I had one of the VW diesels with the cheat. VW bought it back from me, and I bought another VW station wagon. To avoid VW, I would have had to purchase an SUV or CUV. VW is the only company selling a reasonably priced station wagon in the U.S.
My Subaru Outback is technically a station wagon, even if it resembles a SUV. The significant differences are fuel economy (+3 MPG for the Outback), headroom (+0.6" for the Forester), cargo capacity (+1.4 cubic feet for the Forester), and size (+1.7" width/+8" length for the Outback). Surprisingly, the Outback can also tow a heavier trailer (2700 lbs).
Eh? I'm owner (EU) of 2012' Golf TDI, which has the defeat device. I was offered €50 voucher for accepting the stage 1 "fix" VW started implementing.