Volkswagen Golf R vs. Golf GTI TCR
Discussion
I had a non optioned (leased) golf r manual. It was a phenomenal car with unbelievable handling. I’d highly recommended it, but I wouldn’t get hung up on the box. It was a very mediocre shift and if I was to have one again I’d prefer dsg. The manual shift felt the weak point in the drive train when you were really pushing on.
Desert Dragon said:
2016 GTI PP now with say 10k miles and DSG circa £15k so a no brainer over a new TCR or R. In the real world not many people pay £40k for a Golf 
I'd agree not many people will pay £40k for a golf, but these are also likely to be speced as demo cars.But comparing a 3/4 year old car to a brand new one is an entirely different discussion.
SmartVenom said:
I had a non optioned (leased) golf r manual. It was a phenomenal car with unbelievable handling. I’d highly recommended it, but I wouldn’t get hung up on the box. It was a very mediocre shift and if I was to have one again I’d prefer dsg. The manual shift felt the weak point in the drive train when you were really pushing on.
I have a Mk7.5 GTI with DSG, very capable daily driver, but I honestly wish it had a manual box at times for more involvement.With DSG they really are s
t boring, and adding more weight, a little more power and Haldex in the R certainly isn't going to fix it.Personally, I prefer the TCR. I think it’s a much better looking car than the R. The red details help it stand out a bit more as does the diffuser etc. When I looked at one earlier this year, there were some pretty chunky discounts to be had. Plus the TCR has tartan seats.
On paper it was the perfect, practical hot hatch (whatever you want to call it) but when I looked at one in the flesh it just didn’t do it for me for whatever reason.
On paper it was the perfect, practical hot hatch (whatever you want to call it) but when I looked at one in the flesh it just didn’t do it for me for whatever reason.
Court_S said:
Personally, I prefer the TCR. I think it’s a much better looking car than the R. The red details help it stand out a bit more as does the diffuser etc. When I looked at one earlier this year, there were some pretty chunky discounts to be had. Plus the TCR has tartan seats.
It's the red bits that put me off the GTI. It worked well in the 80s and to be fair it works on a red car too.I've had my R for just shy of 6 years. I still love it - I live in London and don't drive much so it's nice to get it out onto an open road every now and again.
Mine is a manual with a few options - DCC (essential as you will leave it in comfort unless on a country road), leather (matter of preference), 19" wheels (18s would be better if they weren't so ugly), and the crappy satnav stereo which inserts gaps between mp3s. I paid 30k for it.
I never considered the GTI to be honest but I think it would be perfectly good, assuming you took one with back seats (if you only need two seats but a sports car). The lack of boot space in the R is annoying now I have two kids.
I would struggle with an auto though. Traffic light Grand Prix isn't my thing.
I could do with a bigger car but don't really want to spend money, so anything would seem a let down in comparison, unless anyone has any ideas.
By chance I'm currently in the market for the now unavailable manual 310 Golf R (as mentioned at the end of the article). I had a couple of Mk5 GTi's back in the day and the Superchipped manual GTI I had was just brilliant, but was put off Golf's a couple of purchases later with a DSG ED30. The DSG turned it into half the car I had before. Unfortunately now 15years later VW's sales figures clearly state that autos out sell manuals and as a mass car manufacturer that only means one thing. A touch of the old guy in me, but with a generation of people getting car advice from YouTube all based on drag race results, having a manual option on a car is going to become increasingly rare.
Edited by 11jhw on Tuesday 31st December 22:49
xcesx said:
I Bought a standard GTI Performance about 3 months ago. I got about 5-6k off the list price, I considered the R and TCR but I set out wanting a normal GTI so thats what I bought in the end.
It's a good all round car.
Exactly this. I collect my GTI pp dsg next week. It's a good all round car.
I’ve done 90,000 in a mk7 gtd dsg in four years. The gti ticks all the boxes for me as a balance in performance vs cost. The GTI, TCR and r were all around the Same price after a discount but, The TCR can’t be ordered and all the ones in stock had been specced to over £40,000 list so get hit with the 5yr high road tax. The r was very good drive but I felt a bit of a one trick pony once you’d done the acceleration bit. The GTI felt more fun. Also at estimated real world fuel consumption the r would cost me £60 to £80 a month more than the GTI ( The gti is already going to cost £30 more than the GTD) never mind other running costs like insurance, tyres etc. I guess the point I’m making is these choices are always more nuanced than a simple buy the one with the most power...
Mr Dendrite said:
xcesx said:
I Bought a standard GTI Performance about 3 months ago. I got about 5-6k off the list price, I considered the R and TCR but I set out wanting a normal GTI so thats what I bought in the end.
It's a good all round car.
Exactly this. I collect my GTI pp dsg next week. It's a good all round car.
I’ve done 90,000 in a mk7 gtd dsg in four years. The gti ticks all the boxes for me as a balance in performance vs cost. The GTI, TCR and r were all around the Same price after a discount but, The TCR can’t be ordered and all the ones in stock had been specced to over £40,000 list so get hit with the 5yr high road tax. The r was very good drive but I felt a bit of a one trick pony once you’d done the acceleration bit. The GTI felt more fun. Also at estimated real world fuel consumption the r would cost me £60 to £80 a month more than the GTI ( The gti is already going to cost £30 more than the GTD) never mind other running costs like insurance, tyres etc. I guess the point I’m making is these choices are always more nuanced than a simple buy the one with the most power...
I picked it up at the end of September this year and I crashed it a couple of weeks ago. Some arse hit me from behind at 30 mph, I didn't even brake hard. Luckily I'd fitted a dash cam that day (it was the first time out and that happened!).
It's only done 2000 miles but is averaging about 33mpg. There's more urban in that to be fair. It gets in to the 40s when sat on the motorway at sensible speeds (70-80).
J4CKO said:
Is this partly about the R being so numerous due to being available on affordable lease deals for a few years ?
Am guessing it outsold the GTI for a good while and the pecking order was in place, but of late the R has gone from being the top of the range to being a bit common, and has attracted its fair share of knobheads and a reputation for being a theft magnet.
The humble GTI is once again desirable as its not quite as shouty but still a brilliant package, but its a bit plain, not quite fast (or expensive) enough so VW jazz it up for R objectors with a smidge more power and a few tweaks and a suitably rarefied price.
It reminds me of people deciding to go back to Vinyl records from CD or Streaming and all those other occasions where the top of the line option gets a bit too mainstream, sort of not about having the best, just having something not many other people have. Throw a few things about purity, being more focused and some other subjective stuff in to justify paying more (or the same) for less.
At least the TCR has back seats, I would feel such a tit saying I cant offer someone a lift because my otherwise normal looking Golf doesn't have any back seats to keep the weight down to save a few seconds on a German racetrack.
Partly down to lease deals yes although since the mk7.5 launched only the estates have seen deals. I ran a golf r lease from 2014 to 2016 at 207 a month with options. Those were the days!Am guessing it outsold the GTI for a good while and the pecking order was in place, but of late the R has gone from being the top of the range to being a bit common, and has attracted its fair share of knobheads and a reputation for being a theft magnet.
The humble GTI is once again desirable as its not quite as shouty but still a brilliant package, but its a bit plain, not quite fast (or expensive) enough so VW jazz it up for R objectors with a smidge more power and a few tweaks and a suitably rarefied price.
It reminds me of people deciding to go back to Vinyl records from CD or Streaming and all those other occasions where the top of the line option gets a bit too mainstream, sort of not about having the best, just having something not many other people have. Throw a few things about purity, being more focused and some other subjective stuff in to justify paying more (or the same) for less.
At least the TCR has back seats, I would feel such a tit saying I cant offer someone a lift because my otherwise normal looking Golf doesn't have any back seats to keep the weight down to save a few seconds on a German racetrack.
I have a 2016 GTI PP manual with DCC that I've used as my work car for 2 years. It's genuinely hard to fault as an all round package being very comfortable, practical (even as a 3 door) and economical nudging 40mpg on a long run. The handling limits are very high and it changes direction very well on twisty roads being reasonably light for a modern car.
However, last winter I did find traction a bit of an issue under hard acceleration. I'm running with a JB4 box so I guess it makes around 270bhp and 400Nm+ torque. I really considered changing to an R, it was faster, but I found it less engaging. The solution was quite simple. Tyres. I bought a set of winter wheels and tyres and have just come back from a 2500 mile trip through the Alps, Massif Central and the Pyrenees. No more traction issues, even on wet or icy roads. It's fair to say I am big fan of winter tyres now, it means I can continue to enjoy the car year round.
As for the TCR under test here, is it any wonder it has traction issues in winter running a semi-slick tyre? Reviewers rarely seem to consider tyre and wheel size when it comes to judging a cars performance and handling. It would be interesting to see a comparison with appropriate tyres and consistency between both vehicles.
However, last winter I did find traction a bit of an issue under hard acceleration. I'm running with a JB4 box so I guess it makes around 270bhp and 400Nm+ torque. I really considered changing to an R, it was faster, but I found it less engaging. The solution was quite simple. Tyres. I bought a set of winter wheels and tyres and have just come back from a 2500 mile trip through the Alps, Massif Central and the Pyrenees. No more traction issues, even on wet or icy roads. It's fair to say I am big fan of winter tyres now, it means I can continue to enjoy the car year round.
As for the TCR under test here, is it any wonder it has traction issues in winter running a semi-slick tyre? Reviewers rarely seem to consider tyre and wheel size when it comes to judging a cars performance and handling. It would be interesting to see a comparison with appropriate tyres and consistency between both vehicles.
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