Used Golf R / GTI / S3 .. worth the hassle?

[anonymous-user]

I’ve been a big fan of the Golf R Mk7 since it came out .. I love the looks and peformance. I even got as far as contacting my local VW dealer to try and get a build spot but then I realised I’m not interested in PCP or leasing, so it would be a bit of a waste.. and theres’s the other problem.

I’m paranoid about getting it stolen. Especially if it’s a brand spanking new 67 reg model. Reminds me of the old Sierra Cossie, Lotus Carlton thefts in the 80’s and 90’s.

Would buying a used model be a good choice or are they still plagued with thefts? 64 plate etc.
The car will be used 20,000 miles per year. Commuting to Essex , spends 75 % of time in a secure car park surrounded by hundreds of other company cars. The rest of the time will be split between a N. London neighbourhood (reasonably quiet), and a quiet Watford residential area.
I spend at most 15 weeks away for work , where the car will be stored unguarded on drive, no other cars, by empty house looked after by neighbours. Excluding family holidays as well.

I’m not interested in the M135i, it doesn’t win me over, and personally I find the S3 bland.


Or would a better choice be buying a 17 reg GTI, as the Mark 7.5 model is out. This car looks smart; £26,000

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201...


I currently drive an Audi A6 quattro. I know a Golf is a bit small (I have 3 kids) but I’m certain on buying something a bit more fun, smaller and newer

My other options are

C63
BMW M3
Audi S6 V10
Audi RS6 C6
Mitsubishi Evo X

I don’t give a st about fuel. I already do 20,000 miles in a 12 mpg Audi - 25 mpg is great to me.
Is the newer Golf worth it over those, and is the Golf R really that much of a theft magnet?

Edited by anonymous-user on Friday 20th October 00:14

Edited by anonymous-user on Friday 20th October 00:14

[DeolTheBeast]

Quite a difference between a Golf GTI / R and a C63 (as well as some of your alternative options) ... personally something like a C63 would be far more appealing as a "do it all" car ... especially since economy isn't a major criteria for yourself.

[Ructions]

26 grand for a second hand Golf, there’s wiser eating grass.

Cayman or Boxster would be my choice at that price and they don’t seem to attract the attention of ram raiders.

[anonymous-user]

Ructions said:

26 grand for a second hand Golf, there’s wiser eating grass.

Cayman or Boxster would be my choice at that price and they don’t seem to attract the attention of ram raiders.

Cayman is nice but I guess it would be a toy. Maybe Cayman + shed is another choice.

Do GTI values fall off a cliff? I thought they held money pretty well.


Is Panamera a good choice ?

[anonymous-user]

DeolTheBeast said:

Quite a difference between a Golf GTI / R and a C63 (as well as some of your alternative options) ... personally something like a C63 would be far more appealing as a "do it all" car ... especially since economy isn't a major criteria for yourself.

Love the C63, but isn’t it a scrote magnet?

[gr8jon]

sleepera6 said:

Is Panamera a good choice ?

Only available with 4 seats if that's important (with 3 kids) aside from the new Panamera Sport Turismo (estate).

We have a 7.5 GTi and while its an excellent car, its nothing like a C63. Also the GTi has been available for sub £24k new so not sure I'd pay £26k for a used one (and is usually cheap).

[ZX10R NIN]

Buy the car you want if it gets stolen then deal with it, either that or go & buy a Kia C'eed GT.

[ToothbrushMan]

is it still the must have car though by the scumbags, druggy dealers and general low lifes of the UK? if it is then wait for a while and then something else will sle come along and that will be the next flavour of the month motor to nick........I say just buy what you want. chances are your heart is already telling your head to "do one"!

does the colour make any odds to theft rates? are the white cars (or reds?) at more risk than say a black or a dark grey?

[anonymous-user]

ToothbrushMan said:

is it still the must have car though by the scumbags, druggy dealers and general low lifes of the UK? if it is then wait for a while and then something else will sle come along and that will be the next flavour of the month motor to nick........I say just buy what you want. chances are your heart is already telling your head to "do one"!

does the colour make any odds to theft rates? are the white cars (or reds?) at more risk than say a black or a dark grey?

Black, grey and blue most stolen.

I’m currently looking at 730 bhp RS6’s instead

[DukeDickson]

Unless money is an irrelevance, you could get a Mk7 PP for a lot less. Pre-facelift, but is a slightly bigger & nicer media thing and digital dash really worth @ 5k. That's discounting the 'leather', which by all accounts is ste on VWs. Lots of pleather included for a rather strident premium.


Add a couple of grand or so to the price of that and you'd be in non S Clubsport territory, which would be a far better choice IMHO. A 3dr manual parked nowhere specific is probably far better on the disappearing front than a 5dr R, as well as being so much more not a £200 pm lease special, while being every bit as quick in the dry.

[JordanM200]

You find the M135i bland, yet are considering a VW Golf?

The Golf R (Mk7.5) is probably the most dullest and disappointed I have ever felt about a car. So boring.

[anonymous-user]

JordanM200 said:

You find the M135i bland, yet are considering a VW Golf?

The Golf R (Mk7.5) is probably the most dullest and disappointed I have ever felt about a car. So boring.

Engine aside the Golf is easily the better car.

[JordanM200]

andrewparker said:

Engine aside the Golf is easily the better car.

Each to their own, I personally do not agree. For me, the M135i, and my current M140i feel in a different league. The Golf handles well, but with that comes boredom. It's just dull. I had read good reviews on it, and got in it expecting it to impress me, but it was the opposite. The little 2.0 4 pot just seems to run out of puff very early in my opinion. Makes me appreciate the 140 even more.

[culpz]

sleepera6 said:

I’m currently looking at 730 bhp RS6’s instead

Sorry to burst your bubble but they're well known for getting nicked aswell, regardless of the model.

4WD, inconspicuous and alot of power is generally what these scumbags are after.

It's up to you whether you're willing to take the risk on or not. It may get stolen, it may not.

[pembo]

Get a 3dr Golf R in Turmeric Yellow.
If you want one I'd imagine that would be the least likely to get stolen.
(I would chose the yellow or red anyway as I quite like them)

[Jonno02]

JordanM200 said:

Each to their own, I personally do not agree. For me, the M135i, and my current M140i feel in a different league. The Golf handles well, but with that comes boredom. It's just dull. I had read good reviews on it, and got in it expecting it to impress me, but it was the opposite. The little 2.0 4 pot just seems to run out of puff very early in my opinion. Makes me appreciate the 140 even more.

And the MASSIVE 3.0 6cyl BM keeps going forever into mach 5? If you run out of "puff" on a golf R, you're in license losing territory and custodial sentence. I cannot think of any real-word application where a car like an R would run out of puff. I don't have one by the way.

[JordanM200]

Jonno02 said:

And the MASSIVE 3.0 6cyl BM keeps going forever into mach 5? If you run out of "puff" on a golf R, you're in license losing territory and custodial sentence. I cannot think of any real-word application where a car like an R would run out of puff. I don't have one by the way.

Complete and utter crap. You can feel the lack of 'umph' in every gear, so no you don't have to be doing license losing speeds at all.

Above certain speed, the 1er pulls like a train and doesn't stop, as I say, different league.

[steve-5snwi]

I've driven the S3 and M135/235 and i wouldn't say the 2.0t is gutless, far from it. Out of the box they are pretty quick and quite torquey. They feel like a boosted 4 pot, the M135 feels very linear and if i'm honest doesn't feel quite as quick. Having said that i would take the BMW eveytime as its a more enjoyable car.

[DukeDickson]

Somewhere between 6-8 days out of 10, for most people, possibly almost everyone, a warmed up Golf is the better choice, all things considered. Especially if tied to M-Ways & what is happening with those. However, just occasionally, I'm sure the engine & rwd of the BM win the day.

I had the either/or, should have bought the BM, ended up with an in a hurry Golf and while some of me misses & still wants proper engine etc, on a daily not thinking too much basis, I struggle to justify spending the thick end of 5-10k on an admittedly faster and better sounding car that is an appreciably worse daily slog tool.

Live somewhere a bit more remote, different decision.

[JeS10]

GTI/R/S3 - they're all nicked every day. They nick them and use them for other crimes, stripped down, or shipped abroad. The minions nicking them get paid £800-£2000 per car and the guy at the top makes more and keeps his hands clean. S models, RS models, AMG models, M models. So, in short, they all get nicked, it's a burgeoning industry. So just put that out of your mind. If it gets stolen it gets stolen. You could always just leave it parked with the key in it and if someone wants to take it let them have it. I think that's the general consensus. I lease cars, so as far as I'm concerned it's not my car to have stolen - so my attitude might be different.

Is it uncool to say try them all out and buy which ever one you like the most? Or is that not how people do things any more?