Golf R Observations and Questions

[Pepe]

I wanted to strat a new thread but this one should do it.. those who have now had their Golf R for some months now should have run them in nicely now and started to become far more used to the drive, gearbox etc etc.. can we have some reviews posted of those experienbces good and not so

Thanks

Had mine since July 4 and just ticked over 8000km today. Happy to share my experiences if you've got some specific things you want to know about?

For instance, I just shared this : http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/f22/...ses-55738.html

[SilvrFoxX]

funny stuff

In a nutshell everything .. has the engine loosened, has the exhaust note deepened, has the gearbox settled as you have got used to how the DSG works, Does it rattle, now the tyrs have scrubbed in how does the handling go. has DCC made a difference.

all these things that divided the forum when no one really knew..

[HPSOV]

funny stuff

In a nutshell everything .. has the engine loosened, has the exhaust note deepened, has the gearbox settled as you have got used to how the DSG works, Does it rattle, now the tyrs have scrubbed in how does the handling go. has DCC made a difference.

all these things that divided the forum when no one really knew..

Engine loosened.... Yes
Exhaust note deepened.... Yes significantly
Gearbox settled.... No the D programming is as stupid as ever but I am more used to it now
Rattles.... Yes but no more than any other car
Handling.... I don't push it hard enough to notice any difference
DCC.... Is actually awesome but not a requirement if you aren't doing track days.

[Corey_R]

I'd say the opposite. If this is to be a track day car, then skip the DCC and put in some aftermarket coil overs and sway bars.

But DCC is excellent for the roads. Not only because of the "comfort" setting for the many terrible roads around, and the "sport" setting for those glorious twisties. But for the fact that regardless of the mode, it's always adjusting so that you have a consistent and pleasurable ride, and it keeps it as "flat" as possible through the corners within the constraints of the road, speed, and selected setting.

Particularly that last aspect - keeping the car flat, cannot (easily) be achieved with regular suspension, and in my experience, certainly cannot be achieved without a big sacrifice in ride quality.

In relation to the rest, yes, engine has loosened (I'm up to 3600km), exhaust has deepened, the gearbox is as I knew it would be (great in my opinion), I don't have any rattles over regular roads.


I don't think the comment of "all these things that divided the forum when no one really knew.. " is correct. All of these things (above) were known to me before purchasing the R (except for the R's exhaust of course) because nothing on the R is really new. All these features are in existing Golf's. So whilst opinion will probably always divided, simply because everyone has different requirements and priorities - little was "unknown" to those who seeked out the topics.

[Prodigy]

I've had mine since the beginning of December, have only clocked up 2200 kms but I already agree with all thats pretty much been said, engine loosening up nicely and most noticable is the exhaust noise deepening, i nice rumble is now heard at idle from inside the cabin.

Best thing to date though is the wife drove the car for the first time last week, she never drove any of my WRX's due to them being manual so has never really driven a quick car. She took it steady for the first 10 mins in D mode and even when i told her to give it some stick she was reluctant to and hardly put her foot down. I then introduced her to S mode, after 5 mins she couldn't wipe the smile off her face and needed no encouragement to floor it whenever she could, i think i have unleashed the hoon inside her.

[Fab_R]

I've had mine since the beginning of December, have only clocked up 2200 kms but I already agree with all thats pretty much been said, engine loosening up nicely and most noticable is the exhaust noise deepening, i nice rumble is now heard at idle from inside the cabin.

Best thing to date though is the wife drove the car for the first time last week, she never drove any of my WRX's due to them being manual so has never really driven a quick car. She took it steady for the first 10 mins in D mode and even when i told her to give it some stick she was reluctant to and hardly put her foot down. I then introduced her to S mode, after 5 mins she couldn't wipe the smile off her face and needed no encouragement to floor it whenever she could, i think i have unleashed the hoon inside her.

Nice one Darren...

I have to keep my wife out of mine...she loves the S mode too much!
Even resorts to calling it the "beast" lol
Mind you she was used to the mk5 GTI with stage 1 which was no slouch.
She says its totally in another league the R

[Ideo]

I leant my 60 year old mother my S3 when I went overseas for a few months.

She went a bit silly and kept on racing people in it.

She's not touching the new car.

[SilvrFoxX]

I don't think the comment of "all these things that divided the forum when no one really knew.. " is correct. All of these things (above) were known to me before purchasing the R (except for the R's exhaust of course) because nothing on the R is really new. All these features are in existing Golf's. So whilst opinion will probably always divided, simply because everyone has different requirements and priorities - little was "unknown" to those who seeked out the topics.

Thanks all for the feedback,

Corey, my comments are in relation to what you can read and what is reality.. if you go through this thread prior to everyone who now have taken delivery there was a great deal of to and fro about why the R was one thing or another and post delivery there were some really diverse reactions. Yes sure other Golf's have aspects which are comparable but not all have had a golf before hence the question.

Anyway it has generated the right answers or at least the ones I was interested in, I did like your comments referncing the DSG , that is the only thing that worries me

[Corey_R]

Yeah - and there is always cases like that. Some people speculate, others get out there and actually experience things. Sometimes telling who is who is hard. But yeah, Audi S3 gave people a great over all preview of the R's handling and performance etc. The MK6 Golf GTI has practically the same interior, manual and DSG gearboxes, factory options, including DCC etc. Golf R32 has the same optional recaro seats.

[REXman]

I wanted to strat a new thread but this one should do it.. those who have now had their Golf R for some months now should have run them in nicely now and started to become far more used to the drive, gearbox etc etc.. can we have some reviews posted of those experienbces good and not so

Thanks

I'll give you my take so far.

maybe Pros first.

Build quality has been great, best made car short of a BMW for the coin.
Has put a smile on my face the more I drive it.
Exhaust has gotten louder and now sounds great.
DSG was a great choice in the end, as auto in Sydney with the option for a blast here and there is great.(was skeptical being a proficient manual driver)
I like the factory settings of DSG. Simple to me; D is for fuel economy, S isn't, M is for everything in-between.
Steering wheel is awesome.
The car sounds great in S.
Handling has been such a surprise for a porker, great in the corners and has surprised a few people I have taken for a wrap!
This was a big hitter for me- the insurance.

Cons

Turning circle is terrible.
Launch control is ALMOST a gimmick giving only a 3000rpm take off (soft). I wouldn't call it Launch control, I'd call it Takeoff Control.
DSG has ****ed up more than a few times (not enough for me to completely crack it as it always does it {slip} at lower speed below 60km/h)
Bluetooth mucks around when the iPhone is connected to the MDI sometimes.
Petrol economy is a bit over rated.

I would though, wait, choose and buy it all over again.

I have kept up with my mates GTR (R33) through some twisties - (not straight line though!), and shook up a new MY11 STI, all whilst doing it in the lap of (reasonably) affordable luxury.

Best package on the market you can get for $60 odd grand.