Final Chapter (I hope). I went back with Mrs. BDT in tow to take a second look. I really like the car's styling, size, interior quality and cargo space. Mrs. does too. So I agreed to test drive a TDi with the DSG.
I didn't care for the driving dynamics of the TDi at all. Between the throttle lag and the narrow power band, it just wasn't for me. I said something about the throttle lag and got this from Sales Clown #2:
"They've designed that into the car as a safety feature. Too many people hit the gas as soon as the light turns green and rear-end the car in front of them. This gives you about a 1.5 second delay."
I asked why he thought this approach was only needed for diesel drivers. Mrs. BDT gave me a hard time on the way home for being 'mean' to him.
Back to square one.