Ok, being as I have ten minutes peace at last I'll give a few initial thoughts on the car compared to the GTI it replaced.
Firstly the GTI. What a great car.
I've said before and will repeat often: the mk7 R has come of age as far as VW R cars are concerned. And that means the poor ol' GTI sits in it's shadow a bit as far as hot hatch aficionados go which is a shame as the GTI totally outperforms what you'd expect from it looking merely at the stats.
When I first got the GTI with no miles on it I really doubted the increased torque having had modified GTIs in the past but as the engine loosened up and once the DTUK/DTE pedal box was on the car making the low end power really accessible and useable I really came to appreciate the engine. The power comes in low and peaks at useable RPM's and I'd swear it produces a fair bit more than the 230 bhp VW advertise (again, having come from modified cars you get a feel for these things without being really anal).
The VAQ diff and basic chassis are the same as the Leon Cupra that did the 'Ring in "sub 8" which in layman's terms means it's a good chassis and yet the ride is also pretty good by hot hatch standards.
Looks? The GTI is a pretty car. Especially in white. Yeah, opinions differ but only mine is right so I'll accept no arguments there
I went for a three door for several reasons. The first being that the original show car was a white three door and VW chose that spec for a reason. It looks good and VW put some pretty effective little styling cues in there on a 3 door with the roof and window lines that make a nod back to the mk1.
Secondly lighter weight and stiffer chassis as a hot hatch should be in purists terms.
And thirdly, I once owned a mk1 GTI in white and loved it (despite it being the most unreliable pile of crap I ever owned).
Factor in I'd expected my eldest son to bugger off to university when I put the order in so the car would at long last cease to be a family taxi. It was a car for me.
Alas things change over a short space of time and the three doors became a pain in the butt as my son decided instead of racking up debts he'd start at the bottom and work his way up and is now a trainee management accountant or some such thing so still living at home and therefore along with his brother still likes dad's taxi to take him everywhere even though he can drive himself if he could be bothered to... :roll eyes:
Thus the GTI is still the family car.
And as I was looking towards changing cars next year and doing my homework for forum research purposes Evo1986 dangled a carrot in front of me and the rest is history.
So, after a whole week of almost not using my shiny new R what do I think of it?
First impressions:
Looking at it it looks heavier than the GTI with it's skirts and big bumpers. You really need to look at a car in the flesh to notice these things properly. The R looks hefty. Purposeful and aggressive.
The wheels look way too far into the arches.
Yesterday I got some new spacers through the post.
Inside it's dark. Lots of black. I really like the GTI's tatan seats and the last R I had a close look at in the depths of winter didn't impress me with its standard interior but on a very bright sunny June day I climbed into my very own R and quite liked what I saw.
The Piano Black dash bits will be a nightmare to keep dusting, the light grey will probably get grubby no matter how careful I am, etc etc but I quite like how VW have managed to give the R a completely different feel to the GTI. Just like my colleague's R32 it has a familiar R feel. And there are little homages to the R32 when you look up close outside with the little bits of satin metal that you don't notice at first glance. The lower bumper bit looks a bit crap at first and then you spot the satin silver trim going around the VW badge and a little smile breaks out when you realise what the designers have done. Subtle. Typical VW.
My car is standard spec so I'll miss park assist three or four times a year.
I'll occasionally miss the nav (I'll load one on my phone) and the camera.
The ride is a lot more firm than the GTI. You can feel the back end and transmission on the motorway let alone back roads. It reminds me again of the R32. Surefooted but hefty feeling. Not chuckable like a GTI. It's just a matter of getting used to that, not a criticism as they're different beasts.
And the engine. That's the important bit.
Obviously I'm running it in so am taking it pretty easy. Not too much throttle and not too many revs for the first couple tankfuls.
Once the DTE pedal box was plugged in the engine seemed to come alive a bit like the GTI before it. The turbo spool can be made far more use of with delicate foot movements and it feels so much more responsive, especially at town speeds.
The engine isn't as responsive low down as the GTI but neither is it laggy like a mk6 R. But it always feels quite eager to pick up its skirts and get going. Again, it reminds me a bit of the R32. Quick, but a different sort of quick to a GTI.
The soundaktor I hated. Switched that down ASAP to 40% and I'm happy with it now.
And fuel economy. Driving my GTI back to where I originally collected it as a completely standard car it did 40mpg. That was the best I ever got out of it over a whole journey and I was really pleasantly surprised. Heavy traffic too, stop start on the motorway at times. And all that on 95 RON.
Driving the R home on the same route reversed (not in reverse gear!) : 29mpg and I'll assume with 97 RON fuel in the tank.
Food for thought!!
