Very fast in the top end and from the start. Looks can be very deceiving. A car that is underestimated. Very roomy. I easily fit a 32 inch T.V in the hatchback including the box that it came in when I put the back seats down. I was easily able to close the hatchback which came in handy being that it was only 10 degrees outside.

I cant think of any other than the Monsoon System tends to screw up on me sometimes when I put a CD in it I have to reset it.

This car gets great gas mileage, its built like a rock. It is comfortable to drive. I put a few subwoofers and a Precision Power Amp in the hatchback and it sounds great. 0-60 in less than 7 seconds. 115 mph in 4th gear. Heated seats. The heater heats the entire car up and melts all the ice off the windows in less than 10 minutes in sub zero temperatures.

Similar Products Used:

Nissan 240 SX. (well, thats not really that comparable but its the only other car that I have really drove for long enough to compare.

VR6 engine is strong and quiet. Not as quick at the 1.8T, but smoother and quieter. Great headlights really make a difference at night. Super easy to access backseat. You have to check this out. Even more convenient than a four door. Great seats, leather, heated, very adjustable, supportive and comfortable. Good handling. Feels like a bigger car than it is, but super easy in traffic and parking lots. Great looking dash lights and wheels. One touch up AND down windows. Cool key design. Safety. Car has front AND side airbags AND air cutrtains. VW has done extremely well in crash tests with its recent cars. Nice feeling transmission. Steering wheel tilts and telescopes. Good stereo. 40/60 split fold down rear seat. Trip computer with two separate data sets (one resets after the car is off for about an hour, the other stores data (gas milage, total miles, driving time, avg. speed) until you reset it. Hatchback design. This is the smartest car design ever developed, and I''''m glad to see it coming back into style. Small exterior and large interior with plenty of room for four people AND luggage.

The fuel economy is not great IF you drive hard, but if you drive moderately you can get in the high 20''''s. My car gets stuck in first gear and can''''t be shifted out unless it is rolling (should be fixed as a warranty item but I haven''''t gotten to it yet). The stereo is poorly positioned and designed, hard to read and controls hard to use when driving. The automatic climte control system is really poorly positioned and IMPOSSIBLE to read while driving. It is also impossible to learn by feel. This is the worst aspect of the car. Although it is "automatic", that just means that it automatically does what you don''''t want it to, then you have to try to look at it to adjust it, and in the meantime you about have an accident trying.

A well engineered car with excellent performance and handling. Feels bigger than it is. Very comfortable and luxurious for a $20k car. The best safety features available in a car at this price. Unbelievably easy rear seat entry and exit. This car comes standard with everything you need EXCEPT a CD player (traction control, ABS, AC, leather, heated seats, tilt and telescope steering wheel, keyless entry, good stereo, one touch windows, cruise, multifunction trip computer, airbags in every place imaginable and more).

Similar Products Used:

1992 Honda Civic Hatchback 2001 VW Jetta 1.8T

acceleration times are at 6.7, 0-60. turbo starts in at about 2700, tears to 6700. Solid car.

a/c -weak steering tightens up under hard acceleration.

Wow. 1.8 turbo kicks in nicely to it''s peak 180 h.p.(some insiders say 190). 174 lbs of torque. 17 inch wheels. 225/55 tires. Monsoon stereo system, 5 speed is nice. Hatchback, makes it lighter, quicker than vr6.

Similar Products Used:

98 civic ex(modded) - gti is better, by far 93 camry v6 xle - i dont know why i even put this in here, besides the v6 factor.

VR6 is nice unit, good shift, crazy storage space and complete package

Bloody creaky & squeaky, plastic bits can drop off (like rear cup holder caps, seat belt covers, that little lever to push the seatback forward) , suspension is crap.

Got my ''00 GTI GLX in black. It''s a great package - everything you could ask for. I like it for the combination of things it is. Holds tremendous amount of stuff! Decently fast. 5 speed has nice changes. Main irk is that the bloody thing is SO creaky at only 7000 miles - it makes more squeaks than is acceptable. The suspension is also crap - the "sports springs" spoil the ride completely. It is bumpy and bucks and sways because the VR6 makes it so nose heavy. Not a great autocross machine. Get aftermarket Konis to help out.

Similar Products Used:

Alfa Romeo 33, BMW 328i

As above

No standard CD, standard suspension, a few creaks and rattles after 5000 miles, cheap ass tires and brakes, the window regulator things, and worst of all, VW service is notoriously crappy!

All things concerning the fit and finish, engine performance, utility, and standard features I agree with. No other car really matches it on the market. Fifth gear is great, but fourth is wimpy, and I rarely even use it. The car needs a serious suspension overhaul. There is way to much body roll and dipping during acceleration and braking. Needs better brakes. Also, the cupholders will guarantee that your dash controls will take a sip of your latte on the first bump or hard turn! Great car though, and I plan to tune it up a bit when the time is right. Meanwhile, I''ll haul anything I want, take kids for a ride in their car seats, go to work, grocery store, and long trips with comfort and 32 MpG!

Similar Products Used:

Honda civic

Looks. Acceleration.

Rattles. Electrical. Poor VW service. Body problems. Light suspension and steering. Warranty - wait for 2002 for the new waranty

Volkswagen''s are alot like cheap, gold plated jewelry. You think you''ve purchased something of quality, it remains that way for some time, and then the defects begin to appear. I purchased my 2000 VR6 in the late summer of 99 so I''ve had it just over two years and in that time it has had its share of problems. First, there was (and still is) this incredible dashboard rattle which of course the dealer can''t/won''t isolate and repair. Then came the annoying electrical problems - a light out here, a light out there. The first major problem was the air flow sensor which needed to be replaced at 25,000 miles. A couple more squeaks and rattles showed up just to keep me on my feet. Last month the passenger door window dropped into the door frame (window regulator). Oh, I forgot to mention the oil pan needed to be replaced because the excellent service center stripped the plug(and, amazingly, they didn''t think they needed to replace it. Thankfully, VW of America did - thanks Beranger). To top it all off, there are now three points along the outside of the windows (both rear side windows and rear window) where the rubber is rotting. This, of course, ticks me off because I am extremely faithful about keeping the car immaculate. What else can I say. Overall the car has fabulous acceleration, but way too light steering and a super soft suspension for tight turning. Buy VW, they look good - just like that gold plated piece of jewelry. To cap it off, I still love my car. How bizarre.

Similar Products Used:

98 VW Jetta GLX - engine problems.

VR6 spirit; subtle luxuries; cargo room; in-your-face, blue & red glaring dials and dash.

Laughable warranty; (lack of)fuel economy; quirky rattles; CD player?

Adore the design of this automobile, the number of creature comforts, and the effortless acceleration. Well worth the money for those who want to breathe a little life back into long commutes. Girls think the Golf body is cute. And it certainly is. One-touch windows, quiet "climatronic" climate-control system, typical VW bolstered seats that hinge forward for gracious back seat access, everything fashioned with high-quality plastics--like Audi brethren ...a lot to like about this car. Some irks: Rolls in the bends--bite the bullet and purchase the 17" wheels; you won''t regret it. A few clicks and rattles already--after less than 1k miles-- I hope this isn''t some portent of things to come. The leather is of questionable quality, no in-dash CD player?! Wood grain accents likely originate from the Brazilian epoxy resin tree. The Monsoon stereo generates incredible power, but not of the highest fidelity. Poorly designed sun roof dial requires attention during operation.

Similar Products Used:

1991 VW Golf, 2001 Audi allroad

Leather seats, winter package allows them to be heated!
Luxurious interiors.
Blue indigo and intense red light on the instrumentpanels, looks so classy!
Exceptional handling and responsiveness.
Good trunk space.
Torque!!

Cupholders.
Sunroof-control dial
US GTI models don't have all the goodies that are available on the European models, i.e. navigation system, Recaro sport seats and Xenon
lights.
Extra features on the GTI VR6 should be available as options on the GTI 1.8T too. Europe offers the "extras" as individual items and not as whole packages, which gives a greater choice for the consumer to tailor the car to his/her needs.
Stock rims and tires, choose the 17'' option.

About a month ago I was on a lookout for a allround compact sportscar that would be in the priceregion of $ 19,000-22,000. Initially I had in mind three models, Mazda Miata, Mitsubishi Eclipse and VW GTI. After a couple of trips to the various cardealers I realised that I actually was only going to consider the GTI. The Miata is truly a beatiful and well-built car, but the lack of spacious trunkspace made me change my mind about it. The Eclipse, although looking nice on the outside, didn't impress me that well with regards to the interior. Everything looked so cheap. Then it was time to testdrive the GTI. In Europe this car is undoubtedly one of the most popular sports-hatches around. With the latest MKIV version, Volkswagen had without a doubt drawn some inspiration from its Audi A3 model (which is sold in Europe but not in the US). When I first stepped into a GTI 1.8T model, I was lost for words. All the black leather gave the car such a BMW/MB-esque look. The sportseats gave good lumbar and side support. Instrumentpanels were designed with flawless ergonomics and truly showed what good ol' German engineering is capable of. The Moonsoon stereo, although not perfect, is still one of the most impressive stock systems I've ever listened to. There was however one thing that annoyed me, and it still does today, the back cupholder is totally useless. I've never been able to attach any cups/bottles to it! In the light of all the almost perfect details of this car, it was a true dissapointment that VW couldn't design a better cupholder. One other problem with the car is the dial that is used to control the sunroof. It has a tendency not to activate the sunroof at all, so sometimes several on/off turns are required for anything to happen at all.

When I took the car to the streets, I was totally shocked by the tremendous low end torque that this small car could produce. Accelerating this car is a dream with the manual transmission and the turbocharger. Never buy a GTI with an automatic transmission, that would breaking a tabu. This car doesn't deserve to be degraded that way. One of the things that regularly put a wide grin on my face is the disbelief that shows on other drivers face when I outrun their cars with the GTI. Since it is a niche car, most people don't know what it is capable of. If you have your GTI on a parkinglot, you can be damn sure that there won't be another one around. As I have heard of someone else: "You don't feel cheap with your GTI next to a BMW, but you would with a Honda".

If your looking for a special car that can exude the overall quality of German engineering, but can't afford to fork out + $27,000, then do yourself a favour and choose a GTI. I've driven cars in the BMW 3 series and the MB C-class range and I can with confidence state that GTI is a car of equal quality, but for soooo much less money!!! I won't even try to compare the GTI with Honda Civics or Acura Integras. The japanese cars just don't compare. Sure you can modify them to the unrecognisable for better performance with aftermarket parts, but then you also take away all the parts that define what cars they truly are. Wouldn't that be kinda cheating??

Similar Products Used:

BMW 3 series
MB C-class
Honda Accord

Fit and finish.

Electrical system.

I got a real deal by purchasing this car from my mechanic. The body & paint are flawless, as is the interior. The 2.0L 8V propels the car nicely and the 4 wheel discs are smooth and effective. There has however been a 'gremlin' set loose in the electrical system. The car will stall out for no reason. My mechanic and I have changed the coil, injector relay, ignition swithch, and fuel pump relay to no avail. I'll be changing out the motronic ECM this weekend in what seems to be a vain attempt to correct a frustrating problem. This car is more troublesome electrically than any of the German-built or Westmoreland-built VWs I've owned in the past. Dash lights, electric locks and trunk release have all failed this year. I guess I'm experiencing what its like to own a Mexican-built VW

Similar Products Used:

None

Where to start? Torque band is very broad, very smooth delivery. Style, understated but agressive. Fit and finish is first rate.

speeding tickets

This car rocks. Its small enough to really take advantage of the power to weight ratio but large enough to be a "grown up" car that can handle every day life. I got 17" wheels off a Jetta GLX and it looks great, as well as improving the performance drastically. I drive a friends 98 BMW 528i and my GTI has nearly all the same qualities, not as nice, but close, and for half the price, wow. oh, and the leather seats are soooo nice.

Similar Products Used:

91 GTI, 98 vtec Integra (have to abuse it to get any real performance)