School me on Mk6 '09-present Golf TDI

[Beej '86 325es]

I'm looking at the '09 and up Golf TDI as a new daily driver. I'd load it up on the options, but mostly what I'm interested in is if it's a piece of garbage or not and quality of their newer diesel motors.

I really hate front wheel drive cars, but I think it's small enough that it that the feeling of being pulled along might not be so obvious. :)

Thanks!

[trackjunkie21]

A friend of mine has a DSG one, I'm pretty sure it's a base model and she loves it. I got to drive it and can't seem to see anything wrong with the design. It's comfy, has gobs of torque and is economical. Hers is an 09 which she got brand new then and she hasn't had any problems with it, The diesels were always more reliable than the gasoline counterparts.

[BoxDriver86]

European car is currently using a newer TDI as a project/long term update car. They seem to be pretty pleased with it so far. I have to admit, they look pretty nice to boot.

[KEVORM]

I have a MkV GTI and one of my good friends has the MKVI TDI, the interior quality on all current VW's it second to non in the price segment. FWD isnt that bad, especially for a daily. My friend gets a consistent 45+mpg, and on a long highway trip from seattle to portland she got 59mpg. The only problem with VW is that maintenance costs a LOT. IDK if they are still doing the included maintenance programs or not but that would be a real cost saver if they were. Overall it's hard to beat the MPG, practicality of a hatch, looks and quality in the TDI.

Also the diesels are INSANELY reliable

[warmseth]

I own a '10 TDI golf and it's a terrific car. It has the DSG trans as my wife insisted on an automatic. It's a fairly sporty transmission as autos go. It has the paddle shifts on the wheel and does a decent job of holding gears until redline but will shift for you if you push it. in fact if you leave it in manual and then just floor it you get a pretty good maximum thrust shift pattern. There's also an 'S' sport mode that is way more agressive than the standard 'D' mode and it does a surprisingly good job of upshifting and downshifting at appropriate and lively intervals. I would likely have chosen the manual if given the option, mostly because 90% of my 30+ cars have been manuals but also because there is a fair amount of turbo lag and I'd like to feather the clutch a bit to wind the turbo up some. Though I'm not sure that's actually how it would work; maybe there's a blow off valve that would not allow boost pressure to build while the clutch is in. In any case the turbo lag is a bit annoying and as a result the car is a bit lethargic off the line and then suddenly super aggressively launching...not a lot in between. Also when you put the car in park (or reverse) there is a lag between those gears engaging and as a result the car will coast forward (or backwards if you're on a hill) perhaps as much as 5 inches after you've engaged park. It's a bit disconcerting and I've taken to using the parking brake more than I might in a car that didn't do that.
The chassis is amazing for a front wheel drive car. VERY solid, VERY German. The electronics do an incredible job of making the car NOT feel like a FWD. It really is a fun car to drive fast into corners. It's not as engaging as a RWD sport car but it doesn't understeer and plow the way a lot of FWD cars do. As a comparison, I had an 03 GTI years ago and this MK6 is WORLDS away better to drive than that MK4 was.
Our car as about 40,000 on it now and it has begun to creek a bit...minor chassis flex can be heard but it is SO much more solid than the old MK4s that were Mexico and Brasil assembled. The TDIs are assembled in Germany and I don't know if that is the reason for the improved quality or if they're just better engineered now but it's a LOT better. My old GTI was rattling and making irritating squeaks within 10k miles.
The car delivers 35MPG in city driving with me pushing it as hard and generally driving like the asshole that I am. My wife regularly sees 40MPG city. If driven responsibly on the highway it can deliver 50+ MPG on flat freeway driving and even I see 42-45 with passing and driving 80.
The only complaints I have other than the mild transmission and turbo lag quibbles I have with it are that it has a fair amount of wind noise at the A pillars and the infotainment system. It delivers excellent sound and has good bluetooth phone and Pandora pairing but the user interface is a bit clunky and not intuitive.
The car has cost us $00 dollars in maintenance. As you only need it serviced every 10,000 VW has accepted responsibility for performing free maintenance during the first 30k. There's been a couple of minor software recalls that they've done free of charge. No mechanical issues to report. I highly recommend the car as a daily driver.

[Beej '86 325es]

That's a lot of great info!

What kind of RPMs is it running at say 75mph? Some little cars buzz a long at 4000 RPM on the highway, and it just drives me nuts!

On the A-pillar noise you mentioned, I think that's just a good sign that it's a quiet car. On my 540, it was very silent on the interstate, but I could pinpoint the noise on it as well (the wipers).

An acquaintance has a '10 GTI Autobahn, and I remember it being a VERY nice interior. I actually fit in it also (being 6'4") which surprised be for a small car. The Golfs have grown.

[warmseth]

I'm only 5'11" so I can't speak to the accommodations for you tall guys but the quality of the materials inside is top notch; as nice or nicer than most $35-40k cars. Ours was around $27k out the door brand new by the way. And if you consider the $3k government tax write off for fuel efficiency=$24k total spent is Honda Civic money for Euro styling and interior plushness.

The car isn't even pushing 3k at 85mph. You could comfortably drive 100 in it and still get over 30mpg. And it's got great passing torque on the fwy what with the diesel.

I just remembered one other minor quibble. The front seats are terrific. They're very supportive, sporty, adjustable and comfortable on short trips but the few long (100mile+) road trips we've taken in it has left me with a sore ass after a while.

[E30SPDFRK]

I'm a VW tech, and I can say that the TDi is the best engine they make. The MK5 and 6's really don't have many mechanical issues anyways, only electrical things that fail.

[blocke]

I'm a VW tech, and I can say that the TDi is the best engine they make. The MK5 and 6's really don't have many mechanical issues anyways, only electrical things that fail.

You forgot to mention the infamous cam follower fuck up on the BPY engines...one I have first hand experience with.
But, not relevant to the model OP is interested in. Aside from that small issue, and my AC compressor exploding at 50k miles, I am pretty happy with my Mk5.

[alexw]

Looking at this as well as a daily. I actually had the dealer tell me the TDI isn't really worth it when you do the math on gas vs diesel prices and MPG.

I haven't sat down and done the math, but what say R3v?

[blocke]

I say he is full of shit:

[E30SPDFRK]

You forgot to mention the infamous cam follower fuck up on the BPY engines...one I have first hand experience with.
But, not relevant to the model OP is interested in. Aside from that small issue, and my AC compressor exploding at 50k miles, I am pretty happy with my Mk5.

Yes, I did forget to mention the BPY's. NEVER buy a BPY. We've replaced 5 whole engines and had to replace the rings on countless others, along with the cam issues, the intake manifold runner motors, the guide rails, etc. But he was talking about diesels so I was speaking mainly for the car itself.

[Beej '86 325es]

Is the BPY just on the Mk5 GTI?

Are they still giving tax credits for these cars? I couldn't find anything when I searched a couple of days ago.

I did some quick math:
Current daily: 15,000mi @ 13.5mi/gal, $4.10/gal premium = $4555 per year
GTI: 15,000mi @ 27mi/gal, $4.10/gal premium = $2277 per year
TDI: 15,000mi @ 34mi/gal, $4.15/gal diesel = $1830 per year

In the grand scheme, fuel isn't really that huge of a savings.

[blocke]

BPY is not in production anymore, so If you buy a newer car you will be fine. TDI is a different engine all together.
I drive my GTI about 150 miles round trip from my home to my office about once every 2 weeks. I average 31-32 on those trips.
I have a few light mods (intake, GIAC tune). I actually get better mileage with the tune turned ON then in stock mode.

You also have to consider initial capital expense on the car. I think TDI's are more than a GTI. So even if you save $447 a year in fuel costs, it may take you 5-6 years to even make up the difference on the purchase costs.

[gbouton]

Be sure to check this site out http://www.tdi-issues.com/ I looked at the TDI before going with a 335D, so I can't claim to have any first-hand experience.

Graham