Golf TDI or Polo TDI? Help !!

[Try5t]

Hello

I need some help from the people in the know on this one please

I currently have a RAV4 2.0 DDI diesel that I am using to commute the 100 miles or so it is to work and back everyday. I can get about 4 days out of tank which is just about 400 miles (I can get about 43-45mpg on a daily basis - over mixed urban and motorway miles). I am just changing job and may be looking at 140 mile trip everyday now instead.

I love the RAV, it has been faultless; but I need something that is a bit more economical, while being just as reliable and also "fun" to drive when I`m not doing the boring 70mph daily commute. I have it down to 2 cars - the Polo GT 130 TDI or the Golf GT TDI 140.

They both have the six speed box and are similar specs - I know there is a slight price difference but I don't mind paying up to about the £12-13k mark - which is either a newish Polo or a two or 3 year old Golf. I also like the idea of the long service intervals (10k on the RAV!)

So what is the best car for the long motorway miles - I`ve read the MPG figures for both cars; but I would like to know from fellow PH's what is the real range per tank - and what are they really like to run and maintain?

Any help / advice appreicated !!

Thanks !

[DamienCBR]

Slightly off topic but which Rav is it, the wife is looking at one at the moment and we are trying to get some real word stats on the MPG
.

Cheers
D

[Welshbeef]

Try5t said:

Hello

I need some help from the people in the know on this one please

I currently have a RAV4 2.0 DDI diesel that I am using to commute the 100 miles or so it is to work and back everyday. I can get about 4 days out of tank which is just about 400 miles (I can get about 43-45mpg on a daily basis - over mixed urban and motorway miles). I am just changing job and may be looking at 140 mile trip everyday now instead.

I love the RAV, it has been faultless; but I need something that is a bit more economical, while being just as reliable and also "fun" to drive when I`m not doing the boring 70mph daily commute. I have it down to 2 cars - the Polo GT 130 TDI or the Golf GT TDI 140.

They both have the six speed box and are similar specs - I know there is a slight price difference but I don't mind paying up to about the £12-13k mark - which is either a newish Polo or a two or 3 year old Golf. I also like the idea of the long service intervals (10k on the RAV!)

So what is the best car for the long motorway miles - I`ve read the MPG figures for both cars; but I would like to know from fellow PH's what is the real range per tank - and what are they really like to run and maintain?

Any help / advice appreicated !!

Thanks !

FYI when I ran a Golf GT TDI 115 PD 55ltr tank I could get usually 700miles from it (longish runs mind), conversly the best ever I managed was 800miles which is 66mpg for the whole of the tank. Now the TDI 130 is very very similar to this exactly the same engine just mapped differently so you could get the same or more.

I drive quite quickly too so even the worst red liner gear changers out there should easily blast 550miles from a tank - if not they are either driving in heavy congfestion all the time or through town or have faulty injectors or just dont know how to drive a TDI properly.

[GreatGranny]

I would have thought the Polo would return slightly better mpg being lighter, performance will be very similar due to extra power/torque making up for heavier Golf. Golf will be slightly more comfortable, bigger car, longer wheelbase and safer.
For 100 miles a day I would go for the Golf. There's probably more choice as well, you can be more fussy with the spec.
what about an A3? Better inside and the same engine as the Golf.
Just looking at prices, I can't find any GT TDi 130s for sale, they are very rare, for 12k you get 2005 GT TDi with about 40k miles and an A3 TDI 140 2004/05 with about 50-60k miles.

[Ranger 6]

Welshbeef said:

...when I ran a Golf GT TDI 115 PD 55ltr tank I could get usually 700miles from it (longish runs mind), conversly the best ever I managed was 800miles which is 66mpg for the whole of the tank. Now the TDI 130 is very very similar to this exactly the same engine just mapped differently so you could get the same or more.

700 miles! I would suggest that's the high end of Grandad driving...

Mine would struggle to break the 600 mark - 530-560 was the norm. Try www.uk-mkivs.net  for some more data on this, the 130 engine was perceived to be the better on mpg than the 115 so I would expect a good return for the Polo, the 140 in the MkIV is regarded as a better more modern engine but I don't have personal experience of it.

My choice would be the Golf simply becuase I perceive it to be a more comfortable car - if it was purely mpg then the Polo would win.

[Welshbeef]

Ranger 6 said:

Welshbeef said:

...when I ran a Golf GT TDI 115 PD 55ltr tank I could get usually 700miles from it (longish runs mind), conversly the best ever I managed was 800miles which is 66mpg for the whole of the tank. Now the TDI 130 is very very similar to this exactly the same engine just mapped differently so you could get the same or more.

700 miles! I would suggest that's the high end of Grandad driving...

Mine would struggle to break the 600 mark - 530-560 was the norm. Try www.uk-mkivs.net  for some more data on this, the 130 engine was perceived to be the better on mpg than the 115 so I would expect a good return for the Polo, the 140 in the MkIV is regarded as a better more modern engine but I don't have personal experience of it.

My choice would be the Golf simply becuase I perceive it to be a more comfortable car - if it was purely mpg then the Polo would win.

530-560 is 44-46mpg! and 600 = 50mpg.
The Golf I had had the longer range 6 speed box which existed in some of the earlier TDI 130pd VAG's i.e. 70mph = 1800rpm the later ones had a shorter final gear or they shortened the all the ratios so there is a slight worsening of the MPG.

I tend to drive everywhere at 70 but change up early and ride the torque, most times I rarely rev'd beyond 2200rpm I think only once in my ownership did I rev to 4000rpm and really it was no quicker than riding the torque.

My best ever run on 200 odd miles brim to brim well brimed and then re brimmed it was 74mpg which if I countinued for a whole tank would have been nearly 900miles a tank.

The Golf is the better of the two but go for a higher milage version - why waste it on depreciation. You can buy 04 rg 2.0 GT TDI's for £7k with 90-110k milage these will do 3 times that milage without issue.

On Sat I was inside a E320CDi manual which had over 500,000 miles on it - 2 owners he bought it at 120k and its still on its original clutch all he does is service it properly lots of oil changes and the belts on time thats all. Nothing but servicable parts have been changed and he was adament that he would be running i for many years to come (did 120,000 miles a year airport driver).