap in the glovebox. PERFORMANCE: With a push of the keyless ignition button, this baby roars to life. The NPP exhaust sounds amazing on startup and doesn't disappoint when driving either. Outstanding! The LT1/A8 combination is awesome, as is the smoothness of the ride. I didn't drive it long enough to get a true sense for the different ride modes, but the touring and sport modes were super smooth. I expected the Goodyear runflats to feel kind of hard (similar to the P-Zeros) but the combination of them and MRC was smooth as silk. Needless to say I punched her pretty good a few times at various RPMs and the A8 transmission is remarkable. Strong shifts through 3rd, a little softer to 4th and 5th, and you could barely feel the shifts to 6-7-8, even with my foot in it pretty good. If not for the sound of the NPP I almost would not have know it shifted in the upper range. Brakes are excellent, of course. Less roll through curves than the Gen5 (I guess due to MRC). And... I really didn't notice the AFM at all. Maybe they made it less sensitive that the A6 Gen5 versions, I don't know.

OVERALL: So the test drive was pretty short but, overall, I'm giving this Gen6 2SS a 9 out of 10 for the driving part. I really loved the performance and handling. For appearance, I'm giving it 7.5 out of 10 because of the rear end, front grille, and mirrors.

My main general complaint with the Gen6 is all the extra crap they slap in the 2SS package and the price they ask for it. I miss the good ol' days of ordering a new car exactly the way I want it. Even so, and even though I love my '13 SS, I am definitely going to consider a Gen6. It's going to take a lot of thought and weighing the differences.

Sorry... didn't take any pics.