Welcome to the forum, it's clear you have researched thoroughly and have made a great choice. I too have the lapiz blue and it's a stunning colour, as for the R itself, it's the best all rounder dd imo.
All the best
Still no word from my dealer. My friend tipped me off that another dealer near me had 2018's in stock and even let him test drive a 2017 R so I went last Friday to check it out.
Well they had the exact car I ordered in the showroom. Indium gray 2018 with DSG (except ugly spielberg rims instead of pretorias) so gf and I took the time to sit in it and check everything out. Nice car...now I want MINE!
Assistant sales manager seemed alright. Nice guy I guess. Not too pushy, yet. Told me he sold the 2017 and the 2018 he had were without winter tires, but he'd try to swap rims and get me a test drive in one.
I really don't get how this dealer has 3 2018's in stock and I heard one of the salesman saying they had 4-5 more en route, yet my dealer who I ordered from hasn't even gotten a 2018 OR a used one for me to test drive yet. Leads me to believe he just isn't motivated to call me back and get me a test drive. Wondering if I should pull my deposit from the other dealer and work something out with this dealership... thoughts?
How to deal with ugly rims -- use them for winter tires. Then buy what you want for summer. For me: Michelin PS4S 245/35-19 on 19x8.5...
I think if it was anything like with the MK6 R, the number of R allotted to each dealer is based on the number of GTI they sold. The dealer I bought mine from had over 10 18s come in the span of a week. I was able to walk in to test drive, and took delivery within two weeks.
As far as extras I had them upgrade from the monster mats to weather tech liners, and they threw in undercoating. They were willing to steeply discount a set of winters (they said their cost) but I was able to work a deal with a shop that I dealt with before and worked a better price.
As far as price, they did go $1k under msrp, but I did lease a Tiguan for the wife the week before so that was why they were willing to move on it.
yeah that's pretty much what the guy said except it was that they sold the most golf R's, not GTI's. Just annoyed that my salesperson is not getting back to me I guess.
On the positive side, I do not mind waiting as my Subaru is paid off since the end of last yr and no car payments for an extra month or two is sweeeet. Also I'd rather put the new car through the least amount of winter possible...it's been brutal here this winter.
Nobody answered me for the bargaining. Dealers don't seem to move at all on price - were any of you Canadian buyers able to get something like winter tires thrown in (or at dealer cost) or discounts on extended warranty/maintenance plans?
You already get 6-years/112K meters standard on Canadian cars? How long do you plan to keep the car? Anyway, see if you can buy the "extended warranty" and the maintenance plan for 3 years at the same time for a discount. Make sure the maintenance plan is worth it. Here, oil changes are relatively cheap. You get a brake fluid flush and a Haldex change at 3-years/50K meters and one cabin filter at 2-years/30. Don't ask up front, get the prices first. The problem with trying to get tires or accessories at dealer cost is the parts department takes the hit. I don't think they'll do for high dollar items. You can call other dealers to see if they'll give you a better deal on the warranty/service agreements.
You'll enjoy your Golf R. Owned 4 Subies and got tired of them not getting it together. The 2015+ STI is a fun car but it's harsh, unrefined and has the typical Subaru interior. I drive a GTI now and with a tune it'll pull away from an STI. I do miss the AWD but if you're buying the "R" you won't have that problem. The GTI's and the R's are a world away in fit and finish.
Also you'll find that these cars are very easy to tune and it doesn't cost much to do so. When the STi's and Evo's were put side by side, the EVO guys would always say that their cars could make more power for less money. They were right, the Subaru's always cost more to modify and you had to stress over the stock internals whereas the EVO's just needed a tune a and a few supporting mods to become monsters.
I would argue that the GTI's and the R's are modern day EVO's from that standpoint. A simple stage 1 tune and that R will get going real fast and you won't be worrying about the ringlands melting on you. My GTI has a COBB with a custom stage 1 etune and putting down 300 whp and 365 wtq. That's enough to smoke STi's all day long and for a whole lot less money. Your new Golf R will make more than that with a stage 1 tune. Basically if you're wanting to go fast and depending on what route you want to take you're about $1000.00 away from making serious power. APR is a good way to go. JB-4 is a good way to go, COBB with a custom tune is a another way to go.
The good part is that you'll never have to put up with a less than stellar interior ever again. That saying "that's not where your money went" will no longer be part of the vocabulary.
Enjoy your new car....
yeah one thing I am excited for is the refinement vs my 2011 Subaru which is fairly rough. I kept it stock after seeing a few friends destroy their OEM clutch and have some engine problems (they were upgrading anyways but MAN did they spend money). Mine still runs great with no tune and I am glad I didn't mess with it. Also still on stock clutch at 128,000km and it is holding up very well.
As for tuning potential, It's another feature of the R I am excited about. I am leaning towards a JB4 since I am not looking for massive power and a friend told me this is safest way to preserve warranty if there are any issues (his buddy works for a VW dealer). Ordered DSG so I don't have to mess with upgrading the clutch, plus my GF hasn't driven std in like 12 yrs and didn't want her doing a refresh on a brand new $45K CAD car lol. I spend most of my work commutes in traffic anyways.
I am about to put my STI up for sale, they do have great resale value and I'd say mine is an 8/10 overall so hoping I can get the price I want for it. Just a matter of finding the right buyer.