Kudos to Volkswagen for assembling one heck of an impressive powertrain. There are few times when our horsepower-addicted staff finds contentment in the smaller of two available engines, yet after experiencing the 200-horsepower 2.0-liter turbocharged four-banger once again (it’s the same engine found in the GTI, Jetta GLI, and Passat), we questioned the need for the larger 3.2-liter V6. Off-the-line acceleration is adequate, and within a blink of an eye the turbo has spooled up, resulting in an outpouring of power that causes the front tires to chirp and claw for traction. All of this happens in what seems a millisecond, so power delivery actually feels linear. Torque-steer is controlled, but there’s noticeable rear squat as the Eos charges forward. Passes at all speeds are effortless. The six-speed manual transmission on our tester featured fluid, short shifts, backed by an easy-effort clutch that felt notchy at times. After a week of aggressive driving, we recorded an average fuel economy rating of 21.6 mpg.

Handling
Cars are often gauged by those who drive them. Last year, our editors had fun with the Eos on the track, but after one of our staffers noticed an older lady driving a light blue model around his condo complex, he wondered if his recollection of an athletic little German convertible was undeserved.

An afternoon in the nearby mountains cleared away all doubt. Some may accuse the Eos of being too giving when pushed, but that’s just what others will love about it – soft for everyday driving, and yet firm enough to carve through the twisties with relative ease. The responsive steering offers a good dose of road feel, with understeer rearing its head only when corners are attacked with particular ferocity. The Eos is a joy to confidently toss when the road is anything but straight.

As with other VWs we’ve tested, the brakes were the weakest point, though rather than the troublesome fade felt on the Jetta and GTI, the Eos’s stoppers simply shuddered under hard braking.

Visibility
Soft top convertibles offer notoriously poor visibility, but hard tops usually provide some improvement. Despite its hard top, the 2007 Volkswagen Eos falls about mid pack. Problems include a short windshield that’s further limited by a square rearview mirror that drivers have to actually look around at times, large front head restraints which limit the side view, and large non-adjustable rear head restraints that work with wide rear pillars to squash the benefits of a relatively large rear window. Side mirrors are adequate, but only designers would complain about them growing in size. To its credit, the Eos lacks a B-pillar, meaning there’s only glass from the A- to D-pillars that, if not for the aforementioned head restraints, would provide for impressive over-the-shoulder viewing.

Fun to Drive
Call it the warped view of a single 30-something male, but one of our editors views the current crop of turbocharged VWs as the automotive equivalent to the perfect woman. At the heart is a lively, fun, and desirable 200-horsepower engine, preferably mated to a slick six-speed manual transmission, all of which is surrounded by quality materials. The fact that this little bundle of joy can be dressed up as a sport hatch, a civilized sedan or wagon, and now a stylish drop top, makes it all the more appealing. Kind of like that woman who’s up for a day at the beach, a night on the town, or a dinner with the ‘rents. The Eos is more than fun to drive – it’s fun in general.