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Volkswagon GTI 1.8t vs VR6
gduk3
Member Posts: 9
anyone test drove a 1.8t? is it any good compared
to the vr6? or is just wutevers...how about the
rpm?do u have to rev it hard all the time, like the
hondas? and does the 1.8t have good low end
torque? i know the vr6 is awesome though.
im thinking of buying a gti, but i dont know
wether to get the 1.8t or the vr6.
the only reason im thinking of the 1.8t is because
it's cheaper.
to the vr6? or is just wutevers...how about the
rpm?do u have to rev it hard all the time, like the
hondas? and does the 1.8t have good low end
torque? i know the vr6 is awesome though.
im thinking of buying a gti, but i dont know
wether to get the 1.8t or the vr6.
the only reason im thinking of the 1.8t is because
it's cheaper.
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i was reading some other articles and i read the 1.8t engines were not that good..like it broke down on them...
so now im wondering if that is true.
does anyone know the 0-60 and 1/4 mi. on the 1.8t?
Looks like GIAC has the best one going from
stock 150bhp to an amazing 193bhp for only
500 dollars and no other modifications. I hope
this information helps. Visit giacusa.com for
more info on the chip.
They use these terms freely and authoritatively at the service center, and I'm curious to know if anyone has had an engine problem like this (or heard of it).
I'm not worried about the whole thing, because the car is only 10,000 miles old, and I KNOW how well it operated before this MAJOR maintenance. I plan to practically LIVE at the service center, if they don't fix it properly.
Also, if I have to go into the LEMON-LAW stuff, what is the best way to approach that whole thing? I don't "expect" to have to do that, but I would like to know nevertheless.
Thanks in advance for your input.
Cef
A friend of mine recently purchased a passat 1.8t and the dealer explained that for $600 he could chip it and bring hp into the 220 range. I don't know if that much power is possible but 190hp sounds good. My only worry with installing a chip would be voiding the warranty!
As far as 0-60 times I've seen reviews placing it at 8.0 sec for the gti 1.8t. Pretty slow compared to the VR6 but I don't know how they came up with this number considering the passat runs 0-60 in 7.8 sec and outweighs the gti by a few hundred pounds. Maybe this drive-by-wire thing has something to do with it.
Things havent's chaged much at VW. I bought an 87 GTI 16V in 1993. The car broke down atleast once a month for a year. Major problems encountered include, but are not limited to the following:
1. Excessive water leakage through windshield and doors.
2. parking break cable freezing in cold weather. had to remove wheel each time to unfreeze it.
3. sunroof fell off while driving.
4. front struts collapsed while driving.
5. replaced wheel bearing.
6. replaced alternator.
7. left speakers only worked sometimes.
8. overheated in warm weather.
9. trip computer malfunctioned.
10.plastic trim pieces always breaking.
11. made noise in reverse.
12. tires wearing out in 20k miles.
13. CV joints replaced
14. cat converter blown
15. car's main computer malfunctioned
16. loss of power at high rpm's
17. seat cloth rips
18. clear coat peeled off
19. Head gasket blew. The final straw.
Bought the car for $5,000 w/ 70k sold one yr later with 109k for $1,200 w/ blown head gasket. spent more money on repairs during the year than for car payments for a NEW car.
Notice how engine blew right after 100k-the end of VW current powertrain warranty.
DON'T DO IT. Don't buy a VW. They're nothing but a headache!!
Puh-lease. This isn't even apples to oranges, it's not even close.
-kc-
But it was way back, many years ago.
Latest VW are a lot better.
Try again if you can afford it?
carlady/host
1. Excessive water leakage through windshield and
doors. -> Well that black rubber sealant used to keep cars air and water tight is not exactly invulnerable to the elements or to time. It deteriorates, it rots. My '89 VW Cabriolet's top leaks in the frotn left corner, which is because of some deterioration of the rubber there.
2. parking break cable freezing in cold weather.
had to remove wheel each time to unfreeze it. -> cold weather causes many problems. Had an older American car with the same problem.
3. sunroof fell off while driving. Hey, what can I say sunroofs were not very well made back then. Seen it happen in two NEWER (94 and 97) Isuzu's (a Trooper and a Rodeo), and also an '85 Honda CRX.
4. front struts collapsed while driving. -> Happens after lots of wear, miles, and/or road conditions. Happened to me on the 405 in my '88 Honda Civic! Also happened with the rear struts in my wife's '99 Chevy Metro.
5. replaced wheel bearing. -> happens after time.
6. replaced alternator. -> can't help you there.
7. left speakers only worked sometimes. -> did you even bother to check the lead? Hello there's a wire that leads from the radio's amp to the speaker and believe you me they don't use the best speaker wire in any stock car. Replace the wire or check the connection to the back of the speaker.
8. overheated in warm weather. -> LOL no really? What did you think the car was going to overheat in cold weather? Try turning the heater on, worked evertime in my old '66 AMC Rambler with a replacement radiator.
9. trip computer malfunctioned. -> Think back to the state of computer technology in 1987. Now imagine that state of affairs trickled down into the automotive industry. You'll realize that the computers they put in cars back then were at or below the level of the watch you put on your wrist.
10. plastic trim pieces always breaking. -> Plastic interiors are notorious for this, especially in Japanese cars.
11. made noise in reverse. -> well, uh all cars make noise in reverse. But I'm assuming you mean it was a "bad" noise. Well then you probably needed to get the transmission fixed. Older GTi's often had problems with first gear, but reverse isn't far off either.
12. tires wearing out in 20k miles. -> Well how many miles were already on them? Most NEW tires only last 30k after all.
13. CV joints replaced - > It happens it any front-wheel drive car after about 125k-150k miles. Had to replace the CV joints AND the boots in my '88 Honda Civic at 135k-140k miles.
14. cat converter blown -> The cat's back then weren't what they are today.
15. car's main computer malfunctioned -> See #9
16. loss of power at high rpm's -> Well scal, a VW is not a Honda. VW's get more power and torque down low in the RPM band, they're designed this way to help with quick take-offs in urban traffic. With age it can get worse due to poor fuel injection system, bad spark plugs or wires, and the stock intake/exhasut system.
17. seat cloth rips -> Hmmm, has happened in every car I've owned...try buying some seat covers or better yet, patch it up.
18. clear coat peeled off -> happened at some point in the life of my VW, as one of the previous owners had it repainted. If you really want to see bad paint, check out any Ford or Chrysler from the 80's that still has original paint, ughhh!!!
19. Head gasket blew. The final straw. -> Happened to me in my '88 Honda Civic, and like you, it was the last straw for me and I sold it for $400. But then again I'm not going into the Honda topics and yelling and screaming about how all Hondas are junk and no one should buy one, now am I?
Hope this was informative for you all.
Good day.
The tires were bought new and wore out in 20k due to suspension problems on the car hence the collapsing struts.
None of my other cars leaked water, had faulty computers, cat converters, brake cables, sunroofs, paint, etc. The radio problem was not a wire problem-it was within the radio itself. The radio is inaccessible without special tools. The dealer couldn't fix the radio, either. The car overheated in warm weather -meaning moderate summer temperatures. Not a heatwave. Obviously if you knew anything about cars you'd realize that the blown head gasket was a result of the car overheating excessively. And yes, I know the trick of using your heater to cool the car down and have used it.
BTW, don't blame the age of the car for the problems. My 81 nissan and 85 toyota had no such problems and were very solid cars.
Are you a spokesperson for VW? You seem awfully worked up over this.
Check any Consumer's Report buyers guide and you'll see that VW's are notorious for problems.
I've owned a toyota, nissan, and acura-none of which had any problems -only normal maintenence.
Drive the VW and have fun breaking down. I see VW's on the highway broken down constantly.
The GTI I owned was not abused. It was a 6 yr old car in very good condition. Most 6 yr ave mileage cars should be reliable.
One thing I will say for VW-they taught me a lot about fixing cars.
Anyway-I'm not bitter-I was just trying to give you folks something to think about when making a decision to by a vw.
I, too think they're sharp looking cars that drive and handle great. Unfortunately the quality control at vw is poor.
Whee!
NE ways, my choice goes to the 1.8T. another 500 bux you'd be spanking a vr6 all ove rth eplace and u don't suffer from the nose heaviness of the vr6. Agree?
Swiss Law allows for a 20% power hike, so I installed at the dealer an ABT chip, boosting power from 150hp to 180hp and torque is up from 155lb-ft to 181lb-ft, all under warranty.
I've also added a Remus exhaust and a K&N airfilter. I figure the car is good for 190hp now.
It's a pleasure to drive, and I'm sure would blow away an American Spec VR6.
It's got leather Recaros, and all the options.
In Euro spec it comes with the 16 inch rims on the American spec VR6.
I have just bought a 2000 gti vr6, and i love it...however, i get in the car in the morning and when started up it runs "rough" for a few mins. i brought it back to the dealer and they say all the diagnostics come back fine, (no problem), well the roughness is still there...also it runs "rough" from 0900 rpm to 1300 rpms as well..and then smoothes out. DOES ANYONE HAVE A SUGGESTION????
SECONDLY, does anyone know of any mods that can be made to the exhaust or muffler to improve performance and sound?? It is a 2.8 vr6..??
thankyou,
ps. there is no question which is the better car vr6 or 1.8t....spend the extra money and buy the vr6!!!!!!!
(If I might be allowed to make a brief case for nitrous, I have no problem with nitrous, and have used it in 4 different cars. The reason it has a bad rep is that most people get too heavy using it and start breaking things. Nitrous is like a fine spice; just enough, and you are in heaven, too much, and you ruin the meal.)
Anyway, I'd go with the turbo. The only down side of it is that you have to rev a little high at the start because its low spinning mass, which helps it rev quickly during acceleration but increases the likelihood of stalling off the line. but once it catches, bu-bye.
Oh judas.... what can I expect from that name after all? I'm so hurt. If you could only go to the sports car forum where they compare the vr6 against the celica GTS.....
Cavalier? Don'e VW make Cavaliers? hehehe.... Ok I am gonna get in trouble with this one. But u gotta admit if the car is good then why are they so many forums dedicated to problematic VWs? Like Are Volkswagen Reliable? Jetta breakdowns, Golf breakdowns to name a few.
Having said that, I am still marvel the 1.8T engine. Oohhh babie!!!
Just picture this : 1.8t chipped to 220hp with intake + exhaust and ditch the stupid ASR and add 4motion AWD = no wheelspin = joy.
I took my 2 week old 2000 GTI VR6 in for a wheel
alignment to the VW dealer where I purchased the
car. When I came home, there were numerous
scratches and nicks on all four wheels.
Immediately, I took it back to the dealership, and
showed the damage to the service advisor. He said
to bring it back for the mechanic and service
manager to have a look since they weren't there at
the time. I told the advisor that the damage was
from the alignment clamps that attach to the
wheels. The advisor said, they would have to match
the areas of damage with the alignment clamps.
Then the dealership will decide what is
appropriate, he said.
Please help! What will the dealer most likely do
to get out of this one? I am going to ask the
dealership to do whatever it takes to get the
wheels the way it was prior to the alignment clamp
damage. The car is only 2 weeks new!
Also, does anyone have a gear grinding issue when going into Reverse gear?
Any advice is appreciated. Thank you.
It's because I used to drive a 1999 civic si. I sold the SI and bought a new VR6.
Thanks a lot!
Although I LOVE sporty cars, I must admit that my 'technical' knowledge is as ...low as a Formula One car!
I test drove a Audi A4 quattro with the same engine (1.8t) and that car was factory equipped with sport suspension. The experience? simply amazing! I also test drove a Civic Si which was a lot of fun, though I think the car is seriously overpriced (the velcro attachments in the trunk were simply stapled to the cover carpet: symptomatic, in my opinion of the rest of the car's interior finish...)
But back to our road test... In comparison, the GTI was 'rolling' all over the place in hard cornering. So should I get, it would definitely need some 'tightening'. Like another person asked, I wonder what differentiates the GTI from the 'regular' Golf from a technical point of view. Maybe we're all victims of clever marketing!
Anyway, I DO think I'm gonna get the GTI 1.8t. I simply love the car for its looks,convenience and the engine is just fine!
However, coming back to your answer: I thought that a 'sport suspension package' involved more than just the shock absorbers. If you put stiffer absorbers on the car, would you need to reinforce the points of attachment? (where the absorbers are fixed... probably has a name!) or even reinforce - stiffen - the chassis?
If anyone has a qualified opinion... I would love to hear from you!
Thanks in advance!
ps: coming from Europe, my greatest disappointment was to see that the '4 Motion' was not imported to the US... 4 wheel drive and 208 bhp!!!
I WILL get a GTI... but now I am starting to wonder which one! 1.8t or VR6???? But of course! That's what this 'column' is all about! haha!
I have recently bought the vr6. The only difference you should be concerned about with the turbo is the length of distance you drive your vehicle.
if you are one that drives over 100,000 miles on a car then get the vr6, if not get the 1.8t and save a little money....that way you dont need to replace a turbo later in the cars life....
as far as gas mileage...my vr6 is getting 25+ mpg on the highway doing 80-85. and it only has 2000 miles on it....so the choice is yours...good luck...either way your picking a nice car....