Any other VW GTI or Golf R converts?

[jrmt23]

I came from a Mk7.5 GTI which I absolutely loved. I'd say my Model 3 is neck and neck with being my favorite car. I wish we had a full EV GTI available in the US as I really loved that hot hatch formula. One of the first things I noticed when I got my Model 3 was how high the rear trunk is of the Model 3 compared to my GTI, and while there is a nice rear view camera in the Model 3 it does make for a more challenging rear view than the GTI had. The AWD of the Model 3 is so much fun too vs the FWD GTI that can understeer at it's limits in corners.

I definitely don't miss the expensive maintenance or paying for 93 octane gasoline though! My first maintenance item in the Model 3 was just a tire rotation!

Also, fwiw, I did drive the ID.4 and while it is a pretty decent EV overall...it's nothing like the Model 3 or GTI. The ID.4 is a great EV alternative for the crowd shopping for a CR-V/Rav4/CX-3 or even VW's own Taos/Tiguan. Hoping one day VW gives us an ID.3 GTX or something in the US.

Share some of your GTI/Golf R photos!

 

[UncertainTimes]

I had a Mk6 GTI. Had to replace the water pump twice. Our then Jetta also had the same issue. Needless to say returned both at lease end and never looked at VW or Audi since.

 

[RedBlitz]

Long term Mk5 Gti DSG owner and needed a second car again after a long time. It was my wife that decided that we’d only buy an electric car. Started looking for one and had always thought a Model 3 was out of reach. However after looking at several options it became clear the Tesla was the way to go especially after a test drive of a second hand one sealed it for us. We were really lucky because we clicked the purchase button in March 2021 and a rep from Tesla called shortly after to confirm everything and said the red SR+ that was coming off the production line was ours and would be in Vancouver by the end of the following week. So we went and picked it up on that Saturday and have been happy with it so far.
I still like my Gti but it’s been having some issues and is currently still at VW after 4 weeks getting repaired but I’m glad to have the M3 to get about in and I’ve been seriously impressed by how well it handles in all the snow we’ve had recently. It’s way better than the Gti even with its snow tyres and front wheel drive!
The whole process of buying the Tesla was a walk in the park compared with any other car purchase I’ve had at dealerships and it’s been a breath of fresh air not having all the hidden added costs for this that and the other not to mention services etc. I have and will continue to recommend Tesla’s to anyone.

 

[jrmt23]

I had a Mk6 GTI. Had to replace the water pump twice. Our then Jetta also had the same issue. Needless to say returned both at lease end and never looked at VW or Audi since.

LOL. Yeap. I got hit with a leaky thermostat housing that took multiple visits to the dealership for them to finally diagnose on my car.

 

[mycroftxxx]

I had a 2016 (Mk7) GTI, 4DR, Autobahn, 6-speed MT; switched to a M3 LR in fall 2021. had about 63k miles on the GTI at the time. Great car, zero issues, but Carvana offered a stupid sum of money for it, and gas prices in coastal SoCal are not coming down in the foreseeable future…so I got the M3. Like the car a lot - drives great, very comfortable, excellent fit and finish, efficiency is superb, I’m getting pretty much the EPA range numbers in my half-city, half-highway driving.

The things I miss about the GTI are significant driver convenience issues like:

• Dumb cruise control - Tesla’s TACC implementation is frankly terrible, and that they don’t let you disable the “traffic aware” part is ridiculous.
• Apple CarPlay - IMHO, it delivers better maps, drastically better iPhone integration, drastically better music integration, etc. Yeah, I know that Tesla can‘t really use CarPlay maps for FSD (that’s Foolish $h!tty Driving IMHO ), but lots of us just want a car and do not GAF about Tesla’s IMHO unachievable “self driving” plans.
• SiriusXM - had it on the GTI; I’d be reasonably happy with a streaming app built into the UI, as long as it worked ok unlike Tesla’s default music streaming.
• Didn’t have to worry about crap like the V11 UI overhaul - some real bonehead decisions in that one, hopefully Tesla is listening…
• And to head off some well-meaning replies, I knew all of this (except maybe the horrible-ness of TACC and of course the V11 UI buffoonery) going in and decided to live with it.

I do miss the hot hatch form factor; if someone can build a BEV hot hatch with current M3LR range or better, performance or better, and hopefully with the amenities I’m missing now…shut up and take my money! In the meantime, I’m happy enough with my M3; no regrets.

 

[57nevets]

I've had three GTIs. The last a 2015 Mk7 I sold for a model 3 SR+ last summer. Miss the rumble and hatchback versatility of the GTI but the Tesla is more fun with instant torque and no more trips for premium gas. Loved the Tesla's remote heating this winter.

 

[jrmt23]

I had a 2016 (Mk7) GTI, 4DR, Autobahn, 6-speed MT; switched to a M3 LR in fall 2021. had about 63k miles on the GTI at the time. Great car, zero issues, but Carvana offered a stupid sum of money for it, and gas prices in coastal SoCal are not coming down in the foreseeable future…so I got the M3. Like the car a lot - drives great, very comfortable, excellent fit and finish, efficiency is superb, I’m getting pretty much the EPA range numbers in my half-city, half-highway driving.

The things I miss about the GTI are significant driver convenience issues like:

• Dumb cruise control - Tesla’s TACC implementation is frankly terrible, and that they don’t let you disable the “traffic aware” part is ridiculous.
• Apple CarPlay - IMHO, it delivers better maps, drastically better iPhone integration, drastically better music integration, etc. Yeah, I know that Tesla can‘t really use CarPlay maps for FSD (that’s Foolish $h!tty Driving IMHO ), but lots of us just want a car and do not GAF about Tesla’s IMHO unachievable “self driving” plans.
• SiriusXM - had it on the GTI; I’d be reasonably happy with a streaming app built into the UI, as long as it worked ok unlike Tesla’s default music streaming.
• Didn’t have to worry about crap like the V11 UI overhaul - some real bonehead decisions in that one, hopefully Tesla is listening…
• And to head off some well-meaning replies, I knew all of this (except maybe the horrible-ness of TACC and of course the V11 UI buffoonery) going in and decided to live with it.

I do miss the hot hatch form factor; if someone can build a BEV hot hatch with current M3LR range or better, performance or better, and hopefully with the amenities I’m missing now…shut up and take my money! In the meantime, I’m happy enough with my M3; no regrets.

VW doesn't let you do regular cruise control either if you have the radar sensor. My GTI was adaptive cruise or no cruise only.

I do miss carplay for the apple music integration, and I'd rather use Apple Maps than Google maps but thats about it I miss from car play.

I really miss alt nation from SiriusXM, but theres another station on TuneIn i'm enjoying too.

 

[jrmt23]

I've had three GTIs. The last a 2015 Mk7 I sold for a model 3 SR+ last summer. Miss the rumble and hatchback versatility of the GTI but the Tesla is more fun with instant torque and no more trips for premium gas. Loved the Tesla's remote heating this winter.

And the heated steering wheel! I never realized how nice of a feature this is until I've had it.

Both the GTI and Model 3 have seat heaters that will definitely roast your butt too lol.

 

[ShonuffTX]

Not a GTI of course, but our second car (first is 2021 M3LR) is a 2016 E-Golf that we bought used. It's great in Texas because they weren't sold here new so nobody knows about them. There is a VW tech nearby who can work on it though. It's not near as sporty as a GTI, but nice to drive.

 

[Msjulie]

The things I miss about the GTI are significant driver convenience issues like:

We had a GLi and a TDi so we know that the VW user interface was pretty good (not so much I've heard for Golf VIII)

• Dumb cruise control - Tesla’s TACC implementation is frankly terrible, and that they don’t let you disable the “traffic aware” part is ridiculous.

Yep

• Apple CarPlay - IMHO, it delivers better maps, drastically better iPhone integration, drastically better music integration, etc. Yeah, I know that Tesla can‘t really use CarPlay maps for FSD (that’s Foolish $h!tty Driving IMHO
  

Another thing we wish we could have but Tesla not interested

• ), but lots of us just want a car and do not GAF about Tesla’s IMHO unachievable “self driving” plans.
• SiriusXM - had it on the GTI; I’d be reasonably happy with a streaming app built into the UI, as long as it worked ok unlike Tesla’s default music streaming.
• Didn’t have to worry about crap like the V11 UI overhaul - some real bonehead decisions in that one, hopefully Tesla is listening…
• And to head off some well-meaning replies, I knew all of this (except maybe the horrible-ness of TACC and of course the V11 UI buffoonery) going in and decided to live with it.

This is the biggest reason I miss our German cars. The Tesla has a great drivetrain and handles really well for such a big heavy car but the one screen and UI disaster potential it has turned out to be is really getting to be too much. Our VWs were set up so nice, important controls at-hand and even some consistency between model years. Such concepts.

Checked out the too-big-but nice Lucid Air the other day because I could and they have a real dashboard plus a screen for media plus some hard controls! for climate and quick touch buttons for heated seats. How ingenious! I wish they had a smaller car for offer, if they survive.

I do miss the hot hatch form factor; if someone can build a BEV hot hatch with current M3LR range or better, performance or better, and hopefully with the amenities I’m missing now…shut up and take my money! In the meantime, I’m happy enough with my M3; no regrets.

I agree, it's heartening to see at least some vendors actually producing things that might be available options. I really do like the M3 but I've grown so weary of the yearly updates being real downgrades, not to mention the point release changes which add bugs necessitating the bug fix release to follow.

Change for change's sake is really not needed if the original design is good. Sorry, a little off topic there - TLDR; I miss the sanity of our VW controls

 

[dave999z]

I went from a MKVI GTI to a Model 3. I loved the GTI in many ways, but I like the Tesla 1000% more.

The things that were better about the GTI:
--rear visibility
--hatchback (the trunk clearance in the M3 is awful, the opening is so small)
--the car was shorter, so easier to fit in places
--the plaid seats in the GTI were the most comfortable I've ever had in any car (the M3 seats are too squishy)

Pretty much everything else is better in the M3.

 

[tm1v2]

I come from a hot hatch and sport compact background too, never owned a Golf/GTI/R but I'm with you all in spirit on this jump to Model 3 EV.

And yes I absolutely miss having a liftgate! After my first car with a liftgate I vowed to never bother with a sedan again. I kept to that for 15 years, and I was all set to continue with a Polestar 2 Performance (which is a fastback). Then Tesla restocked their Model 3 demo fleet and within a few blocks I realized I was cancelling the P2 order and buy another Tesla. (We had tested a Model Y earlier and I hated driving it. It's not a Model 3 hatch, despite looking like one.)

Model 3 and Polestar 2 seem by far the closest EV experiences to a sport compact or hot hatch. Honestly we couldn't do the Model 3 as an only car, the trunk is too restrictive and the back seat is too low for taller adults on trips, but as a 2nd car it's really great. Big stuff continues to go in the 2013 Model S P85.

@dave999z Your list is exactly what I miss from my ICE hot hatch, with one addition: Traction. Compared to the best AWD systems I notice the Model 3's open diffs on hard corner exits, and I'm guessing I'll really notice them in the snow too. I don't want limited slip diffs in an EV though. When someone comes out with a sporty, compact EV with quad motors I'm there!

 

[torifile]

Golf R Mk 7.5 to Model Y Performance. I loved my R. It was my favorite car ever. I needed a bigger car and I wasn’t going to go slower so MYP had to be it.

There have been some adjustments but I’d say no outright downgrades aside from the incredibly sure handling of the R. That thing felt like it could defy physics with how well it handled curves at speed.

In 99% of my driving, I’m very happy with the MYP.

 

[fajitamondays]

I had a MKV GTI for ten years before I got my 3. Revo stage 2, bunch of suspension mods.
I don't miss that oily FSI engine. I do miss that hatch though, and interior trim that never rattled like my Model 3 does.

 

[civicdrivr]

I currently have a 2018 Golf R 6MT, with a Model 3 Perf on order. It's a fantastic car, but we've outgrown it. I will miss it a lot. It's one of the best cars I've owned.

I didn't even consider the VW ID since they are hideous imo. I wanted the Mach E GT Performance for the additional space (and hatch) but the 6-7 month wait is a bit much - and having to work with a Ford dealership...

 

[civicdrivr]

VW doesn't let you do regular cruise control either if you have the radar sensor. My GTI was adaptive cruise or no cruise only.

Not true, you can turn off ACC and LKA and have regular cruise in the VW.

 

[jmm3]

Had a MKV GTI K04 DSG, was a very fun practical hatch, well balanced made it 100k but very maintenance needy. Also very happy with the Model 3 the AWD is superior in traction and handling than FWD GTI and is a great daily driver with AP/FSD, quiet and fun.

 

[t.e.s.l.a_dude]

I'll be switching from an MK7 Golf to the Model 3. Agree that the Golf/GTI is indeed a great car but like many here I have outgrown it. I had an MK6 Golf TDI before and also owned a VW Passat and VW Tiguan at some point. So I'll be leaving the VW family soon and joining the Tesla family. Will report back once I take delivery, looking forward to it.

 

[EmOne]

Best of both worlds; have had Mk 6, then Mk 7.5, which I foisted on my wife after explaining that has all the space and much better safety systems than her 2015 Macan. Love those GTI's and thank goodness got the DSG for the second one so wife now loves it! Can't really be readily compared to my stonking fast 2020 M3P with MPP upgrades, but both are fun in their own ways and, yes, the UI in the GTI is much preferred, tho I think the music system in Tesla beats the Fender in the VW.

 

[dave999z]

Oh also, going from a stick GTI to the one pedal driving of the M3 is like taking a vacation. My shins were going to fail in rush hour traffic with that stick.