I don’t think you can really appreciate a mk7 gti on a test drive,
It’s not that sort of car.
It’s a car to be appreciated over time, perfectly suited for daily duties and very enjoyable to drive.
I’ve thought about stage 1 map now and again, but have not done it yet for the reason that madstaff gives- I would very rarely use more than 245ps in a c1300kg car
I’d agree with OP’s comments on gear shift- very slick and satisfying- and on build quality-
It’s really not far off mk5/6 quality in my experience- mine is 3.5 years old and no rattles/squeaks at all from the cabin.