Why (Not) the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI?
Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI reviews by TrueDelta members get to the point: the best reasons for buying (or not buying) the Golf / Rabbit / GTI.
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Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI
Non-members can see only fifteen Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI reviews. Join us and see them all.
Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI Reviews
| 09/30/12 0 |
A member from Connecticut, United States Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Handling The Golf TDI was much more nimble feeling than the Honda Accord coupe. We took both on narrow winding frost-heaved Connecticut back roads and the VW was much more in its element, while the Honda crashed on its bump stops and plowed in the corners. Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Fuel economy, Driving position & visibility, Materials & workmanship, Quietness This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 04/07/13 0 |
A member from Texas, United States Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Controls and instruments All controls feel like they will last. Everything is high quality, and feels like it. Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Reliability & durability My GTI had a water pump failure inside of 20k miles. Other than that, all was good. Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Handling Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Insurance & depreciation, Tires This member used to own or lease the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 03/27/13 0 |
A classy and refined European compact A member from Texas, United States Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Materials & workmanship It's hardly a secret at this point that, whatever else VW has done with its U.S. models, the Golf is exceptionally refined and well-made both inside and out. Materials feel luxurious, especially on the dash; you really have to search to find a hard or flimsy piece of plastic. VW even bothered to cover the seatbelt fasteners with some kind of faux velvet. The seats are comfortable and sporty, and they look about as good as cloth can look - with a kind of textured stitching that also serves to keep you from sliding around. I've put 25K miles on the car and the seats are still as springy and firm as when I bought it. Perhaps best of all, the doors (at least on my 3-door version) are weighty and shut with an extremely satisfying thunk. This car feels far more luxurious than its price would suggest. Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Fuel economy Honestly, this isn't terrible - I do a lot of highway driving and my trip computer has registered up to about 40 mpg (which may be optimistic, but its usually closer to 35). This is the (admittedly small) price you pay for a five-cylinder engine with lots of torque and great top-gear acceleration. In light of the exaggerations other small-car makers have promulgated lately, the Golf doesn't look horrible. But it does make fuel economy numbers that would've been good five years ago, and it's easy to do better now. There is no comparison to a hybrid or a diesel, for sure (but these all cost at least 5K more). Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Powertrain performance, Interior styling, Reliability & durability, Handling Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Feature availability, Price or payments This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 02/06/13 0 |
A member from Illinois, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Handling This car is really fun to drive. The handling is great, the manual transmission is great, and the ride is comfortable. Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Discounts & incentives None were available at the time I bought mine. These tend to sell as soon as they hit the lots, so it's tough to get a good deal on one. I think the Golf TDI is worth it though. Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Fuel economy, Powertrain performance, Materials & workmanship, Cargo capacity & towing Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Tires, Dealership practices, Quietness This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 10/24/12 0 |
A member from Texas, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Quietness No car this small has the right to be this quiet and feel so much larger acoustically than the Golf. I totally mean this as a compliment. Coarse road surfaces bring out expected tire roar, but it does the same in cars known to be quiet performers too. The Audio system is very good considering the overall price. Base and midrange is clear at speeds around 80 mph (as far as I have done so far) (My cell on speakerphone volume level #3 /10 sounded clear from the cupholder while cruising at 65 mph. To put it into perspective, the same phone at #10 max volume speaker phone was all but undecipherable over the same stretch of the freeway due to road noise). Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Fuel economy In this day and age, this particular engine should have been able to have an overall fuel consumption figure of 28 to 30 mpg rather than 24 to 25 mpg combined. (its geared more towards performance rather than economy). The car is definitely no slouch, and acceleration is quite good. But in terms of fuel economy these days, having your cake and eating it too is a given isn't it? One saving grace is that this is VW's most reliable engine, so being able to drive a German engineered affordable substantial vehicle is a worthy trade off. At least, that's the excuse i used. Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Handling, Powertrain performance, Materials & workmanship, Driving position & visibility Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Past personal experience, Dealership practices, Tires, Warranty, scheduled maintenance cost This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 09/30/12 0 |
Still happy with Golf TDI after first 5,000 miles A member from Connecticut, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Fuel economy Hard to argue with 40+ miles per gallon (and we are getting better than that on some tanks). Just took at 1500 mile road trip and averaged 50.8mpg. Diesel is currently cheaper than premium too. The Golf R is EPA rated for 24mpg but less if driven hard. Update: after 3 months 5,000mi getting 44 mpg combined. Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Reliability & durability There is a major potential problem with the Golf TDI in the form of the high pressure fuel pump. The concern is that the Bosch unit does not like American low sulfur diesel fuel because of its relatively lower lubricity compared to Euro diesel fuels available where the car was designed. When the pump fails, it can send metal shavings throughout the fuel system, and require major replacements to the tune of $8-10,000. This is a sword of Damocles hanging over the head of any TDI owner. Three or more design revisions have been implemented, but the problem still shows up. Are you willing to take a chance they finally got it right in your car? Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Ride smoothness, Price or payments, Insurance & depreciation, Powertrain performance Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Tires, Audio & nav systems, Brand reputation & image, Color choices This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 09/30/12 0 |
A member from Connecticut, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Powertrain performance Both the TDI and the R are much slower cars than the Nissan 370Z I am trading in. So the difference between them is much smaller than their difference vs. the Z. They are both slow cars, relatively. But both are fun to drive, which is what I care about. Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Color choices, Handling, Feature availability, Safety & braking This member test drove the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 03/13/12 0 |
A member from Oklahoma, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Exterior styling The VW GTI's exterior is much more understated and less "boy racer" than the Mazda 3. It's a little boring to some, but I consider it classy and timeless. The panels fit much better than the Mazda 3 as well. Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Interior styling, Ride smoothness, Feature availability, Warranty, scheduled maintenance cost This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 01/23/12 0 |
A member from Ontario, Canada Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Interior styling VW continues to practice minimalist styling, in constrast to the crazy-making distraction present in Ford and Hyundais. Don't want your iPhone to talk to your car and tweet to your friends? This is your car. Excellent materials throughout. Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Color choices Volkswagen needs a punch in the colour palette. Grey, grey, grey, white, black, and red. Thanks for the variety, guys! Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Reliability & durability, Audio & nav systems, Powertrain performance, Dealership practices Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Quietness, Discounts & incentives, Insurance & depreciation, Ride smoothness This member used to own or lease the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 12/28/11 0 |
A member from New York, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Best Reason to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Interior styling Clean and logical interior layout. Best Reason Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Powertrain performance The manual transmission is really just there. Gear changes happen, and the shifter is smooth, but also vague and unconnected. Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Ride smoothness, Rear seat room & comfort, Materials & workmanship Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Audio & nav systems, Feature availability This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 11/28/11 0 |
A member from Pennsylvania, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Other Reasons Not to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Color choices This member test drove the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 10/07/11 0 |
A member from Arizona, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Interior styling, Handling, Safety & braking This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 06/30/11 0 |
A member from Florida, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Handling, Past personal experience, Front seat support & comfort This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
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| 05/27/11 0 |
A member from California, United States Compared to 2010 Volkswagen Golf (Grey) Other Reasons to Buy the Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI: Safety & braking, Interior styling, Cargo capacity & towing This member owns or leases the reviewed vehicle. read full review |
Non-members can see only fifteen Volkswagen Golf / Rabbit / GTI reviews. Join us and see them all.
