VW Golf V 1.9TDI 66KW

Bas

Try to drive the 1.4 if you can.

It's a much more rewarding drive than the 1.6 FSI

Hi LTD!

I have driven a Golf IV 1.4 and it wasn't bad, but it's certainly not faster and more quiet than the 1.6 FSI. How could it be, it has only 75 HP, where the 1.6 FSI has 115 HP. Or am I missing something here?

Regards, Bas

Bas

I have a Mk V Golf GT TDI 2.0, (140 BHP) and love it. It goes like a rocket, is fantastic for overtaking, has really nice sports suspension and comfy seats too. And a great 10 speaker stereo. And it does nearly 50 miles per gallon.

What more could you want.

Nigel

I know Nigel, the 2.0 TDI is fantastic, but since I moved I don't drive as much as I used to do and so I don't want to spend that much money on a car. I have calculated that what I have to pay for the different VW's per year is as follows (to my boss and taxes):

- 66 KW TDI all options I want: € 3400
- 1.6 FSI Comfortline: € 3700
- 77 KW TDI all options I want: € 3800
- 77 KW TDI Comfortline: € 3900
- 2.0 TDI basic (with airco): € 4200

I now drive a Peugeot 307 1.6 (Gas!) without any accessories and it only costs me € 1700 per year. So I was kinda shocked by these amounts. That's why I was hoping for some positive reactions on the 66 KW version.

But it's probably the same as asking if a NAP 300 is better than a NAP 250...

Bas

My car is supplied by work, so all I have to pay is the company car tax. Certainly if I was buying it with my own money I'd have somthing more modest. Our own family car, which my wife drives, is a Polo 1.4 TDI.

Have you considered a Seat Altea - like a Golf Plus but cheaper, and supposed to be just as good.

Nigel

Hi Nigel,

I have to pay a part of the total lease costs to my boss, about € 150 per month. Besides that I use the car for private matters and on that ground I have to pay tax. This tax is as follows: 22% of the new value of the car comes on top of your income on which you pay 42% tax. As a rule of thumb, this amount is about 10% of the new value of the car. This you have to pay every year. Than there's another thing in the Netherlands which plays a role, and that is diesel. In the Netherlands diesel cars get an extra tax because of their pollution. That makes diesel cars far more expensive than plain gasoline over here. For instance, a Golf 1.9 TDI 77 KW Comfortline costs about € 28K, a 1.6 FSI Comfortline about € 24,5K. All in all driving a lease car isn't half as attractive as it could be!

Bas

The reason I told you about the 1.4 was simple. Apart from the extra toys, it is an all-round better car. You actually accept the performance drop and learn to love the balance of the package.

The 1.6FSI leaves you wondering what's wrong with it after a while ..........

I had a MK4 GT Tdi (150 bhp, loads of torque) and it was a total hoot. Whilst planning my future car (all going well either a 911 or an M3) we decided to change both of our cars (wife had a Punto) and got 2 MK5s last Christmas for no real money difference. She's got a far better car and I am satisfied with mine.

I know it is an interim measure but one I am happy with. I didn't like the 1.6 FSI when I had it for a few days. Gutless was my reaction. The 1.4 revs through the range sweetly and the gearbox is lovely. Not the quietest car but it's not a plutobarge and never will be.

That's about what I was thinking when going for a 66 KW TDI, but then best of both worlds: not too expensive, but might be fun nonetheless.

But I was alco calculating that it might just be cheaper to buy a s/hand car and not to use my business car for private matters at all. It should be possible to drive a decent car for less than € 3000 per year, shouldn't it?

Bas

I find less powerful diesel engines rather pedantic and sluggish in comparison with smaller, multi-valved petrol engines.

Try to arrange a test drive - and don't let the salesman fool you by short-shifting and always staying at the point of the torque boost. It makes driving awfuly hard work.

Drive it through all the rev range and you will see where the engine has both strong and weak areas. I found a turbo invaluable........

Bas,

If money is a concern, see if you can extend the contract on the Peugeot in some way. If a newer car will cost you that much more, why not check with your employer whether this is a good way to keep down the cost for both of you?

If you really need to get a newer car and performance and cost are both high on your list of priorities, don't get a Volkswagen. If you want an identical car for the same money but with better performance, try VAG's other brands: Skoda and Seat. Their margin per car is a couple of thousand euros less than Volkswagen's, which gives you your first year of depreciation for free.

If you want good performance and reliability, but don't mind spending the amounts of money you mentioned, I recommend the Subaru Impreza WRX. I agree that it's ugly, but good grief, what an excellent drive.

Cheers,

Edo

Hi Edo!

Thanks for your reply. I actually do like getting a new car. Thereby I really want to ditch the LPG, it gives me too much trouble.

Last Saturday I testdrove the 66KW Golf. It was okay, but nothing special. It was however a lot more quiet than the 1.6 FSI. But the best part was perhaps that while we were waiting for the car, we took a look at the new Seat Leon. It's pretty cool I dare say! And best of all, a 77KW Stylance costs as much as the 66KW Golf!So I guess my mind is made up!!!

Excellent choice, Bas. The Golf is much more conservative and as I stated earlier, the manufacturer makes a lot more money on it, which you have to cough up.

Which further extras will you go for? Go for at least the rain sensor with dimming rear view mirror. I recommend leather and heated front seats (for Missus Bas) as well, but I'm not sure whether that suits your budget.

Cheers,

Edo

Hi Edo,

I actually have to wait for a message from my lease-company before I can order a new car. My car is now 2 years and 11 months old and I have driven 147.750 kms. The contract was for 3 years or 120.000 kms (but the fleetmanager told me this was changed to 164.000 kms, pretty strange) so this could come anyday.

Anyway, I don't think I need many options as the Stylance is quite complete with climate control, cruise control, metallic wheels, etc. The only thing I need additionally is a decent stereo. I know a rain sensor is nice, but for € 90 per year I will turn the wipers on myself. Leather I find way too expensive at € 1.800. The same applies for heated front seats at € 650. In stead of these options I'd rather buy me the 2.0 TDi!

Regards, Bas

Trust me, once you've had a car with leather, rain sensor and dimming mirrors, you will never want to go back. And once the missus has felt the heated seats... The only thing I really wouldn't go out of my way for anymore is Xenon. It's better, but I really think I can miss it.

If you want a decent stereo, you might be best off with any original system that plays CD's. Then, you can have decent speakers retrofitted for 200-300 euros. I never felt the VAG speakers did it for me when I ran the Skoda, and you're not going to really benefit from a good system since cars are noisy anyway.

Cheers,

Edo

By the way, your post no 666 on a HiFi forum was about cars...

Damn, do you think that means bad luck? I think I'll refer to new car as Damien from now on .

Maybe you're right abouth the options, but you cannot miss what you have never had!

In my present Peugeot I have the optional, eh how do you say this in English... 'hoedenplank met 2 woofers en 2 tweeters' and it sounds great! Two friends have the same car but without this option and it doesn't sound as good, although they have better systems! I'll see what to do on that point, maybe it's a nice thing for negotiating with the dealer . I must say that I prefer a built in car-radio, as I dont like carying around the front all the time.

Regards, Bas

I usually find listening to music in cars exceptionally fatigueing, except in very (very) silent cars. Add your current system to all the environment noise, and I do not even want to know how my ears will feel.

I don't 'listen' to music in my car Edo, I play a dance tune, some music I can sing along with or listen to radio 1. I only listen to music at home...

Well then: "I usually find music in cars exceptionally fatigueing."

I do admit to switching of the radio regularly on longer trips.

Haha, okay I get it. I need music to stay awake actually. Music and coffee work a treat.

BTW I noticed we almost have identical Naim setups! Dutch preference perhaps?!

quote:

Originally posted by Bas V:
Haha, okay I get it. I need music to stay awake actually. Music and coffee work a treat.

A decent car is exciting enough to keep you awake.

quote:

BTW I noticed we almost have identical Naim setups! Dutch preference perhaps?!

I have to confess that I've bought most of my system on the basis of availability...

The speaker story in your profile really gets me started... maybe we should compare some time...

Cheers,

Edo

Hi Bas,

Is the 130HP Polo TDI available in Holland nowadays? (At first this version of the new Polo wasn't imported by the dealer)
Maybe that's an option as well. It is about the size of a mk2 golf nowadays and the 130hp tdi is probably a pretty nice drive. This would be my lease car (or an Alfa 147 JTD ).

HJ

Just a little update.

Got access to ordering a new car two weeks ago. Thought I had figured it all out (Seat Leon), but for fun I went to the Alfa dealer. The 147 is very nice, but no way that it's possible to get 4 people in this car when I'm driving. So that's not an option.

My next stop was the Audi-shop. (Stupidly enough?!) I decided to testdrive the A3 1.9 TDI. This is an alltogether better car. It's very quiet, fast enough and oozes quality. I want one of those.

The Seat is no longer an option, I really don't like the cheap interior (everything is plastic and the fabric of the chairs makes me dizzy). So I decided to go for the A3 or the VW Golf 1.9 TDI comfortline. I know, these are the expensive options of my list. But I must admit that the cheaper cars just don't do it for me. And I have to drive the car for 4 years...

So, any experience with an A3 anyone?

Regards, Bas

I've had four Audi A3s all bought new by me. My current car is one of the latest shape 3 door models.

I have the 1.6 FSI engine which is not massively powerful (115 bhp) but surprisingly economical, provided that you use super unleaded fuel. In terms of performance it's similar to the 1.9TDI, although the oil burner will be more economical. In these days of congestion and speed cameras everywhere it's fast enough for me. The insurance is also fairly low.

The build quality is superb and superior to VW, despite what anyone tells you. My mother in law has a Mk 5 Golf 2.0 TDI which is a nice car, well made and equipped, but to me sounds a bit agricultural. It's got 140 bhp and plenty of torque which provides a lot of low down grunt.

The styling and quality of the interior is better in my Audi than her VW.

I admit that the Golf is a fair bit cheaper and a lot of people question why this is as under the skin a lot of parts are the same. That is true, however you will find that the Audi is better made and has more refinement. The residual values are also slightly stronger.

Before the Audis I had Golfs and there was a time when they stood ahead of the competition in terms of quality. I had a Mk 2, 3 door Golf that was built like a tank. I got it in 1989 and I still see it on the roads. It in decent condition too!

Nowadays the difference isn't so big as a lot of manufacturers have improved the quality of their cars. That said, if I couldn't have an A3, I'd choose the VW.

The quality of the Seat is inferior to the VW.

Alfa Romeo? I wouldn't go there.

Hope this helps.

Hi Stewart,

Thanks for your reply. It's just how I've experienced it, the Audi has a more quality feeling than the VW. With the TDI it does however also sound a bit 'agricultural' for which this engine is to blame. In return you get a pretty speedy car (though not as fast as the 2.0 TDI).
I also thought the A3 would have a higer residual value, but the leasecompany does seem to think somewhat different. The Audi and the VW I have had calculated only differ 1000 euro in new price, but the VW is waaaaaaay cheaper in leasing!

BTW what sound system do you use?