Disappointed with test drive

(20-10-2013 09:23pm)flibberflops Wrote:  Thanks Trapdoor... that was a great reply.

Can anyone clarify the two pictures I posted above of the two different speedo's for the Evoque? As stated previously, I am sure I had the speedo in the 1st picture.... so whats the slightly different (and better) speedo in the second picture?

I've never seen the upper type speedo before, maybe it's the new design for MY14?? Mine is a MY12 and I have the lower one, and so does every other Evoque I've seen.

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(20-10-2013 10:01pm)XFullFatTim Wrote:  I would suggest that the difference between the speedos above is one is from an Si4 Dynamic and the other (top one) is from a diesel without AD - the diesel doesn't rev to 8000 rpm. My Sept 2011 Dynamic has the lower speedo with a 6000RPM rev counter and the lighting bars align exactly with speed numerals.

At first I thought the same thing about AD vs non-AD, but check out the car in this shaky clip. It doesn't have AD (4 settings on the TR) but it has the lower speedo.

(20-10-2013 10:01pm)Bowl Wrote:  I've never seen the upper type speedo before, maybe it's the new design for MY14?? Mine is a MY12 and I have the lower one, and so does every other Evoque I've seen.

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At first I thought the same thing about AD vs non-AD, but check out the car in this shaky clip. It doesn't have AD (4 settings on the TR) but it has the lower speedo.

My sd4 pure has the lower setup
Where has the top picture come from anyway

Those top dials look like pre production units, never seen them before, what were you test driving!

Whilst I'd agree its very ungainly over speed humps which does seem odd for such an off-road capable car, its great on road, not forgetting its an suv with high centre of gravity not a road car.

I've just had 2 guys in the car 1 owns a X3 and the other an X4, and they both loved the Evoque interior saying it was really plush! And they later commented how comfortable it was too.

Wish it was easy to add speed cameras to mine Trap-door, sadly MY12 doesnt have that feature! I've really got to quite like the sat nav, ok its a bit quirky and too many button presses but the simple screen and motorway junc info are really useful, that BMW one looks too fussy and difficult to see clearly at a glance, although I have seen that system in action and it is impressive tech.

I really wished I had paid more attention to the car now that I have started speedo gate!

All I can say is that the Evoque was an dynamic diesal (and blue). I was being used as a staff car (as it had personal bits and bobs scattered around) and although I didn't register the mileage I got the impression it was nearly new.... it still had that "new car" smell (unless that was the leather) and although untidy inside (as in it had obviously been used as an every day car) the fixtures and fitting all look brand new.

(21-10-2013 09:09am)flibberflops Wrote:  All I can say is that the Evoque was an dynamic diesal (and blue). I was being used as a staff car (as it had personal bits and bobs scattered around) and although I didn't register the mileage I got the impression it was nearly new.... it still had that "new car" smell (unless that was the leather) and although untidy inside (as in it had obviously been used as an every day car) the fixtures and fitting all look brand new.

It doesn't say much for the dealership that they'd let someone test drive a scruffy car!

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(20-10-2013 11:35am)flibberflops Wrote:  Hi Evoquers,
Yesterday I excitedly took out a Evoque for a 40 minute test drive. I really wanted to like this car but I must confess I left with real disappointment.

Now that I am in my 40's, I have started looking at cars from a different angle. My priorities have changed from small, fast and nibble to commanding, comfort and quality. Therefore, for some time now I have been looking at the Evoque because of its high position, good looks and "quality" price point. I am not the kind of person who takes many test drives... in fact I very rarely ask for a test drive unless I am already quite smitten with a car. I should also say, if I had a Evoque the 4 wheel drive / off road capability would be wasted on me.

Before I start, I want to make clear that there are MANY things that I really like about the Evoque. However, below I am going to talk about the issues I really didn't like, which may sound like I am having a go. However, I just wanted to make these points to see what the Evoque feel, to see if they are genuine points or am I just being overly picky?

Dashboard

My first reaction when sat in the driving seat was one of a disappointment looking at the dials. Yes the LCD section looked good, but the speedo and the rev counter not only looked cheap but I found hard to clearly read. In fact the speedo looks a bit "bling" for my liking. It seemed a million miles away form a simple, quality , easy to read speedo you get in a German car. At this price point the dials should ooze BMW not Renault?

Moving onto the center console (which was generally much better) again I was disappointed with the Sat Nav system. I have a 6 year old Honda civic and the built in Satnav in that is very similar (white background with just road lines on it). The only real difference is the Honda is 2D, where as the Evoque is the most unimpressive 3D system I have ever seen! Again, compare it to a BMW satnav, the graphics just blow the Evoque away!
BTW, I should also mention that I was impressed with the reverse camera system.

Then you get the Automatic gear knob (that pops up and down as you turn the car on and off)... and the multi-colour mood lighting. I have no Idea how much these unnecessary things cost.... but why add them at all? Surely spend the money instead on the fixing items I mentioned above????

Driving

I had only moved 50 feet in the car before I knew that I had issues. As I drove out of the showroom and gave it some revs, the noise from the revving diesel engine was near identical to Nissan Juke I had used recently (hire car). This is a car that is half the price point of the Evoque. Yes, I understand diesels are noisy but again at this price point I was expecting more isolation.

Then we get onto the Auto gearbox (which I know is hopefully addressed in the new 9 speed, so i won't go on too much). Yeah it has failings (which I found quite quickly). However, I found most failings can be easily overridden once you get into the habit of using the gear paddles to override the gears in certain circumstances (which you shouldn't have to do, but there you go). However, again I was pretty shocked at the quality of gear paddles. Maybe I was a bit heavy handed but I could feel the paddles bending and flexing as I used them. I have seen better quality paddles on a game console steering wheel. Again, not the quality I expect of the price point.

Finally I wasn't overall impressed with road noise and the quality of ride. Yes, it was by no means bad but I was able to compare immediately on the same roads with my 07 Honda Civic. Yes, the Evoque was better in both... but only slightly. Remember the civic was only a £17k car new (and is now 6 years old!) Again, I was expecting more at the price point. Maybe it was a little unfair to compare a road car with a car with full off road capability, so I also tried the "Range Rover waft" over a speed bump (one of those little rubber bastards)... again as the Evoque bounced quite harshly over the bump the Evoque left me disappointed. So disappointed that I had a look around to see if there was a "soft" suspension setting? I didn't find one if there is?
BTW, the one item I was impressed with was the handling. I expected to handle like a boat. It didn't, it took corners sharper than I thought possible!

In the end I came away really disappointed. I really, really wanted to like this car. However I just didn't think it was up to the standard I expect for a £35k + car (maybe £25k). I do intend to go back to try the 9 speed (when available) in the hope that some of the fixes will out weigh the failings... but for now I am really gutted that these issues are currently too much of an issue for me.

I really look forward to owners opinions on the matters I raised and hope no-one takes offense at my (perhaps over) critical issues. Am I expecting too much for this price point?

I agree with much of what you say. When the Evoque was announced, it sounded as if it would be my ideal car (my wife and I are small, so don't like overly large 4x4s). It sounded as if it were going to be a small Range Rover with much of the same cachet and quality. I, too, was underwhelmed by the test drive. However, as the car was mainly for my wife (I drive it when it rains to keep mine clean!), and she loved it, we went ahead and bought an SD4 Prestige with all the trimmings (in an effort to get as near as possible to a quality feel interior).

Since then, I've come to like the car more, but somehow it seems less than the sum of its parts - it still doesn't quite 'do it' for me. As well as the niggles you describe (the sat. nav., for example, is hopeless) the lightweight nature of the bodywork with accompanying rattles and groans, and issues like trim parts falling off and the speaker feedback, have added to this negative opinion. It's also much more like a car than a 4x4 to drive, and lacks a commanding driving posiition.

For some reason people endlessly knock Mercedes, but I drive an SL500 (and yes, I accept that it was twice the price), but it's on a different planet to the Evoque in quality,solidity, luxury, and sophistication, and the dealership is equally superior to Land Rover. Furthermore, on a long motorway-type run I get 28 mpg out of the SL compared with 32 mpg with the Evoque (and that's dearer fuel) - plus, I actually enjoy driving the Merc.!

I come from BMW ownership for a few years so new to the brand. So far I'm very pleased with my Evoque. The BMW E89 Z4 I had before had quality issues. It had rattles and squeaks from the interior. It also went into limp mode 2 days after I had picked it up that needed a new high pressure fuel pump to fix! Saying that it was still a great car and I owned it for 3 years. Nothing is what it seems in the adverts these days. On another point the BMW dealer I used to deal with was hopeless compared to the Land Rover dealer I have now. No complaints there either. So far, for me, it's still ticking the boxes and it is exactly the car I thought it would be to own as I thought it would be when I was looking at buying one.

The Evoque I have is the Prestige model and for me I liked the suspension more on that than the Dynamic I test drove. The roads by me are so bad it's like an offload adventure every time I go out!

I certainly agree with the comments on the dashboard and more importantly the sat-nav; noise is not an issue for me and at cruising speed it is pleasantly quiet. I still don't get the criticism of the auto gearbox, its not in the same league as our Golf DSG box but is quite suited to the Evoque. All in all I'm very pleased with our Evoque but see it as more of an up-market Freelander than an entry model Range Rover. We paid around £34k for ours before discount and at that price its a good car; on the other hand if I'd paid in the upper forties, as many have seem to have done, I'd be disappointed.