@Exonian, thanks for the update.
I suspect your next move will be electric??
The question that interests me most is whether you would enjoy the clear 5am country road run in a car that makes no noise and in which power doesn’t build. Maybe that’s a question for season 3??
@splashalot, is the mini electric as enjoyable as your golf- as a sports hatch- or do you miss your mk7?
I’d like my next move to be a BEV but whether it will or not is open to question.
Poor regional free/cheap public charging infrastructure in the South West coupled with government incentives reducing annually (plus a lack of company car allowance which would make the decision a no-brainer) are part reason. More so the fact there isn’t yet quite to perfect EV for me.
Heart says MINI Electric but there are drawbacks previously mentioned which are an issue for using it as my main/only car. Otherwise I’d have one in a heartbeat right now.
The Cupra Born 230bhp is a possible but not if it’s going to cost more than my 300PS 35mpg Golf and even then there are other question marks about dynamics.
There are no other electric cars that remotely appeal to me, yet.
There aren’t many petrol ones either. Taking into account current pricing and affordability then probably none whatsoever. Certainly not to the extent I’d pay a whack of money and have to wait nearly 12 months. Within that 12 months something else more appealing might have been introduced…
I’d been hoping this Clubsport would be my last ever Golf, but you never know - it might not be yet.
As for my 5am jaunts. A couple of flies in the ointment of enjoying the petrol hot hatch versus the soulless EV power delivery are the DSG and wild animals.
The Clubsport engine is a joy to use but on winding undulating but fairly narrow roads the DSG gets a bit confused. On a daytime run hampered by slow moving traffic the gearbox is fine, it allows the car to trickle along seamlessly and economically. These I think of as my 38mpg trips.
If the road is clear and I’m in the mood for a 31 mpg trip then the car is fantastic. A moderate press on the throttle seems to keep the DSG’s reflexes in good stead and only a few manual downshifts are necessary in the whole 13 mile commute. The trouble with runs like that are foxes, badgers, deer, pheasants and huge lanky hares. The car will absolutely tear up the tarmac and rip around the bends with minimal driver effort, however the speed the car will be travelling at means the car is going to make contact with something warm and fluffy which won’t end well. And it has happened, but thankfully not to my Golf. Plus the fresh hairy corpses I see most days are a constant warning of the distinct possibility of it being me next time.
So, Mr Boring me tends to drive briskly most mornings but not fast. These are my 34mpg trips. Quick but cautious. The DSG likes those trips the least, it’ll get confused and laggy most days on the few bends I least want it to. Even manual shifting doesn’t seem to agree with it.
But these brisk but not super-quick trips would be ideal for an EV. No gearbox lag, motor set in its most responsive setting and away…
@Will, my son has a new shape A3 S-Line and although it has buttons it’s not much easier to set up and control things such as climate and the audio system.
The 1 series does it better.
@dfm, a Clubsport is best specced as light on the options otherwise you’re into Golf R pricing as well as ‘luxury’ VED.
Although the Clubsport is fantastic to drive when conditions permit I’d not want to be spending R money on one. Once spending that much I’d rather just get an R.
Maybe hang tight for the Ed50
