The early Scirocco is a true coupe with lithe handling and a perky high revving engine whatever the capacity, the 1500cc TS is a scream and revs round the scale with ease, later fuel injected models also scream but arrive at top speed so much quicker.

You lie back in a Mark 1 and rear passenger space is sacrificed to allow even 6 foot drivers to be accommodated in its low slung driving position.

With the Mark 2, some say Volkswagen lost the true identity of the Scirocco and this is not revealed when comparing raw data or where to look for rust; it only becomes apparent when you drive one.

Gone are the coupe attributes present by the bucket load in the Mark 1, hatchback practicalities abound instead. There is physically lots more space and rear seat passengers are no longer squashed in as an afterthought, the dash is more pronounced and not broken by the silver trimming used in the early models. The low slung seating position is still present and generally seats are sporting body huggers in what is a markedly faster car than the Mark 1 yet it feels slower.

Generally neither car is bad and the Mark 2 is not worse (or better) than the previous incarnation its just that their names and the underpinnings are the same, in most other respects they are very different vehicles.