Author Topic: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily  (Read 2919 times)

Offline Gerry_sully

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What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« on: 28 December 2020, 19:31 »
Hi everyone
New to the forum and I'm looking at getting a mk6 gti. Just wondering on what should you look out for it's gonna be an 11/12 car because of tensioner revisions. But what colour and spec should I look for?


Offline SRGTD

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #1 on: 28 December 2020, 21:32 »
Welcome to the forum @Gerry_sully.

I would consider condition and comprehensive service history to be more important than a specific colour or spec when buying a car around 10 years old.

As with any used car, check all the electrics work. Check for accident damage / repairs. If the car has DSG transmission, check that the service history includes details of the DSG oil changes. Don’t necessarily discount a pre-2011 model, provided the service history shows that the timing chain tensioner has been replaced with the latest version. A couple of weak points with many VW’s is water pump failure and leaking thermostat housing, so check for signs of coolant leaks.

Wheels; the optional 18” Monza Shadow alloys fitted to many mk6 GTI’s are diamond cut which are prone to white worm corrosion. Cost of a good quality refurb is around £75 - £80 plus VAT per wheel. Check the rear tyres for stepped / ‘sawtooth’ wear on the inner edge; the increased tyre noise on cars suffering from sawtooth tyre wear can sound like worn wheel bearings.

Xenon headlamps - these are quite rare as they were an expensive option - I think they cost in the region of £1,100. I had them on my mk6 GTD and they were very good, and IMO if you find a car that ticks all the boxes in terms of condition, mileage, service history and it also has the optional xenon headlamps, then that would be an added bonus.

The interior is quite hard wearing, although with the front seats having quite prominent side bolsters, these can be prone to wear, so check these - especially the bolsters on the driver’s seat. If you find a car with leather interior, VW’s leather isn’t the best quality and the leather can become creased and saggy - again, especially on the driver’s seat bolsters.

Bluetooth and DAB were extra cost options so not all cars may have these. The standard radio / CD player had a blue display so looked a little odd as it didn’t match the rest in of the interior lighting (changed to white for 2012 model year). The upgraded optional RCD510 (with 6 disc CD player) and RNS510 (with sat nav) were touchscreen units and the screen illumination matched the rest of the car’s interior lighting and are a nice upgrade on the standard radio / CD player, although will be a little outdated these days in terms of tech.

This ‘sticky’ at the top of the forum board gives details of model year spec changes;

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=286420.msg2621288#new

Good luck with your search. I hope you find a good example.

« Last Edit: 28 December 2020, 21:36 by SRGTD »
2020 Polo GTI Plus; Pure White, DSG (because they all are)
Gone but not forgotten;
2016 Polo GTI; Blue Silk
2011 mk6 Golf GTD; Carbon Grey
2007 mk5 Golf GT (2.0 170bhp TDI version); Deep Black Pearl
2002  mk4 Golf GTI (the 150 bhp diesel version); Deep Black Pearl

Offline Gerry_sully

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #2 on: 28 December 2020, 22:32 »
Thanks for the reply @SRGTD much appreciated. Just another question would there be a need to replace tensioner + chain on the revised models? Have any of the revisions failed. Interesed in one near me 61 plate black 5 door leather nav and park assist. 98000 miles fsh. But no history of chain or tensioner. Need to change 2nd car focus tdci. Wife has a 15 octavia vrs tdi estate so no need for two diesel cars.

Offline SRGTD

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #3 on: 28 December 2020, 22:50 »
Worth having a look at the Timing Chain Tensioner failure list ‘sticky’ at the top of the forum board - link below;

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=262793.0

If the car you’re considering is a ‘61 plate car (Sept 2011 - Feb 2012), then it could have the first revision version of the tensioner, unless it was subsequently fitted with a later version. There were three revisions - the latest version was from May 2012 (see list at the bottom of reply #4 in the ‘sticky’ at the link above). I’m assuming that as VW revised the original tensioner design three times, there probably were some failures of the first and second revisions, otherwise why produce a third revision?

There may be some instances of first and second revision tensioner failures posted by forum members in the sticky’ at the link above, so it’d be worth having a scan look through that discussion thread, even if you don’t read all 73 pages!
2020 Polo GTI Plus; Pure White, DSG (because they all are)
Gone but not forgotten;
2016 Polo GTI; Blue Silk
2011 mk6 Golf GTD; Carbon Grey
2007 mk5 Golf GT (2.0 170bhp TDI version); Deep Black Pearl
2002  mk4 Golf GTI (the 150 bhp diesel version); Deep Black Pearl

Offline Snoopy

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a dailyif
« Reply #4 on: 29 December 2020, 10:31 »
If you can stretch to an edition35 go for one of them.
Mk6 GTI  &  Mk1 GTI 
34 years of GTI ownership.

Offline Gerry_sully

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #5 on: 29 December 2020, 20:44 »
I'd love an edition 35 actually my favorite golf. But there like hens teeth here in ireland. Would consider one in uk but covid has everything in a heap also ireland has crazy VRT rates which are changing from 1/1/21 thanks to the green party 🤬. It won't be based on any logic just like picking a random figure out of a hat 😂

Offline Malcyb

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #6 on: 23 March 2021, 10:59 »

Hi,
I’m a newbie here, contemplating buying a Mk 5 or Mk 6 GTI in the near future, and this is a very useful thread to guide me as to what to look for. I’ve read plenty about the Mk 6’s timing chain tensioner issue, however I still haven’t been able to fully understand how it would affect me as a buyer today.  Sorry if I’m going over old ground but I’ve not been able to find a clear answer. On a pre 2011 model, how do I ensure that I don’t get stung by a large bill for replacing the tensioner, or even worse facing the consequences of it failing?  I’ve seen one or two ads say that the tensioner and chain have been replaced, and if there’s evidence in the form of invoices then that’s great, but otherwise how easy is it to check whether it’s been replaced, especially for someone who isn’t a mechanic?  I appreciate that a VCDS scan can tell me whether the chain has stretched and so would need replacing, however I don’t think this really helps since a clear scan might give me false reassurance that an original chain won’t need replacing a little way down the line. I guess in the worst case I can keep a large budget in hand to replace it immediately as a precaution, however that might persuade me to ignore the Mk 6 altogether (since I don’t think my budget will stretch to a 2011/12 model) and try and find the best Mk 5 I can even though good ones are understandably thin on the ground now.
Many thanks

Offline Snoopy

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #7 on: 23 March 2021, 15:06 »
Only way is to see a bill for it. Otherwise its very hard to see it as the inspection hole is hard to access and see into.
Remember if you buy a mk5 the timing belt needs doing every 4 yrs. :wink:
Mk6 GTI  &  Mk1 GTI 
34 years of GTI ownership.

Offline Malcyb

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #8 on: 23 March 2021, 18:31 »
Only way is to see a bill for it. Otherwise its very hard to see it as the inspection hole is hard to access and see into.

Ok thanks - not great news...

Remember if you buy a mk5 the timing belt needs doing every 4 yrs. :wink:

Sure, but at least it’s a service item isn’t it so if the car’s got a good service history I should know when it’s been done. So I’ve got a bit more confidence in this than the Mk6 tensioner...

Offline Snoopy

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Re: What to look out for when buying mk6 gti as a daily
« Reply #9 on: 23 March 2021, 20:50 »
Sure, but at least it’s a service item isn’t it so if the car’s got a good service history I should know when it’s been done. So I’ve got a bit more confidence in this than the Mk6 tensioner...
  No bill but a tick in a service book proove..
Im not sure but i would expect it is an extra to the standard mager and minor services. The same as brake fluid change every 2 years, or the aircon service every two years are extras to the two service types and so  both of which often don't get done.
« Last Edit: 23 March 2021, 20:52 by Snoopy »
Mk6 GTI  &  Mk1 GTI 
34 years of GTI ownership.