Is it just me or does the majority of people here not realise that there are cars better than the GTI?
I know its a GTI forum so there are bound to be biased opinions. But for some people its not what you want, but relistically what you can afford, ie value for money. In this case the FR which is mechanically 95% identical to the GTI yet shaving 4k of its list price is strong enough to persuade some people. So why i ask must we b!tch about other cars which share similar components just because one has a VW badge the other a Seat?
What happens when we move up to an S3 or S4 or maybe RS4, do we then slag of the greatness of the GTI then?
Humans are 98% the same DNA-wise as a chimpanzee.....I prefer being human
Seriously though, whether you choose a Leon FR, Skoda Octavia RS, VW GTI or an A3 2.0 TFSI then you are getting what you pay for. If it is the nuts and bolts you are bothered about then the Skoda suits. If it is the original GTI you are after then it has to be the Golf. If you are after a badge then subjectively you would choose the Audi.
The applications and target demographics overlap, but each one has its own refinements and for me the GTI is the one I would choose. Obviously I am biased, but if you drove all of them down the road then only the Golf would stand out of the crowd. The GTI is classless and an icon, but I doubt that your wife would subscibe to any of this. Residuals on any new car are poor in the short term, however over 3 years or more the GTI will hold on to 50% of it's original value and the Leon is projected 46-48% retained value. Although this seems in favour of the GTI, you have to remember that the GTI starts at over 20K and the Leon 16K which means you would lose around 10k in the GTI and 8.5K in the Leon. These figures too aren't the main thing to consider though, If you are speccing up any car, (and looking at the Leon you are) you must consider that trade in values generally will not take into consideration options on a car and therefore a highly specced car loses much more.
I can only recommend the GTI as it is the only one I have owned, but I can say that you wouldn't regret it from a make and model choice.
To summarise Skoda and Seat for those on a budget who don't care about the badge or levels of interior quality and the finer details
GTI is the one to go for if you believe what ALL the magazines say about it's handling and ownership costs.
Audi for those who consider themselves able to pay more for the top quality fit and finish regardless of the fact that Audi has spoilt the ride and handling of the A3 TFSI (not the S3!).
