Not the ‘past time’ the car!

I am starting a new job and have been offered a company car.

I have done all the sums in my head but at 25 with insurance costs and the amount of milage I am going to do the company car is definately the best option over car allowance.

So I have a choice of cars but I have whittled it down to a golf but there are two options.

1. Golf 1.6TDI 90 S
2. Golf 1.2TSI 105 S

Has anyone driven either of these cars and can they comment on how they go? I assume they will handle very similarly and the spec is the same so it just down to the engine. Will the diesel feel sluggish with just 90bhp? Longterm I will be motorway commuting 50miles/day with trips around the country so feel that the diesel mpg might swing it?

Or someone convince me a Toyota Auris 1.33 or Seat Leon 1.6TDI is a better choice……

Thnaks!

tbh I’d just go for the one that had whatever equipment and/or performance you wanted at the lowest cost (ie BIK). So probably not a Golf 🙂

And just remember, its not yours’ so don’t care about servicing/depreciation/image etc

fwiw for commuting 50 miles a day on motorway id take the diesel anyday over a screamy petrol.

id buy the toyota over the golf though (and im a golf owner)……

I’ve heard that the TSIs are extremely sensitive to driving style. I spoke to the dealer and he had tried his best and could not get better than about 35mpg.

90bhp does not feel sluggish in a diesel because you have much more torque. Only when fully booting it when overtaking etc will you notice.

I used to have a Golf GT 1.4 TSi and it was fantastic, but not great on fuel. I expect the 1.2 would be similar.
If you have to have a golf go for the diesel.

I’d have the Seat.

We’ve just got a Bluemotion Match (105bhp 1.6 tdi) to replace our TDI GT and I think it’s great. The Match has a good level of toys and is fast enough for our needs. I’d not want to drop another 15bhp though.
We get 55mpg and on your usage you might be closer to 60 but you don’t have the Bluemotion tech so that would prob make a difference.

I am booked in to drive a golf tomorrow, am thinking petrol ATM. It will be interesting to see how the petrol car delivers its power, I have got used to driving a 1.6d focus and appreciate its torque at motorway speeds.
Whats your fuel payment like – I used to just submit receipts for work milage, if I was half a tank away from home I would still fill the tank so there was always ‘a bit’ left over for private milage, but I did very little private milage.

Last weekend I saw the new Hyundai i30 and it is a good looking car with nice interior, got lots of good reviews definitely worth a look, might drive that on Saturday

I had a VW Jetta 1.4 TSI 140 and this was great but did pay extra on the mileage side of company car tax than if I had the equivalent diesel. Get your finance department to do the sums for you as you will probably be paying more for the 1.2 than the 1.6. I would look at other brands and get a much higher spec than a VW or the same cash

If you’ve never driven a turbo petrol, they are like diesels with low torque but they keep on going! A lovely drive but you are unlikely to get decent MPG I think.

90bhp does not feel sluggish in a diesel because you have much more torque.

Having owned some low powered diesels in the past, i have to disagree with that one. Fine when at cruising speed, but otherwise they’re rubbish imo

TSIs are extremely sensitive to driving style.

I’ve got a 1.6TDI and find it exactly the same TBH. If you’re not really concious of driving it “frugally” the MPG drops significantly.

Turbo engines can give good low rpm urge. Diesel versions run out of puff quite quickly, a well mapped petrol one will have a broader ‘powerband’.

Diesel fuel consumption will generally be better.

You’ll have to work out the costs for each car and then put a price on how much you value the performance.

Personally, I don’t think 90bhp would be enough for me in a car as heavy as a Golf (-by comparison, for my preferences, a Mondeo TDCI 130/140 gives adequate real-world performance).

I’d get the diesel, iv heard stories of 1.4 and 1.2 Tsi engines drinking oil and being prone to failure, I had a mk5 golf gti, fantastic car, drank about a litre of oil a month and never got more than 36mpg, have moved onto a 10 plate Leon fr diesel, feels exactly the same to drive apart from the obvious engine difference, it only feels slower when your really gunning it, it’ll easily average 55mpg on the motorway

I had a MK5 90bhp 1.9 golf and it felt ok but lost power just as it got going. After that i bought a MK4 GT Tdi 130bhp and that was a lot more fun.

I suspect both will feel like hire car does, nice when you get in, flat engine that you drive on the limiter but after ten mins you decide its not something you would desire to own

I am a big Golf fan, had many over the years starting with a Mark 1 in 1980 ! I like the quality, interior etc.

I am uncomfortable about these new small engines, 1.2T, not sure I’d have that in a Polo never mind a Golf. Some of the 1.2’s are 3 cyclinder which a VW implied are not really for motorway driving. It’s only going to produce 100PS when it’s being thrashed.

Can you get a Polo and go for a better spec car ? It’s the same size as a Mark 1 Golf not that that means a lot to you I suspect. Rear seats fold up for quite a lot of rear space, feels like a bigger car IMO.

Obviously cost and insurance are a factor for you but the 140PS Golf I think is much better.

Seat is part of the VW group (so share a lot of the mechanicals) and would be worth a look. Some people prefer the styling. What’s the bhp/PS ?

Toyota, have owned a number. Do you like the interior, for me that;s the thing you have to get your head round, many find the plastics appear low quality and they can be rather “silver”. Is a Auris a young man’s car ? I’m circa 50 and I think it’ a bit fuddy duddy !

Summary – it’s between the Golf or Seat Diesels of those you’ve listed

Wait for the mk7 golf if its a company car they are due back end of Dec, if you get a s its better specced then the current mk6 and will kick the ass of the other two cars

It’s only going to produce 100PS when it’s being thrashed

Yeah but you only need about 30bhp or so to cruise at 70mph. The rest is only called up when you floor it.

Don’t forget that the petrol Tsi engines have a supercharger as well as a turbo, so don’t really suffer from turbo lag, well the 1.4Tsi 160PS Golf we tested a couple of months back didn’t. In fact the engine was a little ripper. Couldn’t believe how smooth and fast a 1.4 petrol cold be.

BUT we ended up with a 1.6Tdi 105PS and on a 50mile round trip commute, and with a heavy right foot, the missus is still above 51mpg (on a new engine so still not freed up).

If its a company car, don’t forget about the tax. The diesel is likely to have a lower CO2 figure, so is likely to be less on tax

Don’t forget that the petrol Tsi engines have a supercharger as well as a turbo, so don’t really suffer from turbo lag

Not all of them, afaik. I think it’s the higher powered ones like the 160bhp you mentioned.

And check the CO2 because petrol produces less CO2 than diesel per litre, so even though it might use more fuel the CO2 might only be a little bit more.

After test driving the 90 tdi, I ordered a 105 tdi. The 90 was useless and completely underpowered. The 105 is adequate. Can’t comment on the tsi

Thanks for all the comments guys.

As mentioned it is a company car so not too worried about the insurance or other running costs other than fuel.

Have ruled out the Toyota as I have had a look on Whatcar and it only rates it 2 stars, the spec is no better than the Leon or Golf and the engine in it sounds woeful (13sec+ to 60 from a petrol!).

The Leon is a the same spec as the Golf (same toys etc) but has the 105ps 1.6tdi engine. Comes in at £42/month in company car tax.

The Golfs both come in at just over £50/month in tax. (petrol is £52/month and diesel is £54).

Turns out there might be the option to pay a little bit a month and go up a car grade in which case I could get the Golf Bluemotion which is £39/month in tax so offsets the extra contribution a bit and comes in with the 105ps diesel engine. All the reviews I have read about these have been good.

Also anyone driven both the golf and leon? Whats the handling like?

Golf-Boring 😥

Leon-Better, bland inside, 😕

what ever you choose go with the TDI models 😀

I’d kill myself if I had to choose any of them.

HTH

crispo – golf and leon feel the same but golf has better interior. It’s a company car, so as tax is the just about the same, and assuming you pay the fuel, probs go diesel. You will save a few quid a month

I’d kill myself if I had to choose any of them.

🙄

Yeah I’d rather kill myself than take a free car too! 🙄

Cheers for the comments, have heard the golf is nice to drive so that was my thinking.

When I am working on site I can actually claim back some of the fuel costs (whatever the mileage rate is -15miles).

Wait for Mk7 if you can – much much better car, due any time now.

Yeah I’d rather kill myself than take a free car too!

It’s not free though, is it? Cheap, granted, but free it isn’t.

Obviously a totally ott statement in my earlier post, but I just hate driving underpowered cars. Saying that, they probably have a similar power to weight ratio as my truck.

There is more than one way to enjoy driving.

Ive got a Golf Bluemotion as a company car, and lets just say when its up for renewal in March, I wont be having another!

Very Underpowered, and the fuel economy is not what it says on paper (unless you drive everywhere at 55mph).

Id stick with a regular Tdi, much quicker, more mod cons, and there is not alot in it when it comes to fuel economy, infact in reality mine is worse.

I have a skoda octavia 1.4 tsi which is a really nice, quiet engine. Does go quite well and the fuel economy is pretty good. I can get 50 mpg on my 21 mile trip to work which is half on the M25. Long term average is 44 mpg. These are trip computer figures which are known to be a bit optomistic! But even at 10% out that is 40 mpg easy.

I think it was the honest john website that has a database of owners real fuel use and they were averaging about 40 mpg.

Can do 500 miles on a tank.

Id stick with a regular Tdi, much quicker, more mod cons

Yeah but unfortunately the other option is the 1.6tdi 90 S, which i doubt falls into the above mentioned category!

I am only a graduate engineer so I’ve got to start somewhere!

If you can, I think you are better off getting a Golf Match with the 105 diesel & speccing it with the bluemotion pack.
My brother did this & it seems like a really nice car. Never gonna set the world alight, but a nice car nonetheless.

I’d definitely see what the Leon is like. The interior is a bit Mickey Mouse compared to the Golf, but It should be very similar otherwise. Oh, saying that….check the boot opening. It’s pretty small and may be a consideration If you’ll be sticking your bike in.

Cheers for the comments, have heard the golf is nice to drive so that was my thinking.

I like how Golfs drive very much (like most German cars they are very good at motorway speeds). However I would question whether a 90bhp diesel would drive that well, 140 certainly does. The one “bad” Golf I had was a 1.4 Petrol Mk3 it was dog slow.

Wait for Mk7 if you can – much much better car, due any time now.

This is great advice (as others have posted too)

FWIW I’m waiting to see the Mk7 but I will probably try and buy a used Mk6 if the prices soften which they usually do when a new model comes out. Budget wise I cannot run to a new car but if I could I would go for a 7 with 140 or higher diesel

I am only a graduate engineer so I’ve got to start somewhere!

In the current environment you should be quite pleased with yourself, a grad engineer with a company car at 25

BTW I will use the Golf as my hobby car, they can take my bike inside a Duff Monster Bag (rear wheel on) pretty easily with seats down. The Duffbag Stealth bag (both wheels off) means the bike can go in the boot.

Id stick with a regular Tdi, much quicker, more mod cons

The standard Bluemotion is pretty sparce on the toys front but the Bluemotion Match comes with front and rear optical parking sensors, touch screen stereo with DAB and SD card slot, USB and iPod connections in the centre armrest, cruise control, auto lights, auto wipers, auto dipping mirror, bluetooth phone, bluetooth audio.
Can’t think of much else I’d actually want!

Yeah a good bike size boot will be helpful too. I am going to be based on site up near Lancaster so evening rides in the Lakes will deffinately be on the cards!

Cheers Jambalaya – I’m really happy with this new job!

Ditto – (lazy reading of first post) any of the above as a company car @ 25 are not to be sniffed at.

And congrats with the job.

Pity you can’t go for the 1.6tdi with 105hp – quite perky. I run that engine in a passat estate, and its perfectly ok, although performance is blunted a tad due to the extra weight, but compared to a previous 1.8 Mondeo its a rocket!

Mark 6 tdi golfs still look silly money to be at over 3 years old, and they must fall a fair way when the mark 7 comes out.