Mk5 Golf big enough for family?

[Splashalot]

. Does anyone know if it is easy to remove/put on a set of roof racks, as I would prefer to just have the racks and box on when needed. Is it a quick/easy job?

I windsurfed for 15 years have used Rola, Rhino Rack and Thule. IMO Thule is heads and shoulders above the others and excels in the quality of construction, well thought-out designs and brilliant functionality (eg. the mounting points are rock solid).

Both the racks and box are dead easy to fit. The racks take me maybe 5 minutes to fit. The box is even easier - it attaches via pincer-movement clamps and takes maybe 2 minutes.

Voila - a total of 830 litres luggage space!

SS

[anthony]

I would also go the Jetta TSI route,as it is so practical,and you could dress it up,in a nice colour,with 18 inch alloys,sunroof,and leather,which would look very sporty.
You could probably get a good deal too,as at the moment VW are doing drive away deals on the entire range,excluding Golf 6,Tiguan,and CC

[brad]

Biased Skoda owner here.

Check out the Skoda range. They come in a hatch or a wagon with a 500L+ luggage capacity. It's a far more practical setup than the Golf or Jetta.

Standard inclusions list is longer.

Engines range from a 118kw/250Nm turbo 1.8TSI (same as the Audi A3/A4) with either 6M or 7DSG or if you want soemthing sportier then the VRS range might suit with either the 2.0TFSI from the Golf GTI or the 125Kw Diesel.

Like most people you might prefer to be a follower rather than an innovator but you are doing yourself a dis-service not looking at Skoda and at least deciding it isn't for you.

[Dubya]

I'm sorry but if you're coming from such a large Lexus, you're going to struggle with anything smaller than an Octavia. Especially given you have 2 growing children and you definately need the boot space..

You might struggle if you're only just fitting into the Lexus (the ES300, maca, is Camry-sized). But growing kids don't usually call for more luggage space. Indeed, as children get older the prams (for babies) and toys (for infants) need no longer be stowed. Books, pillow, stuffed toy and Nintendo DS are de rigueur.

I have two sub-teen children and have recently completed two holidays in our GTI. We've just returned from a weekend away and fitted two suitcases (one medium, one large) and a bunch of other clobber in the hatch without going above the waistline. On a longer trip up north we put the Thule Atlantis 200 on the roof.

Whenever the family is on board I can't help but reflect on what a practical family car the GTI is: spacious on the inside and, with a Thule roof box luggage space is copious. But the other 50 weeks of the year it is just perfect as is. With 147kw on tap it has the power of earlier Commodores and similar torque but is much more reasonable on the gas.

Speaking of which, the fuel consumption impact of the roof box is negligible (~5%, maybe less) based on my experiences on a 2000km round trip driving at the legal limit or thereabouts.

In favour of the Jetta, it does have the benefit of a proper boot which should obviate the need to strap down objects, which unrestrained create a major safety issue in hatches and wagons. But the Jetta is also 338mm longer so street parking favours the Golf.

BTW, if you do purchase a roof box, the Thules that open on either side (not just kerbside) are worth the extra cost. And the Thule roof bars are excellent too and quick and easy to fit (as the other poster mentioned).

So, yes; from my experience (just on 13 months now) the GTI has the power and space for practical family motoring and with the added storage capacity of a roof box when needed, has the luggage capacity for holidays too!

[nabes]

Well we're about to buy a GTi and have two kids 3 and 1.5 years old and are "upgrading" from a Mk3 golf. The Mk3 golf does just fine for our family. When we go away the roof racks with luggage box fit all the strollers etc. and the boot space is fine. We went away for 2 weeks this last Christmas and took all we needed including travel cot and a kayak mounted ontop of the roof box. When we aren't going on holidays the roofbox comes off and we're back to the hatch that fits all we need.

I think that if you are a thrifty person you can easily make any space work for you. If you are the type though who needs to take everything with them everytime you go somewhere then a bigger car may be for you.

Personally I think only a family with more than 2 kids needs anything bigger than a hatch, otherwise you're just not trying hard enough!

[jdd]

Another option would be to buy the car you want then buy/hire a small luggage trailer for the odd occasion where you need additional space.