« Reply #5 on: 28 February 2023, 22:25 »
Welcome Edward.
As someone who owned no less than 5 examples of mk7 Golf I guess my own personal preference is clear but I do try and be pragmatic too.
Badge snobbery does wind me up so I’ll always push back against it when called for.
If you like a fairly plush interior (for the class of car) then the Golf easily wins in perceived ‘niceness’.
But add in said pragmatism and look at their DNA to skew the picture a bit. Basically most ancillaries from the HVAC controls and system, the wiring looms, radio, electric windows, washer bottle cap, exhaust rubbers, engine cover and so on are all common VW group bits. The Golf gets some shiny trims and the Leon gets black. It’s a perception thing.
The Golf GTI gets the Skoda tune EA888 engine and the Leon gets the Audi S3 motor with bigger turbo and uprated internals.
The Leon is the driver focussed package where dynamics and value count more than perceived luxury and the Golf is a Golf.

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‘25 8.5R, ‘23 8R, ‘20 8CS, ‘19 135iX, ‘19 TCR, ‘17 Ed40, ‘17 GTD, ‘15 7R, ‘13 GTI PP, ‘11 GTI, ‘09 GTI, ‘98 Ibiza Cupra, ‘05 GTI, ‘06 Polo GTI, ‘04 GT TDI, ‘05 Fabia vRS, ‘02 GTI T, ‘03 Ibiza TDI 130, ‘01 Leon 180, ‘89 mk2 16v, ‘99 Ibiza TDI, ‘96 VR6, ‘98 Ibiza TDI, ‘92 VR6, ‘88 mk2 8v, ‘92 Polo G40, ‘91 mk2 8v, ‘89 mk2 8v, 205 GTI 1.9, ‘83 mk1 GTI, ‘80 Scirocco GTI, plus some others I’ve forgotten