…my Alfa 147 is getting a tad long in the tooth and the garage up the road has a very tidy looking Mk V Golf GTI for sale for an extremely tempting price.

I used to have a Mk2 16v and am certainly mulling over the idea of another Flog. Any experiences?

Very nice cars.

Might be a little too civilised???

Which Alfa do you have 2.0TS??

Yep, 2 litre twin spark. It’s a lovely engine, as was the 2.5 litre V6 in the Alfa 156 I replaced with the 147!

I like the idea of a civillised hot hatch, but am a little concerned that the Golf has had some reported issues with engine longevity on 95 octane fuel and would be keen to hear about the running costs.

I had a Mk 6 GTI for a couple of years (09 reg). I had heard that the Mk5 had some questions over 95 fuel, but it never gave my one a problem, probably best to check it out on the VW forums though.

The Mk6 was supposedly more efficient than the Mk5, but with hot hatches and current petrol prices, thats all relative. A full tank would rarely register over ‘300 miles remaining’ on the trip computer, so not one for long commutes, unless cash really isnt a problem at all.

On the plus side, lovely car (i think the mk 5 and 6 are very very similar performance and interior wise) and the five door i had did a great job of being a toy and a ‘family car’ in one. There was a special edition MK 5 at the end of the run, (Edition 30?) that was a bit pepped up if you want more oomph without going to the R series.

MK5 cost too much to produce so they fettled the engineering processes and made them cheaper to make. MK6 is pretty much the same car as M5 with fine tuned manufacturing. BOTH are great cars. and yes teh edition30 is well worth keeping an eye out for.

Get the diesel GT instead: nearly as quick and 50 MPG even with the foot down!

Get the diesel GT instead

I typically get ~ 530 miles per tank of fuel

Mk 5 Golf – 50mpg in the GT tdi if you’re doing 70 or 90.
Great car :O)
Saying that the back end did let go all of a sudden.

we’ve got a mk5 GTi, best car i’ve ever owned. apart from when mrs m1llh0use kerbed one of the 18″ monza diamond cut alloys. they’re 180 quid to repair or 450 to replace.

high pressure fuel pumps seem to be a weak point as well.

apart from that they’re brill!!

I’ve owned 40+ cars. MK5 Gti is still the one I miss the most 🙁

Great cars, fun to drive and have a real quality feel inside too.

They are a bit thirsty though and definitely prefer 98RON fuel. The Mk6 is quite a bit more economical

Also consider the Leon FR which is mechanically almost identical but which IMHO has a sharper exterior but a cheaper interior. I also think the handling of the Leons is a touch livelier

nearly as quick

‘Nearly’

You can win by an inch or by a mile. Winnings winning.

‘Nearly’

You can win by an inch or by a mile. Winnings winning.

I don’t get home any quicker in the RS6! Makes sod all difference in the real world 🙂

I used to use 95 and 98 RON fuel. Better fuel economy on the 98 RON (especially BP or Shell) made it cheaper than supermarket 95 RON.

Lovely car, very capable, very polished and competent. My main problem was that, if yo’re having fun you’re in deeply illegal territory after 3rd gear…

We now have a 500, and that is more fun than the Golf ever was, but without going to silly speeds.

used to use 95 and 98 RON fuel. Better fuel economy on the 98 RON (especially BP or Shell) made it cheaper than supermarket 95 RON.

I’ve tried to convince myself that I’m getting better economy with 98RON fuel but I can’t say I ever managed to conclusively prove it. It is definitely more responsive though.

I can’t see any isses with running them long term on 95RON fuel. VW sold them in lots of markets where 98 RON fuel isn’t vey common (V-power in the States and Canada is 91 RON!)

i had an 07 one from new for just under 3 years and about 35k miles. Lovely car, amazing fun, nice place to be. Had a few warranty issues. Thankfully I managed to keep my licence clean, more by luck than anything else 🙂

there too common, get something abit different. maybe go for mercedes cl500, theres one near me in droitwich for less than 5k. looks mint

[video]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxWQ1BcNwxk[/video]

God I miss my mk5 gti the best car I ever owned. The wife said it was time to change. I still don’t know if I have forgave her 3 years on

+1 for Leon FR – love my petrol DSG, although interior does feel cheap in comparison, however the fact that I got a newer car with less miles on the clock – and it was over 100 quid cheaper to insure swung it for me.

Sorrycannot talk you out of it. Have a 55 plate mk 5 GTI and I love it. As fast as I could see myself needing on the road, plenty of room, nice and comfortable inside. Handling flatters my mediocre skills, think you’d have to be a pretty bad driver to bin it. Buy it.

I had a 55 reg one from new for 4 yrs, did 125,000 miles in it without too many issues (cat and turbo replaced early on under warranty, perfect after that).

Usually used boggo 95ron fuel, but did occasionally use Vpower or BP Ultimate, which although ~10% more expensive often gave 15% more miles out of a tank (never accurately tested, just using trip computer etc.

God I miss that car…
and for anybody that says get the gtdi, I’ve now got an a3 with the 170d engine, and it’s far less enjoyable, and barely more cost effective, esp with the high cost of diesel……

Oh yeah, though have to admit fuel consumption – and tank size. – are pretty poor. I get less than 30mpg, keep telling myself to see how high I can get it, but get bored after 5 mins ….

Holmesy, it’s ok, I barely get 40 from the diesel 😡

I have a mk6 edition 35 and Its the best car I have owned I sold my mini cooper S, which was a fantastic little hot hatch, it was brilliant on fuel and seriously fun to drive, but the GTI blows it away it’s very comfy to cruise in huge fun when you want to drive with a bit of spirit and big enough for the bike don’t keep your foot down though as you will loose your licence by the end of 3rd gear. Sod the fuel you only live once!

Actually why do you even want talking out of it – pretty much every Golf GTI has been a classic since day 1.

Man up and get it!

Ignoring the Mk 4 then!!!!

Actually why do you even want talking out of it – pretty much every Golf GTI has been a classic since day 1.

You haven’t had the misfortune to drive a Mk3 8-valve, have you? Horrid…

Buy it. You will have a lot more fun in a petrol gti than in an oil burner.

On the fuel thing. You get more mid range power, very noticeable in my NA 3 litre, with higher RON. personally I buy tesco momentum as its 99RON and its only 4/5p more a litre. Seems to give higher mpg. I managed 40mpg on a run with 99 and only 36 with 95, but could have been other factors at work like wind hills etc etc…

fsi petrol there does seem to be probs £500 and counting at the dealers stil not cured a misfire 55 plate

Have you considered a Skoda Octavia VRS? Same as mk5 gti but with a HUGE boot. Great quality interior. They even do a fast diesel if u do the miles. And they sponsor cycling.

Don’t get the TDI version. You will get an irresistable urge to weld yourself to the arse of any quick car you see just to prove how “capable” your car is.

the one negative about mine was that I went for the red (cos it was faster 😆 ) and the bonnet chipped up really badly, all through to white undercoat – was quite a mess by the time I sold it..

I don’t get home any quicker in the RS6! Makes sod all difference in the real world

You’re doing it wrong.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BxWQ1BcNwxk

To be fair the mkiv ‘GTi’ in the drag race was the 2.0 8v which was the same as the SE with different seats and a higher insurance premium.

Mk5 gti with ko3 factory turbo plus revo (or similar!) software will see 255bhp and still retain excellent economy for around 500 quid installed! It’s a no brainer for a fast spooling,reliable,modern hot hatch with everyday practicality.Just do it.

The Mrs had a MK5 Gti until it was stolen 🙁 and now has a GT TDI 170.

Anyone that says the GT is as fast as the GTI has clearly not driven both, the GTI is very quick but also handles fantastically (GTI beat a Imprezza WRX around fifth test track). Our GT has bags of torque but the power doesn’t deliver effectively to keep pace on twisty country lanes, which reduces the enjoyment factor.

Ours had DSG and can easily say it the car I miss the most out of all the cars I’ve owned, DSG is fantastic.

As mentioned above the only downside is the fuel economy I averaged 28MPG over the time I owned it

Just sold my ML420cdi and took an 05 GTI in part ex, great little car, comfortable yet handles superb! Quite quick for a front wheel drive car, might keep it for a while as it is that good.

I have one (an Ed30) and must say I love it. I have regular use also of a normal Mk5 GTi and thats awesome too. Plenty of poke and space in both. In reply to the original post, sorry cant talk you out of it! Buy it.