MK6 -v- MK7 : Golf GTI

[WhiteJames]

My Golf 7 GTI Manual is 4 months old. Ray's MK6 Golf R demo is about 3 months older than my Golf 7. My work colleague was apparently the first guy in AUS to take delivery of a Merc A250 AMG and he complains of the harsh ride ... harder than a MK6 Golf GTI, which rides much harsher than a Golf 7 GTI (with or without adaptive dampers) and does not handle anywhere as well (although is fun & requires greater driver effort to hustle along). A45 Merc has no real relevance in a country with 110kph speed limit for majority of its highways. The new Golf R fully loaded may just come in a less than most were expecting ... I'm guessing 60K drive away?
WJ

[andrew7]

Thanks WJ, what's the source of your new R pricing forecast? (nb. the subject of heated debate on the R topic. BTW, there will be much pressure on the R pricing given an s3 with most of the fruit (exc performance pack) comes in at about $65k on road (before discounting/negotiation).

[WhiteJames]

If I told you who my source was, I'd have to kill you ... lol. Looking around mid April 2014 for release of Golf 7 R with drive-away price of just under 60K for full fruit 7 R. Could be some surprises re: options list, but imo just under 60K with all options suggests that there are not to many options on the 7 R. Pushing Ray to dump his prev-gen MK6 Golf R almost full fruit demo + 15K cash for the new 7 R ... I know he wants one.
WJ

[Jimi]

WhiteJames = Golf 7?

[andrew7]

Thanks WJ. My choice will narrow down to DSG GTI PP v R/S3 subject to R pricing and test drive etc (my MK6 DSG GTI lease is up at the end of year)

Jimi, appears that the infamous Golf7 is permanently MIA, pretty sure its not WJ

[Cantgiveyouthat]

James you said Ray bought the R when you went to Mascot. It's at the start of the thread. Like most of what you write it's only sitting next to the truth. So you have not driven any of the other cars. It's an A45amg not an A250 as far as I know. Everyone and his dog is guessing the r to be $55k plus on roads and delivery, so good work on that "scoop". Ray will need at least $15k so you are on the money there.

[Cantgiveyouthat]

It's an A250sport. I checked the Merc website.

[thezoneR32]

FYI I drove a MK7 Gti today with DSG. Certainly has good midrange and handles well but I thought it struggled to get the power down if you push it too hard. Also has a bit of lag compared to my tuned A4. Overall I thought it was fairly clinical tbh. And driving in D is a waste of time, just like the mk6 it changes through the gears way too fast too enjoy the drive. And S is useless like in the mk6 stays in 3rd forever, so manual mode is all thats left and its though you either drive the car hard or like a grandma there's nothing in between. If this is the way cars are going life is going to be very dull in the future. I like my manual a4 better! I might try a manual next but Im not as excited as I was before.

[WhiteJames]

Hi Paul,

I found the manual Golf GTI to be more fun first up. A second drive in the Auto DSG Golf 7 GTI left me a bit deflated re: driver engagement & fun factor. Started to have doubts. A follow-up drive in the Manual Golf 7 GTI reinvigorated my desire for the Golf 7 GTI.

I think the extra weight of the DSG up front, coupled with a lighter chassis and stiffer front springs in the Auto DSG Golf 7 takes a bit away from the fun factor compared to the Manual box re: chassis composure, roll, pitch & dive & squat. A bit like the Toyota 86 -v- BRZ with slight suspension tuning changes making a notable difference because of a fairly light chassis. I ended up going for the Manual.

Same reason I didn't wait for the Golf 7 GTI PP ... extra 60 kgs of weight and extra weight up front ... I'd imagine that the front springs in the PP GTI would be stiffer again, perhaps taking a bit more fun factor away at public roadway driving speeds.

In this respect, maybe a Manual Golf R that is likely to be within a few K's extra to the PP GTI could be the go. My sources are telling me that majority of the early examples of the Golf 7 R to go on sale early on are higher spec DSG versions.

WJ

[WhiteJames]

Here's a video from a chick who seems to know what she is talking about re: Golf 7 GTI:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW-gxz9vmGA

Perhaps another to remind you harder core Audi S3/Golf 7 R types not to pick any fights with the BMW 135i on a track day outing:

Audi S3 vs BMW M135i | evo TRACK BATTLE - YouTube

Cheers.
WJ