RE: Shed of the Week: Volkswagen Golf V6
Discussion
g7jhp said:
We've had a Mk4 Golf GTI 1.8T for 11 years (we also have a Mk5 GTI) and I love it. It's in great condition with a few age related scars, but it's not worth much.
It looks smart, is cheap motoring, swallows a fair bit of kit, is swift enough and we'll made.
I want to keep it looking standard but have been contemplating a few upgrades arbs, suspension, remap to make it a little more focused.
But that my detract from it's charm.
The Mk4 Golf is coming of age, watch the Mk4 scene grow.
I fitted an R32 front arb and a Whiteline rear arb to my Mk 1 Octavia VRS. Totally transformed it!It looks smart, is cheap motoring, swallows a fair bit of kit, is swift enough and we'll made.
I want to keep it looking standard but have been contemplating a few upgrades arbs, suspension, remap to make it a little more focused.
But that my detract from it's charm.
The Mk4 Golf is coming of age, watch the Mk4 scene grow.
had one a good few years ago,
fantastic cars if you make a few modifications,
this one had about £1500 spent on suspension and haldex controllers, then the same again on mapping induction and exhaust modifications.
with a decent 6 branch exhaust and minimal silencing they sound amazing.
want another one but it needs to be the same colour as my old one
fantastic cars if you make a few modifications,
this one had about £1500 spent on suspension and haldex controllers, then the same again on mapping induction and exhaust modifications.
with a decent 6 branch exhaust and minimal silencing they sound amazing.
want another one but it needs to be the same colour as my old one
I had a mulberry mk3 vr6 highline for 7 years and was going to upgrade to a 4 motion, it felt better car pottering around and a better put together car but didnt handle as well as i thought it should when pushed and after a few goes in one wasn't that keen as a whole package, it had odd handling, consumed tyres at a hefty rate and had the thirst of a v8 but without the go of even the 2.8 12v vr6 but the 200kg weight disadvantage blunted any extra power gained with the 24v engine....i would go for the R32 for 5k over the 4 motion for a grand, far far superior car for not a lot of money...
I had a mulberry mk3 vr6 highline for 7 years and was going to upgrade to a 4 motion, it felt better car pottering around and a better put together car but didnt handle as well as i thought it should when pushed and after a few goes in one wasn't that keen as a whole package, it had odd handling, consumed tyres at a hefty rate and had the thirst of a v8 but without the go of even the 2.8 12v vr6 but the 200kg weight disadvantage blunted any extra power gained with the 24v engine....i would go for the R32 for 5k over the 4 motion for a grand, far far superior car for not a lot of money...
angelicupstarts said:
had the vw bora version of this a few years back
the 2.8 v6 fwd is really quite a nice machine
was refferd to as the thinking mans subaru in some mags at the time .
the mk iv as others have mentioned gets slagged a bit ..quite a lot by peolple who have never driven them or had ropey old ones .
fact is they are a very tidy design , quite well built ....and have a better more timless look to them then some of vw latest efforts .
the concerns about petrol usage is usually your smallest problems when owning a car ..ive had big 1960,s mustangs with unstressed engines and drivetrains ..and cost me less to run then multi valve small cam cars .
anyway ... would be a cool fun car and for the price would be interested what the naysayers would recommend instead ??
ropey for price french and italian cars ?
2.8 A4 Quattro?the 2.8 v6 fwd is really quite a nice machine
was refferd to as the thinking mans subaru in some mags at the time .
the mk iv as others have mentioned gets slagged a bit ..quite a lot by peolple who have never driven them or had ropey old ones .
fact is they are a very tidy design , quite well built ....and have a better more timless look to them then some of vw latest efforts .
the concerns about petrol usage is usually your smallest problems when owning a car ..ive had big 1960,s mustangs with unstressed engines and drivetrains ..and cost me less to run then multi valve small cam cars .
anyway ... would be a cool fun car and for the price would be interested what the naysayers would recommend instead ??
ropey for price french and italian cars ?
Michelin cross climate tyres increase desirability a lot. I fitted a set to a FWD car recently and the difference is incredible in the cold and of course the snow today. Having them on something 4WD like this shed means it would be going past the snowploughs ! Honestly, having experienced them, I'd now prefer a 2WD car with cross climate tyres to a 4WD on summer tyres in the UK winter, even here, south of Birmingham.
Back to the shed, the tyres say a lot (of good stuff) about the previous owner and his attitude toward service and maintenance.
Experience of buying cars over the years has shown me you really can judge a car by its tyres. Non matching tyres on the same axle have always seemed wrong to me but the trend of fitting "budget" Chinese "Lucky Chicken" ditchfinders to performance cars is a disease that needs to be eradicated even in shed land.
Back to the shed, the tyres say a lot (of good stuff) about the previous owner and his attitude toward service and maintenance.
Experience of buying cars over the years has shown me you really can judge a car by its tyres. Non matching tyres on the same axle have always seemed wrong to me but the trend of fitting "budget" Chinese "Lucky Chicken" ditchfinders to performance cars is a disease that needs to be eradicated even in shed land.
Cover drive said:
I have one! I’d like to support the Mk4 V6 4motion cause. I’m aware it has its detractors, but for the money (less than the SOTW), it's provided genuine all weather capability, and excellent reliability. I bought my 2000-AUE in late 2013 after being made redundant and handing back the keys to my company car. I thought it would be an ideal cheap stop-gap while job hunting. But four years later and with 170k miles showing, (not all of that job hunting I should point out), it's still going strong, if a little worn around the edges. It's been my daily commuting companion, averaging around 34 mpg on my 120-mile round trip. It’s comfortable, understated, well built and is cheap to maintain. I do agree that it could be bit sharper in the handling department, but I’m not exactly attacking apexes on the commute! There are certainly more dynamic second hand cars out there, and a modern diesel Astra will embarass it on a slip road, as I regularly find out.
In December 2015 I bought a second set of alloys and some winter tyres, and it became a brilliant winter weather tool. A week in the Peak District in February saw it tackle sleet and snow, and I've been to Wales, Scotland and countless trips to Exmoor in it, in all weathers. The only time it has disgraced itself was on the M3 in April when the clutch pedal went to the floor (apologies to all in the roadworks at J3 Bagshot if I made you late for work!). I had the clutch master cylinder replaced and some extra welding on the known weak point on the pedal. I do concur with Shed's write-up, sensors are a little 'sensitive' - I've replaced the camshaft position sensor and an ABS/wheel sensor. And yes, the sump is laughably low, mine was changed by the previous owner having been punctured on one of those sqaure-edged speed bumps.
The Golf has even had a few admiring comments, while at Goodwood and Bike Park Wales, and the DHL delivery driver, so a varied fan base! The car’s worth more to me than its value and will do me well until I can afford something newer with similar attributes. Just for fun, I put the car's details into WBAC and they offered me £150, amusingly after I'd just put £60 of fuel in... I don't think it's a classic by any means, but in my eyes at least I think it still looks good, "understated" would be the word I would use. It's different enough to satisfy my internal petrolhead, and the exhaust makes a lovely woofle on a cold morning start.
Sorry - this wasn't supposed to read like a 'Carpool' entry!
Nice honest and realistic write up. I hope you continue to enjoy. In December 2015 I bought a second set of alloys and some winter tyres, and it became a brilliant winter weather tool. A week in the Peak District in February saw it tackle sleet and snow, and I've been to Wales, Scotland and countless trips to Exmoor in it, in all weathers. The only time it has disgraced itself was on the M3 in April when the clutch pedal went to the floor (apologies to all in the roadworks at J3 Bagshot if I made you late for work!). I had the clutch master cylinder replaced and some extra welding on the known weak point on the pedal. I do concur with Shed's write-up, sensors are a little 'sensitive' - I've replaced the camshaft position sensor and an ABS/wheel sensor. And yes, the sump is laughably low, mine was changed by the previous owner having been punctured on one of those sqaure-edged speed bumps.
The Golf has even had a few admiring comments, while at Goodwood and Bike Park Wales, and the DHL delivery driver, so a varied fan base! The car’s worth more to me than its value and will do me well until I can afford something newer with similar attributes. Just for fun, I put the car's details into WBAC and they offered me £150, amusingly after I'd just put £60 of fuel in... I don't think it's a classic by any means, but in my eyes at least I think it still looks good, "understated" would be the word I would use. It's different enough to satisfy my internal petrolhead, and the exhaust makes a lovely woofle on a cold morning start.
Sorry - this wasn't supposed to read like a 'Carpool' entry!
Fab car,
I can honestly say, this car will cope with a heck of a lot of snow, i once drove one through a deep pile of snow onto a snow covered carpark to have some fun, then exit the carpark through another mound of snow and all infront of two BMW's stuck in the carpark
Its not all about power, but being the 24v VR6, it has the variable intake and can pull big speeds with very little RPM with a 6 speed box.
The sound is the best thing ever.
I never managed to get the Gen1 Haldex to spin the front wheels on their own, theres no need to spend money on haldex upgrades, the stock one is superb. Good luck with your sale
I can honestly say, this car will cope with a heck of a lot of snow, i once drove one through a deep pile of snow onto a snow covered carpark to have some fun, then exit the carpark through another mound of snow and all infront of two BMW's stuck in the carpark
Its not all about power, but being the 24v VR6, it has the variable intake and can pull big speeds with very little RPM with a 6 speed box.
The sound is the best thing ever.
I never managed to get the Gen1 Haldex to spin the front wheels on their own, theres no need to spend money on haldex upgrades, the stock one is superb. Good luck with your sale
The first new car I ever bought was a V6 4Motion in 2001. As someone just into their 20's it felt incredibly special at the time - V6, 4WD, a superb cabin (compare it to a Ford Focus of the time!) and lovely restrained styling. It felt like it had been designed as a hatchback sized premium executive German saloon car. Very quiet, very smooth very refined and very mature. But also very much not a 'hot hatch'. I remember the car being particularly under damped. The front end would bob up and down after hitting a bump or compression and it just wasn't that much fun or engaging to push on. I had a go in a friend's Mk3 VR6 and - despite it's reputation as a crap car - it was a much more invigorating drive. Still, I enjoyed it under I destroyed it into an 18 wheeler.
DippedHeadlights said:
Experience of buying cars over the years has shown me you really can judge a car by its tyres. Non matching tyres on the same axle have always seemed wrong to me but the trend of fitting "budget" Chinese "Lucky Chicken" ditchfinders to performance cars is a disease that needs to be eradicated even in shed land.
Absolutely. First thing I look for are branded tyres. The amount of newish German stuff going through the block on ling longs is depressing. aaron_2000 said:
angelicupstarts said:
had the vw bora version of this a few years back
the 2.8 v6 fwd is really quite a nice machine
was refferd to as the thinking mans subaru in some mags at the time .
the mk iv as others have mentioned gets slagged a bit ..quite a lot by peolple who have never driven them or had ropey old ones .
fact is they are a very tidy design , quite well built ....and have a better more timless look to them then some of vw latest efforts .
the concerns about petrol usage is usually your smallest problems when owning a car ..ive had big 1960,s mustangs with unstressed engines and drivetrains ..and cost me less to run then multi valve small cam cars .
anyway ... would be a cool fun car and for the price would be interested what the naysayers would recommend instead ??
ropey for price french and italian cars ?
2.8 A4 Quattro?the 2.8 v6 fwd is really quite a nice machine
was refferd to as the thinking mans subaru in some mags at the time .
the mk iv as others have mentioned gets slagged a bit ..quite a lot by peolple who have never driven them or had ropey old ones .
fact is they are a very tidy design , quite well built ....and have a better more timless look to them then some of vw latest efforts .
the concerns about petrol usage is usually your smallest problems when owning a car ..ive had big 1960,s mustangs with unstressed engines and drivetrains ..and cost me less to run then multi valve small cam cars .
anyway ... would be a cool fun car and for the price would be interested what the naysayers would recommend instead ??
ropey for price french and italian cars ?
mrbarnett said:
It's the demise of cars like this that's left me cold for modern motors. Yes, it's far from perfect, but despite being a dreary MKIV Golf, it's interesting because of its engine and drivetrain. It woofles about with a discrete air of quality over the average Golf, and for that I celebrate it.
I also find the fuel economy interesting: I have a similar vintage 3.0 V6 petrol with similar manual transmission but with more weight and permanent awd, and yet I'll see 30 mpg average and as much as 36 on a run. Give it a bloody good thrashing and it may dip down to 25, but 30 mpg definitely includes trips around the entirely of the power band.
Unless Jaguar's trip is just wildly optimistic?
I used to get the same from mine. A very understated engine and car, for that matter I also find the fuel economy interesting: I have a similar vintage 3.0 V6 petrol with similar manual transmission but with more weight and permanent awd, and yet I'll see 30 mpg average and as much as 36 on a run. Give it a bloody good thrashing and it may dip down to 25, but 30 mpg definitely includes trips around the entirely of the power band.
Unless Jaguar's trip is just wildly optimistic?
Looks OK for 1400 quid. Consumption is a bit high by today's standards, but the relatively new winter tyres might swing it.
I know a lot of people think the Golf IV is a bit dull, but the build was good enough. I just wonder about the electrics, my brother has a GTD and it's been a bit of a lemon.
I know a lot of people think the Golf IV is a bit dull, but the build was good enough. I just wonder about the electrics, my brother has a GTD and it's been a bit of a lemon.
I had one exactly like this, V6 ,5doors in silver. Absolute piece of s
t. Engine made a nice noise but wasn't very quick but the car is an absolute boat. Worst steering and suspension of any car I have ever driven. The suspension manages to be both wallowy and poorly damped and these things rattle like a gooden.
Terrible, terrible cars and minr seemed yo livr throwing an EML light and wanting an expensive sensor replacing.
I didn't keep it long (4months) as it was so rubbish and did make some money when I sold it on.
t. Engine made a nice noise but wasn't very quick but the car is an absolute boat. Worst steering and suspension of any car I have ever driven. The suspension manages to be both wallowy and poorly damped and these things rattle like a gooden.Terrible, terrible cars and minr seemed yo livr throwing an EML light and wanting an expensive sensor replacing.
I didn't keep it long (4months) as it was so rubbish and did make some money when I sold it on.
Edited by Ahbefive on Saturday 9th December 09:42
Do like a 'fast' MK4 Golf, my pick would be a lovely 25th Anniversary Edition with the 1.8T lump, they looks so good! My mate had the 2.3 V5, whilst it sounded special, but to his annoyance it was barely any quicker on the traffic light GP against my Fiesta MK5 Zetec S at the time, plus it was shocking on fuel. Sold it after a few months.
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