Polo 66 tdi- anyone own?

[walbjj]

Entertaining the idea of getting one of these rather than a polo gti. Main reason is I want a manual, and the idea of a dsg failure, although rare is off putting. I also have no intention of racing or driving fast.
In fact, towards the end of my ownership of an s2000, I never took it beyond 5000rpm, and when I owned an evo9 I never pushed it hard as fuel consumption was ridiculous in it.
I guess I just want something nice and easy to drive.
So anyone here have a tdi polo and how is it

[William_Foster]

We ordered the DSG but test drove the manual; it is very easy to drive as a manual, and whilst it doesn't have great power the torque makes it drivable (Potentially even fun). My biggest annoyance with the manual was the arm rest and the air conditioning controls which I always seemed to bump when changing gears; a short-throw stick may resolve this (Not sure that this is available).

[walbjj]

well the armrest can be moved up, so thats not an issue. dont know about the ac knobs tho

[markis]

also in the same dilemma. whether or not to buy the TDI or GTI based on tranny.

any other inputs?

[Transporter]

Do not let others to affect your decision too much. IMO the DSG is quite reliable and I don't think that anybody in OZ paid for the DSG repairs, even when the car was out of warranty.

[walbjj]

well thats nice to know. i went to bill buckle to try and test a diesel polo. none available. had a sit in the yellow one there, the gear change is extremely long and the clutch pedal very light. didnt find the armrest an issue, i just flipped it up. and the ac controls were no where near the gear knob when flicking the stick up and down.
ill have to try and source a test drive elsewhere.
my biggest concern is how the power and torque translates into everyday driving
the salesman there asked why i decided to change directions from a gti to diesel. i told him flat out, i wasnt impressed by the dsg. im not fussed about the performance advantages that the gti might have. i just want a nice, easy comfortable car that is reliable, gets great economy and is cheap to run and maintain.
my current car fits all those except its 15 years old, thats teh only reason why im looking to move on

[FJ Steve]

the 1.2L TSI fits all those criteria

i just want a nice, easy comfortable car that is reliable, gets great economy and is cheap to run and maintain.

[walbjj]

if thats the case, then why does the tdi exist? wouldnt the tdi be even more economical?

[FJ Steve]

if thats the case, then why does the tdi exist? wouldnt the tdi be even more economical?

it depends on your vehicle use. If it's start/stop with some freeway use, I'd be looking at the TSi to provide much better overall economy. If you are punting long distances per annum, with infrequent stopping, the oiler will win hands down.

[walbjj]

really? why would the petrol be better for that? doesnt europe love diesels and they have them as their city cars. i can understand if its a long haul truck, but a car?
anyway,besides that reason, why would the tsi be any diff than the diesel tho
as for me, i drive about 350-400 km a week in sydney traffic. current car gets mid 8l/100km but is super cheap to maintain, way less than a vw would be, but its old

[FJ Steve]

really? why would the petrol be better for that? doesnt europe love diesels and they have them as their city cars. i can understand if its a long haul truck, but a car?
anyway,besides that reason, why would the tsi be any diff than the diesel tho
as for me, i drive about 350-400 km a week in sydney traffic. current car gets mid 8l/100km but is super cheap to maintain, way less than a vw would be, but its old

The Diesel Alternative : Private Fleet :

[team_v]

really? why would the petrol be better for that? doesnt europe love diesels and they have them as their city cars. i can understand if its a long haul truck, but a car?
anyway,besides that reason, why would the tsi be any diff than the diesel tho
as for me, i drive about 350-400 km a week in sydney traffic. current car gets mid 8l/100km but is super cheap to maintain, way less than a vw would be, but its old

Europe subsidises their diesel cars so they cost less than the petrol versions.
Here the diesels cost more so it costs less in teh short term to run a petrol car (for me it would have taken up to 10 years with current price differences in base car + fuel to reach parity)

Diesel's have their place to shine (longer distance runs) but it really comes down to what you need it for and if it is city/suburb driving then you may not be getting the good economy out of the diesel.
Also the new Diesel's have a wonderfuly expensive DPF that will prove to be annoying later in life.

Euro petrol engines are very good on fuel and power.
Diesels have their place so it's up to you to decide what you need to use it for and do the sums.

[walbjj]

diesel is on par or slightly less than petrol now tho.
i just need it to get to and from work, in the most fuel efficient manner, and its about half what i get now l/100km wise
whats DPF? and how late in life?
the gti is good as well thats the thing, but that dsg is annoying

[pologti18t]

Hasn't the 1.6 TDI engine been shown to be rather peaky in the Golf 1.6TDI? Turbo lag down low, then a rather small sweet spot revs-wise.

I think the 1.2TSI is a better bet for most people.

There have been numerous reports on the cost effectiveness of diesel cars in Australia. You have to do big kms before you get ahead on running costs compared to the equivalent petrol model.


Urban consumpion

diesel Fuel Urban (l/100km)5.8

petrol
Fuel Urban (l/100km)7.0

Extra cost of TDI is $2500 approx. 1.2L extra per 100km @ $1.30/L = approc $1.6 extra per 100km to run the petrol car.
Lets be generous and round it to $2/100km extra to run. ($2500/$2)*100 = 125000km payback period.

People will counter that you will pick up a bit on resale. To which you could invest the initial $2500 NOT spent on the TDI in some investment that makes money

[team_v]

diesel is on par or slightly less than petrol now tho.
i just need it to get to and from work, in the most fuel efficient manner, and its about half what i get now l/100km wise
whats DPF? and how late in life?
the gti is good as well thats the thing, but that dsg is annoying

Yes, diesel is now slightly cheaper than petrol is, but the price difference for the car means that it will still take you about 6-8 years on average driving using current fuel pricing differences to end up better off buying the diesel (if you do suburban driving).

Have you looked at the new fiesta that gets very good fuel economy?

Info on the DPF:

http://www.vwwatercooled.org.au/f28/dpf-operation-48738.html