exciting times for you bud- never easy having choices
in the end it's only you that can decide between the r32 and gti... was in your shoes late last year shopping around for a new car

my shortlist came down to 3 cars- cw golf 6 gti dsg, golf 5 r32 and a mini jcw...
test drove them all- struggled finding a well kept low millage r32 as the one they promised me (a dealer) never arrived...

so decided on the new gti. Specced my car and was about to sign the otp when I saw an add for the s3 (low millage and priced in line with the Golf). Had a look at it the Saturday morning- test drove it and I was impressed- VERY confused

I went straight back to the dealer and asked to test drive the gti again- as I got into the driver seat I thought man this is nice (maybe a little nicer than the Audi) but as I started my trip there was something missing-

The car felt totally different to the previous times I drove it (drove family of ours gti 6 quite extensively) and then it dawned on me-

it's all in the way the car puts the power down- the quattro is insane around bends- I can honestly say that once you've experienced an awd performance hatch a fwd car will NEVER feel the same again

It's a little sad actually...
I know that many people criticize the lack of involvement of the s3's drive but coming from "fun" cars like the MINI and torque steering Renault RS driving the Audi has a real grown up feel to it... if you're still after the "fun" factor then I would say go for the Gti- it's new, fast enough with a nice interior and will tick all the right boxes for you- if you want a great all rounder with 4 motion included then my choice will be the R32 without a doubt- Good Luck bud! Maybe take an S3 for a spin as well...