philkkw

Dang*... Too bad ... But somehow I read some review (in US) they did mention this function...maybe not in Canada yet.

USAVAGEU

I don't think I'd like auto stop/start on the SQ5. Maybe on a less performance oriented car I wouldn't mind, but it would feel too much like a golf cart to me.
Maybe it's one of those things you just get used to, huh?

JaXeN

I feel the same, and I'd leave it off 99.9999% of the time.
It would be nice to have one less blank button on the dash though.

idale

Yeah, if you're in an S then you're not really worried much about fuel economy so the small amount you'd save by the engine stopping will be countered by the engine needing to start up (losing you performance and making people think of hybrids). If it was a problem then you'd want the regular 3.0T which does have the start-stop on it. Still, maybe at some point the option will be there for even the S models, after the systems have become more widespread and everyone's used to them.

Despite all the complaints people have about the start-stop system, I do leave it on on my TDI, only turning it off in rare instances where I know it's going to trigger but I'll be moving again quickly. You can prevent it from trying to start if you just barely have the brakes on, but you need to be pretty precise since there's not a lot of pedal travel between creeping and start-stop trying to activate. No idea how much fuel consumption has been reduced by leaving it on, and honestly I'm not sure if I feel like leaving it off for enough tanks to determine a statistically-significant amount.

philkkw

I think I get the point and thanks for the replies. Now I feel much better without the Auto-Start-Stop thing...

Chuck2006

Some quick observations after/drive :

- Transmission is quite excellent for an automatic. My first auto ever (Manuel -> DSG -> this one). Upshifts on load are really fast, and downshifts too. It revs the engine without any trouble. Even when you call gears, it responds quick. Really impressed. Now I have to get used to the fact you have to hold the brake to keep it from going forward !

-Quarter side/front view in city is not great. I feel like I have to guess where the curb is on a city 90deg turn. I live in city so always in little one-way streets. No kids were hurt yet...

- Parking is so easy with sensors and camera, a joke. Even the side mirror tilts for viewing the curb....come on !

- Engine : First 6-cylengine, and first supercharged engine. Feels alive, power band is huge. You get respected in this car. Sound gets awesome after 3k (still breaking-in...).

- Ride : I'm sorry but this is a comfortable ride ! We enjoy so much the ride. It feels solid, well planted but it absorbs well the road's imperfections. Good call on the 21", superb look but ride is not harsh at all.

- MMI : Happened to like after a week, it is quite simple and to my surprise I use voice recognition for calls and navigation. It works quite well, even in french canadian. In my GTI, I was using it sometime for random phone call (asking a specific number) only.

- Interior : So happy to have chosen carbon fiber inlays. They are gorgeous with black interior. Room is good too. We went to pick up a rocking chair for future mommy, and after having remove the tray, and put the sliding back seats forward a little (not even down), the huge box fitted nicely !

We just love it !

philkkw

Thanks for the review.
Have you tried manual with shift paddle? Does it respond well? How is the noise isolation from the road?

Chuck2006

Yes, I like manual mode ! It responds very well for an automatic, very surprised.
On power, you can feel the up****fs though. It's not like a good dual clutch where there is virtually no down power moment felt during a shift.

For noise isolation, it's very good in city. Once you got on freeway, then you can hear the Pirellis but I don't care at that level. Talk to me about tire noise in summer 2016, I'll probably tell you Pirellis are crap when well worn.

Overall comfort is excellent for us, including road noise (coming from GTI I repeat).

Hilarious how you have possibility to be able to hold almost every other cars behind. Almost 800km. I'll begin to play more with the beast soon. We'll probably break 1k km next week-end.

David&Niki

Hey Chuck,
why not you post some pictures of your SQ5 from interior ? i do love the exterior colour. it's nice

Chuck2006

Will do this weekend ! Working too much...and need some natural light to make ok pictures