Letters.(Letter to the Editor)

Driving skill and pleasure

Steve Thompson explained eloquently why driving a Golf TDI can be so much fun (Dancing with a Diesel, AW, March 3). As a young man in Germany in the early '60s, driving a 34-hp Volkswagen taught you how to use your available power wisely. Keeping the accelerator depressed fully and for as long as possible, and using brakes as sparingly as possible made for a fluid driving style. I applied these lessons to all the cars I've owned since, some with plenty of power. My new Golf TDI, however, brought back wonderful memories and made my early lessons all the more valuable.

Ted Perlinger, via e-mail

It's about the pleasure of using less to do more at any speed, driving slow cars fast, or just cruising and still doing everything smoothly, progressively. I agree with Steve: Most people prefer the easy to the difficult, and cannot understand how rewarding shifting properly can be.

R. Schiesser, Grand Rapids, Mich.

Readers pile on TrailBlazer

Fifty days in the shop? That sounds about right for a General Motors product (Chevy TrailBlazer Wrap-Up, AW, March 24). Rick Wagoner needs to hire someone who knows how to buy quality components instead of beating suppliers down to get the cheapest price, and someone who knows how to screw vehicles together right the first time!