Those secure facilities have been compromised at least a few times, given the stories I’ve read about cars disappearing and re-appearing at used car lots in various places.
Just at the dealer getting my plates. They are getting 11 Golf Rs in, 8 are already sold. Of course this is the University district of Seattle. The mall there is basically a Golf parking lot. Never seen so many Golfs in one place (short of a dealer).
Golf Rs are pretty rare, too.
I was considering getting one this time, but ultimately realized that I don’t really need a 300 horsepower streetracer.
They are badass cars though.
The R’s are an odd bunch. They sell comparatively few (the numbers per year vary, and info is somewhat unreliable, but it seems between 1700 and 5000 a year, worldwide), and when they first come out they are rare as hen’s teeth in a lot of places, and sell for MSRP +. After a while, though, many places have one or two left that just sit there, because, yeah, not everyone wants a $40k AWD rocket Golf.
I do love mine, as it’s pretty much the only thing I could have gotten in my price range (and I paid substantially less than $40k, because when I got mine they still had a base model) that kicks all my boxes. No, I don’t need all of that power, but it’s so damn hard to get all the things I want without going into performance car territory. Unless you’re looking at cars north of fifty large, getting the sort of suspension, seats, interior quality, handling, and excitement all together that something like the R gives you is impossible. You can get a great interior, but so-so driving fun, or great drivability, but crappy interior, or something that is so balanced it becomes bland. Add in the desire for AWD (there are precious few FWD cars that fit the parameters I’m interested in, the GTI being one, but you load up a GTI to R levels of features and it’s only a few grand shy of, well, an R.
As an aside, I was in Indianapolis this past week for a conference, and toured the Speedway. They had a bunch of late-model Camaro pace cars on display. Geez, that thing is HUGE. I mean, i seriously doubt I could fit it in my garage. I have gotten so spoiled driving small cars. As pretty and as undeniably competent as the Camaro is, it’s like a freakin’ barge.
To be clear, I totally do want an AWD rocket golf.
I just can’t justify spending an extra 10k for one, over a GTI which will give almost the same effect on the road.
But man, some part of me is like, “shut up and just buy one, dude.”
I agree with your assessment though, that the R is an amazing value for what it is, when you compare it to other brand cars that can match it in features and performance.
The big thing the R offers, besides the much larger engine, is the AWD… Which is nice. And I agree that if you load up an autobahn edition of a GTI you are getting close to R prices. I think that I’d probably go for an R over an autobahn GTI. But in reality I think that generally the SE GTI his where the best value is, since I don’t really need a navigation system (who does, when we can just plug our phones in? Why do car makers even make navigation systems anymore?), And I don’t need it to parallel park itself.
The big thing that makes it unlikely I’d get an R, is that it’s much harder to find a used one with low mileage or new ones from a year back, while you can get 2017, new SEs for under $25k.
I loved my GTI that I traded on the R, and I didn’t need the R, but circumstances at the time made it a reasonable indulgence. The only thing I wish my car had that it doesn’t is DCC, though the Fender stereo would be nice. I don’t care about nav at all, though the next car I get will definitely have forward collision mitigation and stuff like that.
Ya, if I was presented with an R, there’s a decent chance I’d buy it just because it’s such a badass car for the price.
Had friends who had a new Camaro and Mustang each (this was a few years ago). They are like driving tanks. Not only are they huge, but visibility is very limited. Not my kind of cars, so to each their own, but I would not like a car where I feel like I can’t see around me. (Plus I didn’t think they were that impressive performance wise either).
The base models of Camaros and Mustangs are pretty solid, but the real impressive stuff comes with the up-tier models, which start to climb to absurd horsepower levels, like race-car performance with all the track-specific stuff and all that you can get. Now, I can’t for the life of me see where I’d use a fraction of that sort of power, but I am sure there are those who do a lot of track days or whatever.
But to get the upper levels of those cars, especially the Camaro, you are talking north of $40k up to like in the $60k range for the uber-versions.
The new Camaros are a nice-looking car in their own way, but to me they are an abomination of what I used to love about them. The first and second gen Camaros were elegant designs. Beautiful, yet understated. I personally wish they would have just done a near-duplicate of the 1969 Z-28.
These new ones look like they were designed by a fantasy sci-fi artist. Far too overdone for my taste.
I do like the look of the newer Mustangs though. They’ve at least tried to retain some of the old design elegance. I should state though that I have never driven either of these newer models, so I have no idea what their visibility, handling, or power is like. The Challenger is a good-looking car too, however I’m just seeing far too many of them around, to the point where they no longer look as unique as they once did.
My Camaro/Mustang performance comment is purely anecdotal of course. At the same time, one of the guys bought a 3 series BMW, and that thing was fast, zippy, and didn’t feel like a tank (also $10K more if I remember right). The BMW made me want to go drive a windy road, while the Camaro just wasn’t a fun drive, but again, not my kind of car.
Interesting time then, in the place I worked (military) 4 of us all bought new cars, 3 enlisted (me), and one officer. The officer was the BMW and I had just bought my TDI. We were all driving each others cars, but no one wanted to drive my car. :-) My 50 mpg, 50 mile, commute was pretty damn impressive for me though!
I am thinking about buying a GTI for my later-than-midlife crisis. Or a Subaru WRX. Or something else that is fun to drive.
My first test drive, about a year ago, with the GTI was fun but I felt the WRX just had more kick. But both have black interiors and I live in FL, so that is not good.
I’ve owned both, and loved both. My advice FWIW is, if you are buying now, the GTI for sure is the best choice, as the WRX is long, long overdue for a full makeover. The engine and interior are aging faster than a former porn star (one that hasn’t slept with the President), and while it’s still a hoot, and a far better deal than its pricier brother the STI version, the WRX is IMO simply nowhere near as up to date, refined, or sophisticated as the Mk VII Golfs. When the new version comes out, we’ll have to see.
You can get the GTI with the plaid cloth interior, but yeah, it’s still black, and if you get like an Autobahn trim level it’s only in that black leather. OTOH, anything lighter shows dirt like nobody’s business; I could not for instance imagine one of those lovely ivory leather interiors you see on high end cars, given hauling dogs and stuff. But I could definitely see it being good in the sun. I remember living in the South and how hot the cars get in the summer.
If you live in FL you can certainly explore RWD cars; if you’re into convertibles, the Miata is about the best thing you can get for around $30k. Not fast, but super fun (so they say, never drove one myself). the 86/BRZ is pretty polarizing; this Toyata/Subaru collaboration looks great and according to some has great handling, but is often criticized for its ride, and its anemic power plant. Even though it makes more HP than the Mazda, pretty much every review says it feels more underpowered. Go figure.
But, if you have the money, the car I would buy if I had ~$50k or so to spend (i.e., not enough for a Cayman) and could have a RWD car would be a BMW M240i, RWD, with the manual tranny. Hell, I’d buy that car with the xDrive and the auto if I had the money.
I too was looking at the WRX, and it’s performance is nice, but the interior styling and options of the VW win out but time.
The old 2002 Jetta I’m still driving had great interior design, with the exception of terrible sun visors.
New WRX isn’t due until 2020
Exactly. Subaru is willing to let their enthusiast car languish because no one buys them, compared to their bread and butter cars. Ditto the GTI/Golf, though I think VW does better; VW wants to move SUVs and Jettas in the USA (ROW might well be different, hell, they get the Up! GTI). And Subaru fanboys don’t seem to mind, though I do see anecdotal evidence that even they are getting disillusioned.
In the other thread Granath posted in (Honda Fit) I suggested he have a look at the Giulia based on what he is looking for (fun to drive, not too small, under 35k). Kia Stinger as well, if you stick to the base model.
My local dealer told me last year they don’t carry regular Golfs because no one wants them. Admittedly I don’t see many of them outside of Seattle, and when I do it’s usually a GTI. But I don’t get it, Golfs are great hatchbacks, not as cheap feeling as Fits, which I see everywhere. I guess it’s the price? Not as cheap as the Japanese manufacturers?
Precisely. The base Fit is $4k less than the base Golf. You can pretty much get the top end Fit for a base Golf.
I had a Fit as a loaner for a few days last summer when my Civic was in the shop (after 6 months) and my sister has a base Golf, so I have a tiny little bit of experience with both (plus owning a Golf TDI for 6 years, but that is a much higher trim level). Not sure how to put it it exactly, because the base Golf is hardly a high quality car, but it feels much higher quality than the Fit. It feels solid. The Fit feels like you could break it if you were a little rough with one of the controls, it just feels cheap. Kind of like the Nissan Versa (which I also had before the TDI) and the Toyota Yaris. The Golf is a better car than those IMO.
I guess if you have the extra money, you are moving up out of the budget range through, so the Golf doesn’t hold up unless you really like little hatchbacks (me).