This must be a horrible thing to drive....

[Alexg]

http://www.autocar.co.uk/News/NewsArtic ... lf/253204/

 

VW has launched a new entry-level Golf Twist that will cost from just £12,995.

 

At that price I expect that they will sell loads.

 

 

Power comes from a 79bhp, 97lb ft, 1.4 petrol engine

 

what! - In that lumbering great Ox !?

 

 

I still expect them to sell loads, beware however - they do fail to mention that the ultra-plain dashboard experience quickly slips you into a coma before you can question what all the fuss is about.

 

[Mr Lobster]

Good marketing on their part though. I'm sure it'll sell well to those more concerned about status than absolutely anything else at all just so they can show off the new Golf they've got (after they have removed the badges of course).

[Volksy]

I had a 1.6 Bluemotion Diseasal over the summer. And I really liked it. Certainly was preferable to the 1.6 'New' Astra I had before.

 

The Golf certainly didn't seem as heavy or lumbering as the Astra. the dash on mine was the same as that one, but to be honest it was nice to be in a new car that didn't have acres of elephants hide between you and the windscreen.

[trigger]

I had a '10' Plate old shape Astra 1.4 recently as a loan car, It was the most painful thing I've driven, Completely gutless and painfully dull, i gave it back early in the end as i hated it so much.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

The worst criticism I can throw at my dad's 1.4TSI is that it's sort of numb - but that's true of quite a lot of new cars. The interior is quite pleasant, but it does need a splash of colour.

 

The twist weighs 1217kg, so about 66bhp/ton. That's... not much.

[Polystratus]

Don't know what VW have done to their cars of late, but that looks exactly like the Polo.

[Mr H Sceptre]

The Golf certainly didn't seem as heavy or lumbering as the Astra.

 

 

Not suprised.

 

New Astra 2.0 weighs 2065kgs

New Jaguar XJ 5.0 V8 weighs 2300kgs

 

I assumed technology & 'progress' would make cars lighter, but an Astra nearly the same weight as a Jag XJ? I'm staggered.

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

I checked this before, top of the range Astras are knocking on 1750kg, XJ V8s weigh little more.

[pandamonium]

My Lada has 84bhp / ton and isn't exactly rapid, so that thing must be horrendous!

[seth]

In the mid fifties Borgward were producing 1493cc cars with 82bhp, 84lbsft and capable of 40+mpg.

 

Progress in action!

[Richard]

I must be getting old, I find that dash cluttered and fussy.

[pogweasel]

Jesus wept, that must be unpleasant. Also embarassing when you get razzed off at the lights by someone in a 1275cc Marina...

[Cavcraft]

Sadly it will probably tick all the right boxes for the cretinous mongs who buy a car for the badge.

Lad who comes to work went to his local FAG dealer to price up a new Golf GTi. Says (and I quote) 'there was one outside for £32,000.I didn't even get out of my car'.

[red5]

Sadly it will probably tick all the right boxes for the cretinous mongs who buy a car for the badge.

Lad who comes to work went to his local FAG dealer to price up a new Golf GTi. Says (and I quote) 'there was one outside for £32,000.I didn't even get out of my car'.

 

You can get a brand new one for £24k - which is a lot of car for the money. £32 sounds like the MD's demo.

 

Having driven base (engine ) spec Astras, Focuses et al - if I was in the market for that kind of vehicle it would be the VW hands down - on the basis if you have to have something from that segment it might as well be the best (de-badged!) of the bunch?

[fiatdaft]

the base engine in any car range always suck. its been the same through the modern history of the car,always has ,always will.

also it looks like a low price point.

 

it exists to get you to spend more money (unless its fleet or a tax break special of course)

[Akron]

I had a mark 5 Golf 1.4 as a hire car, shite horrible insipid thing had to rag the bollocks of it to get anywhere my 1.4 8v Fabia felt considerably quicker and easier to drive.

Also if it is the same engine in the mark 5 it will the drinking oil and be needing new rings by it's third birthday.

[r.welfare]

Christ, if it was slower than an 8v 1.4 Fabia we're talking seriously pedestrian (my in-laws have an example of the latter).

 

Presumably this is a lo-po version of the 1390cc 16v - as you say, they're fond of a drink of oil (having had the 100bhp flavour in a Fabia). I'd rather hoped they'd cracked the piston ring issue though - and the belt tensioners made of chocolate that need changing every 36k along with both belts...you're also right that they have sod-all torque. They go quite well when you wind them up though, and can be pretty economical if driven properly.

 

VW base petrol engines do seem to be quite dreary at the moment. I was in Scotland last week and had a basic New Polo (just like a Golf etc) on hire - with the 60ps 1.2 triple. Made a nice noise (and much vibration through the gearlever), but bugger all go to it. 16.8 seconds 0-60...

[Albert Ross]

I beg to differ, I have a 2006 Focus Ghia, with the 100 brake 1.6 petrol. It's perfectly adequate, not going to set light to the road, but it has loads of toys, and is perfectly reliable. If I were in the market to buy a car of the "Golf Twist" variety, I would probably buy the Kia Cee'd. Why? Why not?

[Akron]

All the VAG petrols are dire apart form the 1.6, I think this is another re-incarnations of the old 1.4 16v oil burner.

The 1.2 is a steaming pile as well with timing chains jumping due to low oil pressure ( you must not drain them fully when doing an oil change ) and writing off the top end.

The 1.4 8v is a great engine old tech ancient Skoda engine (borrowed from Renault) but solid reliable and good on fuel.

[Polystratus]

All the VAG petrols are dire apart form the 1.6, I think this is another re-incarnations of the old 1.4 16v oil burner.

The 1.2 is a steaming pile as well with timing chains jumping due to low oil pressure ( you must not drain them fully when doing an oil change ) and writing off the top end.

The 1.4 8v is a great engine old tech ancient Skoda engine (borrowed from Renault) but solid reliable and good on fuel.

 

The 3 cylinder 1.2 was originally a Skoda design and VAG used it in the Polo after, the first engines had a 2 litre sump, and combined with some people not changing (or checking the oil levels) running it on a thimble full of oil caused some issues with the timing chain.(When chatted to a VAG Tech) They resized the sump to 3.7L and beefed up the chain tensioner. I've got the 1.2 12 v in my Fabia with the larger sump, and after five years still running great with regular servicing. Not yet experienced the 1.2 in the new Fabia, or new TSI engines, which look more complex. Have heard that the new 1.2 diesel in the Fabia Greenline estate is pretty dire.

[CIH]

Give it 20 years, when it's worthless and fucked, and VAG fault reader PC things are £5 on ebay, then it'll be great. Like a mk3 escort pop plus or something.

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

The 3 cylinder 1.2 was originally a Skoda design and VAG used it in the Polo after

 

I don't think Skoda have designed any of their own hardware in decades.

[Mr_Bo11ox]

I think theres still time to turn this into a generic 'modern cars are toss and theyr all driven by air head cunts, fuck shit wanker etc' thread before it drops off the page.

[Pete-M]

I do a couple of hundred miles most days in new Skoda Superbs. Basic "S" spec 1.9 PD 110 bhp ones. Fleets get them for not much more than that Golf costs. They're nice cars, the dash isn't exactly inspiring, but it's a lot better than that effort in the Golf.

 

Interior is like this, but without the sat nav or fancy dash display. It's got a fuel computer, but not the individual door open etc posh one.

 

 

We've also got the new spec Octavias, but they strangely feel like they've done 20k when they've not even done 20 miles. Nice enough, but beginning to feel very old compared to the Superbs.

[Conrad D. Conelrad]

I just remembered my biggest gripe with the Golf 6 interior. They obviously went to some effort to ensure all the visible materials have a quality feel, and gave the buttons a solid, positive action to give the impression of quality.

 

Then for the air conditioning controls they took inspiration from the cheapest Alba walkman in the 1997 Argos catalogue.

[Mr Lobster]

If I were in the market to buy a car of the "Golf Twist" variety, I would probably buy the Kia Cee'd. Why? Why not?

 

Fatha_Lobsta has recently done just that. 3 month old Cee'd SW, top spec 1.9 diesel for about £12k and its a right cracking car. Goes well, looks decent and surprisingly good to drive. Plus it'll probably last forever.

[Guest Leonard Hatred]

the dash isn't exactly inspiring

 

Why do you need to be inspired by a dashboard?

[Vin]

Does that Golf not have a turbo then????? Most modern mid range stuff seems to have smallish capacity, but turbo'd.

[Alexg]

I think theres still time to turn this into a generic 'modern cars are toss and theyr all driven by air head cunts, fuck shit wanker etc' thread before it drops off the page.

 

You're right! Now, how to sum this up in one distinct image?

 

 

 

 

 

 

Got it-

 

[warren t claim]

Today I followed something called a "BMW 316d". This must be as far removed from The Ultimate Driving Macine as an Isetta.