Golf GTI or the R

[Darlo]

Love this debate.... ‘real world’ driving on our roads the R is king. More power and more traction which help with our rubbish weather and roads.

Hate my GTI DSG having come from an S3 and got an R on order. I did love my manual GTI I had prior to S3 but it changed my mind. You are all kidding yourself if you think there is little in it, in real world there is a significant difference in my opinion.

[mcmaddy]

Only natural that R owners will say the gulf in performance is far greater than it actually is.

[JoeGTI]

It's only natural that the GTI owners will argue that the gulf is a lot smaller than it actually is. 

[kalimon]

This endless GTI or R argument pisses me right off!
The problem is that most R owners simply cannot believe that there are people out there who simply want a Golf GTI because it IS a Golf GTI.
Most GTI owners could probably have afforded the extra to get the R but they just didn't want one. I'm one of those people, and no amount of performance figures being quoted will convince me that I made the wrong choice

[Darlo]

Ha ha love how people get so defensive about their car choice.

The point on which one is faster is an easy one.... the r in every department.

Which one is better is down to the individual. Loved my manual GTI.... hate my dsg GTI. People will say the dsg is great in the GTI, in my opinion it’s not. Doesn’t make me right or wrong, just what I think.

Different to something based on actual facts and figures. Those that say it’s close are wrong.

You could argue that those that say it’s close are just trying to convince themselves the made the right choice with a GTI over an R 

[I wanted a GTi]

Very little difference between a GTi and R in performance in real world driving and they are both limited to 155mph. As said the extra weight of the R somewhat negates the extra power. The R will have better traction off the line.

If your talking about cruising at 70mph on the motorway then yes. But anything else the R is a LOT faster. Even pulling away from roundabouts at 30mph let alone going for a blast down your local A road. Have you driven an R!?

Yes I've driven an R thanks of else I wouldn't be commenting. In real world driving you can't notice the difference but someone's real world driving could be different to another's.

Real world driving in this part of the world involves a lot of greasy wet roads for about 300 days of the year, a lot with crap surfaces.

300 days a year Joe, Christ the weather has got better in the West of Ireland then, I suppose that's global warming for you. 

[JoeGTI]

This endless GTI or R argument pisses me right off!
The problem is that most R owners simply cannot believe that there are people out there who simply want a Golf GTI because it IS a Golf GTI.
Most GTI owners could probably have afforded the extra to get the R but they just didn't want one. I'm one of those people, and no amount of performance figures being quoted will convince me that I made the wrong choice

I don’t think “most R owners” care an iota which car you prefer or bought. You made a personal decision and good luck to you. For what it’s worth I am a big fan of the GTI, I owned a MK7 myself and a MK5 (loved that car especially).

However, to suggest that the R and GTI are “close” in terms of out and out performance is just plain wrong and even misleading to someone who’s looking for honest real world experience.

[CHB100]

This endless GTI or R argument pisses me right off!
The problem is that most R owners simply cannot believe that there are people out there who simply want a Golf GTI because it IS a Golf GTI.
Most GTI owners could probably have afforded the extra to get the R but they just didn't want one. I'm one of those people, and no amount of performance figures being quoted will convince me that I made the wrong choice

As i've been told before, this is a GTI forum. First and foremost. I didn't start this thread, but seeing it I thought I was worthy of some input. I have owned with my partner 6 of the 7 Marks of GTI. And an R since May, we still have a MK7 GTI.
My comments are based on all of that experience. When I was running a Mk 6 GTI i craved an R but could not justify it at that time. Now I can. Cost of purchase running costs, fuel, servicing, insurance is higher and generally there's the rub.
Yes the R is in fact more subtle visually than a GTI but only marginally, why not buy an R rebadge GTI add bits of red here and there, hey presto the ultimate GTIR. Only joking,  no snobbery here I can assure you.

[Watts]

I suspect most other GTIs are faster than me in the real world in my PP let alone an R

[king monkey]

I went from years of gti ownership to an S3. Very different cars. For me there is a noticeable difference in both acceleration and how they do it.
However, I would buy a gti because it’s a gti. First world problems eh!