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Comments
Are you actually going to tell me that you think a GTI with a 1.8T is a different car than a 2 door Golf with 1.8T? We have way different opinions on that one.
newcar -
a base mini and a base golf - show me how the mini out performs it. give me information. thanks.
anonymous -
i am alarmed. are you REALLY basing your opinion of VW quality on the rattle complaints on this board?
keep in mind, that around here at USED base Mini is going for $26k.
also keep in mind that my friend used to drive an 89 Ford Taurus. his new Golf might as well be a Porsche in his eyes
the handling advantage that the Mini has over the base Golf is not worth over $10k. nope, no way.
MPG 26/43 24/31
Range 343/ 568 348/ 450
Power 115hp 115hp
0-60 8.5 n/a
Weight 2315 2771
MSRP $16,300 $15,050
Edmunds didn't have 0-60 figures for the Golf, but at 450lbs. heavier, the Golf will feel much bulkier, not to mention having the unfortunate stock VW suspension.
The Golf is cheaper, but the Mini outperforms it in the DRIVING sense.
Is that a turbo model? Maybe cool, damp air helps. You ought to drive in the fog at the Cape some spring to really enjoy it!
In part, yes. It is supposed to be a site based on REAL WORLD user's experience. It is like talking to a bunch of people who own these cars all at the same time.
Of course, it is another thing to evaluate it in the greater context of how many do what complaining how often. Then again, same could be said of the do-all be-all you make the VW out to be. It is an overpriced economy car which has a lot of flaws and a nice interior, plain and simple.
you are entitled to your opinion. overpriced the car is not, not by a long shot. people pay $17k for Corollas and Civics. that is overpriced.
8 airbags, 4 wheel disc with ABS, a/c, 8 speaker stereo, standard on EVERY VW. 4/50k mile warranty. BEST crash test scores.
and you think the car is overpriced? people pay TWICE as much and don't get as much available luxury and performance, not to mention safety and style
i know this is a forum for real world experience. so, how many people have complained about rattles, vs. the number of people who own VW's?
your "plain and simple" is much different than mine.
anakin-
for sure the Golf weighs more, and should be a little slower. but in the real world, that half a second doesn't matter, and the handling is only noticed on a race track. the Golf's soft suspension is the reason it stays on the road in sharp exit ramps with potholes anyway. Firm, flat cars almost "jump/bounce" sideways in my opinion. the VW's just soak it up and keep plowing through. FUN!
If you like the soft suspension VW makes, you'd LOVE a Buick! Mmmmmm, can't feel NOTHIN!
HO
The WRX is turbocharged, and thus has to be kept spinning at least around 3000rpm, otherwise it feels dead. Also, some say the interior materials are cheap for the car's price (around the same as the GLI's).
I have not driven the GLI or the new VR6 for that matter. I have read posts about a finicky throttle though, that makes the car lurch and stuff. So if you didn't experience that, then there should be no problem.
Also, consider access is going to be easier in a 4-door. Pick the car that you like the best and will fulfill your needs the best, because you have to drive it.
I have a co-worker that was hot to get a Focus, so she bought a used one. She is the type that's a miss know-it-all. Well she knows how high the repair bills can be now. She has spent $1500 thus far in repairs, and she's only had the car ~5 months.
How does one "prove" an opinion?
The Ford Focus only handles better if the rear wheels don't fall off the thing in a corner, the gas pedal doesn't stick, the airbag doesn't blow while you're driving, and the ignition key doesn't get stuck in the car.
... Well she knows how high the repair bills can be now. She has spent $1500 thus far in repairs, and she's only had the car ~5 months."
Your above quote could just as easily have been: "The VW Jetta only handles better if the window doesn't fall out, you don't have to do a Gene Kelly dance routine on the pedals to get it started, and you aren't too busy hitting the dash to stop the incessant rattles."
Also, the Jetta isn't under SIX government investigations like the Focus is.
What are you talking about, the pedal dance? I don't understand that one. My car starts the first time, every time I turn the key.
Somebody JUST posted yesterday that their windows fell into the door in their 2001 Jetta.
And I do it myself....maybe except for the 80k one where I need a timing belt change.
"Of all of the cars I have driven in my life, this presents the perfect balance of comfort and performance, can you name one better ?"
Newcar named a car that, in his opinion, was better in terms of the qualties in the post.
If you decide to use conventional oil, might as well just change it every 5000 miles or so, just so you stay comfortable.
In the past I had heard about some sort of goop coming from the door. Has this issue been resolved? Haven't heard about it for some time now.
Meade
P.S. You know I'm no fan of the Focus, but I will say this -- at least Ford has issued recalls to repair many of these defects. From what I've seen here, it appears VW is trying to sweep their defects under the carpet.
She said one thing was the ignition key wouldn't come out, and she also had to have a rotor replaced too (both of them actually). I don't know what else went up on the car though, since she has had it.
I know the warranty would have covered the car, even used, because I had alot of problems with the used Cavalier I bought. Since it was under 36K and 3 years at the time, I got all the problems (except one) fixed in it. I even got a new strut at 40K, because they had checked the car several times for a noise in front and didn't find anything. Come to find out, it was the strut.
Also, the only problem (it seems) with VW besides the rattles is the window regulator problem and the MAF problem. They lowered the price alot on the MAF part, and they have been fixing peoples' window problems as well for nothing. Check the problems board for more info on that.
If you didn't follow the manufacturer's service intervals, then you would be at fault, not the company.
Look at what's happening with Toyota and the sludge issue...they are saying that consumers did not properly follow the perscibed change intervals, and therefore Toyota is not liable.