Looking at buying a Golf. Can I get some advice please?

[bjrickard]

G'day guys,

Just joined the forum here. To business - I currently have a 2005 VZ Holden Commodore which I'm finding is not only far too big for just me, but also very expensive to run. Around town, I generally average 12-13L/100km.

So after some research, I'm looking at buying a 2nd hand Golf, probably a 2004-2005-2006 model somewhere. I've seen quite a few on carsales.com.au within my budget. I'm thinking hard about whether it would be worth the hassle to get a different car.

Can anyone tell me how much petrol (roughly) one of these would use for everyday driving, doing maybe 35km a day? (I'm talking the 1.6l petrol model). If anyone has one, how many kms can you do per tank? Also, if something were to go wrong with it, are parts overly hard to find or expensive?

Looking forward to getting some feedback.

Cheers guys,
Ben.

[Lorenz]

Hi Ben, feel free to have a good read and search around this forum, you will find all your answers will have been asked/answered already

[bjrickard]

Will do, thanks very much.

[poyta]

Can anyone tell me how much petrol (roughly) one of these would use for everyday driving, doing maybe 35km a day? (I'm talking the 1.6l petrol model). If anyone has one, how many kms can you do per tank? Also, if something were to go wrong with it, are parts overly hard to find or expensive?.

As already said do a search for more details but quick answer from me -

Golf GT TDi 2.0 - I do about 35km a day in heavy stop start traffic and average about 5.8 - 6.8l / 100kms. The lower figure if I don't get too many traffic lights and the later figure if traffic is a bitch. I do like to give the car some so with some careful driving I could probably better thay figure a bit. I will generally get about 800kms out of a full tank. With highway runs I've had about 950kms out of the tank. Yes parts are very expensive brand new but not hard to find and thankfully the Golf seems to be very reliable that I haven't really had to get anything replaced yet.

Not sure if the GT falls into your budget but a standard TDi is cheaper and will deliver even better fuel consumption figures. A 1.6 Golf will probably get similar or even better figures but if your going from a V6 commodore to a little 1.6 you'll be disappointed - the 1.6's are gutless !!!! try the diesels, they have so much torque they feel like a V6 commodore but don't drink anywhere near the same amount.

[POW]

Hi I have a 2.0 fsi and I drive 30km a day.I average 9L/100km in city peak hour traffic.I found I have the power if I needed and is good for everyday driving.I own this over 2 yr bought 2nd hand and so far being good. I just do normal service.I can't think of a car to swap except a mk6 gti or polo gti.
I agree 1.6 may be abit underpowered in some case.
Hope this help

[nutttr]

I personally wouldn't go the 1.6L, you'll find yourself flooring it everywhere just to get going and maybe even using more/similar fuel to the commy - Depending on how you drive! Top gear has shown (and it's fairly common knowledge) that how you drive means more to the fuel economy than the engine in the car - That said, 13L/100km in a commy isn't that bad and i'd guess you are a fairly slow driver (assuming it's an auto)... I'd definitely suggest a TDI, even a 1.9L if you really must.

Most golfs are reasonably reliable, i'd personally steer clear of high km ones, but otherwise you should be set. If you are not overly big on cars, i'd suggest an NRMA check - at least to know if it's been in any accidents and/or has some unchecked oil leaks, etc.

[bjrickard]

Cheers for the replies guys. So I'm assuming TDI is the Turbo Diesel version. I had thought about this, but isn't diesel more expensive than petrol? Are there any real benefits besides the greenie-conscious thing?

What would you classify as high-km?

I'm not overly big on cars really, I work with aircraft by trade so I'm fine mechanically, just not car-specifically but I know enough to buy a car. I know quite a few tricks/good things to look for etc.

By the way, could anyone give me a quick rundown on the main differences between Comfortline, Trendline and Sportline? I can't find much.

Regards,
Ben.

[MiiLos]

I just recently sold my 2.0 TDI 05' to upgrade to the new GTI.

Diesel was at one stage much cheaper then Petrol a few months back, and that stretched for at least 2-3 months if i remember right. Even now the difference is generally no bigger than 10c. In my opinion the extra mileage you get out of the Diesel outweighs the 10c premium over petrol.

I averaged about 850km combined highway/city (including peak hour morning commute to work to Melbourne) with mine, and on the trip I made to QLD i exceeded 1000km on the single 55L tank. the TDI was also very gutsy and many on my mates were shocked with its power.

They are great cars, you wont be dissapointed with Petrol or Diesel. My mate gets hi 600's with his new GTI, so with a standard Golf I'd say you can expect at least low 700's on Petrol.

[brimway]

Hi Ben, feel free to have a good read and search around this forum, you will find all your answers will have been asked/answered already

If new members are not welcomed to the forum, the forum will seem irrelevant to some. I thought that the purpose of this forum was to promote and encourage a community like environment. I am amazed that some answers to members' questions appear to be a deterrent to asking such questions.

I recall asking a thread starter for a particular detail about his/her story. The answer that I received gave me a comprehensive guide as to where I could find the answer within his post but not the actual answer which would have amounted to a 4 word sentence.

oops, nearly fell off my soap box.

[poyta]

Cheers for the replies guys. So I'm assuming TDI is the Turbo Diesel version. I had thought about this, but isn't diesel more expensive than petrol? Are there any real benefits besides the greenie-conscious thing?

What would you classify as high-km?

Funnily enough Australia seems to be about the only country where diesel is more expensive, having said that like someone already mentioned there was a time where diesel was cheaper for a bit - its doesn't seem to fluctuate in price like petrol.

Still....its only about 10c difference at best so if I'm paying $1.45 per litre and I get from my 2.0Litre diesel - 6.5L/100kms it means I've spent $9.42 for that 100kms. Compare that to the petrol at $1.35 per litre and then 9l/100kms that someone here said they get from the 2.0l petrol and they've spent $12.15 for that 100kms. Still makes sense to get a Diesel.

Keep in mind that a few Golf's require premium unleaded where the price is suddenly a bit closer to the price of diesel.

Other benefits is performance due to the huge amount of torque. My TDi when it was stock standard could posts better performance figures than even an SV6 commodore .

VW Golf Mk V GT TDI lap times and specs - FastestLaps.com

Another big benefit is engine life - There are TDI's running around in Europe with close to 400,000kms and still going well so whereas I'd be very frightened about buying a 1.6L Golf with 200,000kms on it, I'd have no hesitation getting a TDi with 200,000kms on it. ( all providing that its been serviced regularly of course )

[triode12]

I'll have to agree with Poyta, with the cost of petrol these days and after reading about your requirements, a diesel Golf would be the go. There are a number low kilometer examples on carsales at reasonable prices. You might also want to have a look at the diesel version of the Skoda Roomster.

[bjrickard]

So I just got home from test driving (quickly) a 2006 Comfortline V TDI DSG. I've never driven a Turbo Diesel car before so it was different, but I liked the car. The car had 133,000km on the clock. What are your guys general opinions of the DSG gearbox? I originally wanted a manual one. Also, what about a TDI with 133,000km? Mechanically, it seems to be in good nick. The entire service history is there, it's been serviced by the dealer since new.

[poyta]

So I just got home from test driving (quickly) a 2006 Comfortline V TDI DSG. I've never driven a Turbo Diesel car before so it was different, but I liked the car. The car had 133,000km on the clock. What are your guys general opinions of the DSG gearbox? I originally wanted a manual one. Also, what about a TDI with 133,000km? Mechanically, it seems to be in good nick. The entire service history is there, it's been serviced by the dealer since new.

Sounds strangely familiar - perhaps its the same car thats being discussed here -

http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/f28/help-golf-tdi-decision-58554.html

If you originally wanted a manual then get a manual - the 6 speed in the TDis is fantastic and bulletproof unlike the DSG. Not saying that the DSG in that model you mentioned will s%$t itself just saying that I've heard of a lot more problems with them than the 6 speed and the repairs to a DSG are very expensive so if your heart is set on a manual then get a manual.

[maxrob200]

I test drove both manual and DSG equipped Jetta TDi when I was looking for my car. I liked the DSG but chose the 6 speed because I liked it and always had manual cars...old habits die hard I suppose. I also considered servicng and repair costs to DSG cars compared to manuals and felt that the manaul would be cheaper in the long run

[stickshift3000]

I went for the DSG, if I'd been aware of the servicing costs (about $450 every 60k km's) then it may have persuaded me to go for a manual.

Saying that though, the diesel engine really suits the DSG.

I would take all the DSG horror stories with a grain of salt. Yes there are issues, but these are usually found in low mileage, new or poorly serviced cars. Based on what i see on this forum, a disproportionate amount of DSG issues occur in the higher powered golfs (gti, r32 etc), althouth that could be more to do with the majority of members here being vw enthusiasts and owning such cars. There are thousands of DSG equipped golfs that don't have gearbox issues.

If it's a dealer sale then you could enquire about the warranty period, some used yards even offer extended warranties for a few hiundred dollars more.