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Mk5 gti advice needed.


Ditchyboy
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Hi,

I am looking at getting a new car (new to me anyway) and I have been a big fan of the mk5 since it's release but never afforded one.anyway hopefully by Xmas I will have enough to purchase one.I had wanted the R32 but realistically the cost,running,tax etc just makes it out of my league.similar with the Ed30,would love one but buying price is still a bit out of my reach.so hopefully I can get a 200bhp GTI for 6-7k.I know it will be a challenge but I will wait for the right one.I want a low mileage 60,000 or less in black 3dr with tartan recaros and DSG.

I would just like some advice/reviews on owning them and real life costs of running,maintenance etc.

On another note would anyone recommend any other 3rd mk5 in the range over a GTI?I.e GTTDI in 140 or 170bhp?or what about the 1.4tfsi?(think I got the letters right!)what are the differences in tax across these models?do the 1.4 mentioned have good mpg?

I prefer the looks of the GTI but I want to have the car 3-4 years and don't want it to cost stupid amounts,for reference I currently do quite low miles,about 5-6,000miles a year but i should be starting a new job in next 2 months which could put me nearer to 12,000-15,000 as a rough guess.

Thanks

Michael

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Hi Michael and welcome to the forum.

I've had my Mk5 GTI from new and have just completed 100,000 miles and loved every mile! The Mk5 GTI is a very good chassis and the 5-door version in particular is truly a great allrounder.

As a brand, Volkswagens are not especially expensive to service. Tyres are something which depend on your mileage and driving style. DSG servicing is an extra cost, not needed too frequently but is very important to do - So check when it has been done in any DSG car you buy. On the other hand, DSG is the best of both worlds and a joy to drive: Auto (D-mode) in urban speed limit zones or traffic queues, M-mode everywhere else and just think manual and shift gears whenever you would in a conventional manual box (but faultlessly!).

My GTI is Stage 2 modified and I drive quite enthusiastically when conditions allow, so I see about 29 mpg on a 500-mile journey (and never feel tired from the jourmey either). The GTI needs to run on high octane such as V-Power or Tesco Momentum 99.

Tartan Recaros!? - As rare as rockin' horse poo !! And IF you find any be prepared to pay about £1,500 at least. Anyone selling their GTI is likely to sell their Recaros separately. You won't like the fact that I have tartan Recaros in mine and that they are very comfortable as well as being supportive. The standard GTI seats are good too.

Volkswagens are well built and very durable. You just need to regularly maintain them as you would with any car you value.

I hope this helps.

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Hi RedRobin,

i was hoping to hear from you as i like the mods you have done to yours and after scouting around the forum saw you had owned yours for a while. I originally read your R32 test drive piece as well when i was hoping to afford one of those, good unbiased review.

Do you think i will be able to get one for 6-7k taking into account that i wont be buying for a while or will they all be dogs at that price?

I didnt realise that the tartans were so rare, having looked around pistonheads and autotrader i saw quite a few with them so thought it would be easy enough to get them but maybe not :( Have you had many problems with yours or has it all been pretty much plain sailing?

If you were being honest do you think the Ed30 is worth the extra cash to buy or do you think the GTI will hold its value as well in relation to the buying price? I am worried that once the GTi gets a bit older and higher mileage the price will suddenyl drop especially if the mk7 comes out where as the Ed30 might always hold its valyue more due to it being a special / limited edition?

thanks again

Michael

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Yeah i know cars always depreciate but i want something that i like and want which is a mk5 gti but if it depreciates less than others due to the manufacturer and quality then thats a bonus in the long run.

Do you think that the ED30 will hold its value even better and longer due to being a special edition? Also on a slightly different note, how many did they make in the end? I heard it was going to be 1500 but then it ended up more.

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If I remember correctly they said they were only going to sell 1,500 ED30s but ended up selling around 2,300. Some early owners complained on deaf ears but ended up getting a very tacky plaque with the car production number on it to passify them :-)

If you want rarer, a Golf Pirelli Edition is what you want, exactly same spec. as ED30 but with different alloys and a tyre tread pattern on the seats.

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Something I forgot to mention about the Mk5 GTI (not Ed30) which has the BBS Monza wheels: When the clear lacquer chips (inevitable if you drive it!) a 'white worm' cosmetic surface corrosion can start and it's relatively expensive to refurbish - About £400 for all 4 wheels.

This issue is common to all BBS wheels with the diamond-cut finish including Mercedes!

I don't have a clue about depreciation or prices - I agree with Tipex - I buy a car because I like it.

RED_JKM_100k.jpg

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My Monza wheels have held up fine but they have only done just over 8,000 miles in six years! I still really like the car an find it involving to drive. I really should have sold it years ago as I don't drive it as much as I should. I would recommend test driving a standard GTI and also an Ed 30 / Pirelli. The Ed30 obviously has more top end grunt and tuning ability but the normal GTI can feel more lively in every day conditions and general 'point and press' driving scenarios with lots of punch at lower revs (My father in law has an ed 30). The weak point on all GTI's is brakes in my opinion. They're OK for regular driving but are a little lacking at illegal speeds! Robin wisely invested in better brakes and I guess this is a sensible thing especially if you're looking to remap and 'use' the car.

Edited by Tarmac_Terrorist
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Hi all

This is my first post in a few years, been lurking on other forums.........

I bought my first mk5 GTI DSG back in 2005 and took delivery a few months before Robin if my memory serves me correctly. I have since owned a manual mk5 GTI and i am now driving a mk6 DSG GTI.

Firstly i will say that i wished i had kept my first mk5, it was a 5 door DSG in red with 18 monzas and little else...Its all you really need.

Unless you really do no like the look of the 5 door, i would go for that, colour wise it doesnt really matter, although the lazer blue is rare now because it wasnt avaailable for long, even rarer is the solid dark blue, looks crap even if you could find one.....

18 monzas do really suit the car, and i would try and find one with these, be careful though and get to know what the genuine ones look like, there are loads of copies and they are not as good.. check for corrosion as Robin said.

A full service history is paramount, i have seen mk5s with with well over 100k on the clock and they look like new, so dont be fobbed off with a car with 60k in average condition.

Cloth is the best choice , the leather does not age well.

Apart from that any other spec is a bonus, lots had SAT NAV added at a later date, easily confirmed by the lack of armrest CD player, if it isnt there then the NAV was added later, this isnt a major problem but lack of CANBUS coding can drain the battery.

take you time bargain hard and enjoy...

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If I remember correctly they said they were only going to sell 1,500 ED30s but ended up selling around 2,300. Some early owners complained on deaf ears but ended up getting a very tacky plaque with the car production number on it to passify them :-)

If you want rarer, a Golf Pirelli Edition is what you want, exactly same spec. as ED30 but with different alloys and a tyre tread pattern on the seats.

As Cuprabob says vw made around 2,300 for the british market and all were snapped up(i had 1880).The ED30 is still holding its value very well,and you will be lucky to find one under 10k although they are out there.

Both the ED30 and Pirelli have the same engine as found in the S3/Golf R.Not sure how many Pirelli's made it over but it was'nt more than a few hundred.

You wont be disappointed with a MkV GTi as RedRobin will confirm.Good luck with the search..

Edited by CJ92
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I have seen mk5s with with well over 100k on the clock and they look like new, so dont be fobbed off with a car with 60k in average condition.

....As someone who has just joined the '100,000 mile club' (why do I think I've joined the 'mile high club!?) I am naturally very curious about what Mk5 100k+ mileages you know of. I've heard of a highly modified Mk4 GTI which has done over 200k miles and is still going strong.

I agree about the 5-door version - It's far easier when carrying extra passengers but also much easier for loading/unloading when any of the back seats are down.

I prefer the cloth too - Better body grip and never gets sticky in hot weather. But some folks much prefer leather in their ride.

It really is a great car - Not too big and not too small, not the fastest (there's always a faster car!) but fast enough to enjoy and be safer, comfortable on even the longest journeys which have been several at around 780 miles (Germany/Europe) and some regular 480-mile trips in the UK.

OEM brakes are okay but not when you do any trackdays and they can get tricky if doing some very spirited fast road driving. They work but can fade under duress and the pedal feedback is poor when compared to good aftermarket brakes such as AP Racing.

Oh, check for rust on the front wheel arches - It's a common issue because Volkswagen decided to use a foam strip which collects water! It's a valid warranty issue.

WheelArch_paintlift.jpg

If I remember anything else to watch out for I'll post again +++

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By the way, after ordering my Mk5 GTI in late April 2005 I had to wait 12 weeks (which became longer) for it to be built in Wolfsburg and delivered to the UK - Guess what, the hold up was UK Customs! While waiting I naturally trawled the hyperinterwebbynet 24/7 and discovered Tyresmoke. I also used to take my GTI brochure to bed with me - Only as far as the bedside table I hasten to add!

Anyway, at the time I was convinced that after delivery I would no longer need to inhabit Tyresmoke. Err.... Over 23,000 posts later.... I may not be here quite so often but I do visit and still feel part of this community.

You have been warned!

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I ended up buying an Audi A3 2.0T dsg...Same engine/drive train as the Mk5 Gti.....The 2.0t is a corker of an engine so I would`t even consider a deisel...even more so as you only do 6k miles p/a.....I covered 60k miles in 5ys(35mpg)...Not one problem...no rattles or creeks either....As has already been mentioned just make sure the car has a full history and make a point of checking if the DSG oil has been changed every 40k miles.....I seem to re-call VW and Audi changed the service schedule at some point and the cam-belt should now be changed every 5yrs or 80k miles( Red Robin will correct me if I`am wrong)....I believe the original schedule for the cam-belt change was every 100k/115k miles:confused:.....Anyway if the car is over 5yrs old just make sure the cam-belt has been changed.

I did test a GTI but at the time (July 2005) the delivery times had jumped from 3 to 6+months.....everyman and their dog wanted one...and discounts were out of the question as well....I remember when the GTI forum was buzzing with new and prospective owners....I still think the mk5 looks great....they`v stood the test of time really well.....A guy parks his mk5 next to my XF everyday and I`v given his car the once over on a few occasions....The red paint has`t faded and the interior still looks like it did the day it rolled off the production line.....surprisingly no white worms on the wheels either.

I`am a massive fan of the VAG groups DSG auto box....but if you do test one...just remember it does have a few little quirks and you will have to change your driving style to accomodate...but once mastered it all becomes second nature....and don`t forget to give it a blast in manual mode and listen out for the bark from the exhaust as you up-shift:grin::grin:...I sold my car to a friend 18 months ago...it`s now covered 75k and still looks and according to my friend, drives like a new car.

Edited by Mr Man
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i will have to see if i will be able to stretch to a ed30 but i think a gti is more likely. The only other thing i have thought more recently is that as i am building a mk2 20vt at the moment is to get the tdi 170bhp and have the mk2 for weekends. Its a big decision as i would like the gti for everyday driving and i love the looks.

I still havent actually got a satnav, can anyone tell me how good the built-in satnav is in the mk5? I want the tartan recaros but can anyone else tell me what other spec to look for as i am not 100% on the options, i hear i can get the cruise control added after.

thanks

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