VW Golf Mk6 GTD - opinions?

[Janesy B]

As above, this says more about Fox than anyone else. Whilst he continues to be an arse I feel that people should be able to be an arse back to him. It's sweet that you're sticking up for him though.

I find it hilarious that a comment like this

Its not great but then this sort of car generally isnt but I doubt you'll find much in its class thats appreciably better - I'd go for it.

causes so much hurt and upset. Had another member posted this, it would have had an entirely different effect of the whole thread. The whole segment is painfully boring, I can't think of a single new car in this segment that I'd buy, if I had to, it would be the Golf or A3. Both of which can be accused of being too clinical and too German which can be a good thing and a bad thing at the same time.

 

[[TW]Fox]

That is not my criteria for a great car. However, it's nice to have a car with a decent amount of warranty remaining if you can afford it, for peace of mind if nothing else.

I quite agree. But given I had that, and succesfully claimed on it a couple of times as well, I am not entirely sure why you felt it relevant to bring it up

Many times will you have paid two different prices for essentially the same product. For example, the leather option in the Golf is twice as much as in the Skoda, and the Skoda gets the RCD510 touch screen unit as standard whereas it's a £300 upgrade in the Golf. It's ludicrous, it's outrageous, it's not logical, but it's marketing / branding and I for one just won't drive a bloody Skoda (whilst I can afford not to).

Strange really - people like yourself genuinelly think VW is something special, and your comment about Skoda really sums it up. The Octavia vRS is a genuinelly competent car - yet you refuse to drive it because it is a Skoda. If you then went out and purchased an Audi or perhaps a Porsche, then fair enough. But you didnt, you went and bought a Peoples Car instead. Bordering on illogical, really.

It's sweet that you're sticking up for him though.

Is it like dividing by zero when somebody without a BMW sticks up for me?

I still stand by my comment which caused all this hassle. The mid sized hatchback sector contains no cars which are genuinelly awesome. Nothing in this class available now will go down in history as groundbreaking or particularly excellent. Nothing in this class is the sort of thing you'd aspire to own - its a collection of tools made to do jobs, and some of them, the Golf included, do this job very well, but they won't thrill or excite you like the GTI variant of the Golf or, crucially (And the very reason I made the comment, but you've missed this when your red mist came down) the Ford Focus ST the OP (Yes, the OP, the guy who this thread is for and who has specifically AGREED with my sentiments) currently drives. They are economical workhorses and no amount of shiney wheels or new bumpers will change this.

He drives an ST and I felt it important he should know that compared to his current car a Golf diesel is the least worst option to replace it with rather than a great option to replace it with. Ironic how the OP had no issue with this, and even said it was on his mind as well...

 

[FTM]

I dont care about badges, I want the best value for my cash

so this week I suspect I will be ordering a petrol vRS (I just prefer the power delivery) in red as thats what the wife likes.

to be fair I do have a current mk2 vRS and its an easy choice..its has not missed a beat in my 3 and a bit years ownership and still feels solid and rattle free inside.

and thanks to their good deals at the moment I can tick a few options I normally might have passed up on

 

[Participant]

Strange really - people like yourself genuinelly think VW is something special, and your comment about Skoda really sums it up. The Octavia vRS is a genuinelly competent car - yet you refuse to drive it because it is a Skoda. If you then went out and purchased an Audi or perhaps a Porsche, then fair enough. But you didnt, you went and bought a Peoples Car instead. Bordering on illogical, really.

Yes the Octavia is a great car. Why didn't you buy one then? Potentially because you felt that a BMW held more status and a greater badge prestige / more quality brand name.

In the same way I chose a Golf over a Fabia / Octavia. Like it or not, there is no way that Skoda as a brand is perceived to be as prestigious as VW, in the same way that VW isn't as prestigious as BMW and BMW isn't as prestigious as Audi. I also think that the Golfs look better than any Skoda.

Finally I have a company Audi on the way so that's part of the reason that we didn't buy an Audi.

As regards Ford STs, any Ford I've ever sat in has an astonishly bad level of cabin quality. Since this is important to me, it could have the greatest engine in the world (it doesn't) and I still wouldn't buy one. They just feel cheap and nasty.

Your comments about the hatchback sector are, once again, incorrect. There are lots of mid sized hatchbacks that thrill and excite and are faster and more exciting than a lot of saloons. The Golf GTi was considered by us but would have cost an extra £4k for a well specced one. In any case my particular car reaches 60mph half a second slower than the GTi. I'm not sure how this half a second suddenly transforms essentially the same car from being dull, to exciting and thrilling, especially when ACC can be fitted to a GT to firm up the ride to GTi levels.

 

[Dangerous Dave]

I have had both the GTI and GTD on test drive and the GTD is missing something in the GTD it feels a bit nose heavy and doesn't like to change direction quickly. The new common rail diesel is a lot better than the old PD unit however it will never set the world on fire however it is not bad it certainly won't have the performance of the ST however it should be on a par with the handling and a nicer place to be on long journeys and should go at least twice as far between fill ups.

From what I have read in the first post you can't opt out the car and it is only costing £140 including tax a month personally I would take the Golf its not as if you are paying the 6k extra for the Golf over the vRS I assume the tax is the same so the Golf is only costing £70 a month more over a vRS. The vRS doesn't handle aswell and feels heavier to chuck about.

Can you get a Scirocco ?

 

[BigDannyO]

Like it or not, there is no way that Skoda as a brand is perceived to be as prestigious as VW

Rubbish, I perceive them to be equally as prestigious as each other ie NOT AT ALL prestigious.

In fact I'd rather have a Skoda since I'd be driving a better equipped dynamically equal car to the VW for significantly less outlay!

 

[Ben Cole]

It isn't the same engine - the Mk VI has the new common rail diesel which is supposed to be more refined.

Thanks. I stand corrected. Would explain an improvement in refinement.

O rly?

I was just hinting at the fact that I've read lots of threads where Fox is a little dismissive of anything that isn't an E39 5 series.

 

[FTM]

Thanks. I stand corrected. Would explain an improvement in refinement.




I was just hinting at the fact that I've read lots of threads where Fox is a little dismissive of anything that isn't an E39 5 series.

he isnt..he is dismissive of perceptions of perceived badge quality when there is no difference between main stream manufacturers

 

[Participant]

Rubbish, I perceive them to be equally as prestigious as each other ie NOT AT ALL prestigious.

In fact I'd rather have a Skoda since I'd be driving a better equipped dynamically equal car to the VW for significantly less outlay!

I agree that neither are particularly prestigious, but stating 'not at all prestigious' in capital letters doesn't enhance your point and isn't a particularly intelligent observation. On the scale of prestige, you can go from a Chevrolet Matiz to a VW Golf to an Aston Martin. There is always something less prestigious so it's not possible for Skoda and VW to have zero prestige.

You may not believe that Skoda has less prestige than VW but that's not the majority view. The Golf looks better than the Fabia / Octavia and is a more prestigious brand. If you surveyed 100 people on the street as to which brand they'd rather own, more would say VW than Skoda. I personally believe that the latest Octavia is equally as well built and noice to drive as a BMW 5-series, but most Bimmer drivers wouldn't be seen dead in a Skoda.

 

[FTM]

which is a shame..they would get a better stereo

 

[cymatty]

BMW isn't as prestigious as Audi.

What piffle, a BMW is just as prestigious as a Audi.

 

[Participant]

which is a shame..they would get a better stereo

...but a worse looking and less prestigious car. I can upgrade the stereo for £150 if I buy it from ebay and fit it myself. A Skoda driver can't make their car look good for £150 (unless they skip it ).

What piffle, a BMW is just as prestigious as a Audi.

Not in my view. I look at a BMW and think meh, yuppie. I look at an Audi and think yes I would like to own you, very smart.

 

[mcalladine]

id go for the golf a very nice car.

 

[jamief]

What piffle, a BMW is just as prestigious as a Audi.

Again, entirely subjective.

In my mind, an Audi is far more prestigious than a BMW

 

[cymatty]

Again, entirely subjective.

In my mind, an Audi is far more prestigious than a BMW

I don't see how, both make cars for the same markets at similar prices.

BMW are a seperate company whereas Audi dip into the VW parts bin so fail to see how Audis are more prestigious.

 

[jamief]

I don't see how, both make cars for the same markets at similar prices.

BMW are a seperate company whereas Audi dip into the VW parts bin so fail to see how Audis are more prestigious.

We aren't talking about who the respective marques might share parts with, nor the market they are in. In terms of perception, I think Audi is more prestigious than BMW.

 

[Participant]

I don't see how, both make cars for the same markets at similar prices.

BMW are a seperate company whereas Audi dip into the VW parts bin so fail to see how Audis are more prestigious.

Not relevant to the perception of prestige disucssion but I'll humour you anyway.

The fact that they dip into the parts bin isn't the relevant point. It's whether or not that parts bit is of sufficient quality. Unless your argument is that any car company that is part of a larger group must be weakened by the fact that they make economies of scale by swapping and sharing parts?

Perhaps you'd like to explain that argument to Bugatti and Porsche owners.

 

[cymatty]

Not relevant to the perception of prestige discussion but I'll humour you anyway.

Perhaps you'd like to explain that argument to Bugatti and Porsche owners.

How is it not relevant, driving an Audi with lots of parts of a lesser model imo makes it lose prestige. The difference between a similar Octavia and A3 is 5k even though most of the important parts are shared, VW are rubbing there hands together at people like yourself who will pay 5k ore for a badge.

Also I forgot which VW/Audi etc use a porsche flat 6 engine or floorplan? Regarding the Bugatti, the basic engine and gearbox are VW but they are far from standard parts from the bin.

Oh and PS if you think that parts are not pertinent to the discussion just ask Jaguar about the X type.

 

[Participant]

BMW uses some of the same parts in its 50-60k car range that it uses in its 20-30k car range. It's exactly the same scenario i.e. economies of scale introduced by using the same parts in high and low end models, yet you don't seem to have a problem with it. The only difference is that its between companies rather than within BMW, yet somehow this reduces the prestige of Audi yet does nothing to affect a £40k BMW.

 

[cymatty]

The only difference is that its between companies rather than within BMW, yet somehow this reduces the prestige of Audi yet does nothing to affect a £40k BMW.

Well not as much because BMW make one brand of car, you go in a chose which model you want and thats it. The engines for example may be the same but its still a BMW engine (with the exception on the Mini).

With Audi the parts are not only shared across the Audi range but across various marques and if you dont think that matters then read this as to some people it obviously does.

A business case is not the same as wisdom. Certainly, Jaguar needed an entry-luxury model to compete against the BMW 3-series and Mercedes-Benz C-class. Yes, the company, owned by Ford, had access to a very successful world car platform, the Mondeo, which Americans knew as the Ford Contour. There was money to be saved. But in its attempt to turn the front-drive compact car into an "all-wheel drive" sports sedan, Jaguar ran smack into the limits of platform engineering. The result was the English version of the Cadillac Cimarron, a tarted-up insult to a once-proud marque and a financial disaster for the company. It hardly matters that the X-Type was not that bad a car. Young affluent buyers had the feeling they were somehow being grifted. They were.

http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1658545_1658544_1658539,00.html