“The appeal of that Avalon is diesel-like mileage on regular unleaded, in a big comfortable car with a leather interior, nothing penalty box about it but Corolla economy.”
I must have missed something, we went from the Subaru to an Avalon. Do they get 40 mpg? I’d be interested as the Jetta is a bit confining. BTW, if you do get one you’ll want the 6 speed DSG transmission, which is awesome. It shifts exactly like I would if I had a clutch, but you’d wear yourself out self-shifting a diesel car. With the 6 speed it performs as well as most V8’s I’ve driven. I couldn’t live with 20 mpg, which is what my Marauder got before they put alcohol in the gas. At $4/gallon it cost me $15 to drive into town and back.
An Avalon hybrid has been available since 2013. They’re rated 40 mpg city, 39 highway on regular unleaded. Nice cars, have ridden in them and have taken a liking. The last car I bought was the Subaru GT wagon, I was considering the Jetta Sportwagen TDI at the time as well.