Wow

Hi Fccukers! Love you long time. Just bought another car. Thought I’d share my thoughts. Still haven’t felt that lovin’ feeling since I sold my Plus, but this one has gave me the nearest feels.
So I bought a Mk5 Golf GTI after the coop, review here:

Clicky

I was happy with it, in fact I kept the car for 7 years. It was anonymous, it was reliable, it was quick. In fact, it was the best car I’d owned. At being a car that is! Couldn’t hold a candle to the coop as something I looked back at in the car park. As a conversation piece. Being part of an exclusive club that only we held the key to. I grew up, had kids, and the Golf was there like that favourite jumper you always donned after a shitty day. In short, it just did it’s job. But it was nearing it’s 17th birthday. Rust was showing on her wings, as grey hairs were appearing on my beard I guess we all rust eventually.
A replacement was needed. 10k was acquired. coupes were scoured, on Auto Trader, eBay and the dark web. In the end though, that pesky heart won over the brain and I went with a safe choice that I could transport three young offspring reliably that could still raise a smile: a MK7 Golf R. (Trappy entered the chat). A brief summary:

Looks: I think she looks good. Flawless Lapis Blue metallic. 100k miles but a former Dr owner. A few stonechips on the bonnet and one 2mm dint on the driver’s door, the previous owners looked after her better than I could. Yes, it’s a Golf in a frock, they’re everywhere, the exclusivity can never match the coupe, just something you need to live with after 15 years of coupé ownership.
Features: 20 years of progress brings benefits and drawbacks. Creature comforts like Adaptive cruise control, dual climate control, driver modes that change the throttle, engine response, exhaust note are welcome. The ‘Soundaktor’ that pipes in artificial engine sound, less so.
Performance: I have a manual so the 0-60 and 1/4 mile times sacrifice performance for interaction, the standard engine produces 300ps. It’s faster than a standard 20VT but on par with a G-Tech or ‘stage one’ Coupé, once past 60mph. With the 4wd Haldex system it’s probably half a second faster.
Tuning: This is where the relentless march of technology really pulls away from Fiat’s finest. A simple remap of the Golf’s brain has yielded An extra 95BHP, taking the power to 385 horses. The remap took an hour and cost less than £500. It was no slouch before but has catapulted the performance to the kind of Barbz/Mavric/Nigel levels of 1/4 mile time I dreamed of salivating over the dream builds of fccuk yesteryear. It is almost fairground fast with a sub 4 second 0-60 for a manual car. All whilst lumping 2 car baby car seats in the back!
Do I love the car as much as my last five coupés? No way! Whilst the performance blows my mind, it’s just another car, the coupé remains one of those memories in my mind we all cherish. Maybe it’s rose tinted spectacles and a yearning for a time when I was young, carefree and had a permanent coupé paranoia
Keep the faith, thanks for reading and cherish your Coupés. I’ll be back one day

Pinin

Great write-up Pinin!

Although a few of the modern features, some of which are pure tat, send shivers down my spine

Totally agree! The Adaptive cruise control is excellent in traffic though.

Congrats on the New Golf.

They look very nice in Lapis Blue, a lovely colour. The Golf R has tempted, but as I don't need rear seats I went with a TT roadster. Compared to the Coupé the motor looks tiny in the engine bay, it also lacks any real sound, unless it has the DSG and has the upshift cracks. The Golf R does have the "Active Sound" to enhance the interior noise. This system is on post 2019 RS models too as the petrol particle filter steals even the 5 pot sound!

I am fairly sure the EA888 in the Golf R has the twin port injection. This system helps stop carbon build up, and assists with engine tuning if you take that route. This system was removed in later EA888's.
Something to keep an eye on with the EA888 is the water pump and thermostat housing. Unfortunately this is a very common failure area on this motor. I spotted early signs of weeping on my TT @ 30K miles, so had to get it done. Unfortunately it is a quite expensive repair . My brother in law has an Audi S3 and his car has suffered two failures, on a car that only has 50K miles!

Thanks Bob. Hope you’re enjoying the TT. The thermostat has been replaced recently by previous owner, as it was leaking. It will be a case of ‘when’ it leaks again not ‘if’. You’d think they would produce a revised part that prevents this from reoccurring but maybe there’s more to it than that. Yes - my car has twin port injection as it’s an earlier model. I believe they removed this in later cars due to more stringent regulations. The later ones also had OPF fitted as you say, further decreasing the car’s exhaust sound. I’ve just had the resonator removed and the car sounds ‘’fruity’ without being too loud, so that was a great mod! I nearly went for an RS3 mainly because of the 5-pot sound! I miss that distinctive burble!
Clutches are a known weak point with the 6MT and sure enough mine started slipping the day after the remap So just had an uprated clutch done. There’s a popular mod to use the TTRS clutch as it handles the power whilst being factory smooth. I think the car’s more or less how I want it now so hoping I don’t crave more power

Hope you're keeping well Matt.

The clutch is such a common occurrence after a re-map
I do enjoy the TT roadster. It can be a little thirsty but when the weather is clear you can't beat dropping the roof .



Oh and I do have this 5 cylinder! It is not as vocal as my old 1980's Audi's, the Fiat Coupé 20VT on the miltech, or the TTRS, but it is a phenomenal beast.



I see both cars in your pictures, do you still have the Tdi too?

That looks absolutely phenomenal! Love the colour I bet it shifts too, especially in conjunction with the DSG. Tdi? I’ve never had a diesel, unless you mean the GTI? It went the day after I got the R. My trusted grease monkey always said he’d have it if I was getting rid, so it went to him. He text me to say he’d got 9MPG on the drive home, so I expect the engine to explode in the next few weeks

Doh - TSi not TDi!

The GTI looked smart, but your new R looks lovely.

The RS3 is a very swift car, and despite it not being a coupé, my usual preference, I really do like it. My old 2018 TTRS, and the Fiat Coupé that preceded it, were both quite raw cars. This is really good fun but it could become a little tiring on long journeys when you want to crack out some miles!
Unlike those cars the RS3 initially felt la bit mundane, and this is great for cruising. BUT - dial it in and it is bonkers, maybe not quite as quick as my old TTRS off the line but in almost all other areas it is better!


I really do miss those early coupé days. We had some fantastic meets, a lot of fun and some great memories. I will never forget your many shades of Portofino blue Coupé