Hi all! Heard good stuff about this forum so thought it would be the best place to come to ask about Mk4 GTi's... I am looking into getting one as my next car but want some tips, recommendations etc from you experts What is the best to get, 2.0 or 1.8? What should I be looking out for when I start looking round to buy? Mileage seems to be very high on all of the cars I have seeen so far, is this something I should be worried about? I have always had Jap cars but I have decided to come over to the dark side with you lot!
its not toooo bad over here with us german car lot. basically... whats your criteria? the 2.0 looks like a gti, handles like a 3 legged dog and goes like a 3 legged dog after a stroke. the 1.8 20v NA is much of the same then you can get the 1.8t. goes a bit quicker with the right mods but cannot handle if its life depended on it with the right mods you can make is reasonably quick in a straight line. after that you have to upgrade the suspension to get rid of the wallowy dampers and put some better springs on. at this age bushes are going to be shagged unless theyve been changed engine wise, later ones have a larger turbot but they also had dodgy variable service intervals (ie 20k oil changes) not good at all the rest depends on your budget
buy a mk3 or mk5, skip the mk4 all together, there nothing but trouble. if you must, like everyone will tell you, the one to have is the 1.8 turbo, the none turbo lacks pull and the 2.0 is only an 8v, unless your more worried about insurance costs, in which case the 1.8 none turbo is cheaper to insure. the 4motion (V6 2.8) is a better choice if you want to spend abit more and have AWD too without going to the R32. the V5 is ok and highly over looked imo. but if you MUST have a GTI, the 1.8t is the one to have but the 1.8 none turbo and the 2.0 are cheaper to insure and there is very little power difference between them 2 tnx to the 2.0 only having 8v.
only trouble with mine is the arb on the driveshaft and that was only caused by a "-40mm lowering kit" that lowered it about 80mm! mines very well behaved tbh
Have you ever owned a MK4 1.8T? They are great cars. Reliable, can give good MPG and are highly tuneable. I'd have one over a MK3 or a MK5 anyday, and ive driven both. The only problems ive had with mine is sqeaky ARB bushes, which is caused by wear & tear, and a perished breather pipe.
the bush's are only bad piont i have on both my mk4's and it not wear and tear my tdi's bushs stated go at 18 months 15000 miles the rear axle /front wishbone and ARB bushes the rubber falls off the aluminum outer most people fit poly or TT bush's
umm, have i ever owned a mk4 1.8t? well my daily is a 2001 mk4 1.8t with 80k on the clock, so yeah i currently own one. my grief aint with the 1.8t, its with the mk4 itself, it is a good car but it's not the best thru corners. there not bad to drive, just make sure you buy one thats worth buying! mine had been repaired over time using cheap parts and almost all of them failed within the first 6 months of having the car, aint got anything done i wanted to yet. but there is some good news on the rear wishbone bush's there MUSHY 16V .. VW re-designed them to be more solid so newer ones last alot longer, so i was told when i had mine done back in september.
Thanks all, very interesting... Here's my situation. I currently have a sloppy and dull 4x4 for work reasons but no longer need it so looking for something half decent to have a bit of fun with, my budget is very small at only around 3k. I have been offered a good deal on a '99 2.0 GTi with low mileage, fsh and looks pretty good to me (although I haven't given it a thorough inspection yet) I don't intend to spend alot of money on this car, it's just a stop gap for now until I have the funds to really splash out. Worth bothering with you think?? And lets face it, anything is gonna handle better than my current motor!!
the 2.0 i drove was alot smoother to drive on acceleration than the 1.8t is but was only like a 5min drive, it is a good car though and know afew ppl with them that LOVE them. just make sure you give it a good going over to make sure it in good condition though first. the mk4 aint as bad as it seems i'm saying it is, they are nice to drive and do look nice too.
I've had a 2.0 GTI and now a 1.8T GTI and I would say the 1.8T is much better.. quicker and fun! - I've replaced a few bits on mine which have been very easy and cheap to do myself... and I'm no expert!
Imo, the 2.0 Mk4 doesn't deserve to hold the GTI badge on it. Its a joke... Its a slow 2.0 8v ffs... What were VW thinking. I think the 1.6 16v's are more exciting then them...
If you increase your budget slightly you could get a lovely 4motion instead... I might happen to have mine for sale...
Keep searching the net, you'll get a 1.8T for under 3k. I've just sold mine, a 2000 model that had a genuine 69k miles and service history for 2500. Ignore Pistonheads prices, they are way off the mark. I have to say as well though, that if you want a car that is fun to drive then avoid the Mk4, unless you are prepared to spend alot of time and money sorting it out.
Disagree with that mate! All the 1.8T needs in standard form is a re-map and its definately fast enough for road use!
my mk4 was 2k. ive put some work into it but its the nuts now. you dont have to spend as much as 3k if you dont mind putting in "wrench time"
Ok cut through the crap. The Mk4 in MY opinion is a good car for the money. The general consensus is that the 1.8(n/a) and the 2.0 are not quick, which is true, however it depends what you want the car to do, if you want a comfortable cruiser, that arn't THAT bad. The 1.8T is the GTi to have the engine is massively tunable, and you can make anything handle with the right investment. The Mk4 has to take alot of "slating" from the community and beyond, but just ask yourself the question, if they were "that" crap, why is there one on every corner? Best advice; -Read the buyers guide on here to look for the common faults. -Drive one yourself, and make YOUR mind up.
why thank you! i bought a mk4 1.8t in May this year. it was remapped, the rest was standard. so far ive sorted a couple engine gremlins, improved airflow, tweaked the ecu and now its a quick car. i beleive it has been beyond 150mph. i put new front bushes in and a spring/damper kit from gmax (-40mm). the lowering kit turned out to be closer to -80mm. ive had to change the front arb since then, i chose a 20mm TT item brand new from VW. no more rubbing and part of the plan was to improve response from the front end. it worked nicely now ive got a pretty quick package, its low, goes nice enough round corners (grippy, mk4s seem to do grip rather than handling) and its very quiet and comfortable, ride is close to oe
