GTI and GTI plus owners experiences

[monkeyhanger]

First full RON99 commute home. The car felt no smoother for the first 30 yards - it always feels a little lumpy for about the first 10 seconds when I try to crawl along at 10mph out of the works car park - anyone else notice that with the GTI Engine?

After those 30 yards, the car seems sharper to respond to the throttle than it did before on rsgular - placebo effect after looking hard for something positive?

Mpg is no better so far. I had a very clear run home and put my foot down a bit to get 36.5mpg for the trip, which I felt I would've got before on regular fuel.

Whether 12 miles for ecu to fully adjust is enough (if sny adjustment is taking place) remains to be seen.

Not expecting much if any, just reporting on what I think is going on.

Yes our car is quite lumpy when cold going up our steep drive. A bit like "kangeroo petrol" , quite jerky.

I wonder whether it is a Polo GTI thing or a DSG thing - it seems more ignition related than transmission related,but I have never had a VAG that did this (the Polo is my 9th from new, and they have all been manuals. My Golf R does not do this, and it is a 2.0TSI (albeit a slightly different engine designation).

[monkeyhanger]

I bought the gti for several personal reasons including the performance. The weather on my trip on the motorway was appalling with both wind and rain and lots of spray. It was also very busy .That is why I was particularly annoyed at the driver behind me being so close. My first reaction was to slow down and change lanes as you suggested but he just stuck with me . The rest of the tale is in the post. I do not see the logic of always having the gti in sport attack mode , good though it is. The car has only done 300 miles so is running in ( in my mind) the weather and driving conditions were awful and travelling at above the speed limit would add to the risks and when I wanted to briefly speed up to 90 plus the eco mode is more than adequate. On top of that I probably gained 10 mpg on the trip thus saving money which is no crime. I also had our dog in the back and my wife as a passenger neither of whom realise what the car is capable of ( YET)
I will reserve my full bifftas driving for appropriate weather and road conditions.
I rest my case your honour.
Found the solution to the car seat problem ( rotary adjuster, not the lever height control) and set the sat nav screen to auto, so it will dim at night.
Cannot find a solution to the overbright indicator lights in the mirrors yet and do not want to resort to sticky tape!
Picture of the rev counter dial attached and the inner white circular line moves during acceleration. There is another one on the speed which is slowly going down. Not sure what they indicate but my guess is the speedo line shows range and the rev counter one shows economy but can anyone help?image.jpeg

I'm sure there was nowhere near 10mpg in it for the use of Eco mode on your drive - I have managed 40/41mpg on just my 13 mile commute, if I was on a 60 mile each way trip, around 45mpg would be expected if the 90mph stint was just a mile or 2 of that and then pretty much sticking to 70. You may have saved 2mpg max overall, considering your bad start to the journey.

When you ease off on a manual car that isn't coasting, the engine is using no fuel, hence the deceleration observed, the momentum is driving the engine, but dip the clutch and the engine keeps going by adding fuel to maintain tickover. if you can lose that loss of momentum for a planned slowdown towards a junction, roundabout etc. then you can be more effiicient than coasting. As the DSG (not in Eco) seems to have a slower loss of momentum, I suspect the DSG box puts in a reduced amount of fuel when you come off the accelerator rather than no fuel.

These Eco modes are designed to squeeze every last drop of fuel under test conditions, but do very little in the real world, and those test conditions (at least pre-WLTP) do not resemble normal driving, when you have an 11 minute test cycle and the car isn't moving for 24% of that time.

The main difference in Sport mode for me is that it hangs on to the gear you're in under moderate acceleration a good 7 seconds more than it needs to after you've reached your desired speed and have eased off, but on a longer dual carriageway/motorway journey where gear changes are few and far between because the car sits in 6th - no real gains to be had.

Driving style dictates real economy, not an economy mode - stick it in Sport for your next trip and see what the difference is - it might surprise you.

With my driving style, I am able to reach 80-90% of official combined figure with the Golf R, and I accelerate hard to get to my desired speed, then drive intelligently to manitain my momentum or at least not waste much of it. I'm sure the Polo will loosen up a little, but I am expecting a bit more of a penalty for having the DSG box. my Dad's DSG Golf GTD was always 10% thirstier than my manual DSG when I drove it the same way.

Anyway, you're tinkering with all the settings of a new car to find out how it ticks - interesting stuff. I haven't even tried the Nav yet that I was obliged to buy on my allocation grab car.

My most personally interesting findings so far are that to maintain manual mode for a full journey is cumbersome, and to hoof it in auto mode leaves the car occasionally stuck at the same place near the red line for what seems like 2 seconds before it changes up - intervention with the flappy paddles to change up at 6000rpm makes for quicker acceleration than letting it redline. When i'm done with the paddles, I give the D/S on the gearstick a nudge down to revert back to D mode quickly from S mode.

Out in the R today, it definitely feels less sharp in handling vs the Polo, but power delivery is completely different - Polo's output seems more accessible from much lower in the rev range and more linear, but the R is leagues ahead above 4000revs. Still prefer a manual gearbox though!

[richl123]

Just forgot one item.
The LED headlights did not really impress. Not so bad on full beam when both dipped and main beams were on but on dipped they seemed to be set a bit low and were not very bright. Not as good as the discharge dipped beams on my Jaguar or as good as my previous cars with uprated halogens. Part of the Gti plus package but would not specify them as an extra.

Hmmm, that's not very good!

I am guessing LEDs are simpler/cheaper compared to Xenon?

Maybe, they should have a super premium lights package with Xenon back in.

[SRGTD]

Just forgot one item.
The LED headlights did not really impress. Not so bad on full beam when both dipped and main beams were on but on dipped they seemed to be set a bit low and were not very bright. Not as good as the discharge dipped beams on my Jaguar or as good as my previous cars with uprated halogens. Part of the Gti plus package but would not specify them as an extra.

Hmmm, that's not very good!

I am guessing LEDs are simpler/cheaper compared to Xenon?

Maybe, they should have a super premium lights package with Xenon back in.

I doubt that VW will offer xenons as an alternative to LED’s. LED’s are more energy efficient and have a longer lifespan than xenons.

I had xenons on my mk6 Golf GTD and I’ve got LED’s on my 2016 Polo GTI. IMO the LED’s on my Polo as good as the xenons were on the Golf, and both are (were) an improvement over the halogen headlamps I had on my mk5 Golf.

[silverhairs]

We don't drive around much in the dark, so a nigh on price of £1000 to have LED lights fitted was out of the question, (but I do like the LED lights LED DRL's.
Once I get my motor I will be fitting 120% + bulbs and taking the standard bulbs out. I've had 120% + in my Nissan Note for over 6 years, and they are still working great.

[richl123]

Impressions of the car on the trip.
A bit more road noise than I expected with a strange change in tone crossing the white lines.
The wipers were quite noisy ( not from the screen) from the motor and mechanism.

Interesting, can anyone else make some comments about general refinement, especially if you have been driving a Golf!

[joeknight94]

Impressions of the car on the trip.
A bit more road noise than I expected with a strange change in tone crossing the white lines.
The wipers were quite noisy ( not from the screen) from the motor and mechanism.

Interesting, can anyone else make some comments about general refinement, especially if you have been driving a Golf!

I drove a new Golf GTI Performance DSG with DCC back to back with my Polo GTI and it’s feels heavier and better built, steering is more weighted and has a far quicker rack and has more mid-range poke but the biggest difference is the gearbox, the 7 speed box in the Golf is vastly better! Refinement with the DCC on comfort is incredible too, well worth the £850! Value for money on the Polo is great though, and if you haven’t been spoilt with a Golf GTI you’ll love the Polo...craving a manual Polo GTI now though. They start production of them in late November according to a spread sheet VW UK sent me the other day [emoji106][emoji41]


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[monkeyhanger]

Impressions of the car on the trip.
A bit more road noise than I expected with a strange change in tone crossing the white lines.
The wipers were quite noisy ( not from the screen) from the motor and mechanism.

Interesting, can anyone else make some comments about general refinement, especially if you have been driving a Golf!

I find the GTI+ every bit as refined to drive as our Golf R in every respect (comfort, handling dynamics) except road noise creeping into the cabin a little more than on a MK7 Golf. Bear in mind against Joe's comments that my R is on 19" wheels with no DCC (always been happy with a firm ride, wouldn't pay for DCC).

There seems a little less cowling on the underside of the Polo, more noticeable towards the rear of the car (especially the outside of the formed spare wheel well), could be a large factor in road noise increase but so could the Bridgestone tyres.

The fit and finish are also on par with the Golf in every way except the top surface of the door cards which isn't rubberised like the dash, and that bit of painted bodywork on the triangular rear of the passenger doors which is begging for a piece of plastic or fabric trim to cover it.

They're both built to the same standards - the Polo GTI+ is only 30-odd kg lighter than the Golf GTI 230 DSG. Considering the Polo's marginally smaller form, i'd say that's where most of that weight difference is, not in any other lacking.

[jylydesign]

Impressions of the car on the trip.
A bit more road noise than I expected with a strange change in tone crossing the white lines.
The wipers were quite noisy ( not from the screen) from the motor and mechanism.

Interesting, can anyone else make some comments about general refinement, especially if you have been driving a Golf!

I have a Golf GTD courtesy car while my Polo is being fixed. I have to say on initial impressions it feels more solid, better built and refined than the polo probably partly because its a bigger car. It has done over 10k miles and feels like new even though it must have had a hard life as there is a set of new tyres on the front already.
However it definitely doesn't have the same zip and fun factor of the polo and is a little on the boring side. Probably fairly obvious as it is a diesel.


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[barrywi]

Re my post earlier about being slightly disappointed with the led lights brightness. I wonder if the bulb does go whether it can be independantly changed from the housing or is it a question of a completely new headlamp unit. I wonder if the car warranty would cover a new headlamp unit if the bulbs cannot be taken out? If they can be replaced that could open up a market for more powerfull replacements providing the cars wiring could cope. I wonder what the led wattage is?
Also my experience of various type of led lamps in the house and as security lights is that they do not last forever. The later security lights no longer have just one led ( 50 watt) but now have a smaller housing with multiple leds.

[tronads]

Hello, I have just joined and thought I would post my thoughts on a month of ownership.

I went from a Leon 1.4 FR150 to the Gti+ about a month ago, so I've gone smaller, quicker, and less mpg....all of which obviously I knew upfront.

The purchase experience was very good. The local dealer in Blackpool told me it would be January 2019 before they could get me one, however Carwow found me one in Tamworth, and within about 2 weeks, it was mine, and about £2k less than sticker price.

I find the car great fun to drive, but a couple of small things have disappointed me with the trim level. The web site isn't amazingly clear which models have what, and one of the things that had me wanting the gti+ was the video I saw on Youtube where they transferred the satnav onto the main dash. I thought that looked brilliant. Unfortunately I wrongly presumed the top of the range model would actually have satnav fitted as standard, so was very disappointed to find it did not. I am optimistic it is just a (paid for) software update, but VW have ignored my enquiry about this. I guess they have my money now, so replying to me is not important.
Similarly, all the pictures in on the VW website except the very basic cheapest model show digital Aircon controllers. I was quite surprised to see old style dials on the gti+ , but on researching, again, it was just me assuming wrong that it would have them. Still disappointing. The Aircon is much colder than my leon though, which is good.

Breakdown cover is only for the first year, that's crap to be honest.

Now onto the positives that I have found in my 1800 miles so far (London and back, and then Oxford and back bumped up the early mileage).

It's certainly rapid. Fastest car I have ever had, and a good 1.5s quicker than the Leon to 60. Some pleb wanted a go at the lights the other day in a Mondeo, and I left him for dust, which was great.
Fuel economy, its better than I thought it would be. I got 50mpg going to London, 49mpg coming back, and similar figures going to Oxford. These were using active cruise control all the way.

Active cruise control is pretty good. Not perfect...I have it set to the closest distance, but this gap, although safe, is enough of a gap for people to keep pulling into it and this has the car braking accordingly. Just a touch closer would have discouraged this, but I do appreciate its a safety thing. I wish I didnt have to press the brake when it stops in traffic though....would have been nicer to just sit back and let it do everything but the steering, or maybe just a slightly longer period before it tells me to brake.
And when it does tell me to brake, if I don't, it sets off in creep mode, which isn't particularly safe, it would be better if it held itself stationery.

Handling, brilliant, sticks to the road like glue. Exhaust sound is brilliant as well, especially in sport mode, which I haven't used much.

Wipers are juddery...only when the vehicle is in motion...I thought this might be because I have RainX on the windshield, but from reading here, its a common issue.

Android Auto is great too...I can't get Waze to work using my phone though (Huawei P9). It works on my work phone though (Pixel 2).

Overall, I am pretty pleased with it.

[Robint]

Agree with everything they are brilliant


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[barrywi]

Hello, I have just joined and thought I would post my thoughts on a month of ownership.

I went from a Leon 1.4 FR150 to the Gti+ about a month ago, so I've gone smaller, quicker, and less mpg....all of which obviously I knew upfront.

The purchase experience was very good. The local dealer in Blackpool told me it would be January 2019 before they could get me one, however Carwow found me one in Tamworth, and within about 2 weeks, it was mine, and about £2k less than sticker price.

I find the car great fun to drive, but a couple of small things have disappointed me with the trim level. The web site isn't amazingly clear which models have what, and one of the things that had me wanting the gti+ was the video I saw on Youtube where they transferred the satnav onto the main dash. I thought that looked brilliant. Unfortunately I wrongly presumed the top of the range model would actually have satnav fitted as standard, so was very disappointed to find it did not. I am optimistic it is just a (paid for) software update, but VW have ignored my enquiry about this. I guess they have my money now, so replying to me is not important.
Similarly, all the pictures in on the VW website except the very basic cheapest model show digital Aircon controllers. I was quite surprised to see old style dials on the gti+ , but on researching, again, it was just me assuming wrong that it would have them. Still disappointing. The Aircon is much colder than my leon though, which is good.

Breakdown cover is only for the first year, that's crap to be honest.

Now onto the positives that I have found in my 1800 miles so far (London and back, and then Oxford and back bumped up the early mileage).

It's certainly rapid. Fastest car I have ever had, and a good 1.5s quicker than the Leon to 60. Some pleb wanted a go at the lights the other day in a Mondeo, and I left him for dust, which was great.
Fuel economy, its better than I thought it would be. I got 50mpg going to London, 49mpg coming back, and similar figures going to Oxford. These were using active cruise control all the way.

Active cruise control is pretty good. Not perfect...I have it set to the closest distance, but this gap, although safe, is enough of a gap for people to keep pulling into it and this has the car braking accordingly. Just a touch closer would have discouraged this, but I do appreciate its a safety thing. I wish I didnt have to press the brake when it stops in traffic though....would have been nicer to just sit back and let it do everything but the steering, or maybe just a slightly longer period before it tells me to brake.
And when it does tell me to brake, if I don't, it sets off in creep mode, which isn't particularly safe, it would be better if it held itself stationery.

Handling, brilliant, sticks to the road like glue. Exhaust sound is brilliant as well, especially in sport mode, which I haven't used much.

Wipers are juddery...only when the vehicle is in motion...I thought this might be because I have RainX on the windshield, but from reading here, its a common issue.

Android Auto is great too...I can't get Waze to work using my phone though (Huawei P9). It works on my work phone though (Pixel 2).

Overall, I am pretty pleased with it.

Not sure whether Rain X is really for the windscreen . I put some on the rear screen and it juddered and made a noise for a while. Obviously the side windows and mirrors are fine.
I paid extra for the sat nav and climate. I love the navigation, very clear .
I think you have to have the fan on quite a high speed to get much air into the car . I also think that both the fan noise and the noise of air coming through the vents is quite high. Maybe the pollen filter is slowing down the air flow.
I think the yellow lights in the mirrors are too bright at night, but no adjustment that I can find.
Your fuel economy is very good, and I have been mocked for worrying about this on a performance car, but I think your higher mileage car( mine is at 367) will have loosened up more. Looking forward to finding the full performance in a few miles.

[monkeyhanger]

Well i'm 130 miles into my full tank of RON99 fuel and, if the car needed any adjustment to realise what it was drinking and exploit any potential gains through timing changes, they would've happened by now. Not an iota of a difference in performance or mpg. Still getting a steady 40mpg on the way to work and 36/37mpg on the way home with aircon on. Wouldn't bother paying the extra.

[barrywi]

This reminds me a bit of a situation in the seventies or eighties when a product came on the market at garages called Armonal. It was sold in small plastic bottles and the idea was that you added one bottle to each tank of fuel and you could get "up to " five mpg more. At the time I was working with a crew of technical types for a well known broadcasting company and all were convinced that it worked. I think it is called "herd instinct" in today's terminology. Of course it did not work despite our initial optimism and maybe we were all just driving a bit less agressively ,hence the improvement. It was only for sale for a few months , but this is a time before facebook ,so maybe today you could make a few million before anyone realised it had no effect.
Parked in a supermarket car park today guarding the gti from rougue trolleys when an Audi RS came to park next to me . I reckon he saw my badge as he revved his engine before turning it off to let his missus go shopping and revved it twice when he set off. I got a full demo of the associated pops and bangs that my car may show when it is run in.
Obviously I played it cool and ignored the demo and carried on listening to music in the car.
I also scared my grown up daughter today by a short burst of acceleration using about 50% of the potential power. I think I am turning into a teenager, I must search out a gti baseball cap and wear it back to front.