My new daily drive
 

I just got Golf R for my daily drive. :tup: It looks boring but it's really fun to drive.

Congrats!

Underrated car because there are so many lesser variants to confuse it with. The R is the real deal, though. Driven well, it’s actually quite trackable. Enjoyed watching a laps-long duel between one of these and a Focus RS on my home track last year. And practical as a DD, too.

Can you elaborate on “it’s really fun to drive”? Maybe want to be a few more miles into it, but a thorough review would be appreciated.

Enjoy!

Thanks.

I have the R for a few days now. I got it with DSG. It really shifts fast between gears. It is quite fast and handles well. It has a 4 wheel drive system so you can really take it around the corner with confidence. It’s also very comfortable. With Dynamic Chassis Control and driving mode options, you can change ride stiffness and shift point. Right now I’m driving in normal mode. I tried a race mode once and it’s awesome. The ride gets firmer and the exhaust note get louder. Right now I'm in process of breaking-in the engine. I drove about 200 miles so far in 3 day. I cannot wait until the engine clocking at 600 miles so I try launch control feature.

I had to go on the conservative side.
Ride quality,legroom,fuel mileage & dependable were priority.https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...386a07d593.jpg


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I hear ya. Enjoy it, but don’t over-abuse the launch control. It isn’t exactly gentle on the clutches or drive train. Needs to be experienced . . . sparingly.

Camry or Corola? I saw the new Camry, and it looks really good.

Very nice daily, a classy Swiss Army knife hot hatch, enjoy!

Camry, & over 35mpg so far.

Hmmmmm My hemi Commander gets 14... sometimes. :icon14:

the camry does look pretty impressive, kinda has that lexus look to it

Thanks. Comparing to my Z, this little Golf definitely can keep up. The DSG automatic changes gears very smooth and fast. There is a learning curve getting used to drive automatic after so many years of driving stick. This is my first daily driver with automatic.

I've had my R for just over 2 years now and it's been great. It's a tank in the snow too!

I got a Unitronic Stage 2 tune at just over 10k miles and and am currently at about 33k with no issues whatsoever.

Cool. Stage 2? You probably have over 300+ hp.

Nice one Paul. Congrats.

At 60 miles/hr on cruise control I get 37mils/gal

My only gripe about the new camry is the CVT it’s boring to drive.
Thats why I stick with my 2015 Camry.

Thanks Raf. How are you? I'll take this to canyon drive instead of the Z...

I haven't been on a dyno but other people are getting around 320whp, It really makes the car quick. The ability to flash your ecu at home is nice too.

I've heard APR is very popular, and you can get 60+hp with stage one. Finally my R hit 600 miles, and I finally can keep it up pass 4k rpm. I took my wife for a ride in "race mode" without using a paddle shifters. Cruising at 65-70mph, I floored the gas paddle, and she yelled, holly sh*t.

A quick stop for Monday 85 cents coffee at 85 degrees Cafe.

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Congrats Paul, will have to keep an eye out for you on the road with it

I am digging the wheel design, any plans for modding?

Thanks Wais. I don't think I will mod this car; maybe changing the wheel with more aggressive offset and a little wider tires. The R is 72K/6 years bumper to bumper warranty so modding ECU (tuning ECU) would void the warranty. It's fast enough in stock form, and handling is really good with the dynamic chassis control options. Also, it's 4 wheel drive, but not full time. I can drop by the Z meet with my R :tup:.

Good plan, I would just get wheels and call it a day!

Bring it by, I want to check it out!

Ha! My buddy has a blue '16 MK7 R and said the same thing. Two years later he's full bolt on and stage 2 tune. That hatch is seriously quick and has gobs of torque. You'd never think it's a 2.0T under the hood.

Not going to lie, I kind of like the latest gen camry in the v6 xse flavor. There's one a few blocks down from me and it looks pretty nice and I wouldn't mind it as a DD (who would've thought I'd ever say I WANT a camry :rofl2:)

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It's a real sleeper.

A year later, it's now ECU/TCU stage 1 tuned. Holy crap.....I was driving home with a big smile after the tunes.

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Very nice! I looked hard at them before going with the turbocharged cx5 due to being honest with myself about ground clearance needs.

Coming up on 34k & Camry is consistently getting 40mpg :ugh2:
Have had -0- issues thus far :tup:
I’m still getting geared up to beef up the Z ;awaiting for some cool down weather & a garage w/lift to put up...but can’t bash my LE Camry for a dd; it’s been good to me.

Thanks. Now I can keep up with the new Supra and upcoming C8...:stirthepot:

Yup.
How do those DSG's fare long-term, though? I hear you do have to drive them correctly.

No problem or any issue with the DSG unit. It's very fast gear change. You just press on the gas and go. It's holding up better than stock MT clutch, If the car is tuned.

Zero, what tuner did you go with, APR?

Glad to see you’re still enjoying the R. I still miss my old MK V R32 even after all these years. :(.

With these cars, dsg is absolutely the way to go, they’re very reliable and hold power so much better than the crappy vw manuals. The dq 380/381 7sp dsg is even better than the old dq250 6sp.

Any more plans to mod further?

I'm enjoying it even more after these tunes. I went with Unitronic after researching and comparing with APR. Unitronic tune is linear gain from the bottom to top end. It's not as aggressive as APR's. Like many said, it's OEM++ feel. It' very smooth power delivery. On top of that, I got a great deal for both ECU and TCU tunes. The cost would be the same as getting OEM Euro dynamic tail lights and harness that I was planning to do. The tuner said the dq380/381 DSG is rock solid with the tunes comparing to MT. MT clutch would not handle the tunes well. It would not hold extra torque increased well. I love this DSG. With DSG tune, it's even faster gear change comparing to stock tune. For future plans, I'm still thinking of Euro tail lights, but I might get rear sway bar first. I would love to go stage 2 with Down pipe, intercooler, and intake. For now I'm just going to enjoy this "NEW" R :tup:.

I agree, wife and I are planning to go unitronic as well when the time comes, won’t be for a good while tho, not looking to void the powertrain warranty just yet, focusing on suspension, brakes and weight reduction right now.

For suspension parts like a rear sway bar, take a look at 034 Motorsports, they make some good stuff, will be using them again this go around. We had their rear sway bar on our old 8v s3 and it was great on the street and track. :tup:

You can always add the intake and intercooler ala carte with stage 1 for better heatsoak prevention and a bit more power, that way when you go stage two, it’s just tune and downpipe.

Unitronic tune sales end tomorrow.

Black Friday sale on the downpipe, so it's now stage 2 :tup:. The charge cooler will be next.

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Flashing ECU for stage 2 crackle and pop overrun tune to see if it's my cup of tea.

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Wow Paul, looking good!

I don't spot you in the Z anymore, need to start keeping an eye out for the R

Thanks Waiz. Externally it's still in a stock form so you might not spot me.