UPDATE: In keeping with my rotating stable of vehicles, the Oryx White Golf R made way for an Indium Grey Golf R back in January. Under normal circumstances it too would already be gone and replaced with a GTI I have on hold (Autobahn 6MT w/ Plaid seats
), but with the current situation, I think I might have this lovely R for a while longer.
Figured I'd provide a few more thoughts on the car after now spending ~7 months with it.
- It's an absolute back road monster; I have never driven a car so un-phased by changing surfaces, mid-corner impacts, etc., including the G70
- To the point above, the car feels immensely stable and secure, but almost to a fault; no matter how hard you try, you can't really upset it on dry roads
- Unsurprisingly, 4MOTION proved hilariously fun in the snow. Compared to the G70's rear-biased AWD, it takes more work to get sideways, but slides are also slower and easier to hold
- The car continues to be endlessly versatile, from my 150 km daily commute (when I was doing it!), to light-speed back-road blasts, to carrying my 8-month pregnant wife comfortably to-and-fro
- Of the two, I much prefer the look of the grey; since the Golf R has no sunroof, the white ended up looking a little too appliance-like from a distance. Grey fixes this
- I've never had a turbo car that pulls so hard to redline, very enjoyable to wind the engine out
All told, having now driven this extensively, I remain of the view that the GTI is more "fun" in perfect weather - lighter, more tossable, less serious-feeling. Needless to say it's also a much stronger value. But if I could only have one car, I can say without a hint of bias that this would have to be the one for my current stage in life. I'll be sad to see it go, but look forward to the MK8 arriving next year... it's going to be incredible
