22 out of 22 people found this review helpful.
The "cheerleader car" is growing up!
Date of Review: Oct 1, 1999
OK, alright - I got a lot of groans from my California friends when I purchased a 1997 Volkswagen Cabrio 2 years ago. "Why did you buy the ultimate cheerleader car?" they chuckled. But this native New Yorker never had the convertible experience in high school, so the stereotype wasn't a factor in my decision.
As a West Coast transplant, I decided to sell my reliable East Coast Honda and buy my first convertible. I wanted something that was fun, stylish, reliable and safe. Since this was my first foray into the drop-top world, I wanted something that wouldn't cost an arm and a leg - just in case I changed my mind.
The '97 Cabrio Highline has a great set of warranties and is a pretty zippy, good-looking car with capacity to comfortably seat 4 adults with pretty decent trunk capacity - all for under $23K.
Not only did the newly redesigned (at the time) Cabrio lose the diminutive "-let" from its predecessor, the baby-buggy shaped Cabriolet, it also gained shapelier interior and exterior lines, a beefier engine and roomier passenger and storage capacity. The former "cheerleader car" has grown up.
On the exterior, I liked its smooth lines and shape. All right, the darn thing could be classified as "cute." Gone was the shared chassis with the old VW Rabbit. This little car shares its lines with the redesigned and more respected VW Golf. It's longer and higher than the tic-tac looking Mazda Miata. With the multi-layered top down and stored under the included cover, its roll bar provides a divider between the front and back seats, giving an illusion of greater length.
The drop-top itself is well designed and constructed. When closed, the ride is quieter in the cabin that I had expected. The windows seal nicely; little to no wind noise penetrates this multi-layered cloth top. The rear window is glass, complete with defroster cables, and folds down neatly when the top is lowered. This is much better than the plastic rear windows that turn yellow and crack over time. The manual top is extremely easy to lower and raise and lock into place again.
On the interior, the cabin is well laid out and is spacious enough for 4 average sized adults, with ample leg and head room. I haven't received any complaints from rear seat passengers on short trips; I'm sure it would get a little cramped back there on long drives. The best part is that there is enough headroom for the back seat passengers - even those over 6'. I tested other convertibles and this one seemed to be the most spacious. The air/heating, radio, defroster, etc. controls are well laid out in the center console. The stereo and speaker system sounds good and I opted for the 6 CD changer that is located on the side of the trunk. The speedometer, tachometer, oil and gas gauges are simple and, in the High Line, in white against a black background; they are backlit green with the headlights on - a nice visual. The horn is meatier sounding than one would expect from this little car.
The trunk is relatively spacious and has decent cargo capacity, for a convertible. I've fit two medium sized suitcases, a set of golf clubs, a duffle bag and some extra jackets in it. The back seat folds down for longer items. The spare tire is out of the way under the trunk floor.
In terms of safety, it has the driver and passenger airbags, but the '97 doesn't have side impact airbags. It has daytime running lights, which makes it look a little like a rental coming down the road.
The engine won't win any road races, but it's peppy and responsive enough to maneuver around busy freeways. I'm not an engine/speed fanatic, so it's not an important feature for me. It gets decent highway mileage: I've been averaging 30 miles/gallon with its the 5-speed standard transmission.
The VW powertrain warranty is a 10 year/100,000 miles. Also included is a limited new vehicle and scheduled manufacturer's maintenance for 24 months/24,000 miles. (Knock wood) I just passed my 2-year warranty period and I've only needed to bring it to the shop for regularly scheduled (5,000 mile, 10,000 mile, 15,000 mile) check-up work (oil changes, fluid checks, etc.).
I have one peeve with the car's design: the placement of the cup holders. It's minor, but is important when drinking from those cups with the lawsuit-inspired warning of "CAUTION - THE BEVERAGE YOU ARE ABOUT TO CONSUME IS VERY HOT". Generally speaking, the size of beverage containers in the U.S. is proportionally larger than those in other countries. VW's German engineering missed this and located the 2 cup holders at the bottom of the front console. The cup holders are wide enough in diameter to hold a soda can or the smallest Starbucks coffee cup, but the console immediately above it takes up too much vertical space so that it is impossible to secure anything taller than a soda can or small cuppa java in them. The taller items are blocked by some of the controls in the console. I've dealt with this by removing the ashtray, but it's still annoying to have to grab my coffee or soft drink cup as I round tight corners.
Overall, you get a lot of bang for your buck with this fun, roomy, dependable convertible! RAH! RAH! RAH!
