where to start ? I've had alot of cars but to me the mk5 is something very special, its seems to have the build qaulity / integrity of cars costing alot more, the economy of smaller engined cars, the performance of alot more exspensive machinery, the running costs of a Corsa and the main factor for me, everyday usefullness, it can do anything i shove at it, be it carry 5 people long distances comfortably and safely, fold the seats down and fill it with rubbish for the tip, go to a meeting without looking like a tit or the run of the mill and the most important one, point it down a B road and forget everything that happens in life, jsut you the car the road ahead and the dust and fumes and bussle of life behind.
I find the mk5 Gti as fun and admiring to look at and drive as a E39 M5, as much fun and chuckability as my old Trophy( well almost
) and as much oomph as my old 535d( well if you close your eyes and sort of become VAg biased ! when you rev the 2.0 FSIT ! ).
I started off with a mk5 r32 manual, coming from a E39 M5 it was the right kind of downsizing and the R32 felt like an awesome car to own. But after a few months the running costs of fuel and the fact i could not chuck it around as i hoped meant i was on the look out for something new pretty quickly. I drove the mk5 Gti at launch and while it did impress but the price and the fact i had an R32 made me think why would i want to downgrade .
After looking at all the competition, i was getting backed into a corner it was either keep the R32 which i didn't want or go back to BMW ( which i dread ) , there was no Audi on the scene so i went back to VW for an extended test drive.
I've always had a hot hatch from a lowly GTe Astra, Punto sporting, Starlet GT, Ep03 Type R, trophy, Mini Cooper, i find they are the most rewarding cars in everyday situations to drive and own
Drove that weekend in the car and thinking to myself "its a GTi, pffft not a top of the range R32 " but thats when it happend, don't know its because i didn't expect much from the Gti or if i expected too much from the r32.
that weekend i fell in love with the Gti, its a car that grows on you like all the "great cars".
You start of thinking, i've made a terrable mistake, by the end of week one its, "Wow, didn't know it could do that, maybe there is a chance i'll keep it" , end of the month its " What an awesome car puts a smile on my face does that " by the end of month 2 its " if this car ever goes i will cry, can't imagine life without it"
went from a 06 R32 to a 54 GTi, the rest they say is history.
Had a few oil burners inbetween the R32 and Gti but i always end up missing the redline of the ptrol cars and the noise ! had some awesome oilburners too, 330d, 535d, 2.0tdi 140
my lovely GTi had a samsh and was repaired but never the same , hence i went looking for another hot hatch nearly bought a S3 but found it more R32 terratory, ie more laid back driving style, relaxed cruiser, rather than "chuck it around and rag the tits of it hot hatch" What could fill the Gti's place ? ??
The fact i've only kept 3 cars for longer than a year, means the GTi must be something special !!!
enough talking let the pics do the walking ! have some pics somewhere of the tdi i owned for a while, will post when found.
phew !!! thanks for looking and dying of boredom @ my story so far.
Raj
