Thinking of chopping in the WRX...

It's not about the kit they throw in, it's about the quality, looks and feel of the materials used.

I know the Marea has a s**te quality interior, but that wasn't exactly high on my list of priorities when looking for a reasonably cheap 'sports' saloon / hot hatch.

If I were spending proper money on a car, I'd want something with more of a quality feel than anything the Japs have ever done.

The only people who really seem to know how to do interiors are VAG and Alfa Romeo.

The original owner of my car spent ~£6k on interior upgrades - water buffalo peelings, memory comfort seats, heating thereof, blinds, etc.

Nahhh...

VAG interiors are cack! proper spec BMW's aren't bad like my 328, and PROPER merc's like E class upwards are very good but then you expect that. alfa's are pretty neat inside, although they have to be. gotta have something to look at while waiting for the AA i guess :)

Maybe if they were more tacky they'd stick together a bit better?

Hmmm - Volvo and Saab do them better than most - quality and undeniable ergonomics.

Hmmm, overly glossy plastic wood and cheap looking cloth trim on the seats.

Volvo - a friend has an S70. Not a cheap one, either, ISTR it's badged as an SE. The dash is nowhere near as nicely screwed together as it was in my Passat, plus the plastics are cheaper. The less said about the vinyl on the door cards, the better.

Saab have been punting out the same dash for 20 odd years now. It looks and feels dated these days.

S70 is an old car, based on the 850. New Volvos are excellent.

But it's amazingly efficient in its layout and doesn't fall apart.

Note the correction.

It also lags way behind the standards set by VAG. Saab still flog their cars on the 'aerospace' background, even though they're just tarted up Vauxhalls. Interestingly, in the last TG mag I bought (for a long train journey) they had a group test of executive saloons, they rated the Saab dash as the worst in the test.

Hmm - interesting then how the relationship is much the other way - the crash structure of the new Focus and the new Astons is all Volvo. The suspension of the S40/V50 is Focus I'll give you that but the interior is bespoke, and stunning.

And the top of the range Focus gets a pure Volvo drivetrain. Oh and the Aston DB9 gets the bespoke MEL stereo and electronics from the S80.

So the plastics are a not soft - but the controls are in the right places which improves safety.

The wood's made of wood and the covering on the seats and door cards used to cover water buffaloes.

The stereo ain't the loudest, but then it only has to compete with silence.

A

Drove one the other day. We are going to chop wifeys Musso in for one in the near future.

Fraser

But you think 0-60 in 8 seconds is quick.

Fraser

Must remember to budget for an Alpine F#1 Status install when I've got enough saved for my B5.