Clubsport S vs R 20 Anniversary

[AGB]

Hello

I was reading a few articles around the release of the 20th Anniversary R and while I don't really care much about 'ring times, they're an interesting marker of progress.

I'm not sure if the media or Volkswagen are actively talking about the R anniversary model as the fastest Golf ever round the ring but I've seen it touted in a few article headlines. Benny Leuchter made a second attempt after initially breaking the record which is fractionally quicker than the official time for the new R 20.

Quite remarkable that a 2016 car remains the quickest Golf round the 'ring six years on - a lifetime in development terms and an endorsement of what a superb car the CSS still is from a handling perspective to have been able to achieve that in the first place.

But hey, to most, it just looks like a Golf. 

[clubsport]

A Golf 8 R is not for me, but what tyres was it using?
If it wasn't using the Cup 2's of the mk 7 CS-S, it''s even more impressive considering it is a heavier 5 door car?

[Exonian]

Maybe the 50th Anni GTI might move the game on as a last hurrah, but the R is a different creature and I doubt a huge amount of development has been spent on Golfs recently. Hot hatches are getting a bit passé now and most development is probably aimed towards making the ID cars slightly less rubbish than the Koreans manage to churn out.

[fredgroves]

Quite impressive something as heavy as the 8R can do that sort of laptime... the CSS is stripped out.

[Exonian]

Leuchter has been putting in a lot of laps for R GmbH over the last few years with all sorts of electronics monitoring everything the car does. The damper settings in the R 20 Years will have been set up using this experience no doubt, and the trick rear diff must add a lot of assistance to the handling and sharpness on track rather than just being a MaccyD car park gimmick.
But this is at 10/10ths.

A CSS will feel special even at 3/10ths due to its lighter weight and bucket seats.
Grandma might prefer a lift down to the Post Office in the R though.

[AGB]

A Golf 8 R is not for me, but what tyres was it using?
If it wasn't using the Cup 2's of the mk 7 CS-S, it''s even more impressive considering it is a heavier 5 door car?

If what I read is correct, it was on the same tyres. Agree, never been tempted by a Golf R.

[AGB]

Maybe the 50th Anni GTI might move the game on as a last hurrah, but the R is a different creature and I doubt a huge amount of development has been spent on Golfs recently. Hot hatches are getting a bit passé now and most development is probably aimed towards making the ID cars slightly less rubbish than the Koreans manage to churn out.

You're absolutely right, it's a development dead end and they're divesting but it's hard to market a car slower than the previous model and VW have always touted the R as the quickest performance Golf. Doubt they'll do much more than some badging and a parts bin raid for a 50th - the world will be a different place when that comes to market.

I wish SUVs and the perverse variants and micro segmentations of them would get passé soon. 

[AGB]

Leuchter has been putting in a lot of laps for R GmbH over the last few years with all sorts of electronics monitoring everything the car does. The damper settings in the R 20 Years will have been set up using this experience no doubt, and the trick rear diff must add a lot of assistance to the handling and sharpness on track rather than just being a MaccyD car park gimmick.
But this is at 10/10ths.

A CSS will feel special even at 3/10ths due to its lighter weight and bucket seats.
Grandma might prefer a lift down to the Post Office in the R though.

You're right. I was just musing on 'progress', not really a direct or fair comparison.

Days of these kinds of conversations are limited I guess, I can't see myself chatting about the merits of where to put the detergent on the ID GTI. 

[Exonian]

I guess as a Porsche (pork?) enthusiast you’re used to a steady stream of constantly evolving heritage cars where the CSS came as a bolt out of the blue from conservative ol’ Volkswagen. Whether it’ll ever be repeated is doubtful, and in many ways I hope it isn’t as I doubt any sequel will be as good as the original and would be critiqued to the n’th degree.
With the aero being part of the mainstream production run cars now, all shells being 5 door and all transmissions being auto (except in the US) for the bigger turbo GTI/R engines there’s not a lot of scope for a CSS type mk8 despite factory outputs of 330PS now.
The chassis has been around for 10 years so has probably long since reached its peak development.

But if VW had the motivation to pull something out of the hat I’m sure they could.

What to you Porsche GT/Clubsport owning owners think VW could do to trump the mk7 CSS?
It would have to eclipse the mk7 version enough not to draw too much negative criticism and be financially attainable to mortal human beings. Full VW group parts bin at your disposal and some limited bumper/spoiler additions permitted…

[fredgroves]

They won't do it now.  The next big thing is trying to get a good ring time for a hatchback BEV...