It’s pretty much all Mercedes it seems. Our CEO has a S63 with huge red fixed pistons up front, and red sliders in the rear.

At least paint them black and dress them up like Audi

 

They all do it to save weight.... obviously

 

So with my boss out sick, and her boss out on vacation, I took a long lunch to swing by the local VW dealer to check out a Golf R. They had a CPO 2016 and a new 2018, both white, both 6MT.

I drove the 2016 and came away with the following impressions:

The interior is nice, and even with 30K has showed no signs of wear, no squeaks or rattles, and no wear on the seat bolsters. The door pockets are carpeted, the cup holders appear functional, the seats were very supportive--easily on par with my sport seats--and the rear HVAC vents would be nice for my kids.

I used "Race" mode in the DCC settings. The steering felt heavy, but there wasn't much feedback compared to my G or the STI.

She was definitely quick. Rolling into full throttle in 1st gave a hint of wheel spin (TCS flashed) but no perceived cut in power, then the car just hooked up. I'd say it's as quick as the G, but less visceral.

Dampening was great and there wasnt much body roll, although you can only get so frisky on a 5 mile test drive. I'm sure the predominate driving experience will be understeer, but I'm also sure a larger RSB would balance it out some.

I also checked out the '18. The digital cockpit is pretty slick, and the GPS display in between the speedo/tach is nice.

They were asking $32K for the CPO 2016, and had already dropped $1k off MSRP on the '18 before I had left

IDK why, but I'm kind of caught up on the lack of a BBK. At least the sliding calipers are black and have a block off plate so they are marginally more visually appealing.

I'm still pretty much torn between a '19 STI and a Golf R. At this point, probably need to get an insurance quote so I can calculate a true cost of ownership.

 

I couldn't agree more. This is one of the reasons I shied away from the gorgeous 2011 M3 we just got in on trade and one of the things that attracted me to my G in the first place. A real BBK is not cheap and pretty important if you are going to the track.

Seriously, wait a year. Both of these cars are supposed to get major revamps for 2020. The STI should finally get an all new engine and transmission after 16 years!?! and probably an entirely new body as well. The next gen Golf R is supposed to be packing 400hp and real brakes. If true, both of these cars will annihilate a G37 and even the current Golf R has an enormous amount of potential for tuning.

 

Good review, Lego. I'm not sensing a wave of love for the car, just middling respect.





pst. The word of the day is "damping" Off you go now.

 

I hear ya, but it's probably more than a year, it's 2020, and not wanting to buy a 1st model year car, that pushes me into almost 2021. With the current plan that I'm putting together, I'll be picking up a 2 door something in 2023.

The WRX/STI has been confirmed to have a MT, but no hatch

I really liked the mechanical feel of the STI. I know the EJ is ancient, but I'm a sucker for a cable actuated shifter and hydraulic steering due to the directness. I'd be surprised if the STI maintains those in a redesign. I also cringe at having Subaru EyeSight and a bunch of lane departure auto braking nannies pushed on me. I think we're also all by guaranteed that Subaru goes ELH and the boxer rumble dies. I might be in the minority here, but I'm a big fan of the Subie rumble.

No real news on the R, and it's the car I'm most concerned about losing the MT option.

By this time next year I should hopefully be more informed as to the next generation STI/R, if not, that's probably when I'll jump ship so that I can setup my plan to fill the vacant 3rd car spot in my garage.

 

It's a lateral move. I pretty much expect my next car to mostly be a lateral jump since I don't want to bust the $40K budget.

Lots of nice things about the R though, but I'm not rushing back tomorrow to sign the papers.


Damn, and I try so hard with spelling and punctuation. Add damping and dampening to words I butcher like effect and affect. But hey, in my defense, I did that post from my iPhone

 

Going back to the wagon vs sedan debate one more time... I've always believed people who appreciate function over form are wagon people and those who appreciate form over function are sedan people. SUV people appreciate function but want to be liked by form people.

For me, wagons look beautiful because I see beauty in function. I see the back end of a wagon and I think about fitting my mountain bikes without needing to take all the tires off and play Tetris in the G trunk. I didn't truly appreciate a wagon/hatch until you switch to a sedan lacking fold down seats.

When we got our dining room set pre-built, we fit 5 chairs in my wife's Fiesta hatch and only 3 in the G. She never lets me live that down. We've thought about replacing the Fiesta with a Si but we realize how much functionality we'd be losing and it's a deal breaker.

 

No worries. Just funning with you.

BTW, Subaru's Eyesight is pretty amazing.

 

I had an ex who bought a Crosstrek on my encouragement. The reason she was looking for a car is that she totalled her Nissan Sentra by driving straight through a T intersection. I ensured she got Eyesight and I know of at least one instance where it prevented her from driving into her garage door. We've been broken up for nearly 3 years but I'm certain it's saved her life at least once in that time.

 

Both cars are just getting updates for 2020 just like they did in 2018 and 2019 so don't worry about it being a 1st year model.

I like the M/T. I'm still keeping my fingers crossed for a hatch since they make a hatch Impreza. No reason they couldn't do a hatch STI.

I hear you on the purist feel of the drive, but if it has a lot more power, handles better due to a new chassis, looks better, and has improved features- I'm all in. All those safety features can be turned off, if they are even included.

Do mean no real news about losing the M/T? There is a lot of news about 400hp.

See here: Report: 2020 Volkswagen Golf R Could Have 400 Horsepower - The Drive

And here: https://www.autoblog.com/2018/05/31/...golf-r-400-hp/

Also here: https://www.motor1.com/news/243618/v...00-horsepower/

 

Both the R and STI got the mid-cycle refresh in 2018. The 2020s are expected to be all new generations. New engines, chassis, interior/exterior, etc.






Cost of certifying the car and running it through all the government regulations for a low volume niche car. In other words, Accountants




Yeah, I mean losing the MT. S4 has lost it already, and it's not even an option in the S3/RS3.

 

Lego- Little auto industry secret- Small niche cars like the STI and Golf R never really go through an entirely new redesign. It is always an evolution of those cars. Subaru claimed they completely redid the entire car when they brought out this current generation, but they really kept the exact same engine, transmission, brakes, and most of the suspension. It did get a new chassis though.

There should be no additional cost of certifying an STI hatch since it is based on the Impreza and the new body style Impreza already has a hatch.

That does suck about the lack of M/T in almost every single Audi now. The RS3 would be so much more fun with it.

 

Little auto industry secret--an all new engine, chassis, and thus exterior and interior = entirely new redesign.


The design will certainly be evolutionary, not revolutionary, similar to the 911, but the next Golf will most definitely be built off the MK8 platform, and not the MK7 platform, much like the STI has gone from GD to GR platforms, it too will adopt a new platform, engine (hopefully, lol) and new interior and exterior.



If that's not a complete redesign, IDK what is

 

Oh I didn't realize they were switching the chassis on the STI again. Are you sure about that? Everything I read made it sound like they were changing the engine and transmission for the 1st time ever, but carrying over the chassis, suspension, brakes, interior, etc.

I knew the Golf R would be getting a "new" chassis and I would imagine maybe a new turbo or at least a lot more aggressive tune and more aggressive styling, but who knows what else they might change?