GolfGTIforum.co.uk

Quote from: Exonian on 21 January 2026, 15:03

I wonder how many will actually be able to tell through seat of the pants how different this car is to the Clubsport other than them noticing the red seat belts. They’ll only realistically be able to say whether they think it’s a good standalone model, baulk at the cost and harp on about future desirability. Most of us on here could do that from our armchairs!

Exactly my thoughts Andy!

I agree for the non Performance Pack car but with the added negative camber and chassis mods there will be a difference in how the Performance Pack drives even at reasonable speed. You can easily tell the difference between an ED40 and a Clubsport S driving down a B road at or around the speed limit, and the ED50 is a good five seconds quicker round to Nurburgring.

Yep, that will do it.

Placed my order last week - Tornado Red, Performance Pace, black Warmenau wheels and HK sound system. Can't wait for delivery - hopefully April.

Hi all,

I've been the proud owner of a 2013 Golf GTi for about 4 months. About a month into ownership I noticed that both the alarm LED in the driver's door stopped functioning as did the interior alarm deactivation button in the pillar between the two offside doors. The latter still illuminates white, but it no longer turns yellow and works when pressed. I assume the two problems must be linked. Any thoughts on the cause?

Thanks.

Nice moody shots from Nobby there.
He’s one of few car reviewers I’ll watcb and he’s a big GTI fan so his views will be interesting and pretty relevant.
Volkswizard seems to fall foul of the VW press people despite videos, particularly the 8.5 launch vids, being probably some of the most comprehensive reviews out there which will have swayed a lot of potential buyers to actually part with their cash who would have skipped the pre-facelift. However some of his personal but published views probably irk VW UK.

It’s normal for news blackouts ahead of the official launch of key models hence the lack of reviews which will hit the press and YouTube in one big lump. It seems to be all about the Fabia 130 at the moment (which is a very good looking car IMO) so all very stage managed.

Stating the obvious here I know but a lot of these press guys will have driven a Clubsport and an R maybe 12-18 months ago, positively reviewed it and then driven dozens of other cars in the interim, that’s their job after all. They’ll be flown in, put through the usual launch nonsense, handed some tech and spec sheets and then let loose. I wonder how many will actually be able to tell through seat of the pants how different this car is to the Clubsport other than them noticing the red seat belts. They’ll only realistically be able to say whether they think it’s a good standalone model, baulk at the cost and harp on about future desirability. Most of us on here could do that from our armchairs!