Review: 5/5 VW Golf TSI

mabo

Club Member
Nov 13, 2011
4,259
3,900
south wales
I've pondered where to put this, I'll let the mods decide if they want to move or delete.
A couple of weeks ago I used a hire car provided by my employer for a trip from Swansea into central Birmingham.

Last time this happened I was given a Mondeo, pretty damn big just for little me, it was OK but I was a little disappointed with the build quality.
This time I was given a brand new Golf TSI estate.
I struggled to get my phone to link via blue tooth, it wanted a code which I couldn't figure out.
North bound was M4, M50, M5 and then into central Birmingham. I was well behaved, sticking religiously to 70, I used the cruise control. It had the front radar feature, I've not used it before . Once I got used to it gently applying the brakes and then letting them off as I pulled into the lane 3 to overtake I was quietly impressed. TBH it was a very easy motorway trip.
It had the lane guidance assist, It caught me by surprise at first as it gave me a gentle nudge on the steering wheel back into my lane. I soon realized it was because I was being lazy when pulling back in after an overtake and not using the indicator. Use the indicators and it is smart enough to know I'm changing lane on purpose. I'd heard of this feature and thought I'd hate it. In reality I'm surprised to be writing that I decided it was actually pretty good. I can see it would be a massive help if you were caught unawares when driving too long and tired.
Other little assists that I didn't expect ? There is a little light on the inside body work of each exterior door mirror. I noticed on the motorway that whenever a passing vehicle, or a vehicle I was passing was in the door mirror blind spot the light would illuminate. From my motorbike riding and training I'm very blind spot conscious but for the less aware driver they are a really good little tool. It is sufficient to catch my peripheral vision
I mentioned the radar feature on the cruise control but it operate all the time, I noticed it was breaking sooner than me into roundabouts, I tend to come off the gas and roll towards the slower traffic without braking, it didn't like that and would gently apply the brakes if I didn't join in on the pedal it would brake stronger. On one occasion I deliberately didn't brake at all. My foot was poised above the pedal but I wanted to test its brain power. It braked much stronger and flashed up on the screen in front of me BRAKE. so I did.

The sat nav was pretty intuitive, controlled via the touch screen which I'm not a fan of, I always find them cumbersome, the car moves, and you dab the wrong button. I tried resting my hand on the base of the screen, but that let me touch another button on the screen and I got back to the radio mode. WTF? My DS sat nav is controlled by a knob in the centre arm rest, easy peasy everything nicely to hand and passenger can set the nav while the driver drives, so loss of mark to VW for the touch screen.

After work I nipped over to collect some C2 headlights from Dandamano, and left with a couple of other bits too.
Setting off west of Birmingham and heading for home rather than Swansea, IE further west than Swansea the sat nav plotted a route on A roads across country, Yup I'm up for that let's go.
That was where the fun started. I soon found the handling was really sharp, not too surprising maybe with maybe just a few thousand miles on the clock, pushing into corners it stuck like glue.

Of course sooner or later I hit some slower moving cars. Treating the car as I would my motorbike I waited for a gap and pulled a quick overtake. Not knowing how slow or quick it was going to be I dropped a gear and floored it. Boy did she go. Hey this thing is real fun. Razor sharp handling and instant acceleration. Single cars soon became multiple cars. At one point I was behind an artic HGV. I wasn't there long and a straight appeared, drop a cog, floor it and the HGV was in the mirrors, job done and so easily I had room to spare, she dived around the bend at the end of the straight with no hint of drama.
To be honest it's probably the most fun I've had in a car for years. Mrs Mabo would not have approved, I have been warned in the past whilst having fun on A roads, if you don't slow down I'm going to throw up. No passenger today , game on.
When I got home that evening I was raving about the car to Mrs Mabo, she asked how much are they, do we want one ? If I was in the market for a new car this really would be the perfect car for us. I've not looked at the price tag, I'm not in the market for a new car. The tech is very very impressive, the features I thought I'd hate are all really good. On the motorway All I had to do was point it in vaguely the right direction. On A roads it was an absolute blast.
So where did all this power come from ? It was a 1.5 petrol, I suspect its maybe the one with supercharger and turbo strapped to it but I have't checked.
What about fuel economy ? I hear you ask, it was showing an average of 50 something when I checked the next morning when I dropped it back to the hire depot. I was gentle on the motorway but gave her a good work out on the A roads so thats an impressive number.
During that cross country blast it kept popping up a message along the line of " economy tip, change into higher gear sooner " My response, Nah this isn't about economy, I'm choosing the gears.

Seriously I was very very impressed and could be persuaded to buy one. Getting into the Suzi GV 1600 on an 04 plate for the trip back home was radically different, I enjoyed the drive home in a very different way.
 
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good review mate!
zee germanz haz a vey of making u likz zem..
the only thing i will say tho is i doubt that poor pushed to the limit 1.5 engine or the vw car will ever reach the age of your suzi..
my daughter has a peugeo 107 which has the tiny 3 banger engine, i drove that and could not believe the power it had.. altho it did sound like a bee trapped in a tin can:ROFLMAO:
 
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Thanks Shirty. I posted because it’s such a very different car to the Cougar. I was really surprised at how good the tech on board is.
My new car is 8 years old now and despite being the top of the range is an imbecile compared to the above. I’d heard of such gimmick and truly thought I’d hate them. The reality was very different and combined with a pocket rocket engine I was impressed.

I guess it’s the tech failures that will eventually kill these cars , I can cut the rot out of a banger but I wont be reprogramming the brain on one of these when they go wrong.
I know someone who has spent a fortune on a Jag E pace, he loves it, apart from the gremlins in the mega tech it has on board. It’s been back to them lots for updating.

3 cylinder engines do have a distinct sound. A good one at that.
 
Thank you Foobar. I just told it as it was.
I’ve spent much of the day stripping wallpaper, if I can make that interesting it’s time I found a new job.
 
Ah, now that I can equate to. We have a thing called a 'Polti Vaporetto', it's Italian, but you wouldn't want to ride pillion. It's a steam cleaner that can take a wall paper stripping attachment. We've been using it this week. Vinyls need the surface plastic layer pulled away first, which is normally very easy. A good dose of Poundland's pink 'Dirty Bike' at 99p / litre speeds the task....

It's also very good for cleaning leather and several YouTubers have made videos of them in action in their cars. They kill mould spores and mites on contact. If used correctly, they do not damage the leather or even leave it hot or damp. I have a triangular brush, not shown, for that purpose. Also very good for chasing out grime from uPVC windows around the openings. I use 'Dirty Bike' there too....

Polti Vaporetto.jpg

tbtw4svxq04__36992.1636026625.jpg
 
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Go go gadget springs to mind . :)
I’ve never used a steam stripper, the fact that we’re sleeping in the room is a factor, not having one, or wanting to hire one is another.
It was slash through the vinyl of the paper with a corner of the scraper than lashings of water on a rag. Carpet protected by layers of cardboard, still got plenty of that around after the move.
My back and hips are aching due to the unexpected work out but I’ll be fine tomorrow.
 
The crazy thing with a steam cleaner is that it doesn't really leave a lot of moisture. Ok, so we put an old towel down along the skirting board, but most of it just blows away. I just updated the comments above to include my favourite cheapo spray cleaner - 'Dirty Bike' from Poundland. I guess its just water, alcohol and detergent, but works well on wallpaper too. I did a 6m x 7' 6" vinyl papered wall in a morning, much of it coming off in complete strips.

The machine is obviously much more than just a wallpaper stripper. There is even a steam iron included wth this setup. I'll post a link to a video of a similar unit, it really is as good as all the adverstising and then some. I always use deionised water btw. It melts grease on hobs and rings, I have yet to try it on a barbeque though, but they do small brass brushes which look ideal for that task....

 
Water is pretty harsh your side of the country, our Welsh stuff is definitely less lumpy.
We have a steam mop, it’s great on floor tiles but thats all hard surfaces in kitchens etc but bedroom is all carpet and soft stuff, so any moisture that settles, as it must, is going to be absorbed .
I could be wrong but not in the bedroom we’re sleeping in.
If it was an unfurnished house then yes game on.
Steam iron, now I think I remember them, one of the perks of Covid is me working from home, which means Mrs Mabo hasn’t had to iron my work shirts for 2 years ! The steam iron is feeling very lonely, still unboxed since we moved.
 
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Each to their own of course, but these are sold to be used in a soft furnished homes which is where this normally lives. Not just that, but they were designed to chase out the irritants of mould and mites from soft furnishings. Honestly, they do not leave things wet. The blade gadget in the picture is for squeegeeing ( is that a word ? ) down all the windows inside like a Karcher. I was a bit nervous at first, thinking it might crack the glass, truth is it doesn't even leave it warm.

I loved the Freudian slip earlier btw, now I think I know what happened to the old lady..... :ROFLMAO:
 
You’re going to have to point out the Freudian slip, my brain is shutting down at this time.

Theres no way the vinyl is coming off this paper easily, I’ve probably spent about 4 hours to do half the wall but that’s over 2 stints and clean up and normalise the room afterwards.
 
Ah gotcha, in the other thread.
I could barely breathe for laughing when I read it back. My eyes were streaming with laughter tears.

The old lady that lived here before us def didn’t give me 12 inches at the front, god bless her.
 
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