RE: VW Golf R vs. its own hype
Discussion
Just read all the comments, been baffled by some comments from people who clearly haven't driven one of these cars for an extended period or others who I assume have come from a less than exhilarating ownership background. However, there have been some (more balanced) comments which I completely agree with.
For what it's worth, I've got a 2015 3dr Golf R in red with a manual gearbox and here is a brief list of what I've found over the first 5000 miles I've done in it...
- Pace; it IS a punchy car... even without the 'magical fast' DSG gearbox that >90% of them seem to be, it pulls cleanly from 2500ish right round to 6000ish and has gone onto to an indicated 160+ when the situation has legally allowed it to do so.
- Standard Equipment; very well specified as standard and has stuff you pay extra for in rivals.
- Looks; it looks sportier than lower spec models, yet understated enough not to attract unwanted attention... obviously not quite sporty enough for some and I'd prefer twin oval backboxes like an Audi RS car than the four small ovals.
- Gearbox; there was zero chance of me getting a DSG, after a horrific automatic car had just left my life. The manual gearchanges are very easy and precise even when pushing on and it's a nice shift action too which encourages you to use it.
- Drive; it's a very competent car that is very easily adjusted to your seating/set up preferences. It's far more than another boring VAG offering; without any driver aids enabled, is able to be adjusted to a degree in the bends using the throttle which provides a certain amount of fun and excitement... but 4-wheel drifts and smokey donuts/burnouts aren't in this cars repertoire.
- Ride; mine came with the standard dampers and 18" alloys and while it is more firm than a 'normal' car, it's by far more comfortable than the rival cars I've driven. While pushing on, this ride never threatens to skip you off the road nor have you cornering on the door handles either.. there is a degree of body roll, but it never threatens to get out of hand and grip limits aren't close to being exceeded... even at serious speeds. I've recently switched to a set of 19" BBS wheels and haven't noticed any real deterioration to the ride/performance.
I knew that I'd like the car, but I am really into it. Historically I get itchy feet after a few months and change my cars on a regular basis... but I'm not even considering the Golf's departure, which says a lot for it.
Cheers,
Grant
For what it's worth, I've got a 2015 3dr Golf R in red with a manual gearbox and here is a brief list of what I've found over the first 5000 miles I've done in it...
- Pace; it IS a punchy car... even without the 'magical fast' DSG gearbox that >90% of them seem to be, it pulls cleanly from 2500ish right round to 6000ish and has gone onto to an indicated 160+ when the situation has legally allowed it to do so.
- Standard Equipment; very well specified as standard and has stuff you pay extra for in rivals.
- Looks; it looks sportier than lower spec models, yet understated enough not to attract unwanted attention... obviously not quite sporty enough for some and I'd prefer twin oval backboxes like an Audi RS car than the four small ovals.
- Gearbox; there was zero chance of me getting a DSG, after a horrific automatic car had just left my life. The manual gearchanges are very easy and precise even when pushing on and it's a nice shift action too which encourages you to use it.
- Drive; it's a very competent car that is very easily adjusted to your seating/set up preferences. It's far more than another boring VAG offering; without any driver aids enabled, is able to be adjusted to a degree in the bends using the throttle which provides a certain amount of fun and excitement... but 4-wheel drifts and smokey donuts/burnouts aren't in this cars repertoire.
- Ride; mine came with the standard dampers and 18" alloys and while it is more firm than a 'normal' car, it's by far more comfortable than the rival cars I've driven. While pushing on, this ride never threatens to skip you off the road nor have you cornering on the door handles either.. there is a degree of body roll, but it never threatens to get out of hand and grip limits aren't close to being exceeded... even at serious speeds. I've recently switched to a set of 19" BBS wheels and haven't noticed any real deterioration to the ride/performance.
I knew that I'd like the car, but I am really into it. Historically I get itchy feet after a few months and change my cars on a regular basis... but I'm not even considering the Golf's departure, which says a lot for it.
Cheers,
Grant
Don't know if anyone has read Dan Prosser's Fast Fleet report in this month's EVO but he met Karsten Schebsdat (VW Vehicle Dynamics Engineer, responsible for Mk1 Focus, Porsche 997 GT2, GT3 (3.8) and Mk7 Golf R) on the Clubsport launch and asked him about what spec he'd go for and he said that the best spec for the Mk7 R is on 19 inch wheels with DCC. He says the 19" wheels in comfort mode gives a better ride than 18s with passive dampers.
No car is 100% perfect which will please everyone all of the time.
Like someone else posted earlier, you pay your money and make your choice.
I have a Golf R Estate and for me it is the perfect car.
Some may find it boring, lacking the noise of a larger cyclinder car with bland looks , but there are other cars which offer these things and may lack in areas where the Golf R excels.
My criteria was performance, traction & space and the Golf R Estate is unbeatable for under £50k.
Like someone else posted earlier, you pay your money and make your choice.
I have a Golf R Estate and for me it is the perfect car.
Some may find it boring, lacking the noise of a larger cyclinder car with bland looks , but there are other cars which offer these things and may lack in areas where the Golf R excels.
My criteria was performance, traction & space and the Golf R Estate is unbeatable for under £50k.
nickfrog said:
Great post Grant, thanks. Refreshing to have a bit of balance indeed - passive dampers and manual would also have been my choice if I had one - surprised by the bigger wheels though, but I like small wheels...
Really? Reads like a fairly normal defending/justifying current steed post to me & comments around prior car history are never positive. Fair enough in some senses, but will always lack balance.
Having said that, were it not for some personal preferences and certain concerns, I wouldn't be against having one. I do keep thinking about it as an impending option, but can't get over those hurdles.
Why are people so keen to piss on other people's chips about this car? There seems to be lots of people willing to tell owners that their fast, shiny new car that they are rightfully proud of is actually rubbish. I assume you wouldn't do that in real life to strangers, why not suck it in and compliment them on buying a nice car?
Am pretty surprised by the amount of hate this car is seeming to attract.....
It is a brilliant all round driving tool - emphasis being on the "all round". I have a manual five door that has had a modest remap so it's fast enough to be interesting and a very capable any weather car. We use it as a multi purpose family wagon and I think it's a great car for us. It does not pretend to be the ultimate track car or last word in feel but nevertheless it's a really fun drive - the grip, traction and cornering ability is terrific for a hatchback. When it is tipping down or there are slippy roads the surefootedness of the car is very impressive. Interior is a pleasant place to be and well screwed together. I agree standard wheels look awful but I went for the upgraded alloys and think, in black and in 5 door, I think it is a understated but handsome car. I don't drive it for the sheer hell of it, I have something else for that, but if I could only have one compact car for c£30k that ticked a large number of boxes , I would have one over its competitors.
If people are able to lease one for a great price, good for them!
It is a brilliant all round driving tool - emphasis being on the "all round". I have a manual five door that has had a modest remap so it's fast enough to be interesting and a very capable any weather car. We use it as a multi purpose family wagon and I think it's a great car for us. It does not pretend to be the ultimate track car or last word in feel but nevertheless it's a really fun drive - the grip, traction and cornering ability is terrific for a hatchback. When it is tipping down or there are slippy roads the surefootedness of the car is very impressive. Interior is a pleasant place to be and well screwed together. I agree standard wheels look awful but I went for the upgraded alloys and think, in black and in 5 door, I think it is a understated but handsome car. I don't drive it for the sheer hell of it, I have something else for that, but if I could only have one compact car for c£30k that ticked a large number of boxes , I would have one over its competitors.
If people are able to lease one for a great price, good for them!
andrewparker said:
This is Pistonheads. It's a Volkswagen.
I think there are a few reasons,Has driven some serious kit, its a bit meh after a Hurracan perhaps
Sick of hearing about it off non petrolheads and the general hype, its a kind of a cheap shortcut to having a properly fast and capable car
Got blitzed by one
Would secretly like one, but cant really afford one,
I'd happily have one as a daily... provided I have something more fun/tactile in the garage for weekends. If I were forced to own a single car, I don't think this would be it. Nor the Audi. What I can't understand is people who have the money/time for two cars being content to spend £30k on this one alone. As good as it is, it's not that good.
MDUBZ said:
alock said:
I always find comments like this odd? How do you know what the other person is thinking? Are you just having a race with yourself and like to pretend someone else was racing you?
It's called Emotional Intelligence (EI), and some are better than others at it: you can generally read someones emotions by their facial expressions; it's clearly not an exact science: The surprised/puzzled look on the face could have been caused by something other than the fact it's a golf going past at pace?acme said:
As compared to the Mk4 I understand your comments re exterior, it really did look different to the regular Golf's of the time, and the wheels were superb - the standard ones on the R look awful in my eyes, which is odd as I think the standard ones on the GTI look great.
Having extensively driven 6 cylinder cars they really do have something over 4 pots, I'm afraid in that sense the R simply can't compare - would be interesting to hear from anyone who's had both R and M125i/M235i how they now feel about this, especially if driven a lot as a daily??
As for interior, the MK4 was so solid, the MK5 I had whilst ergonomically pleasing was a major step back in quality. I have to say 26k/15 months in and I really rate the MK7 interior, pretty much perfect in my eyes.
I extensively drove the 7R before deciding on my M135i.Having extensively driven 6 cylinder cars they really do have something over 4 pots, I'm afraid in that sense the R simply can't compare - would be interesting to hear from anyone who's had both R and M125i/M235i how they now feel about this, especially if driven a lot as a daily??
As for interior, the MK4 was so solid, the MK5 I had whilst ergonomically pleasing was a major step back in quality. I have to say 26k/15 months in and I really rate the MK7 interior, pretty much perfect in my eyes.
The Golf is a great car. It's weakest point is that it has just four cylinders.
I fully understand why VW did this, but driving the little BMW every day, reminds me that you just cannot ignore the wonderful engine.
SDK said:
My criteria was performance, traction & space and the Golf R Estate is unbeatable for under £50k.
£50k you say and an Estate? I'd honestly be in one of these....http://www.evo.co.uk/bmw/3-series-touring/16640/bm...
V8A*ndy said:
SDK said:
My criteria was performance, traction & space and the Golf R Estate is unbeatable for under £50k.
£50k you say and an Estate? I'd honestly be in one of these....http://www.evo.co.uk/bmw/3-series-touring/16640/bm...
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