I had the pleasure of taking a MK5 GTI out for a spin today, and I thought it was a very nice car. Hoofed it in 2nd and 3rd gear to the redline, it certainly isnt slow and would make mincemeat of a mk3 16v or mk4 1.8t easily. Not quite on the pace of my 20VT, but the linear torque from 1800rpm was nice, hardly any lag. Gearbox was nice, short throw and direct. Clutch was difficult to use smoothly, but I'm sure you'd get used to it eventually. Altogether it was a nice car, but as above 20k basic is a lot of , will be a great used buy in maybe 2-3 years. With a re-map it should have 240bhp, and that should shift with a chassis to keep up with it!
agreed, 0-60 is good but I think VW have missed the opportunity to really place the new GTI as the leader of the pack...surely the 0-60 could be better and around the 6 sec mark. The R32 is another example, a great car and does drive exceptionally well but is that the best they could do with a 3.2?!? All in all though...looking forward to the local dealer calling me for my test drive!
The GTI has been placed as the leader of the pack, but for so many other reasons too. Its not all about straight line speed. The comfort, build, chassis, reliability, status, style etc etc They all mount up to make the new Golf GTI the best package. Thats why its won car of the year from Top Gear and 5th Gear.
Why do people keep referencing the price? 20k is in line with inflation and all previous model GTIs. I keep saying this, but the list price of the Mk2 16v was 16995 in 1991. The Mk3 GTI 16v was 17500. The Mk3 VR6 Highline was 21825. The R32 (not a GTI but) was 22500 and the new gti is faster and handles better apparently. If i had 20k to blow on a car, id be straight down the VW dealers. In fact, hold that thought, id goto http://www.drivethedeal.co.uk where you can get over 1000 off the retail price. Edited by: Deako
I see what you're saying but unfortunately I don't think they'll ever make a 'GTi' a 6 second car. They have to keep it in line with other models in the range, such as the V6's which would all have to be made faster to coincide with it. It's a shame VW have to make their engines so refined...both the 2.8 and 3.2 v6's should give out a lot more power than they do but unfortunately that's just not VW's intention.
think its a pyschological thing. People(lay) see 60sprint time of 7secs and they put it in same category as clio 172 or astra turbo. Once in low to mid 6's, it takes on a whole new cateogy, ie imprezza or megane sport category.
Just test driven a MK5 GTI, black 3 door with leather (although didnt think much of the leather interior), very responsive, very little turbo lag, steering nicely weighted, and the brakes felt excellent. Its quick, but not as quick as I thought it would be, having said that you certainly dont notice the speed like I do in my Mk2, took it up to over 100mph and thought I was only doing 70mph! Overall pretty impressed, has a fair bit of character considering its a modern, refined car.
Been to the dealers too. The only MK5 GTI they had in was a demo car - obviously they'd been out and about in it and it wasn't sparkling and new, but covered in crap from the roads. In that condition it didn't look anything special. I did ask how long it'd take to get one with everything I'd want (leather, 18" rims etc) they said if I was lucky, March 2005 (on the new plate). But it's price that puts me off. For a lot less money than my ideal MK5 GTi, I could be buying a second hand Audi S3 with all the trimmings, or something like V6 4motion, or even plump for a Anniversery MK4 GTi 1.8T and spend the change on modding it. I'd still have one tho.
My dad took one out for a test drive today, it's a pretty bumpy/harsh ride compared to the A3 TDI sport. Nice car, only thing is I doubt theres alot of potential for chip tuning with an 11.5:1 compression ratio !!
The A3 TDI Sport is NOT a hot hatch and will not be set up the same. The ride of that would be comparible to a MK5 2.0 TDI. For those that would rather spend 20000 on an Audi A3, I think you need to look at A3 prices and specs. 20000 wil NOT buy you a lot of A3, very little in fact! It constantly makes me laugh when people refer to the price being in "Audi territory". Yes it is, but for a comparible model - not even close. The new Audi 2.0 FSI Turbo DSG, will set you back: 22205!!! Thats over 1000 more than the Golf and the equipment levels are well down on a Standard MK5 GTI DSG And as for people getting an Audi A3 thats 2 or 3 years old, fine, but you wont get a 2.0 FSI Turbo, cause they have only recently been released. Edited by: Rob.gti
