White GTD - 35000 annual miles expected

[GC854]

Well folks the time is nearly here. Today I handed over my 55000 miles Skoda Superb and received a VW Tiguan to keep me going over the weekend until my new GTD is handed over on Monday. I anticipate driving it around 35000 miles each year and thought there might be some interest in a journal which paints a picture of Golf ownership while pounding the highways and byways of the UK. After picking the car up in Aberdeen on Monday it will have it’s first serious outing on Wednesday when it travels to Lincolnshire (425 miles). I will let you all know how it performs.
It took a while for me to finally decide on a Golf. I drove my local dealers to distraction requesting test drives. The Leon FR184 was first. I found the performance to be addictive and although the press seem to prefer the looks over the Golf I wasn’t sold. Make no mistake it was a great car but I think VAG have got it right to market it at a younger audience. Then I drove the Golf 2.0GT. Instantly I felt the quality and it just felt good to be in. The performance and refinement really surprised me and I was kinda hooked. However….. the dealer had a GTD demonstrator and suggested I tried that. I was blown away – refinement and performance. He then did his sums and discovered that a GTD on business lease is cheaper than a GT!!!!! Next came A3s in 1.6 and 2.0 guises both Sportline variants with sports suspension. They were sharper to drive than the Golfs but I found them to be noticeably noisier and less comfortable. But…. I prefer the looks of the A3 to the Golf. And (oh the shame of it) the badge snob in me liked the thought of driving an Audi (but please don’t hate me.) The real difficulty came when my VW dealer showed me the waiting times for GTDs. I would have chosen a bog standard car in red. However that would have meant a long wait whereas he had a white one on order with the 19inch rims for March delivery. I looked at my monthly tax bill for running these cars and, was faced with a dilemma. The wheels and paint on the GTD took my monthly tax bill (I receive company fuel) to a significant amount more than the A3s and GT. I was also concerned that the 19inch wheels would upset the refinement of the GTD. The dealer however took delivery of a new demonstrator shod with 19inch rims and I was able to take it for a spin. First impressions were excellent. I suspect it was a little noisier and rode with less pliancy than the standard car but without driving the cars back to back I couldn’t be sure. Everything was great until………. I deliberately ran over a pothole! Ouch!! The car really jarred in a way the standard car avoided when I drove it into the same pothole. But not being able to spot any significant difference between the two if I avoided potholes I took the view, ‘life is for living,’ pay the extra and enjoy the car! I cant wait ‘till Monday.
Finally, and I do apologise for the length of this post, the last word goes to the old Skoda. It was brilliant at taking me the length and breadth of the country. Boring and slow? Yes, but refined, and after a regular 7 hour drive left me feeling fresh. I believe anyone who knocks the quality of the current range of Skodas is prejudiced. Mine was the Greenline version and according to the computer always returned over 50mpg. I replaced the front set of tyres at 52000 and the rears are still originals. (They are hard compound eco tyres). It was serviced twice in the 18 months I ran it for. The quality of the interior is miles above the quality of the Leon and I would say on par with the Golf. So, on to the next chapter and a completely different sort of car. Watch this space.

 

[DW58]

Thanks for a most excellent write-up.

 

[GC854]

Pleasure Rob, I will aim to follow it up on Monday as I will be taking the afternoon off to get to grips with the new beastie. I will post my first impressions and maybe a pic or 2.

 

[GC854]

First 1000 miles

Well I picked the car up last Monday at lunchtime – what a buzz! Took the afternoon off to try the beastie out but ended up engrossed in the handbook all afternoon. So, first up, here’s my top tip. Do not worry overly much about the handbook when you pick your new car up. Its huge!! And to my simple mind makes the car’s systems out to be far more complicated than they really are when you are actually using them on the road. Just make sure you understand the running in criteria and go out and enjoy your brilliant car.
On Tuesday I had to leave it overnight at the airport car park but on my return took the car south on a 430 mile jaunt. First Impressions?
I love it. On the roll down the A90 from Aberdeen to Dundee which is infested with speed cameras and un-marked Police cars I always take it easy. So this was an opportunity to try out the ACC. At first I thought it was great but as the road got busier I was left with a nagging feeling that I could do it better with standard cruise control. You have to anticipate the system kicking in as you approach slower traffic in the nearside land otherwise you find your car slowing just before you pull out to overtake. To avoid this you have to indicate early and pull out a little earlier than I am comfortable with – especially if there are quicker vehicles coming up behind. But like most things you can get round this. You can manually maintain speed with slight pressure on the accelerator. However that, too my mind, defeats the purpose of cruise control.
When I reached the motorway system I maintained speed with the outside lane of traffic. The engine was hushed but there was some road/tyre noise from the rears. One of the downsides of having 19’’ Santiagos. One thing that did impress me was the fact that this car seems to have the most accurate speedometer of any I have known. At speeds up to mid- eighties there was only a 2mph difference between the car and my Sat-Nav. I have driven cars where there has been an 8 mph difference at these speeds. The fuel consumption for the trip (according to the car’s computer) was 43.2mpg.
The return trip was completed this Monday and I have now completed 1300 miles in the car. The return trip travelling at similar speeds recorded 46.7mpg and yesterday a return trip from Aberdeen to Glasgow recorded 51.5mpg. I feel however that the car maintains a better mpg rate if the ACC is not engaged. I also find the steering in ‘Sport’ mode to be a little heavy at higher speeds when travelling long distances. I have therefore set my ‘individual’ settings to ‘sport’ engine mode and ‘normal’ steering mode. I engage individual for long motorway trips but leave the car in sport for other times. The seats have been great and after a couple of 7hr journeys I have left the car feeling great with no aches or pains – and this is with 19’’ wheels. The handling of the car is sublime. It is a joy to hustle it along windy roads as it feels really planted on the ground. The steering, whatever mode is selected, is accurate and makes it a doddle to hit every apex. My wife is not really into cars and she always expects me to do the driving so when I report that she actually took the keys from me after her first drive I really cannot offer the car higher praise. When she drives it she has a permanent smile on her face.
There are some niggles which have been mentioned more than once in the forums. Why is the one power point so far from the windscreen? My sat nav has to sit in the middle of the screen which means I have to operate it left-handedly unless I buy an extension cable. The instrument lights only come on with the lights. Most cars these days keep them lit constantly which is useful when travelling in that period just before you might wish the external lights to come on. In rush hour stop start city traffic the automatic hold can be caught out in circumstances when you are trying to very gently ease the car forward on clutch alone. However none of the above are major issues and it is easy enough to get around them.
So my first impressions lead me to believe that this is going to be the best car I have ever owned. A week from now I should have put another 1000 miles on the clock and I cant wait. (Incidentally I felt the car loosen up very noticeably around the 900 mile mark.)

 

[DW58]

You've already got more miles on your car than I have - I've had mine since Nov 20th

As a matter on interest, are you changing the font on your posts, it's not very easy on the eye. Posts 1 & 4 seem to be on a different font to the default (Verdana).

 

[GC854]

The font change is down to the fact that I used word to type the last font and then pasted it into the thread. You are right it's not so easy on the eye. Particularly, if like me, you find your eyesight is no longer what it once was.

 

[Knight1]

Thank you for the great review. Please keep us updated, I enjoy reading first hand accounts! Downside is it's making my one month wait seem like a year!

 

[GC854]

I can understand that but hopefully in reading the reviews you know the wait is worth it. May time pass quickly for you.

 

[Scuss]

Great review GC854, roll on mine is all I can say. Also very pleased to read about your fuel economy and I note the comment about better mpg with no ACC. I do mostly motorway on the commute so will watch with interest if you post further re: future mpg's.

Just need some piccies now, or have I missed these?!

 

[JoeDemo]

I can't wait to follow you and GTD on your journey!!!

 

[GC854]

Great review GC854, roll on mine is all I can say. Also very pleased to read about your fuel economy and I note the comment about better mpg with no ACC. I do mostly motorway on the commute so will watch with interest if you post further re: future mpg's.

Just need some piccies now, or have I missed these?!

I haven't done any scientific tests yet. However it is noticeable that the ave mpg does tend to drop when the ACC is engaged. I have been caught out with it decelerating when approaching slower vehicles in the inside lane before I indicate to pull out which means it's having to accelerate and use fuel. I do have it set to the min distance to avoid vehicles pulling out in front of me so that will not help. If I was really trying to watch my fuel use I would be taking my foot off the gas when approaching slower traffic further back than the ACC. However I don't think many GTD owners would put absolute fuel economy at the top of their wish list. I do hope the car will be able to complete my regular Aberdeen - Lincolnshire journey on one tank though. It's looking good so far. The thing about this car is that it makes for a really relaxed cruiser but when you want to take it by the scruff of the neck and throw it around it's an absolute hoot.

 

[GC854]

I will have to practise uploading photos! The quality is shocking. Will be spending another 7hrs in the car tomorrow and will post an update on the journey.

 

[GC854]

Trip from North to South


Monday evening: Top up the tank, pack and look forward to the next trip from Aberdeen to Lincolnshire. I have decided to change my usual route which goes Aberdeen-Glasgow, motorway network as far as Penrith then across the A66 to the east side of the country and the A1. This time I am going to stay on the east side of the country which will take in the empty sweeping A roads south of Edinburgh to Newcastle. Roads, I expect the car will really come to life on them. A shorter distance but a longer route. So how did it pan out?
I wil not bore you with the details of the slog down the dual carriageway to Dundee and Edinburgh. However I have really got into the ACC but will post a separate update on this. South of Edinburgh (after a serious hold up on the Edinburgh ring rd) I joined the A68 which was fairly busy and found a character in a BMW X5 stuck to my rear bumper while he was on the phone This guy got really close at times and was hacking me off. When the road got to a hill an overtaking lane appeared and he pulled out. I decided that this was a good opportunity to test the 4th gear acceleration of the GTD! It passed The X5 was left behind and I got passed the queue while he has to pull in around 3 vehicles from the start. The 4th gear pull is really impressive.
Heading towards Coldstream the sun was going down and the roads virtually empty. For a while I was behind a Ford Focus maintaining 70mph. It appeared well driven, braking before the bends and powering out the exit. The Golf was so relaxed in these conditions. Comfortable, yet I had a perpetual grin on my face as it flowed through the corners and crested the hills.
After a few miles the Focus turned off and I opened the car up more. It was worth adding around 1hr to my journey time taking this route. I loved it!! I tended to blast out slow bends and villages by selecting 2nd or 3rd gear and flooring it. Boy does the car move. The anti-slip gubbings would light up in 3rd gear as the wheels fought for traction. The steering is so accurate and apexes are so easy to find. Despite the last sentence I was careful not to overdo things and kept the car well within its limits. The only time it felt jittery was turning through a sharp bend with a very broken road surface. The rear felt as if it was jumping a little.
This car is truly the best car I have had the pleasure of driving. On the motorway or when cruising the engine is really really hushed. Yes I get road noise, particularly it seems from the rear wheels, but on a smooth surface it is very refined. When you open the throttle hard it sounds like no other diesel I have driven. There is a real hard edge to the sound - very addictive. I was so glad to have chosen this route. Yes it was longer but I think I would have paid money for the experience. Brilliant.
Should any of you want a great drive I would recommend the route between Newcastle and Edinburgh that takes in the A697 and A68. HGVs are a rare site as the heavy stuff travels up the more or less parallel A1. Roads which will bring your Golf to life. I will attempt to post some photos but I am hopeless at IT.

 

[GC854]

Departure Point. The Northern Lights of Auld Aberdeen.

 

[GC854]

Onboard Computer before departure