ninjaguppy

R32? Just a golf Looks cheap inside but great engine and not bad value.
Gti Golf? Just a golf!!! Expensive for a 2.0 turbo
Audi S3? Gorgeous,quality product but expensive for a 2.0 turbo
Audi tt 2.0. As above!!
BMW 1 series 130i m sport. Bit ugly but great engine.

Is it me or are they all bloody flawed!! What do you do. Anyone driven a selection of premium brand stormers?

Thanks

///\oo/\\\

Yup.

What info do you want?

And are you looking for Image? Space? Practicality ? chassis balance? Steering feel? Ride comfort?

Caveat - not driven a new TT/S3 so cannot comment on those two.

Matteeboy

Sounds like you should get the R32 and be done with it.

ninjaguppy

Ideally a bit of everything, needs to be quick but id like a touch of refinement and quality as im knocking on!! The scoob is great but im a bit bored of going deaf above 2.5k and the interior aint great. And besides if you get a lil windfall its nice to treat yourself! So is the R32 the choice?

Matteeboy

It would be my choice but I've only owned a mk4 R32.

It was such a special feeling car for the price - Has even been compared to feeling like a Carrera 4 (not by me, by a well known journo).
You have the noise, the 4WD grip, the power at all revs and it sounds like the mk5 handles better and is a fair bit quicker.
Handy boot too.

The mk4s had an annoying boominess at 2.5k revs (went over 3krpm) but I think that's sorted now.

Nice dilemma to have though!

Matteeboy

It would be my choice but I've only owned a mk4 R32.

It was such a special feeling car for the price - Has even been compared to feeling like a Carrera 4 (not by me, by a well known journo).
You have the noise, the 4WD grip, the power at all revs and it sounds like the mk5 handles better and is a fair bit quicker.
Handy boot too.

The mk4s had an annoying boominess at 2.5k revs (went over 3krpm) but I think that's sorted now.

Nice dilemma to have though!

ninjaguppy

yeah i was thinking 130i three dor in white. Sweet but are they poverty spec? I cant be doing with spending thousands just to have a decent interior

Longjing

I drove the Golf Gti and Audi a3 with the same engine after christmas. Nice, although the Audi rode hard I thought.

I thought both of them were overpriced. People say the Audi is a quality interior, and I guess it is better, but both of them felt a bit cheap coming from my Jag, so my main impression was that these were nice cars that showed a little too much of their humble origins for the price point.

I bought an Octavia vrs instead. Not as nice as the Audi, but bigger, about as fast, better ride and much much cheaper. A sensible choice rather than a feelgood choice, but that was partly because the Golf and Audi didn't really have the feelgood thing either. For me. The Audi in particular was a bit nicer than the Skoda, but not that much and not enough for the price by a mile.

I really wanted to like the Golf, so this was all a bit of a disappointment. On the upside I've got 10k to spend on something else instead.

I guess the R32 might be a different story though, if you can find a dealer you're ok with. BM was a non-starter for me, got three in the family and I don't fancy the 1 at all.

Of course, it might just be that I'm too mean to pay for the badge.

///\oo/\\\

Having driven a Mk5 R32 and a 997 4S that statement is, frankly, way off the mark. Not knocking the R32 btw, but it wouldn't be my choice.

Both have 4 wheel drive and six pot engines, and there the comparison ends.

If it was my money I would be shortlisting the new 130i 3 door and TT/S3, subject to test drive.

I would be extremely surprised if the R32 was anywhere near a new TT/S3 on quality, perceived and actual, and the figures suggest both are plenty quick.

The 1 series is, IMO a nicer place to sit than the Golf and has a fantastic driving position (better than the Audis too) but the TT/S3 interiors have the edge on quality from what I can see from a quick showroom examination(although the 1 series has an updated interior for the 07 models)

Matteeboy

This was comparing a 996 C4 to a mk4 R32.

The Golf is quicker than the 2.0 TT and already the 2.0 has been pointed out as expensive for what it is.

I'd wince at paying near enough £30k for a 2.0 litre VAG four pot.

DeltaBravo 9

imho anyone buying new is mad , i know it's only money but the cash you loose in the first year is crazy , for 27 k there are a lot of belting cars on the 2nd hand market

///\oo/\\\

130i M sport 3 door £26,335

Won't be poverty spec - M sports are well specced as standard

Some extras

Luxury pack - Leather, Heated Seats and some other bits - (£690 on an m-sport)

Comfort Pack - Includes Front & Rear Parking sensors, Rain Sensor, Cruise, Storage Pack, Load Net etc - £195 on an m-sport

Visibility Pack - Xenon Lights, Adaptive Headlights and Headlamp Washers - £340

And the best bit - 5yrs service pack - £190 for all models

///\oo/\\\

Agreed, - I'd also wince paying similar amounts for a Golf !

Flatcapdriver

£27K? Are you mad? That's way more than the average mortal can afford. Get a grip and stick to a diesel!

Matteeboy

Looking at that 3dr 130i, I'd definitely try both.

Still no oil painting but a lot better than the 5 door.

Either way, I'd much rather have a six pot for that kind of money.

wall

Made similar choice recently (see other threads). Actually drove most contenders ... R32, 130iM, Sti, S3, GTI, 147GTA ... you name it I tried it Spent 3 whole weekends driving from dealership to dealership and testing cars, but well worth it when you are spending (for me) a lot of money on something that you don't want to get bored of for at least 3 years.
In the end chose R32. The others excelled in single areas (130iM engine, 147GTA looks, S3 quality, GTI value, etc) but IMO the R32 was the best package: 4wd, good engine, great DSG, well built, decent looks, brilliant sound, good value.
Suggest trying them all as they share similar straight-line performance and similar size but in everything else they are quite different in "feel". R32 was perfect for me.
Now waiting delivery (early May), black 5 doors with DSG, sport seats, sat nav and roof.

blagman

New Audi TT, but you will have a six to nine month wait for one

Attu

Ive been looking at similar cars and at first had my mind set on the Audi S3 but for some reason I get a just another Audi feeling about it and I dont know why, the R32 on the other hand brings back memories of how I felt when I was first looking into buying an Impreza turbo.
There is just some thing about the R32 that does it for me and i cant really explain and even if I had all the money in the world id probably still buy one as a daily car.
I keep looking at other cars in my search for a new car but keep coming back to the R32, OK if I was being sensible Id get the GTi but the thought of that 3.2V6 with 4 wheel drive and dsg is just to tempting ....and its different.