MK7 GTI vs M135i

[monkeyhanger]

To buy a vehicle solely for a badge is a bit sad but I'm sure people do it... 'It must be reliable because it's a VW' or 'The brand is prestigious' like Bmw when in fact it's very common and many older Bmw's seem to be driven round by chavs.

Feels like some of these cars are built to last a lease period.

I do think that my Scirocco will become a charva favourite when it gets below the £5k mark in the used market. I don't think there are any cars out there that are built to be bulletproof now - longevity and retained appearance down the line for newer cars are very much related to how a car is treated. My Dad's MK5 07 plate GT TDI170 looked like new when he traded it in. My brother in law has a MK5 GTI that looks like sh!te. He's never been bothered about keeping it clean or tidy. A neighbour has an 86 MK2 GTI that looks like it has just rolled out of the showroom. He treats it well, but I doubt a MK7 Golf or a 1 series BMW will last 26 years treated the same way when issues like whiteworm are the least of our troubles.

I'm not sure i'd dare run a VW much out of warranty there days for fear of a massive repair bill. VW UK manipulated residual values make the relatively expensive Golf reasonable value for money - the main reason I buy new.

[Gryzor]

I hear where you are coming from MH, but I've never had to repair anything on my Mk5 GTI for reasons other than general wear and tear.  Not saying it would last 26 years, but looked after well and driven reasonably, even a modern car should do OK. 

Not running a car past it's warranty period is a bit of a false economy though, and one of convenience as far as I'm concerned. Swapping your car after 3 years means losing a bit of money on trade in, and losing several thousand each year in depreciation on the new one.  At the same time, the car that's over 3 years old would be depreciating at a much lower rate, and I highly doubt would cost the equivalent each year in maintenance and repair bills. 

Apart from enjoying my car for its looks and performance, and not really liking the Mk6, it's why I was happy to keep it, and hope to do the same with my Mk7.

[monkeyhanger]

I hear where you are coming from MH, but I've never had to repair anything on my Mk5 GTI for reasons other than general wear and tear.  Not saying it would last 26 years, but looked after well and driven reasonably, even a modern car should do OK. 

Not running a car past it's warranty period is a bit of a false economy though, and one of convenience as far as I'm concerned. Swapping your car after 3 years means losing a bit of money on trade in, and losing several thousand each year in depreciation on the new one.  At the same time, the car that's over 3 years old would be depreciating at a much lower rate, and I highly doubt would cost the equivalent each year in maintenance and repair bills. 

Apart from enjoying my car for its looks and performance, and not really liking the Mk6, it's why I was happy to keep it, and hope to do the same with my Mk7.

If cars stayed the same i'd be tempted to keep the car 5 or more years, but there is always progress. For the top end 2.0TDI alone we've seen a new common rail 170TDI come in June 2009, then it got upped to 177PS, and now we've had the 184PS 2.0TDI. The new GTI engine has had a modest power hike and a huge dose of torque in the same time period - there is always some upgrade right arount the corner.

I have found that VW residuals fall off a little when they are old enoough to be beyond the interests of franchised VW dealers - to get to the point where a 6 year old GTI would cost twice as much as a 6 year old Focus ST is unsustainable, the used price has to fall. My GTD is likely to cost £10k in depreciation (vs RRP) over 3 years, with no maintenance costs if I rotate the front and back tyres (save for punctures). Take the same car and run it for 6 years and it will probably lose another £6.5k, cost me about £600 in servicing, and £800 for 6 tyres. You run the risk of a big unwarrantied repair bill to save about £2100 (£1600 if you buy the 5 year warranty) over years 4 to 6. Personally i'd pay the extra £2100 to have another new car at year 4 which may have an upgraded output or improved economy or more equipment and no risk at all on coverage for anything going wrong.

Of course VW engineer the finances to maintain their sales. For me the prospect of a new car every 3 years doesn't come at much extra cost than keeping it 6 years.

[Gryzor]

True, there is always progress to take into consideration, and not saying I'd always choose to keep the car for longer - depends how much I like it and am happy with it.  I've swapped previous cars like they are going out of fashion! We'll just have to see what happens with the next iteration of the Golf - if it's a backwards evolution from the Mk7 like I felt the Mk6 was to the Mk5, I'll just stick with it.  Happily that's a long way off, and we've all got 3 or 4 years at least of Mk7 enjoyment to come

[monkeyhanger]

True, there is always progress to take into consideration, and not saying I'd always choose to keep the car for longer - depends how much I like it and am happy with it.  I've swapped previous cars like they are going out of fashion! We'll just have to see what happens with the next iteration of the Golf - if it's a backwards evolution from the Mk7 like I felt the Mk6 was to the Mk5, I'll just stick with it.  Happily that's a long way off, and we've all got 3 or 4 years at least of Mk7 enjoyment to come

I agree with the MK6 - luckily for VW the 1 series was too ugly, the A3 was too expensive/sparsely equipped and the Scirocco was looking pretty good. I might be tempted back to a coupe (probably new TT, if the MK3 is looking better than the MK2) if the wife learns to drive (she will have to soon) and wants a sensible option (she wants an A1 S-line). If you want a MK8, you might have to order it in 3 years time!

[Gryzor]

I agree with the MK6 - luckily for VW the 1 series was too ugly, the A3 was too expensive/sparsely equipped and the Scirocco was looking pretty good. I might be tempted back to a coupe (probably new TT, if the MK3 is looking better than the MK2) if the wife learns to drive (she will have to soon) and wants a sensible option (she wants an A1 S-line). If you want a MK8, you might have to order it in 3 years time!

I'd agree with all of your evaluations there.  Funny though, when the Roc first launched I didn't like it at all, hated the back end, but it really has grown on me and aged well.  Haha, yeah, tempted to provisionally put my name down for a Mk8 when I go to collect my Mk7, just in case! 

[matchboy]

Surely the scirocco is due a facelift?

[AAddict]

Surely the scirocco is due a facelift?

More than a facelift, needs MQB etc in my opinion. I'd be in one now if they had updated it.

[Ricepop]

A lot of people don't know the cost of a VW now. A colleague of mine who has a Mini Cooper asked me about my Scirocco, thinking that they'd like one as their next car. They thought a GT 170TDI cost £16k new, they were dumbfounded that it was a £24k car.

A lot of people don't know the price of cars full stop.

I have just had a look and a top spec KIA Ce'ed with 133bhp and metallic paint is £23,257.

That makes the golf GTI/GTD look extremely good value in my book.

Given residuals I am sure the golf will be way cheaper to own.

[monkeyhanger]

Surely the scirocco is due a facelift?

More than a facelift, needs MQB etc in my opinion. I'd be in one now if they had updated it.

I was about to say the same. As the Scirocco and EOS are built at the same plant in Portugal (and share a dashboard, frameless windows and other aspects), I suspect they'd both get a new model at the same time, after the plant has been modified to accomodate MQB body build. When teh new TT is out I think the Scirocco will look very old hat without a new model.