Talk Morgan Forums Community Vehicle Talk (non-Morgan) What to buy? What does the panel think?

Quite soon I will be giving my 12 year old Golf TDI to MissW. It's been a very good car, and I like VW's, nicely built, good on fuel and because they blend in, for general knocking about.
My cars have to fulfil a role, and the main role of the Golf is driving to the West Country, four up and sometimes five up. This is not a problem because three of the five are eight stone, and I'm under eleven stone........having resigned from the pie eating club.
My original plan was to go for a Golf Mk6GTD up to a year old, with manual gearbox. However, the car nuts at work are telling me that I should try a BMW320D(Touring). I'm not a fan of BMW. I think the styling is dodgy both outside and in, and one of the fans at work actually had his (6 cyl diesel) engine disintegrate as a result of the 'known' fault in the induction system in cars of a certain age.
Anyway, apparently I can expect fantastic handling, fantastic mpg and fantastic various other things over and above what a Golf can provide.
The bhp of the two is about the same at 170. The BMW will be slightly bigger inside I suspect but not by much. I wonder about the comfort of the rear seats in an estate, which may be quite flat and hard work on a long trip.
I know that some TMers have run GTD's and 320D's so would be interested to hear first hand experiences. Especially if you've had both. Oh, and the BMW will slightly more expensive to buy.........

When I first saw the title of this posting I got rather excited.....thought you'd paid a trip down to Mr Matty's Emporium!

I've run both cars. A tough choice Dave. My Golf was one of the most unreliable cars I've owned and yet I really enjoyed it. The BMW......IMHO the Touring is a nicer shape than the saloon ...was extremely reliable and not expensive to run. I've never sat in the back but none of my passengers ever complained although with the transmission tunnel I'm not sure how a 5th passenger would get on. There are issues on the diesels with swirl flaps disintegrating which can wreck an engine but the flaps can be modified to prevent this...not an approved BMW mod.

My only issue with the BMW was how poor it was in the snow...until I fitted winter tyres. Typical of a rear wheel drive car particularly mine which was an M Sport model with rather wide rear tyres.

I can't really advise you which one to go for.....I'd have to toss a coin....but if you think the styling is dodgy, well there's your answer...go for the Golf!

Dave i too have had the pleasure of both cars, in fact the BMW is still on the fleet, used by one of my Reps who has requested we do not swop it in, he loves it, but i suspect for its style rather than anything else. BMW 3series 2.0D
M/Sport Estate.

The BMW does app 45mpg on average
The Golf will do 50+mpg on average

The Golf was a bit like WATER it is what it is, but if i had to choose i would go Golf

a) 2 Door much easier to enter and exit
b) FWD
c) and from door to Door i couldnt give a dam what i drive when i have Morgan in the Garage

Dave,
I have owned both a BMW 320d touring. Lovely car, great road holding, reliable and quick.
But, everyone wants to race you.
I currently drive Golf MkVI 2.0 Tdi GT (not the GTD)
Lovely car, great road holding, reliable and quick (surprises some folks)
No one bothers you.

PS my 80+ year old Mum was not impressed with the Golf, she thinks it is boring, however she loves the Morgan.

Dave , SWMBO and me went looking for a Golf 20.TDI and came back with an Audi A3 Sportsback 20.TDI average 46mpg about the doors thats befor its run in . I dont like the stop and start but its going to be on all cars soon . Cant fault it for comfort it has a space saver not a tin of bloody foam . 70MPH at 1800RPM ( 6 gears ) its quick if you need to be and holds the road in the country lanes great head lights everything is at hand , took weeks to learn what everything was for . Worth a try I said I would never have an Audi now have to eat my words.

Hmm. The Golf would be five door Dean, I find the three door version too heavy and cumbersome on the doors. Interesting that your Golf was unreliable Jay, my Mk1V has been very reliable so far, without wishing to tempt fate.
A real dilemma and it looks like I'll have to try both. I would like to get this car sorted before I start looking at Elises. One thing at a time eh?

JTL - I much prefer the Golf to the A3, although it would go down well with MissW!!!

My mother knows nothing about cars. So much so that we watched her get in the back of a stranger's car at the motorway services once. She didn't realise until he spun round and it wasn't me. Never sen her get out of a car so fast. As we set off I grinned over at him and did the rotating finger at the side of head "She' a nutter" sign. How we laughed.

I dont get it why Miss W. Is it the badge thing if so that is why I refused to purchase one up here we have the badge brigade . It was just we are both short arses and the Audi was far more comfortable than the Golf and more space in the boot as SWMBO always seems to want to carry a boot full of stuff.

JTL - I much prefer the Golf to the A3, although it would go down well with MissW!!! [/quote]

I was going over to Keswick a few year ago for a pair of good walking boots 11am on a cold frost Febuary day . SWMBO in the front Jnr and my mother in the rear . Jnr reading her book as always . She never lifts her head up . For years I have tried everything as she got older I used to say look he has no clothes on . At first she looked till it was " OH yes dad " with her head down . Only this time as we went over the motorway that runs through Cumbria and a little Chef is on your left hand side . What was walking along the 2c temp road side but a young man early 20s naked as the day he was born . Looked like he did not have a care in the world . I said, " look there is a young man he has no clothes on " , Jnr replied " OH yes dad " . My mother in her mid 80s had just had one of her eyes done in hospital and was waiting for the other to be done . When we stopped she was rubbing her bad eye when asked what was up she said " typical something like that happens and I only have one good eye working just my luck ". Jnr was disgusted at her gran I could not stop laughing . Then bumped into a mate in a shop he had been two cars in front of me and had also seen it.


My mother knows nothing about cars. So much so that we watched her get in the back of a stranger's car at the motorway services once. She didn't realise until he spun round and it wasn't me. Never sen her get out of a car so fast. As we set off I grinned over at him and did the rotating finger at the side of head "She' a nutter" sign. How we laughed. [/quote]

MissW is shallow enough to be seduced by the Audi badge.
Don't get me wrong, I like the A4 Avant, and I wanted one for a while, but in my experience if you wait long enough, the urge goes. Except for Morgan that is. I also like the RS4 but couldn't really justify one to MrsW. I think that Audi have lost the plot lately with ultra bland styling which lacks a boldness which would shift the corporate image away from such sameness.
Not like Morgan eh?

I had the Audi Avant TDi after the Golf and apart from a Honda CRX, the BMW next. Out of the three, the Audi was the best finished off......great interior but the most uncomfortable seats...I'm fussy re seats....the current MINI is not that comfortable for me. I went through two clutches and two dual mass flywheels in the Audi in 25,000 miles so got rid if it. My wife loved it....lovely pale beige leather with burr elm wood.....it did have a nice ambience.