2007 Volkswagen GTI 5dr. Road Test Pt.II

Last time I told you why we all love the GTI. Now, we have to take the longview and report on the total experience. Part 1 may have seemed like a sickening love-in to some of you, but that's just the way I feel, and I've got the support of everyone else in the office, not to mention Automobile Magazine—if you hadn't heard, it was their pick for Car of the Year. However, I haven't lost sight of my mandate to evaluate all aspects of any vehicle I test, and we all learned a lot in our three-plus weeks with the GTI.

First of all, it's an icon. It stands for driving pleasure at an affordable price; granted, $22K isn't cheap, but it delivers performance, and perhaps more importantly, a driving experience that can match almost anything, including many cars twice its price and more. Of course, there are Mazda MX-5s and Boxsters out there that may deliver superior balance, dynamics and more communicative chassis', but they simply can't match the versatility and accommodations of a five-door GTI. You can also look to the Mazdaspeed3's higher-horsepower-per-dollar value, but it's a little too tightly wound, too banzai and generally a menace in less than ideal conditions. Honda's Civic Si, while superb, is not nearly as adept at balancing commuting comfort and daily driving with a track-day or backroad plaything.

As good as the GTI is, it's not perfect, and as good as the steering wheel is,the interior leaves me wanting—in fact, it kinda' leaves me wanting my Mk.IV GTI. It's not that there is a discernible

Eventually, even Jon was converted to the ways of the (new) GTI. (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

drop-off in materials quality or any problems with the faultless assembly (everything fits flush and tight), but the pastiche of the current corporate parts that make up the center stack are dull and tedious despite the lovely blue backlighting and an occasional spar of aluminum—and one aspect that I particularly don't like is the chin that hangs over the little storage cubby—it just seems like a design dead end with no grace or purpose. And aside from the plaid cloth seat inserts, a monochrome sea on the dash and doors only continues the dreary theme during daylight hours. Come night, however, and the blue and red gauges and dials light the cabin up in a festive scheme, making night driving an event to celebrate.

And then there is the infamous VW reliability to consider. Volkswagen has never fared well in JD Power's dependability surveys or Consumer Reports' reliability recommendations, mostly because of a host of minor electric and convenience feature gremlins that some ascribe to assembly in underachieving facilities located in Mexico and Brazil. While I can't say how GTIs and Rabbits will fare on the long-term reliability surveys, I can report

We all agree that having four entry and exit doors is more practical, but it doesn't look as good... (Photo: Justin Couture, American Auto Press)

on our own frustrations with an uncooperative battery. One morning, after a heavy snowfall, the GTI refused to start, so we used another car at our disposal. After a jumpstart that night when we had some time, the car ran (and started) without issues for another week and we thought it was just a one-time freak of electricity. And then it happened again. This time we were prepared with a booster pack and got it home safely and then called our local VW dealer to arrange its regularly scheduled service as well as a look at the battery.

Page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

NEW Volkswagen PRICE QUOTE

Get a FREE, No-Obligation Internet Price Quote for Volkswagen !


Find Volkswagen Dealer \| Search Auto Listings for Volkswagen

User Tools

	Volkswagen GTI Specs

	Discuss in our Forums

	Photos of Volkswagen GTI

	Print this Car Review

	Email this Car Review

Your Comments

Enter review title	Choose a star rating	Type in your review
Your Name (optional)	Your Email (optional)

Related Vehicle Listings

Acura Audi Bentley BMW Buick Cadillac Chevrolet Chrysler Daewoo Dodge Eagle Ferrari Ford Geo GMC Honda Hummer Hyundai Infiniti Isuzu Jaguar Jeep Kia Lamborghini Lexus Lincoln Lotus Maserati Mazda Mercedes-Benz Mercury MINI Mitsubishi Nissan Oldsmobile Plymouth Pontiac Porsche Saab Saturn Scion Subaru Suzuki Toyota Volkswagen Volvo