Last manual Golf GTI??

[ABCD]

Last weekend I was sniffing around a Sydney VW dealer looking for a manual Golf GTI to replace our trusty but out-of-warranty (manual) 2015 VW Comfortline and finally fulfill a 20+ year ambition to get behind the wheel of a GTI.
A quick search of stock by the sales person revealed there are literally only a handful of manual GTIs anywhere in the country at the moment but none in the colour/options that I was looking for.
So the sales person searched their ordering system and found that there is a shipment en route to Australia that includes just 14 manual GTIs in various colour/options combos. Allegedly these will be the last manual GTIs ever to come to Australia!!
So deposit down on an Iridium Grey with Driver Assistance pack, due here in August. Now to let my wife know - she is going to be so excited!!

[Mk R]

Last weekend I was sniffing around a Sydney VW dealer looking for a manual Golf GTI to replace our trusty but out-of-warranty (manual) 2015 VW Comfortline and finally fulfill a 20+ year ambition to get behind the wheel of one.
A quick search of stock by the sales person revealed there are literally only a handful of manual GTIs anywhere in the country at the moment but none in the colour/options that I was looking for.
So the sales person searched their ordering system and found that that there is a shipment en route to Australia that includes just 14 manual GTIs in various colour/options combos. Allegedly these will be the last manual GTIs ever to come to Australia!!
So deposit down on an Iridium Grey with Driver Assistance pack, due here in August. Now to let my wife know - she is going to be so excited!!

Nice work! I'd be taking anything a car salesman says with a large grain of salt. The demand for manual versions of the GTI in much bigger markets like EU, Asia and the US still represents a significant revenue source so it is very likely that globally there will be future manual GTIs. Locally it may be true that there will never be another manual GTI but I also doubt that. My guess is this is more to do with VW working to re tool for the latest emissions testing rules.

[ABCD]

The line I got given by the Sales person - and I must admit this sort of makes sense - that car manufacturers are trending towards simplifying model variants in order to help among other benefits meet ever more strict emissions targets. At the moment there are apparently 15 separate Golf variants in Australia alone, and probably double that globally. Ditching the manual is just the start of it, can expect to see the Golf range to shrink going forward.

[The_Hawk]

It's a damn shame we can't order some of the model / engine / gearbox variants that are possible overseas. I presume it's a compliance thing which I understand for things that might be low volume sellers. I also get the spare parts requirements, but I'd happily sign something at time of purchase saying that if buying xxx options you agree that there is a 6 week wait for parts if something breaks due to my own choices...

One of the ones that irks me a little was the Golf Cabriolet. Why couldn't I get a GTI variant? Hell even a diesel variant in Australia? We already sold that engine and gearbox combo so parts shouldn't have been an issue, VAG have been creating a more and more common platform for a long time to facilitate these sorts of options... again it's probably an Australian compliance based limitation, but it's a bit of a silly limitation if you ask me...

... and don't get me started on colours! Why are they different in different countries?

[Mk R]

Sounds reasonable but I don't buy that justification, at least not globally. We're a small market with an overwhelming preference for autos. It's logical that they try and up-sell the minority to auto. They have a good justification for doing it now too with the new emissions testing requirements that VW will have to pass for real this time. I understand that the only existing VW transmission that meets WLTP for small cars is the DSG.

It will be very interesting to see whether they try to kill off the manual GTI globally. There is a very different attitude to manual transmission in Europe and Asia. Depending on the market, 70-80% of Euro cars sold still have 3 pedals. Even the UK sold 49% manual cars last year.

[LibraR]

The new WLTP regulations are expected to drive reduction in niche type models as the cost of compliance will reduce the business case to support them.

I’m not suggesting a manual GTI should be regarded as niche but certainly world demand for manuals is declining and any regulatory system that requires every type of model variant to be separately tested has to reduce model variants or increase costs.

As for colours - I think that is purely the respective marketing departments of the brand in each country. The “safe” colours will always be more prevalent I guess. Sadly, the marketing folks either know their customers very well or have the power to influence what we should be driving. International selection of a “hero” colour that appears in all the advertising usually means at least some of them will be included even if they are not sure he norm for a model.

[The_Hawk]

I get the reasoning behind what the dealership orders to put on the showroom floor, where I don't get it, especially for colours) is for special orders. Habenero Orange anyone?

[Ozsko]

The new WLTP regulations are expected to drive reduction in niche type models as the cost of compliance will reduce the business case to support them.

I’m not suggesting a manual GTI should be regarded as niche but certainly world demand for manuals is declining and any regulatory system that requires every type of model variant to be separately tested has to reduce model variants or increase costs.

As for colours - I think that is purely the respective marketing departments of the brand in each country. The “safe” colours will always be more prevalent I guess. Sadly, the marketing folks either know their customers very well or have the power to influence what we should be driving. International selection of a “hero” colour that appears in all the advertising usually means at least some of them will be included even if they are not sure he norm for a model.

I worked for a vehicle wholesaler many years ago when I reckoned manual cars were the only thing to drive and the autos of the time weren't very desirable anyway. The car was a very quick sedan and everyone who thought they knew what they were taking about reckoned a manual version would sell like hot cakes so we ordered a hundred despite being told by marketing and the marketing analysts that we were all wrong. The cars arrived and after about six months I think we had sold something like five so when I see remarks like VW don't know what they are doing and they are idiots I always remember what happened when I said the same things.

[Johnbu]

I'd be taking anything a car salesman says with a large grain of salt.

Usually I'd agree but read this No Golf GTI manual: Is this the beginning of the end?


'the company hasn’t ruled out returning the manual with the next-generation ‘Mk8’ Golf GTI, but there’s no denying the case will be harder to make if sales of the auto-only MY19 model remain strong.'

Sadly manuals are a dying breed. As manuals ade sold in smaller and smaller numbers the case for them become less compelling. Things change over time.

5 years ago, if you told me Hyundai would make a better hot hatch than the GTI in only 5 years, I'd laugh it off. Hyundai know where the market is heading and hence are developing a dual clutch transmission.



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[Jimi]

I don’t expect the MY19 to sell that well even with the extra kit. Plenty will be eyeing off the i30N or just waiting for the MK8.

It’s also too close to an R Grid in my view