My first German: Mk5 Golf GTI
Discussion
Just last week I picked up this lovely Mk5 Golf GTI - I know there are a fair few of these on here already, but there are a lot of them about for a reason; they’re brilliant!
I’d had a MK5 GTI on my ‘will own someday’ list for ages but was happy enough with my Celica 190 for a long time; that was until things started going wrong; power steering pump failure, minor oil leak, sticking rear caliper, air pump, detaching engine undertray and heat shield…etc. I'd had it for five years at this point and was hankering after something new anyway, but didn't want to put all that time/effort/cash into the car just to sell it immediately after fixing it. I ended up selling it to a mate with the cost of repairs subtracted from the price. So not for the first time I found myself looking at GTIs in the classifieds, difference being that this time I was actually looking to buy!
The thing about Golf GTIs is that they seem to be owned by everybody from respectable middle-aged sweater vests to the #stancenation backwards hat crotch grabber crew, so the cars on sale have lived all sorts of lives and range from the pristine to the downright abused. One I test drove had been remapped (which the advert didn’t mention) badly and torque-steered like a bugger, and also had a plethora of marks/scrapes and bits of trim missing (which the photos didn’t show) including a snapped bonnet release handle and even a cracked interior mirror. Needless to say I ran a mile from that one.
Regarding spec, I knew I wanted a 3-door car with tartan seats rather than leather, but apart from that I really wasn’t fussy. Initially I was leaning towards the 17” Monzas rather than 18s since the 18s are diamond cut, prone to corrosion and expensive to have refurbished. The car I bought does have 18s but they were just refurbished earlier this year so it wasn’t an issue. Speaking of the car I bought, here it is:
It’s in remarkably good condition for an ’05 plate – apart from some small age-related stone chips on the bumper/bonnet and a couple of tiny scuffs, it’s like new. Both front wings were replaced by the previous owner under warranty, and I’ve already mentioned the recently refurbished wheels. The exhaust could probably do with a spruce up and polish at some point but apart from that the car is in fantastic nick.
I also wasn’t overly bothered about a specific colour, only ruling out resale value silver as there are far too many silver cars on the road these days. I’m loving the steel grey I’ve ended up with; very cool colour and the red of the brake calipers and grill stripe look fantastic set against it.
The interior is in equally great condition. Apart from some very minor wear on the gear knob and drivers’ seat bolster, it’s showroom fresh inside.
The car doesn’t have heated seats or cruise control (not that bothered about either) but it does have xenons which are absolutely brilliant.
I haven’t had the chance yet to really stretch its legs on a long drive, but it’s been great fun on the shorter drives I’ve managed. I’ve heard of GTIs being really quite tyre-sensitive but thankfully mine came with Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2’s so no troubles there, it feels extremely planted and sure-footed through twisty stuff.
Being turbocharged, the engine is completely different in character to my old Celica which essentially didn’t get out of bed until 6,000rpm and then had a firework under its arse all the way to 8,200. Comparing power figures, the Golf only has roughly 10bhp more but it’s the 70 lb/ft extra which really makes the difference. From 2,500rpm the GTI effortlessly surges forward; I’ve never had overtaking this easy!
Even managed dead-on 40mpg during its first day on commuting duties. No hypermiling involved, just sticking to 70 on the motorway and avoiding mashing the boosty pedal.
I’d had a MK5 GTI on my ‘will own someday’ list for ages but was happy enough with my Celica 190 for a long time; that was until things started going wrong; power steering pump failure, minor oil leak, sticking rear caliper, air pump, detaching engine undertray and heat shield…etc. I'd had it for five years at this point and was hankering after something new anyway, but didn't want to put all that time/effort/cash into the car just to sell it immediately after fixing it. I ended up selling it to a mate with the cost of repairs subtracted from the price. So not for the first time I found myself looking at GTIs in the classifieds, difference being that this time I was actually looking to buy!
The thing about Golf GTIs is that they seem to be owned by everybody from respectable middle-aged sweater vests to the #stancenation backwards hat crotch grabber crew, so the cars on sale have lived all sorts of lives and range from the pristine to the downright abused. One I test drove had been remapped (which the advert didn’t mention) badly and torque-steered like a bugger, and also had a plethora of marks/scrapes and bits of trim missing (which the photos didn’t show) including a snapped bonnet release handle and even a cracked interior mirror. Needless to say I ran a mile from that one.
Regarding spec, I knew I wanted a 3-door car with tartan seats rather than leather, but apart from that I really wasn’t fussy. Initially I was leaning towards the 17” Monzas rather than 18s since the 18s are diamond cut, prone to corrosion and expensive to have refurbished. The car I bought does have 18s but they were just refurbished earlier this year so it wasn’t an issue. Speaking of the car I bought, here it is:
It’s in remarkably good condition for an ’05 plate – apart from some small age-related stone chips on the bumper/bonnet and a couple of tiny scuffs, it’s like new. Both front wings were replaced by the previous owner under warranty, and I’ve already mentioned the recently refurbished wheels. The exhaust could probably do with a spruce up and polish at some point but apart from that the car is in fantastic nick.
I also wasn’t overly bothered about a specific colour, only ruling out resale value silver as there are far too many silver cars on the road these days. I’m loving the steel grey I’ve ended up with; very cool colour and the red of the brake calipers and grill stripe look fantastic set against it.
The interior is in equally great condition. Apart from some very minor wear on the gear knob and drivers’ seat bolster, it’s showroom fresh inside.
The car doesn’t have heated seats or cruise control (not that bothered about either) but it does have xenons which are absolutely brilliant.
I haven’t had the chance yet to really stretch its legs on a long drive, but it’s been great fun on the shorter drives I’ve managed. I’ve heard of GTIs being really quite tyre-sensitive but thankfully mine came with Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2’s so no troubles there, it feels extremely planted and sure-footed through twisty stuff.
Being turbocharged, the engine is completely different in character to my old Celica which essentially didn’t get out of bed until 6,000rpm and then had a firework under its arse all the way to 8,200. Comparing power figures, the Golf only has roughly 10bhp more but it’s the 70 lb/ft extra which really makes the difference. From 2,500rpm the GTI effortlessly surges forward; I’ve never had overtaking this easy!
Even managed dead-on 40mpg during its first day on commuting duties. No hypermiling involved, just sticking to 70 on the motorway and avoiding mashing the boosty pedal.
Edited by thatguy11 on Monday 31st October 20:35
Edited by thatguy11 on Monday 10th July 16:54
Brilliant cars and good write up. Took mine from 36k to 96k with no fuss. RE tyres, I found the bridegstone potenza awful an noise, Michelin ps3 were good, but still noisey, the best were Dunlop sport smax but never got round to Goodyear as2. The sweet spot with these is 1800 to 5000 rpm, keep an eye on the oil consumption over the first 1000 miles to see if yours likes a drop of the black stuff or not.
Any plans for it?
Any plans for it?
Looks good!
Keep an eye on the oil level, some of them use a lot (mine certainly did!)
It's rare not to see the centre armrest - mine didn't have one either. The interiors are not as hard wearing as you'd expect - the seat bolsters do wear and the soft touch plastics can peel or scratch off if you aren't careful.
Keep an eye on the oil level, some of them use a lot (mine certainly did!)
It's rare not to see the centre armrest - mine didn't have one either. The interiors are not as hard wearing as you'd expect - the seat bolsters do wear and the soft touch plastics can peel or scratch off if you aren't careful.
Thanks guys - yeah i have heard that they can use quite a lot of oil, my old car didn't use any at all so i will need to remember and keep an eye on it!
No real plans for the car, just tidy it up a bit; give the exhaust a good polish etc. Also i have never used clay before so i'm wanting to give that a go, i think this grey could look fantastic if i can get a deep shine out of it
No real plans for the car, just tidy it up a bit; give the exhaust a good polish etc. Also i have never used clay before so i'm wanting to give that a go, i think this grey could look fantastic if i can get a deep shine out of it
Edited by thatguy11 on Saturday 17th September 19:55
As an 11 year old Golf the mileage is far from low, but I’m really struggling to keep the digits down; I just can’t stop driving it. Think I’ve put nearly 1,000 miles on it in two and a half weeks! The non-linear power delivery is a hoot and full of character, even if the noise is sadly lacking a bit. The grip is great and the steering is very communicative, as well as nicely weighted.
But then when you just want to get to/from work as painlessly as possible, it’s as comfortable and refined as you would need; the seats are supportive, the ride is brilliant and the auto lights and wipers aren’t half bad either (never had either in a car before).
In short, the perfect hot hatch dual personality!
But then when you just want to get to/from work as painlessly as possible, it’s as comfortable and refined as you would need; the seats are supportive, the ride is brilliant and the auto lights and wipers aren’t half bad either (never had either in a car before).
In short, the perfect hot hatch dual personality!
Edited by thatguy11 on Monday 31st October 20:44
Looking good OP, glad you are enjoying it. How many miles has it done? Here was mine... http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
As an alternative to some form of halfords cleaning product, I can confirm ceramic top oven cleaner works well on sooted exhaust tips, or CIF (formerly Jiff!), agitated gently wire wool brillo pads, then rinsed off.
As an alternative to some form of halfords cleaning product, I can confirm ceramic top oven cleaner works well on sooted exhaust tips, or CIF (formerly Jiff!), agitated gently wire wool brillo pads, then rinsed off.
Rensko said:
Surprised there isn't some kind of easy cruise control install you can do
Quite a simple job, just buy an indicator stalk with the cruise control function and get it coded to the car.http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VW-GOLF-V-VI-PLUS-JETTA-...
si_xsi said:
Looking good OP, glad you are enjoying it. How many miles has it done? Here was mine... http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...
As an alternative to some form of halfords cleaning product, I can confirm ceramic top oven cleaner works well on sooted exhaust tips, or CIF (formerly Jiff!), agitated gently wire wool brillo pads, then rinsed off.
It's on 127k miles, didn't concern me though as it's a very well looked after example. Yours looked like a great one too!As an alternative to some form of halfords cleaning product, I can confirm ceramic top oven cleaner works well on sooted exhaust tips, or CIF (formerly Jiff!), agitated gently wire wool brillo pads, then rinsed off.
Definitely giving the CIF a try on the exhaust, the tips are properly manky.
Kaj91 said:
Rensko said:
Surprised there isn't some kind of easy cruise control install you can do
Quite a simple job, just buy an indicator stalk with the cruise control function and get it coded to the car.http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/VW-GOLF-V-VI-PLUS-JETTA-...
Edited by thatguy11 on Wednesday 28th September 12:27
thatguy11 said:
Interesting, any idea how easy/cheap the stalk install/coding is?
I got it fitted to my old GTI for about £125 I think, by JKM in Portsmouth. Mine had the highline trip computer which it appears yours does not and I seem to recall this makes a difference so you'd have to do a little more research. It's a mod well worth doing, I don't know why it was never offered as an option when new.Edited by thatguy11 on Wednesday 28th September 12:27
thatguy11 said:
Just last week I picked up this lovely Mk5 Golf GTI - I know there are a fair few of these on here already, but there are a lot of them about for a reason; they’re brilliant!
I’d had a MK5 GTI on my ‘will own someday’ list for ages but was happy enough with my Celica 190 for a long time; that was until things started going wrong at a rather worrying rate of knots including a power steering pump failure, minor oil leak, sticking rear caliper, air pump, detaching engine undertray and heat sheild…etc...etc...I decided it was time to bail out before it went pop. So not for the first time I found myself looking at GTIs in the classifieds, difference being that this time I was actually looking to buy!
The thing about Golf GTIs is that they seem to be owned by everybody from respectable middle-aged sweater vests to the #stancenation backwards hat crotch grabber crew, so the cars on sale have lived all sorts of lives and range from the pristine to the downright abused. One I test drove had been remapped (which the advert didn’t mention) badly and torque-steered like a bugger, and also had a plethora of marks/scrapes and bits of trim missing (which the photos didn’t show) including a snapped bonnet release handle and even a cracked interior mirror. Needless to say I ran a mile from that one.
Regarding spec, I knew I wanted a 3-door car with tartan seats rather than leather, but apart from that I really wasn’t fussy. Initially I was leaning towards the 17” Monzas rather than 18s since the 18s are diamond cut, prone to corrosion and expensive to have refurbished. The car I bought does have 18s but they were just refurbished earlier this year so it wasn’t an issue. Speaking of the car I bought, here it is:
It’s in remarkably good condition for an ’05 plate – apart from some small age-related stone chips on the bumper/bonnet and a couple of tiny scuffs, it’s like new. Both front wings were replaced by the previous owner under warranty, and I’ve already mentioned the recently refurbished wheels. The exhaust could probably do with a spruce up and polish at some point but apart from that the car is in fantastic nick.
I also wasn’t overly bothered about a specific colour, only ruling out resale value silver as there are far too many silver cars on the road these days. I’m loving the steel grey I’ve ended up with; very cool colour and the red of the brake calipers and grill stripe look fantastic set against it.
The interior is in equally great condition. Apart from some very minor wear on the gear knob and drivers’ seat bolster, it’s showroom fresh inside.
The car doesn’t have heated seats or cruise control (not that bothered about either) but it does have xenons which are absolutely brilliant.
I haven’t had the chance yet to really stretch its legs on a long drive, but it’s been great fun on the shorter drives I’ve managed. I’ve heard of GTIs being really quite tyre-sensitive but thankfully mine came with Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2’s so no troubles there, it feels extremely planted and sure-footed through twisty stuff.
Being turbocharged, the engine is completely different in character to my old Celica which essentially didn’t get out of bed until 6,000rpm and then had a firework under its arse all the way to 8,200. Comparing power figures, the Golf only has roughly 10bhp more but it’s the 70 lb/ft extra which really makes the difference. From 2,500rpm the GTI effortlessly surges forward; I’ve never had overtaking this easy!
Even managed dead-on 40mpg during its first day on commuting duties. No hypermiling involved, just sticking to 70 on the motorway and avoiding mashing the boosty pedal.
Nice car mate, maybe one day for me tooI’d had a MK5 GTI on my ‘will own someday’ list for ages but was happy enough with my Celica 190 for a long time; that was until things started going wrong at a rather worrying rate of knots including a power steering pump failure, minor oil leak, sticking rear caliper, air pump, detaching engine undertray and heat sheild…etc...etc...I decided it was time to bail out before it went pop. So not for the first time I found myself looking at GTIs in the classifieds, difference being that this time I was actually looking to buy!
The thing about Golf GTIs is that they seem to be owned by everybody from respectable middle-aged sweater vests to the #stancenation backwards hat crotch grabber crew, so the cars on sale have lived all sorts of lives and range from the pristine to the downright abused. One I test drove had been remapped (which the advert didn’t mention) badly and torque-steered like a bugger, and also had a plethora of marks/scrapes and bits of trim missing (which the photos didn’t show) including a snapped bonnet release handle and even a cracked interior mirror. Needless to say I ran a mile from that one.
Regarding spec, I knew I wanted a 3-door car with tartan seats rather than leather, but apart from that I really wasn’t fussy. Initially I was leaning towards the 17” Monzas rather than 18s since the 18s are diamond cut, prone to corrosion and expensive to have refurbished. The car I bought does have 18s but they were just refurbished earlier this year so it wasn’t an issue. Speaking of the car I bought, here it is:
It’s in remarkably good condition for an ’05 plate – apart from some small age-related stone chips on the bumper/bonnet and a couple of tiny scuffs, it’s like new. Both front wings were replaced by the previous owner under warranty, and I’ve already mentioned the recently refurbished wheels. The exhaust could probably do with a spruce up and polish at some point but apart from that the car is in fantastic nick.
I also wasn’t overly bothered about a specific colour, only ruling out resale value silver as there are far too many silver cars on the road these days. I’m loving the steel grey I’ve ended up with; very cool colour and the red of the brake calipers and grill stripe look fantastic set against it.
The interior is in equally great condition. Apart from some very minor wear on the gear knob and drivers’ seat bolster, it’s showroom fresh inside.
The car doesn’t have heated seats or cruise control (not that bothered about either) but it does have xenons which are absolutely brilliant.
I haven’t had the chance yet to really stretch its legs on a long drive, but it’s been great fun on the shorter drives I’ve managed. I’ve heard of GTIs being really quite tyre-sensitive but thankfully mine came with Eagle F1 Asymmetric 2’s so no troubles there, it feels extremely planted and sure-footed through twisty stuff.
Being turbocharged, the engine is completely different in character to my old Celica which essentially didn’t get out of bed until 6,000rpm and then had a firework under its arse all the way to 8,200. Comparing power figures, the Golf only has roughly 10bhp more but it’s the 70 lb/ft extra which really makes the difference. From 2,500rpm the GTI effortlessly surges forward; I’ve never had overtaking this easy!
Even managed dead-on 40mpg during its first day on commuting duties. No hypermiling involved, just sticking to 70 on the motorway and avoiding mashing the boosty pedal.
In the words of Clarkson, a great tragedy has befallen me. While driving home from work (on an nsl back road) I had a run-in with a deer; I narrowly managed to avoid hitting it, but had no choice but to swerve off the tarmac and onto the rough and rocky roadside - at 60mph. THUMP! The result was one shredded tyre and a damaged wheel…
Apologies for the extremely crap phone picture but it was getting dark plus stellar photography wasn’t exactly the first thing on my mind
All things considered the outcome could have been a lot worse, so I’m thankful I got away unscathed and the car only suffered minor injuries.
Regarding tyres I might as well take the opportunity and replace both fronts, as they only had a few thousand miles left in them anyway. I’m hoping the wheel is refurbish-able, however I’m not too confident. I’m planning on taking it to The Wheel Specialists to see if they can work their magic on it – if not I’ll be needing to buy a new one, plus the additional cost of getting the replacement wheel powdercoated to match the rest.
This is especially annoying as the previous owner had only recently had the full set refurbed and powdercoated, and I didn’t think I’d ever have to be worrying about the state of the wheels; oh well, things happen I suppose!
Apologies for the extremely crap phone picture but it was getting dark plus stellar photography wasn’t exactly the first thing on my mind
All things considered the outcome could have been a lot worse, so I’m thankful I got away unscathed and the car only suffered minor injuries.
Regarding tyres I might as well take the opportunity and replace both fronts, as they only had a few thousand miles left in them anyway. I’m hoping the wheel is refurbish-able, however I’m not too confident. I’m planning on taking it to The Wheel Specialists to see if they can work their magic on it – if not I’ll be needing to buy a new one, plus the additional cost of getting the replacement wheel powdercoated to match the rest.
This is especially annoying as the previous owner had only recently had the full set refurbed and powdercoated, and I didn’t think I’d ever have to be worrying about the state of the wheels; oh well, things happen I suppose!
Edited by thatguy11 on Monday 31st October 20:47
So thankfully my pessimism was unfounded - the rim was repairable, happy days. The car is rocking the space saver donut just now, but I'm getting the rim back from the shop and new tyres fitted in a couple of days so all will be right with the world again 
I think the car deserves a deep clean once it's back to its old self...
I think the car deserves a deep clean once it's back to its old self... 
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