Thinking about purchasing one and was wondering if there were any owners out there that could alert me to potential pitfalls/things to look out for that they’ve had experience with, for when I’m looking at/test driving cars. I realise it’s not going to be a cheap motor to run (£400+ tax etc…) but it will be doing relatively little miles and I fancy something with a bit of poke.

Looking at 07 onwards with ~30,000 miles, and avoiding the DSG box.

Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Cheers

Erm you know how much petrol is …. 😀

My sister had one, really liked it but very very thirsty. She now has a golf GTD 170hp. She had no issues with the R32 when she had it, just found the running costs were too high when her milage increased.

Totally agree about the running costs with these or any big engine. There’s some amazing bargains to be had out there, for next to nothing you can get proper super-car performance very cheap but it’s running the things with fuel that is the killer.

http://www.r32oc.com/

My boss had one until recently, loved it but it drank more than his wifes Toureg..

I know a guy who has one, complete with twin turbos 550bhp. its just silly!

Apparently the gti is a better car in terms of performance/MPG. Get a gti & remap it, only the noise your missing out on. Oh, and the haldex when it snows.

I don’t know if your budget will stretch to it but consider a Golf R rather than a R32. They have been available since late 2009/early 2010.

Much more livelier than the 32 and with better fuel consumption. Seriously quick though. From memory about 270bhp

I’m currently driving a Mk6 GTI, which is quick (210bhp), but the R must be like a rocketship.

Ed30 + remap 😈

The r32 and R both handle better than the GTi in most cases but yuo pay for that in fuel consumption. As you know the DSG can be troublesome.
Agree though if you can stretch to an R go for that. The main thing with the R32 is the usual make sure it has been well serviced etc and look for the normal signs of damage. They do need a Haldex service as well at a specific interval (100kms i think from memory) which is not overly cheap. Great cars, esp the R which i had for a week when my RS4 was being fixed under warranty – i was loathed to give it back !

I’m a bit biased, but I’d agree on the Ed30 front. Not much in it performance wise as the R32 is a heavy machine, although it does sound absolutely amazing.

Ed30 slightly, but not much, cheaper to run.

Driven one once, went well (as you’d imagine!) and had a nice roar! Bought a Ed30 a few weeks ago, pretty nippy, handles well. Drink a bit but still in honeymoon period so it’s pedal to the metal!

I have a Ed35 and would agree with others the special editions have a better power to weight ratio so are just as quick, they’re also really tunable remaps are around the 300bhp mark. Slightly better fuel consumption too and they’re not nose heavy. That said the V6s sound so good!

Tuned my standard Mark 5 Gti to circa 240hp and think is was quicker than an R32 and handled better, but as said without the lovely noise.

Ran one for 4 years, manual – most reliable car I’d had up until then. Great fun and really,really miss the noise. Fuel bills are a bit of a mare. 4WD in the wet is superb. In snow it’s only slightly better than non 4WD unless you put winter tyres on. Saying that – I drove to work on summer tyres (slowly) and had no problems compared with some. If you can get one I’d go for it. Had some very memorable drives in it. It really got under my skin that car.

FWIW, I swapped to the R – economy minimally better (infinitesimally we’re talking here) but it does handle better for sure. Now have DSG and would prob go DSG again if I ever change. Will most likely hang on to this one for some time. Starting to have bad thoughts along the lines of chipping it soon.

what average mpg were you getting from the R32, and from the R ………..?

That’s far too much talk about fast golfs without the word AWESOME for my liking!

Having just bought and obscenely thirsty car (12mpg currently 😯 ), I’d say don’t worry about the mpg. For me at least, it just means I don’t drive it all the time. I use the wife’s car for shopping, running into town, etc. The selective use means the batmobile retains that sense of occasion every time I get in it. I probably spend the same on petrol as I did when I had a more frugal car.

I’m running a Mark IV V6 4 Motion (predecessor to the R32), very impressive car, had mine remapped, lowered, stiffened etc. However, costs a fortune to run and, at 12 years old, is running up some very expensive bills (Haldex, gear box) although I’ve stopped spending money on it and will scrap it when it next breaks down.

The 4WD system is sublime, you can use all the power all the time and the grip is just amazing.

Serious question, why not just buy a 2.0T GTI and remap it OP?

On the IV it was a nice sounding engine and place to be but even with lower suspension I question just how much better it’d handle.

That’s far too much talk about fast golfs without the word AWESOME for my liking!

You mean Awesome GTI near Manchester? I work nearby – always some tools flashing about in Max Powered golfs

pah, if you are going to be a bit silly do it properly

http://beta.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/alfa-romeo/147/gta-37k-farsh–high-spec-owners-club-member/521551

pah, if you are going to be a bit silly do it properly

Woof! Woof! 8)

Wow, thanks for all of the information everyone!

I had considered the Mk5 Gti, but when I was sat at some lights the other day an R32 came blaring past at full chat and I decided I wanted that noise in my life…

However, the GF has been doing her own research and seen how much the road tax is each year on an R32…. So a GTi may be on the cards.

The R32 would primarily be used by her Mon-Thurs as she works ~4 miles away while I work anywhere from 10-250 miles away. The R32 would be something a bit special I could look forward to hooning at the weekend…. But even at low miles each year I am getting scared by running costs…

Hmmmm

I would struggle to go back to a sporty 2WD car eg I drove the GF’s Octavia VRs petrol, and it just wheel spinned all over the place, whereas in the 4motion, it would have just shifted exactly where you pointed it. Get an R32, the GTI is no where close in handling….

Footflaps, Handling or traction?

Get an R32, the GTI is no where close in handling

Sorry I totally disagree. If you want handling get something entirely different from a different marque. However if you want a nice blend of power, comfort, place to be mixed with some practicality get a 2.0T Golf GTI.

Interesting article

http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyId=17606

And

http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default.asp?storyId=17649

Maybe a GTI with a stainless box and a remap would give you the buzz with lower running costs?

Not a golf owner myself but I know the R32 is worse than my car (EP3 TypeR) and my car drinks fuel alomst as much quick as I eat cake!