My Cheapo Golf R (updated pics)
- Thread starter Mowflow
- Start date
pvr said:Would love to have a go in that car
At least you have a 30 mph marker on your clock, on mine it goes 25 - 50 with a few small markers in between.
I loved the go I had in one - took it over some favourite scottish B roads and it was brilliant - i dont think there has been a performance car out in the last 5 years which has had such brilliant reviews of almost the whole press ( with the exception of Porker GT Cars ) the VW salesman i spoke to said the only downside was that GTIs had stopped selling as the R offered so much more for little extra outlay . I was going to go for Nightshade Blue with leather and if i remember right the salesman dropped about 8 percent of the price before id got really serious about figures .
I'm actually quite amazed by the engine. I expected it to be a bit buzzy and fizzy at the top end. my last experience of a 4 cylinder performance car was a Type R and although those engines are indestructible they do feel like they are going to break what with revving so high.
I know there is the fake sound (soundaktor) in these cars but even with that unplugged (simple 5 minute job) it is a lot deeper and more rumbly (real word) than I thought it would be. The engine is also much freer revving than I expected, like there is very little inertia.
Around town Race mode is generally not happening. A light clutch with a high bite point combines with a very sensitive throttle to make for jerky progress where the car just wants to leap forward and bite anything in front of it. In Eco mode it's like driving a 1L shopping cart. Everything is sufficiently dulled to the point of a normal car although it will still go if you put your foot down hard. Normal mode is a bit of best of both worlds. There is very little noise from the engine around town. The computer will tell you to sit in 5th at 30mph doing 1500rpm.
I like the controversial noise thing although i can see why some don't. If you are in Race mode and going for it with music on at a decent volume it all gets very messy. Music off it sounds fine. In any other mode it isn't irritatingly intrusive. The noise is introduced in a very natural way, very similar to the Z4 in that it's induction noise (fake in the Rs case) rather than fake exhaust noise as you get with Ford ST models. That means even with the car set in it's most aggressive map there is little noise until the throttle is opened exactly the same as the Z4. The noise is a little ambitious for the engine but it seems to fit.
I know there is the fake sound (soundaktor) in these cars but even with that unplugged (simple 5 minute job) it is a lot deeper and more rumbly (real word) than I thought it would be. The engine is also much freer revving than I expected, like there is very little inertia.
Around town Race mode is generally not happening. A light clutch with a high bite point combines with a very sensitive throttle to make for jerky progress where the car just wants to leap forward and bite anything in front of it. In Eco mode it's like driving a 1L shopping cart. Everything is sufficiently dulled to the point of a normal car although it will still go if you put your foot down hard. Normal mode is a bit of best of both worlds. There is very little noise from the engine around town. The computer will tell you to sit in 5th at 30mph doing 1500rpm.
I like the controversial noise thing although i can see why some don't. If you are in Race mode and going for it with music on at a decent volume it all gets very messy. Music off it sounds fine. In any other mode it isn't irritatingly intrusive. The noise is introduced in a very natural way, very similar to the Z4 in that it's induction noise (fake in the Rs case) rather than fake exhaust noise as you get with Ford ST models. That means even with the car set in it's most aggressive map there is little noise until the throttle is opened exactly the same as the Z4. The noise is a little ambitious for the engine but it seems to fit.
I have similar observations about the twin Cupra (see my thread for the dyno graph). The only thing that miss about Zed's engine is the six cylinder's instant response - the turbo four, immensely torquey as it is, still has that minimum lag, no matter what throttle map I use. Revving eliminated the issue, but the ultra-responsive Zed has spoilt me a lot.
DPG said:
Same as my work ! My mate ordered 1 last year & loves it,only for a other 4 the same colour now :x must be 8/9 in the car park now ! :thumbsdown:
I don't really understand owners who have issue with how common it is. You can look round any car park and see about a million 3 series, 1 series 4 pot M sports or Audi A4/A3s. Why people believe the Golf R should be any more exclusive than them when it actually costs less is beyond me.
Mowflow said:
Horses for courses, I can understand it personally as it would annoy me having a car that I see every day.. Well at least, it would if it was a high performance / special car (that set back a bit of cash). I don't care that I see 50 corollas on the way to work when I'm in the work car, it would deter me seeing 20 m's week in week out..
The R's are crazy quick, especially in DSG guise with a reflash. Have been reading stories of them snapping 100 in around 4 seconds with little in the way of modding
Yeah, that's the thing though. Here in the UK you can (or at least you could) lease them for less than a Toyota corolla. So it's a bit daft for owners to get pissed when others were quick enough to grab the deal as well.
Going on the R forum people seem to easily pull low 4s 0-60mph and are getting mid 12s quarter mile with a £350 plug n play tuning box. The Revo stage 1 (374ps) has a proven 3.7s 0-60mph and just over 9s to 100mph. Revo have now brought out a Stage 2 (401ps) which must be ridiculous.
Going on the R forum people seem to easily pull low 4s 0-60mph and are getting mid 12s quarter mile with a £350 plug n play tuning box. The Revo stage 1 (374ps) has a proven 3.7s 0-60mph and just over 9s to 100mph. Revo have now brought out a Stage 2 (401ps) which must be ridiculous.
I agree and I still haven't seen loads of them on the road so I cant understand why owners are that worried about it, I like the 3 series as a car to drive but as you say I must see nearly a 100 of them everyday...now that is a real problem on the exclusivity front and it is the most annoying thing for me as usually I tend to go for a more rare car.Mowflow said:
I think the Golf R is a stunning package and its performance is awesome and all the reviews are very positive so you have got a top motor as far as I am concerned.
