Perhaps if it's replacing the missus's Yeti ,you will have to do a Furbytom and wait for the R Estate ,on a 15 plate or whenever it arrives in UK. Plenty of time to convince her then.

Enjoy the drive!

That was my plan but last night she saw an Octy 3 vRS TDI estate online and wants me to take her to have a look at it this weekend..... :-( lol.

I reckon that it'll be waaay to big tho. Is the golf estate a little shorter in length?!

That was my plan but last night she saw an Octy 3 vRS TDI estate online and wants me to take her to have a look at it this weekend..... :-( lol.

I reckon that it'll be waaay to big tho. Is the golf estate a little shorter in length?!

 

You have failed at the first hurdle.

The secret is to buy a replacement before they know anything about it.

You have failed at the first hurdle.

The secret is to buy a replacement before they know anything about it.

Bought one yet? :P

You have failed at the first hurdle.

The secret is to buy a replacement before they know anything about it.

Haha I like your style. Only snag is the blinkin Golf R estate hasn't been released yet but who knows maybe a VW dealer might take a deposit on one in advance lol.

She feels she hasn't "bonded" with her Fabia as much as she hoped, primarily because it was a showroom model that she couldn't choose the spec and colour of etc and I bought it for her as a necessity to carry the baby gear etc. She's wanting much more input with her next motor :-( Hence playing the 'long game' with the R-plan. Now I just need to put her off an Octy this weekend and we'll be back on course...

Haha I like your style. Only snag is the blinkin Golf R estate hasn't been released yet but who knows maybe a VW dealer might take a deposit on one in advance lol.

She feels she hasn't "bonded" with her Fabia as much as she hoped, primarily because it was a showroom model that she couldn't choose the spec and colour of etc and I bought it for her as a necessity to carry the baby gear etc. She's wanting much more input with her next motor :-( Hence playing the 'long game' with the R-plan. Now I just need to put her off an Octy this weekend and we'll be back on course...

Tell her about the rattles and fake sound

That was my plan but last night she saw an Octy 3 vRS TDI estate online and wants me to take her to have a look at it this weekend..... :-( lol.

I reckon that it'll be waaay to big tho. Is the golf estate a little shorter in length?!

Golf estates arent massive. Theyre a nice size for a family car i think.

We liked the one we had. Lovely car.

And the R's are nice inside!

Had my appointment with the Golf R today.

Quite interesting, but not as good test route as in the S3 and it was low on fuel. :wonder:

 

Walked right next door and got to take the M135i out too for a direct comparison.

 

Will write about it later, on childcare duties at the moment.

Had my appointment with the Golf R today.

Quite interesting, but not as good test route as in the S3 and it was low on fuel. :wonder:

 

Walked right next door and got to take the M135i out too for a direct comparison.

 

Will write about it later, on childcare duties at the moment.

Awaits report on M135

 

And how you think all three compare to be honest.

Had my appointment with the Golf R today.

Quite interesting, but not as good test route as in the S3 and it was low on fuel. :wonder:

Walked right next door and got to take the M135i out too for a direct comparison.

Will write about it later, on childcare duties at the moment.

Properly pee's me off when you get in a car for a test drive and its on the reserve fuel.

Makes a decent drive impossible :(.

Properly pee's me off when you get in a car for a test drive and its on the reserve fuel.

Makes a decent drive impossible :(.

Hate that too, just conveys a total lack of attention to customer service :-(

Apologies is this thread is going a bit "off topic", but I'll carry on anyway as there is Golf R content...

This is my personal experience of the S3, Golf R and M135i and the respective test drives.

First of all I have to say the S3 test drive was great.

Walked in out of the blue and was allowed to take it out, slaesman was open to a brisk test drive as it's that sort of car and the route was good with no time contraints.

Golf R by comparison was let down by a shorter test route, not the same chance to play with it and the fuel light coming on within five minutes driving showing a range of 35 miles. And this is after I had to book a test drive and come back four days later.

Again, like the S3 I just walked into BMW, got a helpful sales guy who let me take the car out there and then. He pushed the car quite hard, then let me do the same. Longer route (BMW garage was right next door to VW) and happy with a bit of ooomph. Highway code had already been ripped up before I got in the driving seat...

In summary the Audi and BMW dealer experiences were simply better. Far better.

Now onto the cars.

I really liked the S3 and I do mean quite a lot. Handles well, went well and was fun to drive. And I do mean a lot of fun to drive. Not challenging or threatening to bite you, but as a point to point fun car it was blisteringly quick. Amazing grip, good practical body and it does a nice cheeky noise when downchanging in race mode.

Interior was nice, comfortable and the back seats perfectly usable in a 5 door car. Ideal.

At this point it's fair to say I didn't think the Golf R or BMW would be as good, I was that impressed.

The only colour I'd have is the metallic red, but that's a personal thing. All the other Audi standard colours are variations of dullness, unless you like white.

It comes with a nice leather interior and a few other decent spec bits, but is missing a few "must haves" for me, like front parking sensors and adaptive cruise.

In the spec I'd have wanted it was £37k. DSG 5 door.

The Golf was somewhat of a surprise after the S3.

It was harder, more focused and felt more aggressive. The suspension was clearly firmer in race mode and it sounded better for playing with.

Obviously it drove well, although it did jump over crests more than the S3 as it's firmer.

Overall, if you wanted to have fun at the top of the wants list, the Golf R was simply a better car. It just felt harder in the way it drove, cornered and sounded.

I didn't think it could be better than the S3, but it was. More focused in Race Mode, but fine in comfort. VW have effectively "out race moded" Audi, with a better set up.

Now being close to the S3 on price I didn't think there would be much in it in terms of kit aboard.

You don't even get leather like the Audi, it's Alcantara. But you do get other stuff included that are options on the Audi. Mainly Adaptive Cruise and front/rear parking sensors.

Which means while the cars are close on price the Golf R can be cheaper.

Because I am not fussed about sliding around on full leather the Golf was more in line with what I'd spec, so the end result was it needed less options added.

And it's got to be the darker metallic blue, but the colour choice is pretty poor IMO. I prefer the look of the S3 in Misano Red.

In the spec I'd have wanted it was £33.5k. Also DSG 5 door.

Onto BMW, not a car I'd serious considered buying (I'll be honest here) because I don't like the looks of it much with it's flat front.

The handling balance is great, arguably better than the others.

It has less traction, but will indulge you with a bit of drift at the rear end (not much, just a few degrees to make it feel more entertaining) and the extra two cylinders and larger cubic capacity are noticable. It is fun to drive, quite a lot of fun actually. I can see why they are popular.

To me it sounded good (not quite as good as the Golf R, but in that you more aware the noise is being generated) and really feels like a premium car inside.

As a point to point car I don't think it's quite as quick, the four wheel drive of the other two give you a safer drive with a back up plan if you get it a bit wrong, unless you are driving like a tool.

But the BMW seemed to have a deeper character, you can't just get in and drive it very quickly like the VW and Audi. For any given grip limit you can play with it more because it feels more alive when on the limit.

It is reasonably well specified as standard too and the list price is almost the same as the others. But there are some things you can't get that VW/Audi have.

For me, it's the Adaptive Cruise. Not even an option, just plain old crusie control the Fabia could have 14 years ago.

In the spec I'd buy it was £34k, 8 speed Auto, 5 door in the nice light metallic blue. At least BMW have a few interesting colour choices.

But missing Adaptive Cruise, which would rule it out for me. Now I've had a car with it I consider it a must have when spending over £30,000.

So which would I buy?

Tough one.

As a daily that you could also have a bit of fun with, the S3. Looks nice, great all year round performance and just felt very well built.

But it's a bit safe, you have to go completely mad to get the buzz from it, because it's so capable.

Yes it's more money and yes it's not as good in race mode, but as a year round, family car with serious grunt it's a better all round "does everything" package.

I also prefered the looks over the others, but that's a personal thing. (as a lot of what I'm writing is).

It's also the most expensive in a reasonable spec with the worst online discounts.

For fun I can see why people would buy an M135i.

It's not a looker, more of an aquired taste, but a lot of fun and you have to use more skill to drive it well.

In the showroom they had an M235i in the same colour, shame it's only a 2/3 door as it looked far better and wasn't much more expensive. Still no adaptive cruise though...

I can't think of any other reason not to buy an M135i other than the looks actually, it's a great package. Great engine, great fun. Not as capable than the others in a good way if you like driving. On an average road, slower and in the damp slower. Depends what you look for in a car. Fun or speed. Having the back out a bit is good fun.

Lets be honest though.

The Golf R is amazing value on the deals floating around.

Because while it's not quite as premium as the S3 or as well rounded it does feel better than the Audi when you are on it and it does have the all wheel drive security meaning I could happily give it to my wife. The BMW would make me nervous at this last point.

And it's cheaper.

If you look for a deal online, quite a lot cheaper actually.

It runs the S3 very close as a daily and beats it for fun and handling, while costing less.

It isn't quite as much fun in a "you have to drive it" way as the BMW, but it's a safer car with higher limits of grip and has just has a more eager mad character when you switch on race mode.

Shame it looks so normal though.

Right now, if I was about the sign on the dotted line I can honestly say I'd not know which to chose.

They are all great cars and a clear winner doesn't exist. They all lead the others in different ways.

The BMW only loses out to me on looks and no Adaptive Cruise. Both things you could probably get used to, so it's right in the mix.

Winter tyres would sort the wife issue.

The Golf edges it on value for money due to the deals available and it'd harder race mode if I am honest. But it really is a tough call if you can afford a bit more for either of the others.

If you made it this far, congratulations and sorry for the long post. Hopefully not too boring...

BMW M135i waiting time = 2-3 months.

Audi S3 waiting time = 5 months.

VW Golf R waiting time = 6 months.

Richard. Glad you enjoyed the S3, we have a saloon if you want to try one, bigger boot for the family!

Donna is away for a few days so Carwow replies may be a little slow.

I didn't like the 1 series looks until I saw a few on the road and am now quite a fan.

Richard. Glad you enjoyed the S3, we have a saloon if you want to try one, bigger boot for the family!

I prefer the shape, but like the A8 I don't prefer the window cutting into the boot opening and the rain going in while the boot is open!

For me, I chose the R because I had just spent 2 years in an S4 and the new S3 just looked too similar.

I also wanted something a little more 'focused', and whilst Audi have made the S3 a much better drivers car than the previous incarnation, I wanted the better of the 2 stable mates in respect to this.

Do I miss the Audi? only because the interior is not as good in the VW. I find the Golf R feels very similar to a vRS inside, so not exactly spartan but a definte second to Audi in this respect.

I would definitely put the S3 on a list of cars to buy, but ultimately I chose the R for reasons that were specific to me and coming from the S4 it was alway going to be the R.

With the deals that were (maybe still are?), it's a absolute bargain

With the deals that were (maybe still are?), it's a absolute bargain

Recently the good deals seem to have been on the 3 door.

I'd only buy a 5 door and the cheapest 24 month lease was about 25% more expensive, despite the car costing only a few thousand more at list.

Richard, i wont quote your post because itll take up loads of room if i do haha, but thanks for taking the time out to do such a write up.

Very interesting.

Very interested in the cars myself, but I'll have to fit a few more boilers before theyre in reach haha.

Awesome reviews Richard! Still half tempted to get a Golf and keep the Fab as well!

Recently the good deals seem to have been on the 3 door.

I'd only buy a 5 door and the cheapest 24 month lease was about 25% more expensive, despite the car costing only a few thousand more at list.

I know recently there had been a lot of talk of the GFV's being reduced by VWFS & this has obviously hit the PCP & lease values.

I'm not sure why there such a difference between the 3 & 5 doors. Like you 5 doors are a must for me.

Are you thinking of adding to you collection?

Not sure what you've been quoted but a quick search found:

5 door DSG, 10000 miles (6ppm) -

23+6 @ £229+vat

Next week on "Cars I'll never own", Richard picks me a  car for just nipping out to the shops

Tune in to see whether he prefers the 911 Turbo, McLaren P1 or BMW i8

 

Not sure what you've been quoted but a quick search found:

5 door DSG, 10000 miles (6ppm) -

23+6 @ £229+vat

Personal or business?

Not sure what you've been quoted but a quick search found:

5 door DSG, 10000 miles (6ppm) -

23+6 @ £229+vat

 

Linky?

Personal or business?

Business (+vat).

The personal option is available @ £274.80, same price just with the vat added

Linky?

No personal dealings with them, so can't recommend either way

https://www.vehiclesavers.com/car-leasing/volkswagen/golf-hatchback/2.0-tsi-r-5dr-dsg.html