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calamity

calamity

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Looking at buying a Golf diesel but whats the difference between the sdi and the tdi? And should i go for the GT or the sport?
 
Depends on the age and mark of the Golf. More info would be helpful.

Generally :
SDI - Non turbo with around 70bhp. Beloved of Skoda Octavia Taxi drivers as it's virtually indestructible. Rough as a washing machine full of bolts and slow. Avoid!

TDI - Turbocharged. Anywhere between 90bhp and 170bhp.

GT and Sport - just trim ratings. Need more information before it means owt.
 
Robbie G said:
The Mark must be V as there was no such thing as the Sport before the V afaik.
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Could have been a dealer "special"... They stick the word sport on everything nowadays. Means about as much as "new and improved".

The 1.9 is the original TDI engine. It's usually a 105bhp in the Mk5 Golf.

The 2.0 is the later 16v engine which was new in the Mk5. It's 140bhp, with a 170bhp version in later versions. 140 is probably the better engine - the 170 can have problems with the emissions control stuff and has hardly any more torque.

VW kept messing around with the Trim. GT disappeared to be replaced by the Sport during a round of cost cutting in around 2005. GT Sport then replaced that when the 170bhp engine arrived.

Weirdly the early GT has the most toys, the Sport the least.

My Dad got a run-out Golf Plus GT at a huge discount, which had far more kit than the replacement Sport (no discount).
 
MagicBoy said:
VW kept messing around with the Trim. GT disappeared to be replaced by the Sport during a round of cost cutting in around 2005. GT Sport then replaced that when the 170bhp engine arrived.
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Pretty sure the GT and Sport were available at the same time - the Sport having the 140 PS TSi and TDi engines and the GT the 170 PS versions and a slightly higher trim level. Both were merged into the GT Sport which is available with either 140 or 170 PS versions.
 
unclelonghair said:
Pretty sure the GT and Sport were available at the same time - the Sport having the 140 PS TSi and TDi engines and the GT the 170 PS versions and a slightly higher trim level. Both were merged into the GT Sport which is available with either 140 or 170 PS versions.
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Spot on :)

If it is a GT Sport 2.0 TDI that your looking at from what I understand it's a cracking engine especially in the 170 BHP flavour :)
 
MagicBoy said:
The Pug 306 I test drove in about 1996 I think. Turbo makes a lot of difference and usually improves the fuel economy.
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My 306 is a 1.9 D non turbo and its rubbish, thank god I don’t drive it much :eek:

None turbo diesels are very poor.
 
unclelonghair said:
Pretty sure the GT and Sport were available at the same time - the Sport having the 140 PS TSi and TDi engines and the GT the 170 PS versions and a slightly higher trim level. Both were merged into the GT Sport which is available with either 140 or 170 PS versions.
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K. My bad!

When my old man was looking the GT had just gone discontinued and been replaced with the Sport. Suspect the "new" GT arrived a couple of months after that.
 
Not only is the SDI terrible it isn't particularly economic either. We had one in the works Caddy van (basically a Golf based van). While it was in for a service we had the TDI version as a loaner, and after driving the TDI back to the garage and the SDI back he turned around and complained that this van was obviously faulty. The VW dealer just told him, no the SDI really is that crap.

I don't know why they even bothered making it. Even when completely unladen it took forever to get that thing up to 70 on the motorways, and once there you really didn't want to slow down again so the drivers would do some really naughty things to try and keep the speed up such as inappropriately fast cornering, tailgating people who have pulled out in front hoping they'd pull in again etc. etc.
 
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