My first German: Mk5 Golf GTI
Discussion
p4cks said:
xjay1337 said:
p4cks said:
How's the car? I'm going to get one and wondered what are the common problems to look for?
Read my post about 4 posts above..Well the honeymoon period is well and truly over! The recent MOT did not make for happy reading...both rear calipers were sticking and needed replacing, along with a couple of other minor niggles such as the backing plate for the front offside brake disc being damaged (probably a consequence of my offroading experience at 60mph to avoid that deer).
With everything addressed in the MOT I naively thought it would be plain sailing for a while, but a couple of weeks ago the battery stopped holding charge and only manages about ten starts before it gives up and the car has to be started on a booster pack i've been lugging around with me wherever I go. The booster pack readout says the battery itself is fine, so it may be an issue with the alternator...
With everything addressed in the MOT I naively thought it would be plain sailing for a while, but a couple of weeks ago the battery stopped holding charge and only manages about ten starts before it gives up and the car has to be started on a booster pack i've been lugging around with me wherever I go. The booster pack readout says the battery itself is fine, so it may be an issue with the alternator...
PaulJC84 said:
Get a voltmeter and you will be able to check if the alternator is working as it should be.
There's a specialist just a few miles from me who gave me a free diagnosis; turns out it is just the battery needing replaced rather than the alternator, so I'm happy!On another note I was up north last weekend but neglected to take nearly any car pics - here's the one I did manage, at Loch Turret. I have to say i'm impressed with how this car deals with snow/slippery roads, even on summer tyres.
Edited by thatguy11 on Friday 17th February 17:50
New battery arrived today - quite possibly the most boring way to spend £75 on your car
Only a 10 minute job to whip out the old unit and connect up the new one
Also means I can stop carrying around this boulder of a recharge pack....
To be honest the GTI has been irritating me lately...the really expensive MOT right before Christmas, then the battery issues which meant I really haven't been driving it much, plus the heater randomly refusing to work for about a week before magically coming back to life. Hopefully all is well now and I can start to enjoy the car again!
Only a 10 minute job to whip out the old unit and connect up the new one
Also means I can stop carrying around this boulder of a recharge pack....
To be honest the GTI has been irritating me lately...the really expensive MOT right before Christmas, then the battery issues which meant I really haven't been driving it much, plus the heater randomly refusing to work for about a week before magically coming back to life. Hopefully all is well now and I can start to enjoy the car again!
Interesting car I think, the mk5 GTI. On one hand it really is the jack of all trades, on the other it really can be master of none. I've owned mine for a few months now, I still can't decide if I love it or not. I definitely like the way it looks but not entirely sure the performance warrants the 28-34mpg that I average!
Mr Scruff said:
Interesting car I think, the mk5 GTI. On one hand it really is the jack of all trades, on the other it really can be master of none. I've owned mine for a few months now, I still can't decide if I love it or not. I definitely like the way it looks but not entirely sure the performance warrants the 28-34mpg that I average!
I used to find similar with mine, had a bit of a love/ hate relationship at the time but after I sold it I really missed. Similar to you and the OP the mpg wasn't great and it suffered from niggles along with an MOT failure. As an overall package though they are very difficult to beat. 4 cars later my M135i is the only that comes close. va1o said:
Mr Scruff said:
Interesting car I think, the mk5 GTI. On one hand it really is the jack of all trades, on the other it really can be master of none. I've owned mine for a few months now, I still can't decide if I love it or not. I definitely like the way it looks but not entirely sure the performance warrants the 28-34mpg that I average!
I used to find similar with mine, had a bit of a love/ hate relationship at the time but after I sold it I really missed. Similar to you and the OP the mpg wasn't great and it suffered from niggles along with an MOT failure. As an overall package though they are very difficult to beat. 4 cars later my M135i is the only that comes close. epom said:
va1o said:
Mr Scruff said:
Interesting car I think, the mk5 GTI. On one hand it really is the jack of all trades, on the other it really can be master of none. I've owned mine for a few months now, I still can't decide if I love it or not. I definitely like the way it looks but not entirely sure the performance warrants the 28-34mpg that I average!
I used to find similar with mine, had a bit of a love/ hate relationship at the time but after I sold it I really missed. Similar to you and the OP the mpg wasn't great and it suffered from niggles along with an MOT failure. As an overall package though they are very difficult to beat. 4 cars later my M135i is the only that comes close. It's definitely got the nicest interior, which I think is a too-often overlooked attribute in a relatively inexpensive car. To be fair I came into my GTI from a Celica so the interior seems like a palace in comparison, but I just love the layout and appearance of the Golf inside
thatguy11 said:
Agree with all of this guys, there are other mid-2000s hot hatches which do individual things better (Astra VXR is faster, Megane R26 more exciting etc) but if you score every attribute of a car and add up to a total the MK5 GTI comes out on top, and that's why I went for one. I was leaning towards an R26 initially but went for the GTI as an all-rounder.
It's definitely got the nicest interior, which I think is a too-often overlooked attribute in a relatively inexpensive car. To be fair I came into my GTI from a Celica so the interior seems like a palace in comparison, but I just love the layout and appearance of the Golf inside
I think I got a bit frustrated in buying the best one I could find (2 owners, full VW SH, winter pack, leather, sat nav etc), paying a bit of a premium for it and then getting hit with about £900 of bills in the first couple of months! Touch wood it's been reliable since then mind.It's definitely got the nicest interior, which I think is a too-often overlooked attribute in a relatively inexpensive car. To be fair I came into my GTI from a Celica so the interior seems like a palace in comparison, but I just love the layout and appearance of the Golf inside
Definitely agree with the interior though, and the superchips idea sounds interesting...
Did a small mod today, removing the numberplate surround to tidy up/smoothen the front end a bit.
The grill was stupidly easy to remove; two screws on the top and two on the bottom. The area underneath where the surround had been was pretty scratched up, but some t-cut and polish did a great job of removing as much of the ugliness as possible
Before
After
As well as just screwing the plate back into the grill, I used some VHB double sided tape on the back of the plate so it would sit flush to the grill's curve a little more effectively
Before
After
Looks pretty good I think!
The grill was stupidly easy to remove; two screws on the top and two on the bottom. The area underneath where the surround had been was pretty scratched up, but some t-cut and polish did a great job of removing as much of the ugliness as possible
Before
After
As well as just screwing the plate back into the grill, I used some VHB double sided tape on the back of the plate so it would sit flush to the grill's curve a little more effectively
Before
After
Looks pretty good I think!
Mr Scruff said:
Interesting car I think, the mk5 GTI. On one hand it really is the jack of all trades, on the other it really can be master of none. I've owned mine for a few months now, I still can't decide if I love it or not. I definitely like the way it looks but not entirely sure the performance warrants the 28-34mpg that I average!
One hundred percent agree with this! Recently got myself a 5 door (also in grey like the OP) and whilst it's objectively a brilliant car I just don't know if I love it or hate it. Have to say from a 'hot hatch' point of view I have found the dynamics rather disappointing. Extremely capable and quick to cover the ground but not a lot of driver feedback unless you're really caning it. Steering has been praised by journos and owners alike but I find myself missing the hydraulic steering from an old 79hp fiesta I had the pleasure of driving for a few months prior to getting the golf! The thing that i've actually enjoyed the most is how refined it is in 6th on a motorway run and 400 miles to a tank 
Anyway, lovely car OP. You've got the best colour as well
Number plate mod looks great as well.Last week a few friends and I drove the North Coast 500. Actually, it was more like the North Coast 850 as we started and finished in Edinburgh. If anyone hasn't experienced some of the roads that the Scottish Highlands have to offer, then do yourself a favour and make plans to head up there ASAP. It simply can't be beaten for the combination of stunning roads and breathtaking scenery.
One of the cars on the trip was my old Celica now owned by a mate, was great to get the opportunity for a quick 15 minutes behind the wheel again.
The GTI was an absolute star. Supremely comfortable environment for driving 850 miles in 48 hours, but then more than willing to roll up its sleeves and give the twisty single-track B roads a serious thrashing. I've never driven it as hard as I did up north, and had no idea how much grip the chassis could generate when cornering on its door handles. I never found it lacking for grunt either; 200bhp and 207 lb/ft of torque is all the shove you need up there on those roads. Plus a point-and-squirt turbo engine is perfect for overtaking campervans!
One of the cars on the trip was my old Celica now owned by a mate, was great to get the opportunity for a quick 15 minutes behind the wheel again.
The GTI was an absolute star. Supremely comfortable environment for driving 850 miles in 48 hours, but then more than willing to roll up its sleeves and give the twisty single-track B roads a serious thrashing. I've never driven it as hard as I did up north, and had no idea how much grip the chassis could generate when cornering on its door handles. I never found it lacking for grunt either; 200bhp and 207 lb/ft of torque is all the shove you need up there on those roads. Plus a point-and-squirt turbo engine is perfect for overtaking campervans!
Edited by thatguy11 on Monday 16th October 14:53
Good thread. I'm in the honeymoon period with a similar one (05 plate 85k 3-door in Graphite Blue with leather and 18s). Totally get that some hot hatches offer more raw thrills, but for a middle-aged bloke who wants decent performance and some retro/heritage vibes alongside the inevitable 'easy to live with' factor, these seem impossible to beat for about £5k.
xjay1337 said:
If you think it's fast now wait until you get a remap.
Speak to R-tech (Midlands) or Ecotune (custom or APR) in Scotland or APR tuners elsewhere.
Well worth it. Stick an intake on too (Revo intake is best) for the darth vader wooshy-wooshy noises.
What does this do for reliability? I'm looking at getting a mk5 and would be interested in these mods.Speak to R-tech (Midlands) or Ecotune (custom or APR) in Scotland or APR tuners elsewhere.
Well worth it. Stick an intake on too (Revo intake is best) for the darth vader wooshy-wooshy noises.
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