Route 50 is one of those drives that makes summer in Clarksburg worth it, winding past Jane Lew, Salem, and on toward Parkersburg with plenty of scenery and not a lot of cell signal along the way. But a long highway drive in summer heat is exactly the kind of trip that puts tires to…
There’s nothing quite like a fall drive through the Alleghenies, with Route 33 winding toward Elkins or the long descent off Laurel Mountain opening up into a valley view that makes the whole trip worth it. But the same grades that make these drives memorable also put serious strain on your brakes, and a brake…
US-50 between Clarksburg and Grafton, the climbs along WV-20, and the hairpin turns winding through the hills surrounding Bridgeport are exactly the kind of roads that make a Golf R or GTI worth owning. Skipping the Golf R’s scheduled differential fluid service doesn’t show up as a warning light, it shows up years later as…
The ID. Buzz is unlike anything else in the Volkswagen Clarksburg lineup, and that starts with what’s underneath it. A 91-kWh battery pack sits low in the chassis, and depending on configuration, the all-wheel-drive 4MOTION model produces 335 horsepower and can tow up to 3,500 pounds. That low-mounted mass improves stability and handling, but it…
The roads around Clarksburg and Bridgeport are not easy on drivetrains. US-50 between Clarksburg and Grafton winds through narrow elevation changes and wooded curves that load and unload the AWD system with every bend. Secondary roads throughout Harrison County add potholes, gravel, and off-camber surfaces that put the 4MOTION system to work in ways it…
The VW Taos is one of the more capable compact SUVs in its class, but its 1.5-liter turbocharged engine comes with a non-negotiable requirement that a surprising number of owners overlook: the oil that goes into it must carry the VW 508 00 specification. Using the wrong oil in this engine is not a minor…
Last month, a 2020 VW Atlas came in with severely warped front rotors and glazed brake pads after a summer of mountain driving around Clarksburg. The owner had been riding the brakes on every descent, never once using the Tiptronic manual mode available on the shifter. After repeated heat cycles on routes like Stealey Road…
Last month, a VW Atlas came into our service bay two days before a planned trip to Spruce Knob. The owner had noticed a slight shimmy at highway speeds but figured it was nothing serious. After pulling the wheels, we found a badly worn rear differential mount, low transfer case fluid, and two tires with…
A Volkswagen Taos owner came into our service bay last month after a ticking noise had developed during his morning commute on I-79 northbound between the Bridgeport interchange and the Morgantown exits. He had been using a full synthetic oil that met a general API rating but carried a viscosity grade that was outside Volkswagen’s…
A Volkswagen Arteon owner came into our showroom last month after reading about the ID.7’s arrival in the US market and wanting to understand whether a premium electric sedan was a realistic choice for his driving pattern, which included a daily I-79 commute between Bridgeport and Morgantown, regular US-50 runs toward Parkersburg, and a monthly…
