I test drove a 2.0 Focus and a 1.4TSI Golf and I found the drive to be very similar, in fact i'd give the edge to the Golf as it just felt an all-round nicer place to be.
That's nothing against the Focus though, it's also a very good car.
So what have you lot got against golfs?!
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I test drove a 2.0 Focus and a 1.4TSI Golf and I found the drive to be very similar, in fact i'd give the edge to the Golf as it just felt an all-round nicer place to be.
That's nothing against the Focus though, it's also a very good car.
My thoughts:
- Too many people seem to believe that because it has a nice interior, that it's a genuine quality product. Why not check some of the warranty claim and JD Power data to see whether it really is a genuinely reliable car. My guess is that it's decidedly middle of the road
- Too many people think it's an Audi on the cheap, when in reality it's using Skoda mechanicals with a nice interior
In short, it's a really really ordinary car with a nice interior, that some seem to think is the answer to all of our motoring needs.
- Too many people seem to believe that because it has a nice interior, that it's a genuine quality product. Why not check some of the warranty claim and JD Power data to see whether it really is a genuinely reliable car. My guess is that it's decidedly middle of the road
- Too many people think it's an Audi on the cheap, when in reality it's using Skoda mechanicals with a nice interior
In short, it's a really really ordinary car with a nice interior, that some seem to think is the answer to all of our motoring needs.
I think you'll find that under the skin all VAG products are pretty much the same, Audi's interiors have got closer to the rest of the range than the rest of the range has got close to Audi. I think of late Audi (as in A4, 5 and 6) has reduced its interior quality noticeably with much cheaper looking and feeling plastics. I think Audi drivers like to justify the quality of their bits as do VW driver when in fact the differences are pretty small in reality.
Caporegime
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If we're guessing, my guess is that top prestige brand cars will have the worst reliability of all of them, so you can't completely rely on reliability statistics to reflect build quality.
Does it use any more Skoda parts than an Audi and if so, source? Genuinely interested to know the technical details as to what extend VAG share parts between marques.
Who thinks that? I doubt anyone actually thinks that. And a Focus is also a really really ordinary car, only a little bit worse in most regards.
![[TW]Fox](/data/man-of-honor/2009.png){kind=avatar}
Whats a Golf diesel if it isnt a rep-mobile? Surely it is the very definition of rep-mobile?
Whats a grandads car then?
That's all rather contingent on your view of what people should or should not drive at a given age though eh? ...and what exactly is a "young man's lifestyle" ? ...I may be 25 (well 26 soon
) but I have more in common with Victor Meldrew than I do many other young men I know ...I did when I was 21 too ...albeit a little less so than I do now perhaps.Personally, and this is purely my own opinion, I don't like hatchbacks very much, I have always preferred larger saloon cars and coupes, they just look so much better generally speaking, the profile, the proportions, the lines, the stance ...everything. Not to mention they just look plain classier generally speaking. Also few hatches come with the kind power-train I like, large capacity l6/V6/V8/V12 …with rwd.
Every time I do drive a compact hatchback I am reminded how solid and weighty and planted the cars I am used to feel by comparison. And the interiors are usually worlds apart, plastic fantastic ...or wood and leather and chrome etc ...hmmmm. I know you can't really compare two totally different classes of car like this in a fair way …but this is why I prefer to drive an older larger "old man’s" car than I do a younger 'snazzier' (hate that word) ‘young man’s’ hatchback. I am not cool anyway, I don't need to prove anything or look a certain way I know what I like and I like what I know ….besides I have a 4.4 litre V8 32v DOHC lump under my bonnet, I can destroy pretty well any hatchback you like if I should feel the urge to prove anything to the “cool” dudes.
This is my mid 20s perspective on this anyway.
If he thinks our cars are 'grandads cars' Moeks then what can I say - I'd rather drive a 'grandads car' (Though I don't see many eldery pensioners driving cars with stupid sport suspension and 18 inch wheels) than a Polo diesel with ebay lights and a 'chip'.
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The Golf is a good car. The problem is that it's too expensive for what it is and the extra premium over and above the Focus/Leon et al is not worth it. The 1-series and A3 command more 'badge' prestige for little extra investment. But by far the biggest problem is this. In 1982 you bought a Mk1 GTi at 17 and lashed around as a kid. By 25 you had a bit more dosh and a steady missus so bought the mk2 GTi 16v. By 1994 you'd had a baby but no bother, the Mk3 still had a GTi badge and was ok for that - you were starting to get sensible. 5 years later you needed a 5 door but the Mk4 was still letting you hold on to your youth, even though you'd gotten podgy and started to lose most of your hair. The Mk5 just kept you coming back for more and there was no need to put any effort in to selling it to your middle-aged ass. It had become as big as you and you fit in nicely.
The new one is a big improvement on that, but it still has some baggage to get rid of.
The new one is a big improvement on that, but it still has some baggage to get rid of.
[TW]Fox;16065562 said:
Indeed, when I do see 'older' people driving E39s they are almost alwys SE's with 16" wheels and most likely 520 or 525ds too boot.
As for the Golf, well I think the MK5 onwards are very decent cars actually, they just cost too much for what they are and have some sort of weird perceived kudos attached to them for god knows what reason. The MK4 GTi was an affront to the GTI badge though, so there is plenty of hatred there.
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I had the misfortune of driving a Golf hatchback the other week as a company hire car. I've got to say I was looking forwards to it, since I'd driven a Golf estate previously and found it alright, and the hatchback obviously has a considerable reputation behind it. I was very dissapointed though - it was sluggish, nothing special to handle. Personally I find my big, heavy, bog standard lump of a Mondeo a more enjoyable and exciting ride than the Golf based on my experience thus far.
That's all rather contingent on your view of what people should or should not drive at a given age though eh? ...and what exactly is a "young man's lifestyle" ? ...I may be 25 (well 26 soon
.
Then it suits you doesn't it.
Each to there own & all that.
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yeah, you can. Our company has one as a courtesy car for the customers.
mk6 1.4, woefully slow
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Sure, bigger discounts on fords, but I was amazed at the list price difference. Go back 10 years and there was no way a Focus was more expensive than a comparable Golf. And the focus will be worth less after a year.
For what its worth I've owned both (mk2 golf, mk1 focus) and preferred the Focus to drive. But the Golf has the 'image' for sure.
i love Vags and i do love/like golfs my fave is mk1/mk2 dont really like all the "modern" golfs.. they seem fat? boring? i would have mk2 golf instead of focus, micra, saxo or w/e you can name i just prefer it to anything else really...
my fave is mk1/mk2 dont really like all the "modern" golfs.. they seem fat? boring? i would have mk2 golf instead of focus, micra, saxo or w/e you can name i just prefer it to anything else really...
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I used to drive around in my dads mk4 TDi estate (90bhp model) and currently I'm pootling around in 2000 (same year as my dads estate was) GT TDi (115bhp) and I actually enjoyed driving the estate more. Found my car to be quite underwhelming for everyday use but I do like it for a fair few long motorway journeys I tend to make.
It's reliable and comfy enough, feels good and solid, but put trying to use the torque on anything other than a straight road it just ends up going straight on anyway.
As a result I think I'll be looking to pick up a mk2 this year as even my old 1.6auto mk2 was more fun, albeit with a full GTI suspension setup (slow slow to get going but no need to slow down in the twisties) which made for a very smiley driving experience.
Oh and i've now got that annoying glitch with the electric windows refusing to ever work smoothly, apart from 1min before it rains when they're down anyway, so I'll have to use some google-fu to find a fix for what I'm led to believe is a common problem.
It's reliable and comfy enough, feels good and solid, but put trying to use the torque on anything other than a straight road it just ends up going straight on anyway.
As a result I think I'll be looking to pick up a mk2 this year as even my old 1.6auto mk2 was more fun, albeit with a full GTI suspension setup (slow slow to get going but no need to slow down in the twisties) which made for a very smiley driving experience.
Oh and i've now got that annoying glitch with the electric windows refusing to ever work smoothly, apart from 1min before it rains when they're down anyway, so I'll have to use some google-fu to find a fix for what I'm led to believe is a common problem.
disagree. the 1.8t is good fun and wide open to some very impressive tuning. the mk3 was a poor gti but the mk3 was all about the vr6, a ground breaking hatch if ever there was one, same for the mk4 r32.
No that's what I meant, list prices mean pretty much nothing now, the increase in prices have been soaked up in increased marketing (i.e. allowable discount) costs
So in reality, VWs are still over priced 