billb@teklabs.UUCP (Bill Beran) (03/16/84)
I have owned a VW Jetta for almost exactly two years and have driven
it 43K miles in that time. The car is a diesel (if that seems import-
ant.) My initial impression of the steering was rather heavy at slow
(parking) speeds but very light and comfortable at normal driving speeds.
I must admit that I was somewhat disappointed in the overall
handling, as it didn't seem to be up to the standards which had been
written in the automotive literature.
Gosh folks! Thats all changed! Reason: I used up the original
tires. They were Continentals of some fairly low class. I replaced
them with the new Bridgestone 207's, and the car has been transformed!
Steering effort at parking lot speeds is dramatically reduced and the
car handles like a dream on the road. It's fun to go around corners
again! Although I'm very happy with the Bridgestones, I feel quite
sure that any good quality premium radial tire would have made a
great improvement.
The Bridgestones by the way, have a graded sidewall hardness.
This ranges from a very hard compound at the bead, (almost plastic-
like) to the softer more conventional rubber on the tread. My tire
dealer claims this as the major reason for the improvement in the
handling of my Jetta.
My final comment about power steering (or lack of it) on the
Jetta is that it seems to steer as easily as any other non-power
steering car that I've owned. (With the new tires) The new tires have
about 5K miles on them. My wife also drives the car regularly.
b
Bill Beran
Imaging Research Lab
Tektronix
{decvax,ucbvax}
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