I've been itching to get a new car for a month or two now. I viewed the start of 2020 as a countdown of sorts till my April lease-end on my IS. Every day, I searched sites like CarGurus, Vroom, Carvana, and others to try and find specific models I found interesting. Over time, I saw some of my previously-saved models get sold, and I started to worry that my perfect car might get snatched up. To say it made my anxious would be over-generalizing. I was mainly looking for a fun daily-driver around $20,000, with some warranty left and a decent amount of practicality. Eventually, I settled on this gray VW GTI.

(My apologies in advance, this car is not particularly clean since I was driving it around all day and didn't wash it before taking pics... Cleaner ones to come later.)


This particular example is a 2016 GTI Autobahn, in Carbon Steel Gray Metallic, with every option box checked, save for the Dynamic Chassis Control. However, it does have the all-important Performance Package as well as niceties like the upgraded Fender audio system (and depending on your preference for seating, the leather seats). To be honest, there's nothing mind-blowing about the spec of this car. It's pretty focused, and I like that a lot about it. I should mention here that this car is also equipped with the 6-speed DSG transmission (which is a dual-clutch unit), which is a great match for this car.



When I was shopping for this car, I was initially afraid of pursuing it too much. The GTI seemed to be "too obvious" a choice, or perhaps "played out". "Volkswagen GTI: The official car of a bored 30-something-year-old office worker who thinks BMWs are too bougie" feels like an automotive cliché right out of Regular Car Reviews. It's the Honda Accord of hot hatches, the obvious, easy-to-recommend choice. What I failed to recognize was that the GTI has that reputation for a reason. After test-driving it, I immediately had a sense of why so many enthusiasts like this car.



I've had this car two days, so this is just going to be a brief first-impressions section. I don't really know what it's like to live with the car yet, as I haven't even completed a full commuting cycle yet. That said, I do have things to write.


First things first - journalists usually write something about this car looking and feeling more expensive than "a Golf". They're right. Everything on both the exterior and interior looks and feels appropriate for something like an Audi A3, not a run-of-the-mill VW (which the GTI is not). The design of both outside and inside is handsome and conservative, borderline boring, but saved by nice touches like the red accents on the exterior and the red ambient lighting on the interior. I have been generally pleased with the fit and finish of the interior - coming from a Lexus owner, the way this GTI feels belies its modest origins. Even the sound of the door closing is pleasantly "thunk"-y.

Second things second - it drives exactly how I expected, which is to say: hot hatch with a touch of refinement. The DSG is fantastic - smooth shifts when I want to just cruise along, and quick shifts when I am giving it the beans. Actually, the shifts are always both smooth and quick, no matter what I do. Unsurprisingly, this leads to a very polished-feeling drivetrain. The engine is also something I have come to like. It might sound a bit odd, particularly with the Soundaktor adding its digital engine sound enhancement to the cabin, but it's actually quite smooth-running. It pulls hard all the way to 6,000 RPM even though peak power supposedly happens at 4,700 RPM, and launch control lets loose the full potential of this powerplant. 220 horsepower doesn't sound like much, but it's the 258 pound-feet of torque that makes this car feel quick. Sometimes turbo lag happens, but who doesn't like the sound of a turbo spooling in the meantime? Brakes, too, are solid. Almost touchy, but just enough to be modulated while feeling responsive is how I would describe them.

Lastly, it's a comfortable ride. The car is a touch firm, but just a touch, dealing with lots of road surfaces well. Expansion joints can lead to some bobble-head action, but even my IS wasn't immune to that. My GTI lacks the DCC, as mentioned, but the standard setup works well for me. Out on the highway, the GTI is very quiet, with some occasional wind noise but well-damped road noise, even with the high-performance Continental ControlContact Sport A/S tires here. I expected the GTI to be daily-friendly, but I was still impressed at the highway ride.

One final point - even on my very first trip to the gas station, a random gas station patron was walking on his way to the convenience store, and he said, "I like that car. Is it pretty quick?" "Thanks, and yeah it's quick!", I lopsidedly reply. It's just a Golf, right? Yet somehow, people like this man knew that it wasn't just a normal commuter hatchback. When I was looking at GTIs, I expected others to generally ignore it due to its "normal" looks, but perhaps its not that simple. It does have a red stripe along the grille after all.




I am super-excited to own this car. I've heard it said that having a GTI is a sort of rite of passage for any car lover, so... here's mine. If you're wondering, yes, this replaces my Lexus IS, which is now back in the hands of my Lexus dealer. It was a good run, and I highly recommend the IS if you want a sport sedan but demand the best build quality and reliability above else. Cheers!

 

Congrats!!

nice write-up. I've always thought about getting one - the timing was just never right.

I'd prefer the manual gearbox for long term reliability - not a concern tho if you don't plan in keeping it long.

 

Great point about the transmission. Conversely, what I have been hearing, at least from my friend who knows a couple of Mk7 GTI owners, is that the manual is actually not the most appealing option for anyone who is going to either tune their GTI or drive it in anger. The clutch can barely handle the stock torque, and making it last would require very gentle driving. We'll see how the ole DSG holds up. I don't plan to make any significant mods yet - really, it just needs an exhaust if you ask me! Don't worry - you are not the first to comment on the transmission. But, seeing as how I never learned stick-shift in the first place, my choice was even easier.

 

Congratulations. Best of luck with it.

Some good points about the transmissions...but I've always felt that the VW/Audi double-clutch transmissions (I think the earlier versions were called Shift-tronic?) were among the best in the business, if not for long-term durability, then for smoothness and refinement of operation. The first one I sampled, as I remember, I could not feel it shift at all...and gear change was almost instantaneous. This, in contrast to the clunky or unresponsive shifts of some other double-clutch units.....particularly the awful ones in the Ford Focus and Fiesta.

 

Great pick up. I looked at leasing a GTI or a Golf R before my last IS350. I really like it a lot but didn’t like the FWD aspect of the GTI but it wasn’t a deal killer. It was just a little small for me having two small kids. I ended up looking at a S3 instead but that was a little small too and didn’t lease well so I ended up back in a Lexus. I loved pretty much everything about the GTI, especially the way it drove and the looks. The interior was really nice too. It was a very fun car and pretty quick. I can’t imagine how fun the Golf R is.

 

Ha! I knew it! For months I've been saying to myself "he's going to get a GTI"...

That's just awesome and I hope you love it. Like many others, I too looked quite seriously at these a few years back. There is definitely something special about them. Keep us posted. I'm sure it'll serve you well.

 

If it's out of warranty, chip it. Unlike Lexus, the GTIs are ridiculously easy to mod. I hear it stays pretty reliable at stage 1.

 

Congrats. Fun cars.

 

Warranty or not, if it is required in the state (or county) the vehicle is registered in, it still has to pass emissions. Sometimes a chip will allow that....sometimes not.

 

The stage 1 APR chip passes in California which has one of the stricter laws. Will probably pass everywhere else.

 

A chip is definitely the easiest/cheapest way to go. However, a friend knows the owner of a local VW/Audi/BMW tuning shop (they started out as a VW/Audi shop but added BMW to their offerings later on) and promises some kind of hook up. They do the APR flashes for instance. We'll see where it goes! Again, the biggest thing I want to do at the moment is disable the Soundaktor and just put an axle back exhaust on it. But I am happy with the performance so far.

Actually washed it and had the interior fully-cleaned today. I might be in love. Thank you for all the congratulations above!





edit: Looking over these photos, I am noticing I don't have all my valve-stem caps... I inspected this car so carefully, too, totally missed that. Oops! I will have to get some nice ones on there. I really liked having the metallic Lexus L-emblem-badged caps I had on the IS.

 

Congrats, seems all prior 3IS owners are moving away from Lexus but I understand why. I am curious why you didn't get a G70.

 

To be frank it mainly down to what I intended this car to be for. I wanted to get something a bit more affordable so that I could save up for a hypothetical dream car later, perhaps while keeping this one as a winter/daily car. I'm trying to play the long game.

I like the idea of the G70. Having driven a Stinger, which I found to be decently fun, I'd think the G70 would be great to drive. Maybe in the future I'll end up in one. I saw a G70 on the road recently and honestly, it's a looker in person more so than in photos.

 

It's because Lexus decided not to target us performance drivers. Probably a business decision so I'm not blaming them. Even their highest performance models are embarrassingly slow compared to their competition. Plus there are great options from a lot of other makes now. It's really a great time for horsepower junkies

 

I will say, the RC F felt a lot more special than any non-F car I've driven. And I have yet to drive a GS F or LC 500, but both the latter of those is really... really... 'spensive. I've heard good things about the LC especially in terms of the way the controls feel, and how the car responds. I will say even the RC F felt a bit distant compared to something like a GTI, but it definitely felt more connected and visceral than that M235i I drove. Lexus is doing okay, but just okay. That said, I still think I would happily own an RC F and still am considering a used one in the future.