Playing around with the Golf

[993kimbo]

I’d like a fast Mk5 DSG Golf, but having owned one previously, I (and wife) got tired
of the hard ride and uncomfortable front seats.

I reckon I have two options for my new Power with Comfort route and would welcome your thoughts.

1: Buy another GTi, change the wheels to 16’s, change the springs/shocks, seats to standard ones,
and get a stage one remap.

2: Buy a standard Golf 2.0tdi with the smaller wheels and comfier seats, and add
an exhaust, larger turbo, remap and whatever tuning gear I need to make it go.

Can’t do any of this myself so would have to pay a garage. Budget is not unlimited as it’s
mainly a weekender.

Thoughts welcome. Many Thanks.

[Al U]

My thoughts are that diesels have their place as commuting tools. As a dedicated weekend car? No way!

[M.F.D]

Is the GTI really that uncomfortable?

Buying a hot hatch for it's performance, then downgrading parts of it to make it comfortable seems wrong.

Surely you are better just getting something wafty with some grunt?

[blue_haddock]

One issue with buying a GTi and then putting 16s on it is the fact they may not even fit over the brakes.

[993kimbo]

M.F.D said:

Is the GTI really that uncomfortable?

Buying a hot hatch for it's performance, then downgrading parts of it to make it comfortable seems wrong.
Surely you are better just getting something wafty with some grunt?

The ride is pretty hard even on 17" wheels with decent tyres, and the seats are fairly sharp and grippy. It's a car you feel you have to go fast in all the time.

'Wafty' is good but usually means large and I want small/medium for nipping around.

Edited by 993kimbo on Thursday 17th March 09:25

[993kimbo]

blue_haddock said:

One issue with buying a GTi and then putting 16s on it is the fact they may not even fit over the brakes.

True. I'd increase the tyre profile then.

[Belle427]

The standard suspension is a little crashy and can be improved so I'd start there first.
I put a racing line spring and damper kit on my Edition 30 and it's a big improvement over standard.
Great for road use only but probably not suited for track work.

[993kimbo]

Edition 30 - that's with the bigger turbo isn't it? How does it go compared to standard?

Yes, crashy does describe the ride. Thanks for the damper tip.

[Maccles]

I had a 2008 Golf GT TDI and the seats were really comfy. In fact I found the whole car pretty comfortable, even after coming from a completely brilliant 2000 Passat. I got the Golf remapped and it was then really quick, acceleration from 30 to 70+ was great. I sold it with 178k miles and the new owner messaged me to say the turbo failed on him two weeks after he bought it from me - so wasn't as reliable as the Passat which I sold with 280k miles and never had any problems with.

I'd suggest trying a few different year Audi A3/S3s, and maybe a Skoda Octavia VRS (assuming you don't suffer from brand prejudice) as well as the Golf options.

[Belle427]

993kimbo said:

Edition 30 - that's with the bigger turbo isn't it? How does it go compared to standard?

Yes, crashy does describe the ride. Thanks for the damper tip.

Mine is Stage 1 so its night and day really, i dont have any experience of it as standard compared to my old Mk 5 Gti as i bought it like that.
Fantastic performance though and i never really feel the need to push it to enjoy it.

[Glosphil]

I had a 2012 Octavia vRS for 6 years. I only sold it because I could no longer put up with the harsh ride. The next generation didn't seem any better.

[ingenieur]

BMW and Mercedes both make small cars which are jointly fast and comfortable. Think 3-series / c-class. Both available as coupe

[Scootersp]

I did a mild form of this on my 645, went from (cracked) 19" ellipsiod alloys with run flats to 18's and non runflats. Ok you get more sidewall flex etc but I liked the overall change.

This reminds me of that high mileage porsche posted on here that was 'on stilts' a tad as the owner had wanted sort of the same as you.

Smaller wheels more profile and good tyre choice could see the wet weather performance improve, keep the original wheels and shod them with something grippy for a no compromise/track type setup? Best of both worlds?

[ZX10R NIN]

993kimbo said:

I’d like a fast Mk5 DSG Golf, but having owned one previously, I (and wife) got tired
of the hard ride and uncomfortable front seats.

I reckon I have two options for my new Power with Comfort route and would welcome your thoughts.

1: Buy another GTi, change the wheels to 16’s, change the springs/shocks, seats to standard ones,
and get a stage one remap.

2: Buy a standard Golf 2.0tdi with the smaller wheels and comfier seats, and add
an exhaust, larger turbo, remap and whatever tuning gear I need to make it go.

Can’t do any of this myself so would have to pay a garage. Budget is not unlimited as it’s
mainly a weekender.

Thoughts welcome. Many Thanks.

I'd look for a different car that can do what you're looking for from a car:

I think the Leon FR is the car that may be the car that actually suits your requirements, with a softer setup it may well be what you're looking for:

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202203053...

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202112310...

[993kimbo]

Thanks. I had never thought of one.

[georgeyboy12345]

Possibly one of these 8P Audi A3 3.2 FSI Quattro DSG's too - the wheels look a bit smaller, should have a softer setup than the equivalent VW Golf R32, which I think are slightly softer than a GTI anyway. Perhaps not the best example, but it's reasonably priced in this market. Maybe not quite as chuckable as you'd like given the V6 and AWD.

https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202111300...

Edited by georgeyboy12345 on Thursday 17th March 22:13

[993kimbo]

Thanks for that link. Looks interesting.