Hi Steve78,
I like you deliberated for quite a while, before signing on the dotted line for a new GTI ED30. The reasons I held onto my Mark IV 4-Mo for so long was the fact that there wasn’t anything out there that could better it!
My budget was £18-24k.
I checked out the 1 & 3 series Beemers (thing is... great cars they may be... but the image is too much aspiring middle management, then after a few years chavvy). Looked at the Audi A3’s nice build but uninspiring, hard ride (S3 excluded... £27k+). Seat Leon Cupra... cheap interior, fab exterior, average dealers, Renaultsport Clios (no torque)/Meganes (butt ugly). Mazda 3 MPS quick but dull. New STi Impreza interesting and quirky... but group 20 insurance, £400 road tax and 20mpg – too expensive long term! Ford Focus St... funky 5-pot Volvo engine, thirsty, quick, but a bit dull to look at. And lastly Mark V Golf GTI and R32...
...I’d never been a big fan of the Mark V shape, until I saw a Candy White, 3-door GTI with privacy glass. I arranged a test drive with both a R32 and GTI back-to-back over 200 miles and 4-hours. I’ve placed my review here
http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=75189.msg603896#msg603896.
Needless to say I can’t wait, it arrives on the 10th.
Also I always try to buy when the model is mid-way+ through its life cycle as by then the factory has sorted out any niggles (steering rack, door seals, etc). Plus discounts are easier to obtain! With the MarkVI on the way in 2009/10 they’ll start with base models first and then the interesting stuff a year or two later.
The GTI, ED30 & R32 are all niche models in the Golf range... VW make their money on the mainstream Match and diesel variants.
Keep the faith, have some fun... life’s too short.
Hotrod
