Golf Mk5 GT TSI 170
Discussion
A good friend of mine looked long and hard at these.
In the end everyone (including a well respected local VW specialist who would've had the job of looking after it) told him to avoid them due to the complexity of the engine. He drove one and thought it OK but nothing more.
He ended up with a mk5 GTI and couldn't be happier.
In the end everyone (including a well respected local VW specialist who would've had the job of looking after it) told him to avoid them due to the complexity of the engine. He drove one and thought it OK but nothing more.
He ended up with a mk5 GTI and couldn't be happier.
Yes, the engine is complex and but nothing that a reasonably competent indy couldn't deal with. I have owned mine since new in 2007 and it is now coming up to 150k miles. It still goes like a rocket, handles well on decent tyres, averages over 40 mpg, uses no oil between services and everything still works including the aircon. Due to the mileage it is now probably worth much less than £3,000 so I intend keeping it until it dies, and it could easily reach 200k or 250k miles.
Problems I have had include:
Synchro on 2nd gear - replaced under warranty at 59k miles
Coked up inlet manifold (at around 75k miles and again at 120k miles)
Diverter valve
Timing chain (at around 120k miles)
Supercharger clutch (exchange part includes new water pump)
ABS module
New front wings (currently being replaced by VW at no cost under 12 year warranty)
So not entirely trouble free, and certainly not a GTI, but a quick, economical, practical daily driver. A week ago I was touring Holland and Belgium in it and it ran faultlessly. How many other 150k mile cars would you trust for touring Europe?
Problems I have had include:
Synchro on 2nd gear - replaced under warranty at 59k miles
Coked up inlet manifold (at around 75k miles and again at 120k miles)
Diverter valve
Timing chain (at around 120k miles)
Supercharger clutch (exchange part includes new water pump)
ABS module
New front wings (currently being replaced by VW at no cost under 12 year warranty)
So not entirely trouble free, and certainly not a GTI, but a quick, economical, practical daily driver. A week ago I was touring Holland and Belgium in it and it ran faultlessly. How many other 150k mile cars would you trust for touring Europe?
These actually seem more solid than the EU5 160PS version fitted to the MK6 Golf but as above are still with their problems.
If you can find one like sprialp's that's been well looked after and had all the weak components replaced then it's not a bad buy. However an abused example with more previous owners than stamps in the service books will likely throw up some big bills.
A GTI is a safer bet but it means either buying slightly older or paying slightly more. 1.4 TSI with a good warranty could be the answer.
If you can find one like sprialp's that's been well looked after and had all the weak components replaced then it's not a bad buy. However an abused example with more previous owners than stamps in the service books will likely throw up some big bills.
A GTI is a safer bet but it means either buying slightly older or paying slightly more. 1.4 TSI with a good warranty could be the answer.
Hi, thanks for your replies.
Much as I like the gti I'm a bit loathed to go for one reading about the real world mpg figures. The golf will be replacing a Discovery TD5 as our second car, so fuel economy wise it will be frying pan and fire.
Cheers spiralp for your feedback. Plenty of problems but obviously hasn't hacked you off enough to sell. You mention 40mpg, what kind of driving is this based on?
Regards to warranties, will a decent one cover the potential faults with the engine and gearbox?
Much as I like the gti I'm a bit loathed to go for one reading about the real world mpg figures. The golf will be replacing a Discovery TD5 as our second car, so fuel economy wise it will be frying pan and fire.
Cheers spiralp for your feedback. Plenty of problems but obviously hasn't hacked you off enough to sell. You mention 40mpg, what kind of driving is this based on?
Regards to warranties, will a decent one cover the potential faults with the engine and gearbox?
A couple of my friends have Discovery TD5s and my GTI gets better economy every time! Although I only get mid-20s arround town, on longer journeys it gets up to mid-30s easily and you can average 40mpg on the motorway obeying the speed limits on cruise control. Certainly get more smiles per gallon than I did with the 1.4 TSI it replaced anyway 
Rooty,
We live in rural Lincolnshire so mainly A and B roads, with a couple motorway drives to to Yorkshire each week. We have also made regular trips to Scotland, Wales and London together with a few continental trips (Paris, Spa, Nurburgring, Holland, etc), which is how we have managed to clock up 150k miles in 7 years. We are both retired and hence do very little urban commuting, but it seems quite economical when we do use it in town. Keep the speed down to 60mph or below and it is easy to get 40mpg, and there is one long stretch of A road where we regularly average up to 50mpg. However, if you go much over 80mph then the consumption will fall. Push it hard and it will drop to the low 30's. As a comparison we were loaned a brand new Polo 1 litre bluemotion while the Golf's wings were being repaired. The Polo has the performance of a grumpy slug, but only averaged 50 mpg. So the Golf achieves 10mpg less than the Polo with me driving on the same roads, but has around 100bhp more.
We live in rural Lincolnshire so mainly A and B roads, with a couple motorway drives to to Yorkshire each week. We have also made regular trips to Scotland, Wales and London together with a few continental trips (Paris, Spa, Nurburgring, Holland, etc), which is how we have managed to clock up 150k miles in 7 years. We are both retired and hence do very little urban commuting, but it seems quite economical when we do use it in town. Keep the speed down to 60mph or below and it is easy to get 40mpg, and there is one long stretch of A road where we regularly average up to 50mpg. However, if you go much over 80mph then the consumption will fall. Push it hard and it will drop to the low 30's. As a comparison we were loaned a brand new Polo 1 litre bluemotion while the Golf's wings were being repaired. The Polo has the performance of a grumpy slug, but only averaged 50 mpg. So the Golf achieves 10mpg less than the Polo with me driving on the same roads, but has around 100bhp more.
Rooty,
I should add that I have virtually always used 98/99 octane fuel (usually Shell V-Power). This has the twin benefits of slightly better fuel consumption (or more performance if you are inclined) and it keeps the engine cleaner. Of course it costs 8ppl more than regular 95 octane.
I should add that I have virtually always used 98/99 octane fuel (usually Shell V-Power). This has the twin benefits of slightly better fuel consumption (or more performance if you are inclined) and it keeps the engine cleaner. Of course it costs 8ppl more than regular 95 octane.
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