RE: Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport: Driven

RE: Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport: Driven

Author
Discussion

Guvernator

13,105 posts

164 months

Wednesday 25th November 2015
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Dapster said:
VW know what they're doing here and presumably anything "more Clubsport" ie no nav, no rear seat, perspex windows, harnesses etc is either totally off brand and therefore a non starter, or research shows would deter customers.

It doesn't need to be THAT hardcore, they can keep nav as it weights nothing and loosing the rear seats on a practical hot hatch is always a stupid idea IMO. What they could have done is lost a bit of weight elsewhere, say 50-100kgs, maybe add a few trick carbon bits, add a proper lsd and remap it to move the powerband up a bit to give it some more useful fizz at the top end of the rev range. Would transform a pretty dull car to something that was bit more exciting, hell I'd even consider buying one if they'd done that and that's from someone who finds the current Golf very bland.

arkenphel

484 posts

204 months

Wednesday 25th November 2015
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At the end of the day, this is still a contrived derivative to slot in under the R. For that reason alone, I'm not as big a fan as I should be.

Quhet

Original Poster:

2,409 posts

145 months

Wednesday 25th November 2015
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andrewparker said:
Quhet said:
All that talk of the seats and we don't get a picture.
I am disapoint.
There's a picture of the seats for me...

Quite surprised they're doing a 5 door in this. Still not quite sure why you wouldn't choose an R though.
I'm sure there wasn't one when I posted confusedpaperbag

Mojocvh

16,837 posts

261 months

Wednesday 25th November 2015
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How well do the headlights work when in the face of oncoming traffic in dipped beam on a wet and dirty Norfolk B road at speed?

These things mark the usable from the merely mundane ..

simundo777

131 posts

170 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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I'm on the fence with this one, I like some of the styling tweaks but on the darker colours more otherwise I think they stand out too much.

A cop out to stick the R wheels on it though (forged wheels available) but I bet most people will want the bigger 19" option.

As an R owner I'm sure it will match it for pace, a chunky weight saving and pretty much identical output.

If I knew there was a 5 door available (which I hadn't realised) then would I have waited for this? Not sure personally, I like that the R is a bit more "grown up" and certainly in this time of year the AWD is priceless.

Want those seats and steering wheel though!

British Beef

2,191 posts

164 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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Ali_T said:
Can't help think the Focus RS has made this irrelevant before it even goes on sale.
My thoughts exactly, no brainer if it was my £30k.

Kenny Powers

2,618 posts

126 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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But is it not nice to have the choice of both?

Or should there only be one car on sale?

williamp

19,213 posts

272 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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Kenny Powers said:
But is it not nice to have the choice of both?

Or should there only be one car on sale?
No, but now with VW I wonder if they are telling the truth......

bigvanfan

378 posts

131 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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if vw make the recaro seats an option then I'm out, as it will be right on golf r, rs focus price, I have those seats In my mk5 and they are the best part of the car, I really thought this was the one but I'm not so sure now

MB 1

523 posts

184 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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That is a seriously ugly car, devoid of any styling....

andrewparker

7,900 posts

186 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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MB 1 said:
That is a seriously ugly car, devoid of any styling....
You're going to tell us the Focus RS is better looking now, or the Megane, A45, M135i....

None of these cars hit the mark visually for me. They all have love it or hate it quirks.

chedixon

94 posts

207 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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aka_kerrly said:
If you look at the relative prices of previous anniversary model Golfs you will see people are prepared to spend a premium to have a limited edition.

It's a shame that VW have toned down the "clubsport" aspect of this car as I would wager that the majority of owners will be intent on keeping them completely original.

I'd have preferred to see no rear seats, a mechanical slip diff & brembos
But surely if its more expensive to buy in the first place you'd expect a similair premium to buy second hand.

It does seem a missed opportunity IMHO, sure they will sell though, just think the opportunity was there to make something genuinely special. Better to have more choice than less though but I'd just go for an R at that price point.

Jam12321

164 posts

109 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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Aw how disappointing is that! First vw I have talked about in a while, thought it was a chance for vw to show they can still make exciting cars. What a waste, why bother at all..


epom

11,398 posts

160 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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First things first. This will sell out regardless of what its like.
Thats very nice, only two exhaust pipes thankfully. It looks good, the seats look great as do the rear spoiler and the wheel. Other than that not a whole pile of difference. I like it, not in a position to buy one so doesn't bother me too much. Power wise it will be ok, the standard GTI seemingly does well with less.

HJMS123

988 posts

132 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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andrewparker said:
I'd have felt totally different had they just called it an Edition 40, instead of this Clubsport nonsense. Still think it looks great though.
Agreed

Andy665

3,599 posts

227 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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Whilst I like it I cannot help thinking it was a missed opportunity

Rather than filling a gap between regular GTi and R they should have gone off at a tangent and lived up to its name - lighter, harder, more compromised - it would still be a sell out but would offer something fundamentally different to whats already on offer from the GTi and R

Dr G

15,159 posts

241 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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I think it would have been nice if they really had taken it a step further but I guess VW as always didn't want to do anything to stop people buying them - look at the problem Renault had shifting R26-Rs frown

Interestingly, the front brake setup doesn't look silly expensive to retrofit:

Calipers 349.23+VAT ea
Discs 191.60+VAT ea
Hoses 76.90+VAT ea
Pads 222.83+VAT/set
Sensor 6.66+VAT

That's about 1500 quid+VAT in bits, maybe another 50-100 for bolts and minor brackets/clips.

I couldn't find a price quickly for a Golf 7 but Brembo's GT kit for the Golf 6 is about 3 grand...

Carlique

1,630 posts

163 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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I'd like to see how much faster it actually is than a regular GTI (with performance pack) also on the Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s. Not much I suspect?

Also s mentioned, it's really just a nice trim-package and shouldn't be called 'Clubsport', but rather should be Edition 40 to celebrate it's** birthday.

With the well know abundance of R's soon to be flooding the market, I'm sure there are great deals to be had on new R's from VW, realistically making it a hard case to actually buy a clubsport over an R. Especially if VW make the seats an available option for the R too going forward, which I also can see the doing.

Ursicles

1,068 posts

241 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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GreatGranny said:
Great looking car IMO and an alternative to the R if you don't want 4WD.
If you also want a slower car for only £1k less.

The only people collecting these will be those believing the marketing.

C70R

17,596 posts

103 months

Thursday 26th November 2015
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A 1.4 tonne automatic hatchback is apparently now "Clubsport". Interesting branding exercise...