GolfGTIforum.co.uk
Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: Davers1 on 14 May 2018, 08:03
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Hi guys I’m just looking for a little advise. After reading lots of posts and lurking I’ve decided to join up and ask some experts.
I’m in the process of trying to buy a 2013 gti here in Ireland.
The price is in my budget which is considerably lower then expected but I feel the reason the price is low due to spec on car.
It’s white , with the standard 17” alloys, 3 door Manual with cloth interior.
It’s lacking the performance pack , the upgraded lights , parking sensors (even rear).
What I’m wondering is can this be made to look better I was thinking of immediately upgrading the wheels to 18” or 19”.
But will the car sit very high or will it be the Same set up as 18”/19” from factory ?
I’ve looked around a lot of cars for sale and this “poverty spec” seems to be very unusual and totally basic.
I’ve struggled googling to find what actually was a basic spec in 2013 and cross reference.
So my question is should I Wait and save more money or get this one and do the upgrades as budget allows.
If I could post a photo you’d see how bad this particular one looks 😂...
Any advise or input greatly appreciated .
Many thanks for reading
Dave
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If you don't like the car you're looking at then I would wait until you've got the dough to buy the one you really want. If you buy it then you'll never be happy with it and regret buying it as it's not what you really want, that's my opinion anyway :wink:
Good things come to those who wait as the saying goes! :smiley:
As for the suspension, I can't see it being different but maybe have a word with the parts dept in a dealer. Give them your reg no or vin and a reg of a car of the spec you want and they should be able to see what is fitted to what car.
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+1 i waited until i found what i wanted and loved my mk5 right up till i got the 7.5 ten years later.. :)
+ having more cash is always good for hashing out a good deal...
If you don't like the car you're looking at then I would wait until you've got the dough to buy the one you really want. If you buy it then you'll never be happy with it and regret buying it as it's not what you really want, that's my opinion anyway :wink:
Good things come to those who wait as the saying goes! :smiley:
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Hi guys I’m just looking for a little advise. After reading lots of posts and lurking I’ve decided to join up and ask some experts.
What I’m wondering is can this be made to look better I was thinking of immediately upgrading the wheels to 18” or 19”.
But will the car sit very high or will it be the Same set up as 18”/19” from factory ?
The car wouldn’t sit any higher than it does at present, as 18”/19” wheels would require lower profile tyres than those fitted to the current 17” wheels, to keep the overall rolling radius of the wheels+tyres the same as they currently are.
So my question is should I Wait and save more money or get this one and do the upgrades as budget allows.
If I could post a photo you’d see how bad this particular one looks.
Any advise or input greatly appreciated .
Many thanks for reading
Dave
When you say it looks bad, is that bad as in the ride height is too high, or bad as in the overall condition of the car? If the condition’s poor, I’d not consider buying it.
As others have said, it’d be better to wait until the right car comes along. If Ireland is like the UK mainland, the GTI won’t be in short supply on the used car market, so wait until you find one you’d be happy with.
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Hi Dave,
Fellow Irish man here so I can advise!
When the MK7 GTI was first launched in Ireland in 2013, the standard spec was poor. I bought one of the first Irish MK7 GTI's myself, but in my case, I threw a lot of extra dough at it to spec it up properly (I had more cash than sense).
So, as you've discovered, the standard spec was poor enough. Off the top of my head, none of the following was standard:
- xenons
- 18" wheels (17's were standard)
- climate control
- parking sensors
- adaptive cruise
- no rear tint
In late 2014, VW Ireland made major alterations to both pricing and spec, the pendulum completely swung the other way, so from 142 / 151 onwards, Irish GTI are very well spec'd - better than UK in most cases I think.
So... assuming your budget doesn't stretch to 142/151, then you'll have to try finding the earlier cars and if you're lucky you might come across one like my old one where the original owner spent money on the options list! It sounds like the car you're looking at is bargain basement though.
To answer your question re the wheels - to the best of my knowledge the cars on the 17" wheels have the same suspension setup as the cars on 18's or even 19's. No ride height difference. So you could upgrade the wheels and tyres but it will cost you.
Other stuff - like xenons - could be done too but that's much harder and more costly work.
Personally I'd continue your hunt and find a better spec'd example.
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@JoeGTI, Can I ask, what do you mean by "142/151"?
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@JoeGTI, Can I ask, what do you mean by "142/151"?
Ah - it's our (imo stupid) reg plate system here. Our reg plate system is split into 2 per year -January 1st - June 30th and then July 1st - Dec 31st.
So if your car was registered in the first half of this year it'll have a "181" plate. If its registered in the 2nd half, it'll be a "182".
for example: "181 - D - 100"
where "D" is the county identifier (Dublin) and "100" means it's the 100'th car to be registered in that registration period.
The advantage of the system is that people can tell at a glance how old a car is and the number is generally easy to remember (certainly the first part of it, e.g. I saw the get-away car and it had a "142-D" plate!).
The disadvantage that many people argue is that it unnecessarily ages a car prematurely, that it just drives people into changing cars, keeping up with the Jones's etc...
Up until 2012, there was only one plate change per year. Jan-Dec. (12-D-12345). They changed it to the above in 2013. Some say it was because of the fear that people would not want a "13" plate - superstition!! But the real reason is just to create this fake "new plate" event in the middle of the summer which was traditionally very slow for car sales....
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Ah ok, thanks.
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Guys, firstly thanks so much for your information and time.
I’ve been on different forums over the years and not had such a helpful response.
To answer some questions ..
the car is clean needs a bumper painted / possibly bumper for stone chips .
Overall condition is decent.
And drove quite well.
I’m not sure how to upload a picture ..
which I could show ?
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Guys, firstly thanks so much for your information and time.
I’ve been on different forums over the years and not had such a helpful response.
To answer some questions ..
the car is clean needs a bumper painted / possibly bumper for stone chips .
Overall condition is decent.
And drove quite well.
I’m not sure how to upload a picture ..
which I could show ?
Have you a link to the ad?
Or if you need to upload a photo, try using this: https://imgbb.com
Upload image to there and then paste in the "Full BB code full linked" links here.
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https://ibb.co/h75ikd
https://ibb.co/jBmTJy
Hope that works ..
Am I been too harsh in saying in looks terrible?
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I wouldn't say it looks terrible, but it's clearly base spec. A set of decent wheels and a clean up and it would look alright but then you're also stuck with the very poor halogen headlights.
I'd save a few more quid personally.
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I don't think it looks terrible, although it could do with a little tlc. I think that changing the wheels to either austins or bresicas would help no end. I guess it depends upon how much its going for, as you may have enough left over to spruce it up a little.
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That’s what I was hoping to put the bigger wheels and tint the rear glass ...!
And that might take the basic look off it !
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I think the halogen headlights would be the most off-putting thing for me. They look really naff and cheap. Also note they don't have the distinctive red stripe. Fitting genuine xenons and all the bits that go with them to make them legal is costly and a lot of work.
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Thanks joe I tried to message you privately but don’t think I can...
What do you think the car is worth ?
Will such a low spec hurt my resale down the line ?
It’s for sale for ages and hasn’t shifted ..
It’s 2013 , 45k kilom .
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Thanks joe I tried to message you privately but don’t think I can...
What do you think the car is worth ?
Will such a low spec hurt my resale down the line ?
It’s for sale for ages and hasn’t shifted ..
It’s 2013 , 45k kilom .
Is it with a dealer? The mileage sounds quite low. But the spec (or lack of) hurts it. Always amazes me too that dealers can't be bothered cleaning a car up and presenting it properly for sale.
I'd hazard a guess at 16-17 k.
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I've done this in the past many years ago. Bought a "poverty" spec car as it was at a good price (a Focus) then almost immediately wished I'd waited and spent more on the version I actually wanted. The car became a money pit as I started adding the missing bit's of spec. True I ended up with a car that looked almost undetectable from the one I wanted, but at a horrible cost. Coupled that with the fact that I could only find a few insurers who would cover the car meant I never did it again. When I came to sell it, I lost a shed load the money I'd spent on it. After all, if an LX spec car looks like a Ghia spec, it's still an LX and that's typically what it's worth come resale.
I agree with the others here, wait until you find the car with the spec you really want even if it means pushing the budget just a little further. You'll save money in the end.
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100% agree with Sooty - I did this in my yoof - took a basic spec and loaded it up with the bits. Insurance became a nightmare and when I wrote it off I basically lost every penny I spent on it.
Would have been cheaper to have bought the spec I wanted.
In particular with this one, I'd be looking for Xenons (virtually impossible to retrofit) and 18's (easily done) but also if the 2013 irish spec is minus climate control (I'd say zero chance of getting that retro fitted and fitted/working properly).... well... definitely pass. My guess even if you could add those things would be to add about 4000 quid... which you'd never get back!
If nothing else, trying to shift it on later will be as much of a nightmare as this dealer is having now.
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For me a used car is condition first and anything else a poor second.
If the thing is in fantastic condition and at a good price it makes a good case for itself if you have time and inclination for a project.
Back in the mk4 and mk5/6 days the spec was poor and you'd be lucky to find a very good condition one at a sensible price with loads of extras.
The UK spec mk5 & mk6 Golfs came with a certain spec as standard like climate control which meant it was relatively easy to add most other things except Xenons.
The mk7 is a different kettle of fish. Nav units are protected, xenons are a nightmare to retrofit and parking sensors also require a bit of a faff with drilling holes.
You've got to consider what is important to you in the long run and what you can live without.
If the car is good and the price is good then you might want to make compromises.
But if the car isn't in pristine condition then you'd be better off waiting for something better. You would thank yourself for that in the long run.
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I think you have to consider how easy will it be to sell in the future as you are competing against other better equipped cars and retro fitting can be expensive
I was worried when I sold my Golf R as there were lots of lease cars with no options around, couldn't have been further from the truth as was swamped with people wanting to pay the premium
You need to bide your time
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The fact that you are on here voicing your doubts says it all. Find a better one.
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Thanks guys , I’ve taken all your advise and can safely say I’ve just done a deal on a cracking car.
It’s got plenty of standard spec and a performance pack so I guess it’s true..
Good things come to those who wait !
I’ll hold off posting a pic till I have possession of the car !!
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Nice one! I hope we get to see your new baby very soon!