In reply to bmw88rider :
Thank you. I guess driving this car for a few more days will allow me to figure out if I can live with the steering feel or not.
In reply to bmw88rider :
Thank you. I guess driving this car for a few more days will allow me to figure out if I can live with the steering feel or not.
I found the "definitive guide" blogs from FCP Euro to have good information.
https://blog.fcpeuro.com/the-definitive-guide-to-mk7-gti-ea888-engine-gen-3
https://blog.fcpeuro.com/the-definitive-guide-to-mk7-volkswagen-gti-brakes
https://blog.fcpeuro.com/the-definitive-guide-to-the-dsg-transmission
bmw88rider said:In reply to BoxheadTim :
Great for a DD so I have a Golf Sportswagen 4Motion that I love for a daily. Even with a few golf R estate add-ons it still feels really numb.
Ah, an opportunity to pimp my post: Modifying my '19 Golf Sportwagen
I built up my 7mo old '19 Sportwagen in early '20. I'm coming up on 40k miles since the modifications and still love it. I wouldn't do a single thing differently. OK, I might have checked the toe more closely, saving a nice set of Michelins...
The only thing I've done is change the plugs early when it started missing. The thermostat housing leaks, of course. It's under warranty but I'm not so thrilled with the idea of someone working flat rate bashing around in there so I have a new pump sitting in the garage awaiting some enthusiasm.
Agree about the steering feel but - eh - it's my daily beater. I'm just not that demanding. The R springs with Koni SAs and the R rear bar makes a nicely balanced car that doesn't rattle the interior apart as I drive.
I'm really happy I went with the wagon vs a standard Golf. I find myself using the extra space all the time, especially with the 3 kid carpool. One of the girls has a hockey bag that I'm pretty sure she could fit in.
In reply to mfennell :
I forgot, Did you do the Golf R or Golf R Estate springs? I am guessing just the Golf R from the rear height but just curious. I have a set of golf R estate springs waiting for me to grab next time I'm in Europe to go with my Golf R rear bar.
bmw88rider said:In reply to mfennell :
I forgot, Did you do the Golf R or Golf R Estate springs? I am guessing just the Golf R from the rear height but just curious. I have a set of golf R estate springs waiting for me to grab next time I'm in Europe to go with my Golf R rear bar.
Good eye. Regular R springs and I didn't do the thicker pad. I guess there is one thing I'd do differently, especially since I find myself towing my motorcycles around with it pretty regularly.
More thoughts about the steering feel - I sold my S2000 because I didn't like its steering feel. Given the other cars I like and cherish, I don't think I'd fall in love with a car that has steering this numb.
And berkeleying stupid lane control warnings, at least on some of the merge lanes out here.
My 19 Golf R had NO steering feel. None, nada, zip, zilch. Same thing with my friends 18 Audi Alltrack. The new VAG products with the EPS just don't have it.
After my experience with the Type R - which I liked, but not loved - I found this Mk7.5 Golf R at CarMax that's now making its way from NC to VA: https://www.carmax.com/car/25300021
It's a bit more expensive than the Type R, but it's got half the miles on it and supposedly still has factory warranty left. Let's see if this works better for me and if I can live with the steering feel. The Type R's steering feel didn't exactly blow my socks off either, so maybe it's just modern cars these days.
The Mk7.5's have a 6 year warranty on them. So my '19 would've had ~1 more year of bumper to bumper warranty. I liked it, it was a good car with very little faults. No steering feel and issues with the thermostat/water pump. The 6MT's have problems with crankwalk, aftermarket stronger pressure plates made it worse
In reply to docwyte :
This is a '19, and it's a DSG car which has the advantage that my wife I can drive it also. I'm curious how I like it once it makes it here, and if I prefer it over the Type R or if I end up Type R shopping after experiencing this car.
Of course it would be hilarious if after all of this I end up with another Miata...
Did not like the Golf R. The best I can describe it is that it felt ... heavy.
They also suggested I try out the '15 Mk7 GTI they had on the lot, and I liked that one a lot better. It was a non-PP one, but they also have a '20 GTI SE in stock that's currently waiting for a couple of typical VW parts and so far that looks like the best candidate. Should be able to check that out sometime next week.
Interesting. I drove both the GTi and R the same day and didn't feel like the R was heavy. It made far more power and I liked the gearing more.
In reply to docwyte :
The power difference was noticeable, but for some reason the GTI felt like a more willing dance partner that had a fleetness of foot that the R seemed to be missing. I also don't think it was just the difference between a DSG equipped car (the R) and one with a manual.
Will I get banned if I post a link to JG's deep dive into a MK7 GTI? 
Well, that GTI didn't work for me either.
While I did like the car, the knee angle/seat angle was causing pretty much immediate knee issues and unfortunately in this particular model (SE), it doesn't look like the angle of the main seat cushion is adjustable. My knee started protesting a few minutes into the test drive and didn't stop protesting until I was halfway home.
Didn't notice this issue in the Golf R as that had a DSG and obviously no clutch pedal, but I did like the six speed manual much better.
Remember what I said further up?
"Of course it would be hilarious if after all of this I end up with another Miata..."
I guess all y'all can start laughing now, because I've just paid for a transfer of a low mileage ND2 Club. Should know more in a couple of weeks.
In reply to BoxheadTim :
A person could spend a lot more money and do a lot worse than a ND2 Club. Congrats and good luck (especially with your knee).
BoxheadTim said:Well, that GTI didn't work for me either.
While I did like the car, the knee angle/seat angle was causing pretty much immediate knee issues and unfortunately in this particular model (SE), it doesn't look like the angle of the main seat cushion is adjustable. My knee started protesting a few minutes into the test drive and didn't stop protesting until I was halfway home.
Didn't notice this issue in the Golf R as that had a DSG and obviously no clutch pedal, but I did like the six speed manual much better.
Remember what I said further up?
"Of course it would be hilarious if after all of this I end up with another Miata..."
I guess all y'all can start laughing now, because I've just paid for a transfer of a low mileage ND2 Club. Should know more in a couple of weeks.
I'm beginning to suspect we might be related... similar taste in cars... similar inability to keep most cars long term... bum knee that hurts based on seating position...
As such, I would point a few things out:
I recently test drove 2 MK8 GTI's, one with an adjustable lower seat cushion (Autobahn trim) another without (S trim). The manual seat caused my right knee pain with the seat all the way down, due to the rake of the seat. I adjusted this in the Autobahn trim car, and viola, the knee pain was absent. Although I didn't much care for the higher driving position. I would point out that if the MK7 seats are anything like the MK8, it would appear the seat rails are completely flat... it would be very easy to adjust the rake of the seat by just adding washers/spacers to the rear rail.
I own an S2000. My wife used to own an ND1. I drove an ND a few months back- I took my S2000 to the dealership to compare... overall, I felt like the ND might be slightly more fun to drive vs my AP2. With that said, for me, knee pain in the ND is hit or miss- it's not bad and it might be better with the Recaro's (my wife's ND1 had Recaro's and though it's been a few years, I don't recall them causing me pain), but by comparison, in my 4.5 years of ownership, my S2000 has never caused me a minute of pain. I would also point out that when I drove them back to back, I didn't notice much of a difference in steering feel between the S2000 and the ND... if you sold your S2000 because of a lack of steering feel, well, I don't know if you'll find much of an improvement with the ND. The ND is more modern, but at the end of the day, they're both EPS racks.
With that said, if you're looking at roadsters now, I know of another roadster that never caused me knee pain and had better steering feel than the S2000 and ND: the NC. And if you're tracking the car, it would appear that the NC, in near stock form, is a bit more durable.
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