The hardest choice of all: GTI or R?

[DDRFan]

For me the GTI does almost everything, but its biggest flaw (for me) is its only FWD, so I would always opt for the AWD golf.. the fact that its faster and has a few more toys is a bonus. If im totally honest im not a big fan of the new front, the gti looks better.. but then it used against the old R too.

GTI with 4WD would make it even more versatile . If anything getting the extra traction in the snow would help.

Having said that I think there is a case to be put forward for the 'character' you get from front wheel drive, spinning the front wheels in 1st off the line (rather than the back ones which chav Corsa driver won't be able to see if you're smoking him), having the handling tendency to understeer which is safer for n00bs like me to handle rather than have the back end swing out if rear wheels were spinning.

Plus I think if you can't handle it, too much power can be a bad thing. For me I think a Golf R would be too big a jump in power. I've only ever been used to driving my little 1.3. Even if I could afford both cars easily, the GTI the power is more manageable and is plenty enough for the extra umph needed to overtake a caravan or build up speed on a sliproad. And there is the case not to spend too much, you don't want to be wasting money just cos you got plenty. The money saved getting the GTI instead of the R you could spend on a nice TV for example.

Just my 2p

[Jkctr]

lol you would prefer FWD becuase of its inferiority and think its better for overtaking 


So when it rains and you need to get past a lorry, you prefer to have fwd which can be dangerous and prevent you from getting round safely like i can 

You prefer it because the corsa you are racing will keep up with you if he has better throttle control off the line

Haldex is made to allow a safe amount of understeer

I went from a saxo to a type r and was sensible enough not to crash, i just eased the throttle in and didnt floor it untill i was used to it (you dont have to slam the pedal down and can use as much power as you like you know)

No the GTI power is not more manageable, you need to drive harder to go faster when you need it and it can be dangerous on slippery roads or bumpy ones where the fronts may lose traction

If all you do is overtake caravans you could save even more money for a tv and get yourself a diesel instead!

 
Never heard so much crap, you trying to convince us or you? 

[DDRFan]

 
Never heard so much crap, you trying to convince us or you? 

Well i never driven a powerful car before but i expect it's going to require more thought than a low powered car as stuff is going to be happening more quickly and require faster reactions if something does go wrong with the handling

of course i'm not crazy enough to go flooring it like mad, it will just take getting used to like anything else in life

i said i was a n00b driver so if you're more experienced in these matters i will take in your feedback

And regards the comment about getting a TV, i was trying to stay on topic and offer some insight into my thoughts between the GTI and the R, not diesel. Obviously if cost was not an issue you could buy both. If cost was not an issue, get a Eurofighter.

sincerest apologies for contributing to the thread.

[Jkctr]

Not a problem contributing to the thread, just dont be silly enough to say FWD is better than 4wd or the GTI power is more manageable 

[VWKev]

DDRFan, you say the wrong thing here your f**ked, believe me I know. 

[DDRFan]

DDRFan, you say the wrong thing here your f**ked, believe me I know. 

the thing is i don't see where i said "front-wheel drive is better than four-wheel drive" i don't mind getting f**ked but it would help if i know what i said "wrong" 

[R32UK]

DDRFan, you say the wrong thing here your f**ked, believe me I know. 

the thing is i don't see where i said "front-wheel drive is better than four-wheel drive" i don't mind getting f**ked but it would help if i know what i said "wrong" 

Nothing said wrong pal.

Just showing your slight inexperience at not having driven the AWD golf. the haldex makes the car alot more stable at speed and going around corners. the extra traction AWD offers mean you can literally nail it off the line with very little or no wheels spin, not torque steer or drama.

The GTI is a little more hands on and requires more control, although with the new R this is more likely to be down to how the car is setup rather than the R32's heavier engine.

[Tailpipe]

I had no idea that the AWD kit in the R32 takes up boot space. Thanks for sharing that guys. That's a serious problem, because one of the reasons you buy a Golf in the first place is its practicality. If performance compromises that, hmmm...not so good.

Maybe it doesn't matter. Maybe the extra power and traction more than makes up for it.

Anyone got a picture of the inside of an R32 boot so we can see how much space is lost?

[p3eps]

I had no idea that the AWD kit in the R32 takes up boot space.

I didn't realise this until a few weeks ago either.  My dealer explained it to me, and then took me outside and showed me a MK5 R32 next to a standard MK5 GT.  The difference is the floor of the boot has been raised by approx 2 inches.  Not really a problem for me, as I just want to be able to fit in my golf clubs!  They fitted fine in my ED30 widthwise - so I doubt a 2 inch shallower boot will make any difference.

[R32UK]

Well the GTI's boot came as a bit of a shock to me... alot more useful with just a couple more inches. however if you drop the back seats there is a step up from the boot to the back of the rear seats which is a little bit of a pain, as the R32's boot was a smooth run