RE: Volkswagen Up GTI: PH Fleet

RE: Volkswagen Up GTI: PH Fleet

Author
Discussion

Mr2Mike

20,143 posts

255 months

Saturday 11th August 2018
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JMF894 said:
Come on guys, keyless isn't a problem. For a few quid get yourself a key blocker pouch. It's not hard.
It a bloody pain in the arse which simply shouldn't be necessary.

JMF894

5,504 posts

155 months

Saturday 11th August 2018
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Mr2Mike said:
JMF894 said:
Come on guys, keyless isn't a problem. For a few quid get yourself a key blocker pouch. It's not hard.
It a bloody pain in the arse which simply shouldn't be necessary.
Yet before you had to take the key out of your pocket and put it in the ignition and vice versa, but taking it out of a pouch then back in is too much? We really are becoming a fat, slothful race aren't we?

andrewparker

8,014 posts

187 months

Saturday 11th August 2018
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JMF894 said:
Mr2Mike said:
JMF894 said:
Come on guys, keyless isn't a problem. For a few quid get yourself a key blocker pouch. It's not hard.
It a bloody pain in the arse which simply shouldn't be necessary.
Yet before you had to take the key out of your pocket and put it in the ignition and vice versa, but taking it out of a pouch then back in is too much? We really are becoming a fat, slothful race aren't we?
Doesn’t having to do something with the key defeat the point of it being keyless?

Anyway, no keyless on the Up!

Mr2Mike

20,143 posts

255 months

Sunday 12th August 2018
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JMF894 said:
Yet before you had to take the key out of your pocket and put it in the ignition and vice versa, but taking it out of a pouch then back in is too much? We really are becoming a fat, slothful race aren't we?
If we are happy to accept that a security feature designed to make access to cars easier is inherently broken by design and needs a workaround that negates all it's advantages, then I'd say we are a particularly stupid and gullible race.

andrewparker said:
Anyway, no keyless on the Up!
Thank goodness. I would have paid extra to NOT have keyless on my Swift Sport, but it simply wasn't an option.

suffolk009

5,397 posts

165 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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I'm up for one of these in a year or two. Having had a play on the configurator it looks like VW have given up on the Up! options. There's no chance of specing your Up! up. What if you'd like to include simple things like leather, any choice of wheels, or more than a handful of dreary paint options. These are all options on VW's further up the price chain, so why have they decided that the Up! owner isn't worthy of such choice?


99dndd

2,084 posts

89 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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I shall be following with interest. I wonder if mine will arrive before your 6 months is finished?

andrewparker

8,014 posts

187 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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99dndd said:
I shall be following with interest. I wonder if mine will arrive before your 6 months is finished?
What’s your current provisional mate? Mine is wk 44, 29th October, over 8 months since order went in.

M1C

1,833 posts

111 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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Spotted today, Asda, Spennymoor, Co. Durham.






Onehp

1,617 posts

283 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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An observation on the (too large?) 17" wheels. I had a similar dilemma with my former Swift Sport and later on the GT86 where I preferred to have and actually had 16" wheels respectively. But there is very little choice in good tyres in 16". So I ended up with Goodyear efficientgrip performance on 17" again. They are tyres that are very light (often missed aspect) and have a very absorbent and soft sidewall. Usually bad thing on a sporty car, but on 'too large' alloys and with a good alignment, it worked very well too my taste.

Saw yesterday that these are the tyres the Up! GTI comes with. Or at least one of the factory fittings, any others makes and models it comes with?

Edited by Onehp on Monday 13th August 21:40

DoubleD

22,154 posts

108 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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17s look daft on such a small car

PK0001

347 posts

177 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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DoubleD said:
17s look daft on such a small car
Rear drum brakes look daft as well.

A mate of mine works in the brakes division of Nissan and has told me that drum brakes are as efficient as disc brakes on small cars.

Just don't look right on a GTi though.

Does the UP GTi still have the standard Up seats as well?

That would be very disappointing

Mercury00

4,103 posts

156 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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PK0001 said:
Rear drum brakes look daft as well.

A mate of mine works in the brakes division of Nissan and has told me that drum brakes are as efficient as disc brakes on small cars.

Just don't look right on a GTi though.

Does the UP GTi still have the standard Up seats as well?

That would be very disappointing
They've retrimmed them, but yes, it still has the standard flat seats.

BenRichards89

670 posts

135 months

Monday 13th August 2018
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Onehp said:
An observation on the (too large?) 17" wheels. I had a similar dilemma with my former Swift Sport and later on the GT86 where I preferred to have and actually had 16" wheels respectively. But there is very little choice in good tyres in 16". So I ended up with Goodyear efficientgrip performance on 17" again. They are tyres that are very light (often missed aspect) and have a very absorbent and soft sidewall. Usually bad thing on a sporty car, but on 'too large' alloys and with a good alignment, it worked very well too my taste.

Saw yesterday that these are the tyres the Up! GTI comes with. Or at least one of the factory fittings, any others makes and models it comes with?
I had an MG 3 (not the height of performance I know) with those tyres (Efficientgrip Performance) fitted from factory on 16s (205/55/16). They were a good tyre in wet and dry, but I was hardly testing their limit with 105hp on tap!

Edited by BenRichards89 on Monday 13th August 23:05

DoubleD

22,154 posts

108 months

Monday 13th August 2018
quotequote all
Mercury00 said:
PK0001 said:
Rear drum brakes look daft as well.

A mate of mine works in the brakes division of Nissan and has told me that drum brakes are as efficient as disc brakes on small cars.

Just don't look right on a GTi though.

Does the UP GTi still have the standard Up seats as well?

That would be very disappointing
They've retrimmed them, but yes, it still has the standard flat seats.
Surely a sporty hatch needs decent seats!

jonm01

817 posts

237 months

Tuesday 14th August 2018
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Anyone replaced te seats with something better in their UP?

andrewparker

8,014 posts

187 months

Tuesday 14th August 2018
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PK0001 said:
DoubleD said:
17s look daft on such a small car
Rear drum brakes look daft as well.

A mate of mine works in the brakes division of Nissan and has told me that drum brakes are as efficient as disc brakes on small cars.

Just don't look right on a GTi though.

Does the UP GTi still have the standard Up seats as well?

That would be very disappointing
I think VW learnt their lesson with the Lupo GTI, a car that in today's money would have cost £21k. Sure they could have given it rear discs, better seats etc etc, but that would have pushed the price up significantly to the point where it would be level with the likes of the Swift Sport, Fiesta ST etc. I've paid £14500 for mine with pretty much every option ticked, which I think it about right for the car.

M1C

1,833 posts

111 months

Tuesday 14th August 2018
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I like the big wheels ont he GTi, personally. I expect to see these on lots of other VWs in the 'dub scene massive' in the not too distant future (if they'll fit on other, older VWs?

I gather from the reviews though that despite the big boolas, the ride is pretty decent in the GTi? I find the ride more important. If smaller wheels meant a better ride, i'd take the smaller wheels (as per R53 MINI Cooper S, for example, despite the big ones looking much better)

jackal

11,248 posts

282 months

Tuesday 14th August 2018
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I got one of these last week. The basic lightweight compact feel and floaty suspension is an absolute joy, as is the cabin noise, gearchange and motor torque. Surprisingly, as well as the twisties it’s also a real hoot in the Mway. Even just flicking between lanes at high speed makes you grin. At bigger speeds it’s also amazingly surefooted and stable. I would have no issue jumping into it and driving straight to the south of France for example. In fact I will be doing that very thing in September.

I have 2 negs with the car though. Firstly the front axle is very easily found out and whilst the damping generally is impressive, over sharper bumps and when under power the front wheels quickly run out of answers. There is sonetimes a crude crashy feeling from the fromt corners that can sometimes make its presence felt and of course some inevitable torque steer. Also the nose can drift wildly off line with poor surfaces mid corner. Secondly, hard in a bend or on lift off the up gti does not rotate or exhibit any playful character. It does not seem to clasically undesteer then tuck in on lift off either. It’s more of a 4 wheel drift experience. I’ve owned a Golf R and its far far more sophisticated and interesting in these respects but then a much duller car overall IMO than never really makes your properly smile.

As such then the up gti for me is very much an 8/10ths car. Drive it this way as a momentum machine, enjoying the compactness, immediacy and old school movement of the shell over undulations, and its an absolute joy but drive it too hard and that pleasure drains away and it stops satisfying. In this sense, it is not a “wringing out” car but one to be enjoyed one or two notches back. I would hasten to add that I personally like to drive cars very hard so to most people none of the above would be too much of an issue I’m sure.

Lovely thing to own though, great finish and looks surprisingly handsome and well proportioned. Enjoy in good health.


Edited by jackal on Tuesday 14th August 16:23

Not Ideal

2,899 posts

188 months

Tuesday 14th August 2018
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^^ Nice summary.

Pics please !

jackal

11,248 posts

282 months