Since a couple of days, the 3.5 month wait, continuous updating on Clubsport videos, pics, reviews, and imagining of what it would actually be/feel like

compared to the photos and vids are finally over. A Carbon steel metallic grey DSG Clubsport, loaded with almost every possible option has been acquired

and "chuffed to bits" is an understatement. Having only driven 200 miles I'll stick to the first impressions on overall feel/quality of the car and

reserve full judgement on the driving for a bit later on.

 

 

 

Part 1: Exterior look

 

 

So how does the car and CSG paint feel like in the flesh? Well, something around 100 times better than any photo I had seen. Which obviously means that what you see

in the photos below has to be multiplied by 100x to get close to the real impression the car makes on you  . From a distance, it blends in perfectly with all the glossy black Clubsport bits

like the integrated brake ducts and air channels, the side skirts, the rear spoiler and the glossy black inside the Belvedere wheels without being loud at all. The details that

stand out compared to a standard GTI are subtle and only a true VW-head would notice this is a special GTI. I like that.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

However once closer, all those bespoke parts just can't go un-noticed anymore. It is clear this is something more muscular, sportier, angrier than any other stock Golf

and to me at least it feels perfectly done. Just enough "tone up" on the GTI's lines with details that directly relate to motorsport, but still refraining from looking

"uncomfortable" for public road use. I think it's a balance that's very hard to get right but VW have totally succeeded in that. Belvedere wheels help a lot in that also imo.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited 1 September, 20169 yr by newbie69

Looks cracking mate. Enjoy!!!!!

Part 2: Interior

 

I know I said earlier that photos don't do the exterior any justice and I may sound like I am repeating myself If I say that the same (and worse) is true for the interior but wait till you actually get the chance to sit in a Clubsport before you judge me. 

 

 

That was my face the first time I sat in it. Obviously I liked what I had seen in photos but honestly, the cabin feeling is beyond any expectations.

All the alcantara bits and red stitching in door trims, gear stick, seats, the special textures on the dashboard, the amazing buckets and absolutely

gorgeous steering wheel simply and plainly set the car apart from every other competitor I went to see or drive and emit a sense of luxury sportiness

(not cheapo aftermarket "race mods") that I only thought was available in supercars and exotics. I had said the reason I went with the Clubsport was

that it looked special and I wanted something not just of a nice build quality, but also clearly sportier and more unique and I can confidently say that

it couldn't have ticked that box any better.  The phrase "no better place to be" now may extend to the point of including my house  :p

 

I had also said I was after I car that'd make me seek for excuses to go out and drive it and I can already see it is so capable at doing just that, that it will cause problems sooner or later.

 

I'm struggling to get the right photos a few days already but it's quite hard and probably impossible for a non-professional. Here's the best so far:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That looks rather lovely!  :clap:

 

Enjoy 

Part 3: Driving (only at 7/10 so far)

3a - The corners

Right, that is the aspect of the car that was supposed to be the real highlight, so?
Well I don’t know if it is because I have never actually driven something as focused as say a GT3, but the handling of this car is fantastic. No the rear end will not come into play if that’s your thing (unless of-course you over-over-do it on a wet round-about  with brand new average Potenza tyres like I did) but equally, you will not feel like you are plagued by typical FWD understeer at any moment. It feels so neutral that you’d have to physically check the power is sent to the front wheels alone to be sure of it.

 

At the beginning of the turn there is not much going on other than lightning fast chassis response - twice I almost curbed the inside wheel during a slow 90-deg corner as I didn’t expect it would need so small steering input to go round it   . And it is not only about the speed, but the feed-back is also so good that after getting used to the sharp steering it’s as if you are seeing exactly where the wheels are pointing. No doubt they've done some serious work with the upgraded steering rack.

 

The other two most amusing factors apart from the excellent turn-in, is the speed reserves you have mid-corner and the ability of ultra-fast and smooth direction changes. Unless we are talking real slippery conditions, I just don’t see how you could ever come close to the car’s grip limits on a public road. You push and push and the car just stays on the desired track and keeps accelerating, it’s mad... I went on a private corner track (…) and I repeatedly had to back off throttle before the tyres even started to scream properly. At that same track (...) there was a long straight interrupted by an artificial couple of left-right turns to purposefully slow you down. The car did not seem to be upset at all no matter how fast I tried to do the zig-zag.

 

Full evaluation to follow once breaking in is complete (and the track is hit) but it's evident there's bags of fun to be had even at NSL (there's no limits on lateral g's yet is there? :p )   I just have to get myself used to new cornering and handling standards, much higher ones than current experience suggests.

 

*** Note:  Bridgestone Potenza's are fine for daily driving and the occasional pushing, but I feel their limits are reached before the ones of the chassis. A set of Michelin Pilot Super Sport's will provide access to that extra potential of the car.

 

 

3b - The highway

I had read the Clubsport’s exhaust is louder than the GTI and was a bit worried as some of you know the issues I had with the upgraded exhaust on the vRS (which I hated). Are-you-kidding-me? What noise? The car is quite as a church I had to roll down the windows to check whether the dsg farts where there or not. I was travelling at 120mph (at a private airfield I should add) and the only thing I was hearing was - a bit of -  the air through which I was driving. I could hold a conversation or listen to music (Dynaudio sounds great by the way) without ending up with neither a sore throat or buzzing ears. But that is not big news for any German manufacturer I guess. What was yet again a big surprise was that the car felt as rock-solid and stable at 40mph as it did at 120mph. I don't know if at those speeds the aero starts to play a role in keeping you planted (probably) but the road holding ability and confidence it retains regardless of speed is almost frightening and on public roads you’d better keep an eye on the speedo as you lose all other possible hints that you actually go that fast. 

 

I think the best way to describe the driving experience is that you feel like everything (cornering, braking, travelling) can be done at 3x the level you would normally do, but still at the safety of the 1/3 of that performance (don't know if that makes sense).

Edited 1 September, 20169 yr by newbie69

Looks lovely! Especially those stunning seats.... :-)

Not 100% convinced by the styling of the wheels but I think they may grow on me. Glad you are pleased with it!!

I like the look of that, really like the seats.

 

Enjoy the motor!

Looks lovely! Especially those stunning seats.... :-)

Not 100% convinced by the styling of the wheels but I think they may grow on me. Glad you are pleased with it!!

 

Wheels are always something subjective but mind you that I also wasn't too sure about them from the photos as they looked liked a pizza almost. But actually they are so much better in the flesh that I now plan to keep them as my main (summer) set. I realized it is one particular angle (fully perpendicular) that creates this misleading impression. From almost every other angle they look less pizza-y more black than silver, but not pitch black either.

 

 

I like the look of that, really like the seats.

 

Enjoy the motor!

 

The seats are amazing. They are so comfortable that you practically forget you have buckets, until the moment you really need some lateral support and then you're glad you got them. I can definitely see myself doing long journeys on them without issues.

 

 

What I particularly like about the car as a whole so far is that it can tick all boxes depending on your mood and requirements. If you are stuck in city traffic or just not in the mood of pushing you can appreciate the interior, travel in refinement and feel like you're in a very special place. But the moment you have a good piece of road ahead and up the pace it will deliver driving joy like a true sports car. No need to bother with uprating one bit of the suspension, it's set up perfectly as it is.

 

Also, the steering wheel feels so nice it's slowly becoming a fetish. I don't know If I relish corners because the car takes them so well, or because it's an excuse to roll my hands over and caress the alcantara...

Edited 1 September, 20169 yr by newbie69

... it's an excuse to roll my hands over and caress the alcantara...

 

Steady on - remember people under 18 could possibly read this post!

Steady on - remember people under 18 could possibly read this post!

 

  I apologize...

Edited 1 September, 20169 yr by newbie69

After reading your posts I'm left scratching my head failing to see the point of the Golf R lol. The exterior styling on the CS seems much more subtle and motorsport focused than the R, and I always preferred the back -end of the GTI to those overkill quad-tip exhausts on the R. Seems to me the R's for the poseurs and the CS is for the enthusiast. 

 

PS: I own the baby GTI, and I would seriously kill for those seats. The steering wheel I have (standard GTI leather) has been described by the press as better than you find a Porsche, so I can only lust after the alcantara version you have

Edited 2 September, 20169 yr by Didescharlie

After reading your posts I'm left scratching my head failing to see the point of the Golf R lol. The exterior styling on the CS seems much more subtle and motorsport focused than the R, and I always preferred the back -end of the GTI to those overkill quad-tip exhausts on the R. Seems to me the R's for the poseurs and the CS is for the enthusiast. 

 

PS: I own the baby GTI, and I would seriously kill for those seats. The steering wheel I have (standard GTI leather) has been described by the press as better than you find a Porsche, so I can only lust after the alcantara version you have

 

Well I'm with you but the exterior is always something subjective you can say. The interior however, I think it's hard for an enthusiast not to love. I definitely can't praise the steering wheel enough (and not be reprimanded by mods   ). The more I think about it it's the biggest highlight of the car. It not only feels so good just in terms of the material, but it actually carries out its function so directly and sharply that every tight corner you come across brings a huge smile on your face.

 

 

I'd guess that the R is already a great proven value that's out there for some time already. But most people would have to actually test the Clubsport to realise just how great it drives, and particularly just how much better than they'd expect from a typical FWD (and its AWD equivalent in this case). I think once you've driven both, there is a clear winner in terms of driving dynamics, handling and agility and in my book these are the top priorities from a true sports car.

 

From what I've read it's nearly impossible (from a cost perspective) to retro fit the seats as they only come in pieces and there's some serious disassembly/assembly that needs to be done. At least according to some forums that have posted part details.

Edited 2 September, 20169 yr by newbie69

Lovely motor!

Edited 2 September, 20169 yr by DanGum

After reading your posts I'm left scratching my head failing to see the point of the Golf R lol. 

 

Don't worry. Links will soon appear trying to take the shine of this very impressive looking car by advertising PCP/HP/PCH prices

 

 

V nice car. I have read a few test drives of it and all the mags like it          

Borrowed a friend's DSLR with some fancy lens (totally clueless on pro photography) and here's a few more:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pardon the dirty winter mats over the nice gti ones....

1st week conclusions:

 

+

 

Cars feels so good to be in and drive, it really is a special driving experience

 

On the dry, your confidence runs out quicker than the car's grip

 

Incredible high speed stability and road-holding ability. It could travel and turn at 200km/h all day long (I mean in the Autobahn) and you wouldn't know for a second unless looking at the speedo. Almost scary

 

The DSG6 seems to have less of the quirks of the DSG7 so far ie. smoother downshifts, and be spared from the ultra annoying (for people who drive 90% in Manual like myself) super early down-shift to 1st while braking to approach a curb that always made me mad in the Fabia.

 

-

 

Throttle response/mapping not suiting the car's character. Totally dead for the first 20-25% of the pedal travel (wife actually said "it feels slower than the Fabia" when she slowly drove around town) then at 1/3 starts to come alive but is so quick to max out at 2/3 - 3/4 already that the final 25% of the pedal travel (much like the first one) does not seem to serve any purpose. I had heard GTI owners' complaints about that and can totally agree. Not a problem when for a spirited (manual) drive as you are always at higher revs and sticking with current gear for >3K rpm  but when you need a quick burst through slow traffic you need to floor it deeper than expected. At least good for economy...

 

As expected, Bridgestone S-001 are just managing on the dry, they give in too quickly (for a car like this) on the wet. You soon realise that the grip levels are so high that you need the best tyres you can fit in order to exploit everything this superb chassis has to offer you. No wonder Cupra Sub8 and Clubsport S shine when fitted with the Sport Cup 2s. Michelin Pilot Super Sports will be arriving coming spring.

Edited 5 September, 20169 yr by newbie69

I thought Michelin Pilot Super Sports were being discontinued in anything but OE sizes for existing vehicle? So for instance, if your tyres are the same size as either the fronts or rears on my M135 you are fine etc. I certainly can vouch for MSS. Best tyre I have ever owned, although a little tricky until warmed up (hilarious when cold in the winter, even when dry )

Not aware of anything happening to Super Sport? Yes, they tend to crop up in less size options and have often been designed to work with a specific car. Hence the OE question.

 

More info on available sizes from Michelin's site: http://www.michelin.co.uk/GB/en/tyres/products/pilot-super-sport.html

 

They're available as 4 day order from Camskill in 225/40/18 which is my usual test Again, normal for it to be a special order for specialist rubber like this.

it was something I read a few months ago about the Pilot Sport 4 or something like that being a replacement for the PSS. The Babybeemer site, M-lite section, was up in arms until someone said they would still be available as OE tyres for cars like the M-lite etc. Probably got muddled somewhere along the line thanks to excess alcohol

Same here, not heard anything about them being OEM exclusive from now on, I can find them at several Swedish tyres shops currently. Just came back from another spirited drive and definitely the Bridgestones need to go if the car is to be enjoyed to its full potential. I am already thinking putting them on sale for a low price and see whether I get any buying interest although it's not exactly the "hunting season" for summer tyres, is it...?

I did find that on a dry road at temperatures slightly above freezing I could break traction in a straight line at around 70 miles an hour, at least until the tyres warmed up. I am guessing they might need more 'warmed ups' in Sweden

Edited 5 September, 20169 yr by Lady Elanore

Deeeeeelicious

I did find that on a dry road at temperatures slightly above freezing I could break traction in a straight line at around 70 miles an hour, at least until the tyres warmed up. I am guessing they might need more 'warmed ups' in Sweden

 

Don't be too sure about that... I'm at the southern end and we often have slightly higher temps than UK I would say, minimum snow/ice (maybe not even once per year) and certainly less rain. I know people's idea about Swedish weather equals WRC snow drifting    but that's far more up north (and colder) than here.

Thats good to hear I took a guess and thought you might be middling in latitude Mind you, the comments about the MPSS still hold. Great fun when cold!

1st week conclusions:

+

Cars feels so good to be in and drive, it really is a special driving experience

On the dry, your confidence runs out quicker than the car's grip

Incredible high speed stability and road-holding ability. It could travel and turn at 200km/h all day long (I mean in the Autobahn) and you wouldn't know for a second unless looking at the speedo. Almost scary

The DSG6 seems to have less of the quirks of the DSG7 so far ie. smoother downshifts, and be spared from the ultra annoying (for people who drive 90% in Manual like myself) super early down-shift to 1st while braking to approach a curb that always made me mad in the Fabia.

-

Throttle response/mapping not suiting the car's character. Totally dead for the first 20-25% of the pedal travel (wife actually said "it feels slower than the Fabia" when she slowly drove around town) then at 1/3 starts to come alive but is so quick to max out at 2/3 - 3/4 already that the final 25% of the pedal travel (much like the first one) does not seem to serve any purpose. I had heard GTI owners' complaints about that and can totally agree. Not a problem when for a spirited (manual) drive as you are always at higher revs and sticking with current gear for >3K rpm but when you need a quick burst through slow traffic you need to floor it deeper than expected. At least good for economy...

As expected, Bridgestone S-001 are just managing on the dry, they give in too quickly (for a car like this) on the wet. You soon realise that the grip levels are so high that you need the best tyres you can fit in order to exploit everything this superb chassis has to offer you. No wonder Cupra Sub8 and Clubsport S shine when fitted with the Sport Cup 2s. Michelin Pilot Super Sports will be arriving coming spring.

Just sat in VW Swindon Inchcape dealership,having spent the last 1/2 hr crawling over Edition 40 No 204 in White. 5dr with bucket etc. Looks very nice in the flesh. Seats very good!!

Edited 16 September, 20169 yr by vrskeith