which gti

[GolfGL]

Hi guys had my 1.8 mk3 a while now and in the near future looking for something a bit quicker. so 8v owners do u think the upgrade from the measly 90bhp to 115 is worth it. i do most my driving round town so want a car with more low down torque. also did many 8vs come with leather and air con and am i right in thinking all gtis had abs as there have been some pretty hairy moments in mine. Or should i just save the extra to pay the insurance on a 16v. how much insurance do younger gti owners pay as im 20 and currently payin 800. sorry for all the question, thanks for your input.

[MrF16vmk3]

I drove both the mk3 8v and 16v before deciding on the 16, but the 8v was a lot more drivable and torquey around town. The 16 doesn't do much at all under about 3.5 to 4 k revs, but it is seriously entertaining from 5k to the redline. The 8v I tested had abs, air con and full leather, a lovely car but in the end it came down to 115 or 147 bhp for me. As for insurance you'll just have to get quotes, there was very little difference between the two cars for me, but I'm a lot older than you! Try driving both cars - they're both good in different ways.

[Gix]

Totally agree with mrF16 on that one mate, I had a 2.0 8v that was more than a match for my mates 16v around town, as for ABS....    My VR6 has it and it cost a packet to fix when it went wrong! 

I liked my car without as its not a nice feeling when the pedals kicking back at you, sorta makes a dip in your consentration level, to me thas not good, i like to control the braking of my car, with the ABS i started to reily on it, just chuck it in and brake as hard as you can, that aint the way to keep things in motion.

Stick with you 8v but go 2.0 instead.  (insrance man likes 8v's more than 16v)

[Silent-Hunter]

8v insurance group 14 a bit steep for the extra 25 bhp a 16v gti is group 16 i think, dont let anyone fool you 8v cars are good if your not doing the long trips they do the job and get you out of trouble if you should get into it "been there" who needs to go faster than 100 anyway lose your licence territory..and with a 16v your only going to shave a little off your 0-60 time the added bonus is the higher 98 ron for best performance but the price of juice is on the up and up so expect to be forking out significantly more in petrol costs and at 20 insurance could work out 1k plus depends on ncd etc try Admiral if you do decide to get the 8v they seem to have been the best for me but then im an old duffer....

ps ABS is a fkin expensive repair job £60 a corner for good sensors...

[mysticblue_mk3]

8v insurance group 14 a bit steep for the extra 25 bhp a 16v gti is group 16 i think

I agree, for the performance of the 8v group 14 insurance is ridiculous, 10 or 11 would be more appropriate. In fact both the Golf GL 2.0 8v estate and the Vento GL 2.0 8v have the same 115bhp engine as the 8v GTi (99% certain here, someone correct me if I'm wrong), and they're both group 10 and 11 respectively . Seems to be all in the GTi badge factor. The Mk4 2.0 8v GTiis also group 10 .

The VR6 also checks out at group 16 like the 16v, 24bhp extra for the same insurance group.............hmm know what I'd choose . The quotes I got for both cars were much the same, give or take a pound and quite reasonable too.

how much insurance do younger gti owners pay as im 20 and currently payin 800. sorry for all the question, thanks for your input.

But I,m 27 not 20. We've all been there though, some of the quotes I was getting when I was 20 were horrendous .

Hey, why not be a bit different, go for a Vento or Golf estate, similar bang for less buck. Not as many of them about I know (quite a few were automatics as well), but what you do find may well be tidier lower mileage examples. This due to the Vento in particular being less popular than the Golf when new. I've seen a few nice looking modded examples about though .

[GolfGL]

cheers guys, mystic blue i think im going to turn down the estate idea the hatch is heavy enough. admiral definetly sound good as difference between 8v and 16v was only 150 quid. soon as the student loan come though im going to start looking now which colour mystic blue or dragon green, already got dragon green so might aswell try something new.

[mowgli]

sorry, bit late with the reply but, what about a Seat Ibiza 2.0 GTi??  The Golfs are Gp 14 and 16 for the 8v and 16v respectively and the Seat is a 10.  My other half has one and it flies!  Not as well built as the Golf though, but 100Kg lighter which helps.  I've had 4 8v Mk3's and loved them, for 95% of the time they are more than enough, for the 5% when you want to start winding it up above the 4K mark then the 16v comes into its own.  Also had a 1.8T A3 TSport, that was very quick, now got an A4 1.8 TSport, not quite as quick but more luxury.

[Len]

I'm sorry you guys but all this low torque crap on the 8v is all just wannabee bollocks!
No 8v will beat a 16v any day at any speed!!! Round town or out in country!

So on performance - NO CONTEST!!!

But as for is it worth the extra insurance cost - wellthats up to you mate, drive em both and then go with you pocket!

[AvwgolfA]

You tell em len...

[Len]

Just gettin a bit peed off with all this 8v Nonsence!

Once and for all - I will challenge any 8v - any place any time!