Volkswagen Golf IV 1.6

...my car:

Volkswagen Golf MkIV 2001
1.6SE Petrol
5 Door Hatch
Owned April 2001 to April 2002
Miles covered 6,000

Quick Facts:

105BHP
0-60 10.5Sec
The clock stops at 115mph
Insurance group 6
Standard (SE Version) airbags, antilock brakes, side impact beams, electric windows/mirrors, aircon, power steering, alarm/immobiliser, remote central locking, CD ...
...drowned out by wind noise. Volkswagen could have solved this by better engine bay insulation and perhaps introducing a sixth gear, or a longer 5th gear but obviously acceleration in this set up would suffer.

In fairness as time went on I found the engine to be less noisy. The first couple of hundred miles where intolerable – I really thought I’d made a mistake buying this car. However things do seem to loosen up over time and by the ... more

What can be said about the Golf that hasn’t been said countless times already in thousands of motoring reviews? Well plenty.

Have you noticed how so many reviews in car magazines, TV programs and newspapers are written by motoring journalists or ex-racing drivers. Don’t you find it frustrating that they all insist on throwing the cars around racetracks, pushing them to their limits and giving you pointless information on the history of the manufacturer. When was the last time you based your choice of car on how well it corners on a wet racetrack with the traction control off?

Yes, what a hoot if you can afford a second weekend pleasure car, but what if like the vast majority of us you can't and need one car to satisfy all your needs.

At the same time they manage to completely omit some of the basic information that we as potential buyers are interested in.

What we really want to know is what that car is like to live with from the point of view of an everyday, travel to work, weekend pleasure trip, drive in the city motorist. Well that’s what I’m going to tell you now.

Let’s start with the basics, my car:

Volkswagen Golf MkIV 2001
1.6SE Petrol
5 Door Hatch
Owned April 2001 to April 2002
Miles covered 6,000

Quick Facts:

105BHP
0-60 10.5Sec
The clock stops at 115mph
Insurance group 6
Standard (SE Version) airbags, antilock brakes, side impact beams, electric windows/mirrors, aircon, power steering, alarm/immobiliser, remote central locking, CD player – and lots more.

Options

I won’t bore you with the extras – check out the VW website, there’s more than enough information there to help you decide upon your personal preferences.

Buying

I bought my car through an import agent oneswoop.com. I waited 4 months for delivery (ordered in December 2000, delivered April 2001) and saved some £3,000 on the UK list price with all the optional extras. The car came from Holland and is completely UK spec. The only problem they had was sourcing the ‘Gamma’ radio/cassette unit, standard in the UK but difficult to obtain abroad. I had it fitted here in the UK at the importer’s expense.

1* = Poor
2* = Below Average
3* = Acceptable/Could be better
4* = Good
5* = Excellent

A Walk Around the Car 4*

Whether you like the Golf’s looks is a matter of personal taste. There are many of them around so if it’s exclusivity and individuality you’re after then the Golf doesn’t really make a good case for itself.

I like the Golf. Its chunky understated styling is neither bland nor offensive. True, it’s not the prettiest car in the car park and some have described its lines as dumpy – it’s certainly put on size and weight compared to its previous incarnations.

The impression you get from the outside is one of quality, solidity and durability – a theme that runs through this review.

The panel fit is tight and exterior plastics strudy. The smart all in one front headlamp cluster is the Golf’s only penchant to slick modern design.

Again I won’t ponder on the Golf’s looks – that’s a personal choice – you either like it enough to buy it or you don’t.

Before we go inside a look at the boot. It’s a good size, squarish shaped with enough space to fit suitcases upright. There’s no intrusion from the wheel arches making for very useable space, the loading sill is wide and the boot lit opens right up for easy access, with an interior handle to pull it down easily. There’s plenty of space for shopping and handy spring loaded hooks which are ideal for lashing down objects to stop them moving about. There’s also a boot light (not powerful enough) and a 12V DC output.

Inside 5*

The doors are re-assuringly weighty and close with a satisfying thunk.

Once inside the cabin the immediate impression is one of simple, functional quality that’s been well styled. The interior plastics are first class. I really like the interior, it’s one of the reason’s I bought the Golf and to be honest I don’t think there are very many cabins that are better laid out or better styled in any car in any class. Sat in the Golf you instantly feel cocooned and protected. The dash is chunky and deep putting a good few extra inches between you and the windscreen. The door mouldings are also solid and thick with smart chrome door release handles and comfortable arm rests housing the electric window switches and central locking controls on the driver’s side.

Seats are firm but well cushioned and supportive on long journeys, but lumbar support could be better so if you’re likely to make any long journeys you may find the optional lumbar support a worthwhile investment. Seats are adjustable for height (with a novel ratchet style adjuster) forward and backward movement and of course seat back angle. Coupled with the steering wheel adjustable for reach and rake it’s easy to find a comfortable driving position. There’s plenty of leg and headroom in the front and the rear seats have adequate if not class leading legroom. I’m six foot and have never been short of room without robbing the back seat passengers of essential legroom. Back seat passengers always rate the seats as comfy, although I wouldn't image a 3rd middle seat passenger would enjoy a long ride.

Controls and switch gear are well laid out and heavily damped – they really do seem as though they’ll go the distance. Wipers and windows operate with a quiet efficiency and all the controls have a firm resistance that reply in a positive manner affirming the operation of the control.

The ergonomics are generally sound. Minor gripes include the positioning of the front cup holders (above the radio ready to spill sticky soft drinks all down the front of the fascia) and the electric window switches which are slightly awkward and don’t fall easily and naturally to hand.

Nice touches include illuminated vanity mirrors for both driver and passenger, damped grab handles, door lights (or puddle lights as VW call them), slow dim interior lighting, pop out dash mounted cup holder and front and rear centre arm rests.

Storage is good with wide door bins for front passengers, a good sized lockable glove compartment and a couple of other smaller cubby holes. While storage for back seat passengers is less impressive they do have the sturdy rear parcel shelf, a compartment in the armrest and space in the front seat backs for magazines.

The heating and ventilation controls work very well, lots of adjustment and with the optional climatronic climate control you’ll enjoy a carefree and airconditioned cabin ambience.

There’s no windscreen washer level fluid warning light unless you opt for the winter pack, but this does buy you heated seats, something I really miss in my new car.

The on board computer gives information on total and current trip mileage, time and fuel economy. No indication of how many miles to go on what’s left in the tank though. There’s also an outside temperature gauge and an ice or cold weather warning signal. The display also gives information on any problems with the car, so if you don’t release the handbrake properly it will beep at you and text will appear in the display to inform you.

The interior is easy to clean – a wipe with a damp cloth is all that’s needed to refresh the surfaces and as the fascia is simple, flush and unfussy there are few fiddly corners and buttons to attract dirt and dust. The velour upholstery has a tendency to attract hair, fluffy bits and dust, but looks and feels so good that you won’t begrudge getting the vacuum cleaner out to it every now and then. The carpets are good quality and feel comfortable under foot.

The pedal layout is on the whole good, but you may find some discomfort on long journeys as the accelerator pedal is a little high. The optional cruise control should make life easier, but the stalk mounted controls are fiddly and cumbersome to use meaning that it's often easier not to bother.

At night the instrument panel, radio and climate control (option) glow blue – smart, very clear and always guaranteed to elicit a wow factor from fellow passengers.

The Gamma radio/cassette’s performance is acceptable – natural sound rather than powerful and dynamic. I had a Kenwood stereo on delivery which was later exchanged for the Gamma unit – the Kenwood did a far better job of driving the excellent 8 speaker system, but the Gamma unit fits much better with the style of the interior and it also glows blue to match the night time illumination of the instrument panel. The Gamma unit's basic functions are simple to operate with many features including RDS and traffic update recording, however the manual gives poor instructions on how to operate these more advanced features. It can operate either a separate single slot dash mounted CD player or a 6 CD boot mounted one. I had the boot mounted version which worked very well and was untroubled by bumps in the road.

All in all the interior is very accomplished and imparts an air of quiet quality from a class above. In the year that I owned the car it’s suffered not a squeak or a rattle. It’s all very well screwed together.

DRIVING

So you’ve familiarised yourself with the ambience of the cabin. Let’s start the engine and see how she goes.

On the Road 3.5*

The feeling of solidity continues on the road. This car is heavy and feels well planted to the road, especially at town speeds. It all feels very safe and re-assuring to drive.

Ride & Suspension 4*

One of the Golf’s greatest attributes. The Golf’s ride although slightly firm is supple and unflustered on all but the poorest road surfaces. It copes with potholes very well, and most bumps are absorbed painlessly. The steering wheel is always solid with very little or no vibration feeding through from the road even on cobbled streets. You won’t be swerving to avoid imperfections in the road in this car, however you may find the ride a touch jittery on poorer uneven road surfaces.

The suspension is however bouncy and wallowly. Undulating roads will occasionally leave your occupants hanging in mid air!

Overall the ride is comfortable and compliant. Rubbery is the word that springs to mind – cushioning you from the rigours of the road surface.

Handling 3*

This is where the soft suspension let’s the car down. Sure footedness at low speed gives way to pronounced body roll further up the speedometer. Take a corner too fast and the car lurches sidewards necessitating quick corrective action via the brakes and steering. This is not a car that’s suited to winding mountain roads, you’ll quickly learn to ease off on the gas to avoid throwing the car and your passengers about. Go into a bend at speed and you’ll quickly be made aware of the chassis’ limits.

Steering 2*

The steering is vague and woolly. The Golf is not a driver’s car and not one that encourages spirited driving. Safe and predictable are the Golf’s steering traits, driver enjoyment and involvement are unfortunately low on the list.

Brakes 3*

Can be a little spongy but apply firm pressure and they perform capably in bringing this heavy car to a halt. The anti-lock brakes help here, but again take a corner too fast and the car has a tendency to lose its stability.

Gears 2*

Volkswagens are renowned for taking some time to ‘wear in’. To start with I found the gears notchy and this was still the case at 6,000 miles. 2nd gear was particularly troublesome to engage and even the test car I drove suffered from a similar problem. Over time and a few thousand miles it does seem to have loosened up. I don’t expect that the gear change will ever be slick and fluid but in its favour the gears do have a very positive feel and a nice action with a comfortable throw length.

Clutch 4*

The clutch has a long biting point. I’m never quite sure when the gears have engaged. This does have its plusses though as gear change is always smooth meaning that the heavy footed amongst us won’t suffer from kangaroo starts and whiplash gear changes like the good old days in our first driving lessons.

Engine 3*

The 1.6 litre engine is surprisingly willing when one considers the weight of the car. Acceleration is adequate rather than brisk from a standing start. On the motorway the acceleration in 5th gear is impressive – the speedo needle moves quickly from 70 to 100mph leading to competent and steady overtaking.

To achieve this Volkwagen have given the car rather short gearing. The rev counter indicates 3,500rpm at 70mph in 5th and you won’t be impressed by the growling sound coming from the engine at this speed. The engine sounds like it’s doing 90mph rather than 70mph and is more reminiscent of a diesel rather than a petrol unit. Even after several thousand miles of running in the engine still manages to sound rough and overworked at motorway cruising speeds. Once over 80mph wind noise from the doors and side mirrors muffles the engine noise somewhat, and at 100mph the engine actually ticks along quite nicely - drowned out by wind noise. Volkswagen could have solved this by better engine bay insulation and perhaps introducing a sixth gear, or a longer 5th gear but obviously acceleration in this set up would suffer.

In fairness as time went on I found the engine to be less noisy. The first couple of hundred miles where intolerable – I really thought I’d made a mistake buying this car. However things do seem to loosen up over time and by the time I came to sell this car at 6,000 miles things had improved a little. Perhaps given another 10,000 miles the engine may have loosened up enough to relieve it of that annoying harshness at motorway speeds but I doubt very much that this engine could ever offer refined high speed cruising.

Otherwise the engine does feel, like the rest of the car, unburstable. It’s noisier than the competition at engine speeds over 3,000rpm, but flexible nonetheless.

Tyre Noise 4*

The standard 14 inch wheels are generally quiet on most road surfaces. Take them on the motorway and like in any car you’ll hear the tyre rumble against tarmac but it’s not intrusive.

Aerodynamics 4*

As mentioned before there is some wind noise from the doors and wing mirrors at speed, but otherwise the car feels very well insulated. Side winds don’t cause upset and the sturdy footing of the Golf ensures that it shrugs off any buffeting from high sided vehicles and lorries.

Fuel Economy 3*

Given that this is quite a heavy car fuel economy is quite good. 30mpg in town rising to 45mpg on the open road.

RELIABILITY 4*

No problems from either the mechanics or the electrics.

A slight bump to the front bumper caused some flaking of the paint but the bumper retained its shape.

A stone chip caused one of the front headlamps to crack – was I just unlucky or is this indicative of a part that’s not up to the job? I’ve been driving for 12 years and never had headlamp glass break in normal usage. I took issue with VW UK but they refused to offer any compensation towards the £250 repair bill. Yep - £250. Why? Because VW have designed the car in such a way that you have to take off the whole front bumper assembly to access the lights, resulting in a costly labour bill. You can’t even change a head lamp bulb without going to VW to have the front bumper removed as the lamp housing is virtually inaccessible from inside the engine compartment!

I sold the car before it’s first service was due so can’t really comment on servicing costs and would be reluctant to do so on a car that I owned for only a year, however I have to say that my local VW dealership were always helpful and professional if a little expensive.

OVERALL 4*

The Golf is a car for people who relish quality and comfort rather than power and driver dynamics.

I enjoyed owning the Golf and would possibly consider buying another. The new model MkV is due out next year. If they’ve made improvements to the engine refinement and handling characteristics then this new model may well be a formidable class leading car.

Perhaps with a larger engine and tauter handling the current Golf could prove a thoroughly competent car in all areas. In its current guise as a family hatchback you would have to go far to find equivalent build quality, comfort and image.

I love certain aspects of the Golf. The cosseting interior that exudes quality, the bomb proof build quality, the solid feel and the supple ride and comfortable ambience. However, I also love driving and the lack of driver enjoyment has lead me to buy what I consider to be one of the few cars that can match the Golf’s qualities while delivering a more driver orientated driving experience – a BMW 3 Series.

Whether you will feel satisfied owning a Golf depends largely on what type of driver you are. The Golf has much to commend it, it does so many things so much better than other cars in its class, but ultimately I was after something more than the Golf could offer. A promotion at work meant that I could afford to step up to a BMW, but had that not been the case I think I may have been tempted to stay with a Golf, not the 1.6 but possibly a 1.8 turbo or the V5.

In any case the Golf is still a very good car – I’ve given it 4 stars as in my opinion it’s still a very competent car in its class and one that you’re unlikely to find disappointing to own, it does however fall short of being truly excellent.

My advice to you is to make a list of the qualities you’re looking for in a car in order of importance. Compare it to the Golf and you may find that it might just fit the bill.

If you are considering buying a Golf and feel that there are certain areas of this review that you would like to see expanded upon then please leave a comment and I’ll do my best to add additional information or opinions below.

09/05/2002

To answer a couple of comments:

Sold the car before its first service was due (see above) but was told by my local VW dealer that they would be more than happy to service the car.

VW dealers will not buy imports, or if they do will offer you silly money.

This car may be an import but it is full UK spec, it was made on the same production line, in the same week, beside, beneath, behind and in front of hundreds of others that were on their way to the UK. The only difference between my car and her sisters was that mine was delivered to Holland before it came to the UK and its foreign pre-sale service inspection stamp. Even all the books and manuals are in English. A UK dealer cannot tell the difference between a full UK spec import and one sold in the UK by a UK dealer.

Many years ago people were quite rightly wary of imports, however recent demand for UK spec cars from EC dealers (who incidently love selling to us) has meant that there is a good supply of excellent
EC sourced cars that are indistinguishable from those sold in the UK by UK dealers. Don't ever let a UK dealer tell you that your UK spec import is worth less than a UK bought one, you will be listening to false and biased advice, borne of self-protection.

It's a poor attitude given that most import buyers will be coming to them throughout the life of the car to get the vehicle serviced and chances are that main dealers will make more money from post-sale servicing and repairs than they would have made on the original sale of the car.

My advice is to sell your import privately. The diserning private buyer should have no problem with a full UK spec car.

In any case I would never have passed up the chance to save £3,000 on this car, and neither will thousands of other savvy car buyers, so imports are here to stay, just make sure that it's a full UK spec one you're looking at, especially if you're planning a trip to one of the burgeoning car supermarkets around as they can be particularly prone to skimping where spec is concerned. The words FULL UK SPEC are vital when looking at any import.

Finally, the new motor is a 2001 BMW 318Ci Coupe. Imported but again to full UK spec and so far so good. Perhaps a review of the current one in a year's time......

Thanks to everyone for their comments and kind praise for the review. 

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