Looking at a V GTi...

[FirstVDub]

Hi all!

I'm looking to upgrade cars very soon and i've got my eye on the MkV Golf GTi in either Black or White...

Only real plans I have for it would be to body colour match the side skirts, front lip and most of the rear lip (leave the 'cutout' bit unpainted)....

I'm on here for opinions and advice on looking for my first VW! My previous cars are an 01 Honda Prelude VTiR and I currently own an 06 Accord Euro Luxury... both manual and i'd like to follow that theme with the Golf, with either a traditional manual or a DSG (I hear the changes with the DSG are ridiculously fast!)

The only features i'm really keen to see in the new car would be
*Leather
*Heated Seats
*HIDs
*Decent quality audio system
*Perfect bodywork and paint (I'm a fanatical detailer, slight imperfections will annoy the hell out of me!)

Other than that i'm pretty easy.... The only issue i can see is that factory HIDs in this model seem to be an opton that not many original purchases took?

Would love to hear everyone's opinions on this model, things to look out for when inspecting etc!

Cheers

[NabzGTI]

Hey mate, firstly let me say welcome to the site. Very good community on here and you will most likely find any VW/Audi related queries on here.

I have a 5door 2006 Mk5 Golf GTI DSG, and she has performed flawlessly for me over the last 2 years.

In relation to your queries, the DSG is a sensational piece of engineering. It is commonly overlooked as a normal "automatic transmission" because there is no 3rd peddle at your feet.. but its not!! Standard, the DSG changes gears in 0.08 of a second and if im not mistaken, still currently the worlds FASTEST changing gearbox (faster than any Formula1 car or Ferrari). I'm not sure if you know how it works, but basically it has 2 clutches - 1st clutch controls gears 1,3 & 5 and the other controls gears 2,4 & 6. So for example, when 1st gear is working (first clutch), 2nd gear is already engaged (second clutch).. Which means once first gear is finished, all it does it release 1st gear, and 2nd gear is already in motion. The paddle shifters behind the steering wheel are also pretty nifty when stuck behind a Sunday driver.

There are DSG software releases which make the gear changes even faster, increase launch control RPM's, increase the torque limiter, increase the rev limiter, even smoother shifts etc. I personally have the REVO DSG Stage 1 upgrade and its been phenomenal. The only set back to DSG is it's cost and also it handles less torque than the traditional manual gearbox. So depending on how far you want to go with engine mods (if any), should help you decide on which transmission to go with.

My GTI came with heated leather seats which are amazing during winter. They really give you the warm fuzzy feeling inside although I dont use them that often.. its a nice gimmick and something to show off with occasionally lol.

I have a HID conversion kit which I bought from eBay believe it or not and installed myself in less than an hour.. and they work incredibly! I think the reason why this option from factory is not commonly chosen is because of its price. From memory, I think its $3,000 extra for factory HID's. This also includes a headlight water sprayer/washer which pops out from the front bumper underneath the light. My kit cost me $60 delivered on eBay

As for the sound system, 10 speaker surround sound isn't enticing enough? 3 in each of the front doors, and 2 in each of the back doors. Initially I thought there was a hidden subwoofer! Crystal clear sound with all the equalizer options.

My car is black, so keeping it clean is not easy. If I could change the colour now, I would have gone with white. Much easier to maintain I think. But black looks better when its washed

Overall, I love my car to bits! Very good quality build!