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Model specific boards => Golf mk7 => Topic started by: Jim_mk7.5 on 03 August 2018, 10:01
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What do most love about your Golf? My GTI Performance is my 2nd Mk7.5 but prior to that never had a Golf!
Must say I love getting in it everyday, I like the subtleness of the GTI although would like a bit more noise (coming soon!). When I got my first one last year must say, I found a few things irritating such as the touch screen. But the driving experience makes up for that.
The badges and details are great though and I've had 2 people already in other Golfs chat to me at lights/petrol stations asking about mine. One guy pulled up in a Golf Alltrack and shouted across you have a beautiful car while you not smiling! Made me laugh :grin:
(https://s26.postimg.cc/exe2llq6x/52_B78394-_ABFF-4_EC9-937_D-61_DC39_B56_CEC.jpg) (https://postimg.cc/image/ros8s3zyt/)
Such a great everyday car!
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I've had far more attention in this car than any before, a few weeks back I was challenged to a race by a bloke in a smoky old Transit with a trailer! People really do seem to like a GTI!
As for me, I love how it feels to drive, the pedalbox has made such a difference, it picks up instantly without having to floor the throttle, it corners very well and the gear change is just so positive and a pleasure to use. I love the tartan interior and the dash layout, I prefer a more traditional centre consol rather than the current Audi design, makes you feel you are in the car in your cockpit if that makes sense.
I love the 3 door look too (sorry 5 door owners) and the subtlety of the design. It makes a great distance cruiser and a brilliant A/B road fun car too.
Some of the technology seems a bit useless and the worst thing is the cloaking device. I only know that works as having been driven in to twice by drivers who clearly couldn't see me :rolleyes:
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My mk7 pp GTi is the first car I'm seriously thinking about buying to keep rather than getting rid at the end of the PCP!
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My mk7 pp GTi is the first car I'm seriously thinking about buying to keep rather than getting rid at the end of the PCP!
+1 for this. I’m paying off my Clubsport and keeping that. Brilliant car. :smiley:
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Reminds me of an interview with James May a few years back at the height of his TG fame. He told a story about being approached about making a new car show. The idea was that he would help members of the public pick a car based on whatever their criteria/needs were. He turned it down and told the guy who was proposing it that it would be a very boring show - because the answer would always be 'a Golf'.
If you want a fast car, there's a Golf, Estate? Golf, drop top? Golf (mk 6 days), economical? Golf and so on.....
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My mk7 pp GTi is the first car I'm seriously thinking about buying to keep rather than getting rid at the end of the PCP!
+1 for this. I’m paying off my Clubsport and keeping that. Brilliant car. :smiley:
+2 for this - I'm also paying off and keeping my Clubsport!! :wink:
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Lots of reasons to love it. Their sales figures show consistently that people love it too.
Only haters will be those who don't want to have the world's most popular car because they don't like to follow the crowd, even when the crowd are correct - so they end up with something compromised.
Equally though, its only a Golf, not a true "prestige" or "exotic" car but I'm never going to be able to afford one of them, so like most people, it suits me to the ground.
I'm just sad it took me so long to discover the joy! Mk7 was my first, current Mk7.5 my second. Next one? Probably another Mk7.5/Mk8 (depending on how soon VW pull their fingers out!)
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Great thread! For me it is the feeling of solidity and class in every aspect of the car and its performance. But if I had to narrow it down, I think how well the DCC is implemented. It really does give you multiple cars in one. Every other car I have owned has occasionally got on my goat on some days, whether it is ride harshness, wallowing suspension, lack of zip or throttle response. But in the GTI I can tailor the car's attributes to suit my whims, or the conditions. I will say, however, that a pedal box is an essential part of this versatility, as without it the car lacks throttle response and feels unresponsive (to me, at least). Some cars can match, or even better the GTI's performance, some can match the ride, others the refinement. But none have all these attributes in the one package.
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I have been with a GTI since 2000. Can't see me ever moving on. Current is a MK7 PP 3dr with DSG. Outstanding car and enjoying it However, I'm just not feeling it as much as my MK5 GTI (stolen) and Edition 30. But ignore me, I'm old and understand that if the current model is your 1st then its the shizzle. :laugh:
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I've had far more attention in this car than any before, a few weeks back I was challenged to a race by a bloke in a smoky old Transit with a trailer! People really do seem to like a GTI!
As for me, I love how it feels to drive, the pedalbox has made such a difference, it picks up instantly without having to floor the throttle, it corners very well and the gear change is just so positive and a pleasure to use.
It should be, you’ve spent a kings ransom on it !😀
I love the tartan interior and the dash layout, I prefer a more traditional centre consol rather than the current Audi design, makes you feel you are in the car in your cockpit if that makes sense.
I love the 3 door look too (sorry 5 door owners) and the subtlety of the design. It makes a great distance cruiser and a brilliant A/B road fun car too.
Some of the technology seems a bit useless and the worst thing is the cloaking device. I only know that works as having been driven in to twice by drivers who clearly couldn't see me :rolleyes:
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As for me, I love how it feels to drive, the pedalbox has made such a difference, it picks up instantly without having to floor the throttle, it corners very well and the gear change is just so positive and a pleasure to use.
It should be, you’ve spent a kings ransom on it !😀
A small price to pay for the fun I had installing it (blood, sweat and swearing :whistle:).
Gone somewhere nice for your hols? Must be, last time I was somewhere that required a hire car I got a knackered old Fiat Panda! Mind you, in a strange way I quite liked it (execpt for when the gear knob came off halfway through a 3 point turn....).
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Nothing too fancy, just good old Tenerife.
It’s the best car I’ve ever had from a hire firm and I’ve been coming here forever.
I may well look at modifying my gear shift soon. Since reading all your posts, I’m starting to realise that there is definitely room for improvement.
I may have to get you to fit everything though😀
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Difficult question.
The car just feels great to drive.
It is even really good for driving in traffic. Set cruise control, put both feet up and relax.
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Best compliment I can pay to my Golf, and the odd one or two I've had before it :whistle: , is that despite the fact I've not been using it regularly, as soon as I get in it there's that warm fuzzy feeling of being "home"
Almost everything just feels right about it.
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Its a golf its not shouty and is excepted everywere by all classes.
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Nothing too fancy, just good old Tenerife.
It’s the best car I’ve ever had from a hire firm and I’ve been coming here forever.
I may well look at modifying my gear shift soon. Since reading all your posts, I’m starting to realise that there is definitely room for improvement.
I may have to get you to fit everything though😀
Now that's more like it, you know it makes sense :wink: Best thing I've done is the Audi short shift upgrade. Cheap, easy to fit and great improvement, a bargain! That and a good adjustment. I pass Manchester occasional enroute to family/holidays so if you are in no rush you'd be welcome to try mine first to see if it's worth it to you.
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Echo all the comments already said.....being of a certain age :whistle: I've wanted a Gti since the MK1's arrived and being lucky enough to get our hands on a beautiful Clubsport last year its absolutely everything and more than I hoped Gti ownership would be! So much so that the PCP has been cleared (first time properly owning a car in 16+ years) and have no intention of selling.
Going on my previous history I'm normally eyeing up different cars after 18months but not with this, as someone has said it gets nearly everything right.....and I got the OBDEleven for the stop/start! :laugh:......I feel very happy every time I park my behind in the recaro's oh and for little outlay it now sounds perfect :cool:
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Quite simply - I like it because it is engineered to perfection or as close to it as makes no difference.
I dont do flash or look at me which is why I ordered mine debadged, the only indication if it being a little different is my leather interior.
After 50+ years driving of more cars than I can remember it is the best engineered car I have ever owned*.
* As in cash purchase - with my own money!
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I wouldn't say mine is engineered to perfection, you can certainly see where they've saved money. There are bits of trim here and there that don't feel quite as durable or as plush as they were in my Mk5.
However it still does lots of things very well and most other things better than average, so for me it's broad range of talents makes it hard to beat for similar money. It's been around now for about 6 years, yet it's still at the top of its class.
There's still room for improvement (for example the front assist 'auto-restart' feature is rubbish, the rear door cappings are disappointing for a £30k car). But the Mk8 isn't far away and that presents an opportunity to move the hatchback game on further.
The other Golf based VAG cars (Octavia/Leon/A3) are also great all-rounders, just aimed at different clientele. However they maybe aren't perceived as having quite the peerless image of the Golf.
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Brings a smile to my face every time I drive it.
It can be parked anywhere without worrying it will be gone when I return unlike the last 2 BMW's I had.
Better built than my last two cars and does everything you want from a car.
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Quite simply - I like it because it is engineered to perfection or as close to it as makes no difference.
I dont do flash or look at me which is why I ordered mine debadged, the only indication if it being a little different is my leather interior.
After 50+ years driving of more cars than I can remember it is the best engineered car I have ever owned*.
* As in cash purchase - with my own money!
I have owned various VW's over the last 45+years with various Beetles ( 2013 Beetle cabrio summer toy) Golfs (Mk1 Gti's) Still have an '83 All White Cab. in the garage, owned by me for 33 years. I bought my 2016 Mk7 Gti P/P cash.. Looking back now and I must have been mad paying £30,000+ for a Golf. Wish now I had bought a second hand S3 Sportback which in my opinion is a better car ( light blue touch paper and stand back).
I called into my local VW dealer the other day, and to be honest there wasn't anything there that excited me. I think the VW range at the moment is very bland and overpriced... But in the world of PCP's does anybody look at the price of a car anymore?
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Quite simply - I like it because it is engineered to perfection or as close to it as makes no difference.
I dont do flash or look at me which is why I ordered mine debadged, the only indication if it being a little different is my leather interior.
After 50+ years driving of more cars than I can remember it is the best engineered car I have ever owned*.
* As in cash purchase - with my own money!
I have owned various VW's over the last 45+years with various Beetles ( 2013 Beetle cabrio summer toy) Golfs (Mk1 Gti's) Still have an '83 All White Cab. in the garage, owned by me for 33 years. I bought my 2016 Mk7 Gti P/P cash.. Looking back now and I must have been mad paying £30,000+ for a Golf. Wish now I had bought a second hand S3 Sportback which in my opinion is a better car ( light blue touch paper and stand back).
I called into my local VW dealer the other day, and to be honest there wasn't anything there that excited me. I think the VW range at the moment is very bland and overpriced... But in the world of PCP's does anybody look at the price of a car anymore?
Can’t say I agree with the S3 being the better car. My last car was an 8v PFL S3 sportback and I now have a Clubsport GTI. Reason I changed was I found the S3 boring. Beautiful car inside and out but the drive was boring and very bouncy, scary on occasions. Wouldn’t go back to the S3 to be honest. Just my opinion.👍🏻
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PCP?........
I had to look that up to discover what it meant!
So a PCP car isnt owned by the client, it is owned by the leasing company and PCP is just renting/leasing but in car salesmen speak.
So does anyone who drives a PCP car feel they actually own it? Like in I can do anything I want with it???
Im presuming the car has to go back to the leasing company in the same unaltered condition as when you collected it?
:undecided:
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PCP?........
I had to look that up to discover what it meant!
So a PCP car isnt owned by the client, it is owned by the leasing company and PCP is just renting/leasing but in car salesmen speak.
So does anyone who drives a PCP car feel they actually own it? Like in I can do anything I want with it???
Im presuming the car has to go back to the leasing company in the same unaltered condition as when you collected it?
:undecided:
Don't confuse PCP with PCH. They're different.
True leasing is PCH, or Personal Contract Hire. This is a fixed term rental agreement for a set monthly rate and an initial upfront rental payment. At the end of the term the car goes back to the leasing company, although it is sometimes possible to purchase the car as a separate transaction. You won't know if you'll be able to purchase the car or how much the leasing company will want for it until towards the end of the term.
PCP is Personal Contract Purchase. You pay monthly like you do with PCH, but the agreement is more flexible as it gives you the option to trade the vehicle in for a different one, hand the car back and walk away, or pay the pre-agreed final payment (or GMFV) and keep the car. With PCP there is a rate of interest charged on top of the amount you have borrowed, but with PCH there is no interest rate as such, you are making a rental payment.
Don't assume these products are all bad. It is possible to get yourself into a right mess if you don't understand the obligation you are taking on, but if you're savvy you can actually use them to your advantage.
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Thank you for the detailed explanations.
I have a friend, actually he is an hereditary Lord, his family are in banking and he is a multimillionaire. He has a personal motto 'never buy what you can rent' (he even rents his wife)!
I also have another friend who started as a lowly bank clerk and now owns around 200 houses all of which are rented to tenants, he lives in a very salubrious (rented) apartment even though he could buy the whole building oitright. 'Always find ways to use other peoples money' is his motto.
Every car Ive ever owned I have bought outright with my own money, I also own my own house and have a shared ownership of some land. I owe nobody nothing, no CC debts or financial obligations, but Im begining to think I might be handling my finances badly.
So, could you explain the pitfalls that should be avoided if I were to use PCP and PCH please?
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I bought my 2016 Mk7 Gti P/P cash.. Looking back now and I must have been mad paying £30,000+ for a Golf.
Wish now I had bought a second hand S3 Sportback which in my opinion is a better car ( light blue touch paper and stand back).
I called into my local VW dealer the other day, and to be honest there wasn't anything there that excited me. I think the VW range at the moment is very bland and overpriced...
But in the world of PCP's does anybody look at the price of a car anymore?
In the order above...
£30k+ - didn't you go through a broker? I'd agree, mad!
Why didn't you buy an S3? I'm sure it's a great car but better really is just a matter of an opinion, yours is just as valid as anyone elses.
I find most modern cars boring. If I had space and a garage I'd love to run a couple of classics. Tinkering is fun albeit anything big/serious I'd probably take to a garage these days :rolleyes:
Probably not.
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PCP?........
I had to look that up to discover what it meant!
So a PCP car isnt owned by the client, it is owned by the leasing company and PCP is just renting/leasing but in car salesmen speak.
So does anyone who drives a PCP car feel they actually own it? Like in I can do anything I want with it???
Im presuming the car has to go back to the leasing company in the same unaltered condition as when you collected it?
:undecided:
You say you can do what with a car you truly own. I own both the R and newly acquired Polo GTI+, nothing owed on either. So what woukd I do with them? Remap the R? Sounds great, but I have a chocolate manual clutch that won't take more than stock output. The Polo is a DSG, but it's 4 days old. No way am I going to void warranty on the powertrain by getting a remap when it's not even run in. At what point in ownership do you have confidence that the car is put together properly and you won't have any defects come to light that would've happened anyway?
If there were decent lease deals around for the Polo i'd be all over them as capital depreciation is likely £250pm if it depreciates as the current GFV would suggest. PCPing is likely to be an almost £400pm proposition inclusive of deposit spread over 3 years. Sticker prices are silly these days. The Golf's cost has increased about 50% over the last 9 years (end of MK5 production in 2009).
Not many advantages to buying outright vs a good lease deal, unless you're keeping a long time or adding a lot of options, far better than PCP though if you have the funds to do so.
Even owning outright, do I have a different feeling of iwnership vs when I used to PCP? Nope, I know i'll never keep it forever. I'll try to enjoy it while I have it and look after it so I don't get screwed at px or resale time.
VW makes as much money on PCP interest as it does in selling the car. With relatively high APR and low depreciation, you end up paying interest on a high balance of the capital throughout your PCP term.
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Many thanks for your reply and financial explanations.
I fully understand what your saying about building your confidence in a car.
I reckoned my car was properly put together when it had been through two winters without fault, only then was I fully confident in the car and I went my April, May and June 4,500km road trip through 3 countries.
The car performed faultlessly from snow to +30C and now I would drive it anywhere, Southern Italy next or perhaps the coastal route of Andalusia.
My original plan was to keep my Golf for ten years, thats why I added leather seats to my list of options. Might keep it longer if its still running faultlessly, might change for DSG if I get to lazy or fuel keeps rising, or if I could get a transplant.
I have seen it written that car against car the Golf is the most expensive of all production cars to make, only the huge global sales make it profitable.
Perfection takes time and seamless engineering which perhaps that explains why the Golf is almost faultless.
Re; Polos, a Dutch friend drove a Polo from new and his clutch went at 240,000km, he found the cost of a replacement to be more than the cars worth. Yes he bought another Polo.
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Brings a smile to my face every time I drive it.
It can be parked anywhere without worrying it will be gone when I return unlike the last 2 BMW's I had.
Better built than my last two cars and does everything you want from a car.
I think there is a more of a worry now as lot of R/GTI being targeted.
Some great replies and love for the Golfs! :cool:
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So, could you explain the pitfalls that should be avoided if I were to use PCP and PCH please?
By far the biggest is the possibility of not understanding how much the car is costing you. We live in a world nowadays where salesmen ask you what monthly payment you can afford, and they tailor their offer to suit. The sum of all the payments, the interest charges and add-on fees don't always occur to some people to ask about. And salesmen/women are sometimes less than keen to make this clear.
Like any purchase, shop around for the best deal. Add up all the payments and fees then divide by the total number of months to come up with the true monthly cost. This can spiral out of control if you add lots of cost options e.g. leather seats, upgraded nav and so on.
If you are the sort that likes to keep your car many years, or you add lots of options, leasing and especially PCP'ing over a shorter term will look expensive by comparison. But if you were going to change regularly anyway, then it is possible to run a car on PCH for less than the cost of the depreciation. Sometimes a lot less. Last year VW were knocking out brand new Mk7.5 Golf GTi's for just over £200 per month over 2 years with around £1,200 down on PCH. Mega cheap compared to outright purchase or PCP; all allocated cars were snapped up in about 24 hours.
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Cheers Guzzle
When I bought my present car the salesman (a friend) told me it was the first new Golf had been ordered with leather seats in over 2000 sales and the first bought outright and not leased.
Over a coffee he said everyone is leasing these days, gone are the days when youngsters worked themselves up to a new car, nowadays they want new everything, phone, car, even a house, nobody is prepared to save and wait anymore.
Perhaps in a few years time when I finally change to an automatic/dsg I will look into PCP/PCH for a Bentley Continental (or probably just another Golf :smiley:).
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I think we've had this conversation on here several times before (someone talking about "cash is king")...
As others have said, its all about working out how its most cost effective to drive the car you want (and then obviously seeing if its affordable to do so).
Even if you had big piles of cash lying around, its only worth spending your capital if its not performing better where you have it vs the cost of borrowing money for whatever thing you desire/need next.
When you are talking the amounts for cars, its perfectly possible that you could have your savings performing better than spending it on a steeply depreciating asset like a car.
I used to have this discussion with my parents who were always "borrowing is a sin"... its a very old fashioned moral point of view and doesn't make sense when you are trying to get the most out of whatever money you have.
I'm not quite as clever as MonkeyHanger when it comes to this stuff, but I do lay out all my options for maximum performance.