2009 GTI replacement

GRM Brain Trust:

Boss's wife is looking to replace her 2009 VW GTI 5-door.  She likes the car but at 100,000 miles / 10 years old it has issues it shouldn't have.  A/C compressor is shot, it leaks oil and maybe other stuff, boss says it is making unhappy engine noises. I have no idea if these are normal age-related issues (except the compressor) or not.  They take their cars to the dealers for everything so they are at the service advisors' mercy a bit, and they are nervous that any noise means it could explode at any time.

She wants:

• Not an SUV - praise Bob for small mercies
• 5-door hatchback / wagon
• AWD
• At least as peppy as the GTI
• Red
• Low / small enough that she can get her kayak on the roof
• Long-term reliability - it will be a purchase and it needs to last 10ish years

Cars she has (provisionally) rejected:

• Subaru Crosstrek - not peppy enough
• Audi Q3 - too tall, too SUV
• Volvo XC40 - too tall, too SUV (maybe?)
  [edit]
• Mazda3 AWD hatch - didn't like the styling

On paper, another VW is ideal.  I suggested the SportWagen 4motion, the Golf Alltrack, and the Golf R.  I told them about the new 6yr / 72k comprehensive warranty, but they're still leery about the idea.

So, how bad are new VWs for the long term?

What other cars should they be looking at?

Thanks!

Mazda CX-5? Should have enough power.

I'm in the process of trying to figure out my next vehicle. The Fiesta ST is a riot to drive. I know it's not AWD, but it's a heck of a car and checks mosts of the boxes you've specified. I'm normally anti-FWD, but I can't help but think about how fun it was to drive. In terms of reliability, I'm not sure. The 2014s had some engine, transmission, clutch issues. I believe those issues are resolved in the 2016+. They depreciate nicely, so you can save some money by finding a gently used model (eg. 1/3 in two years).

clutchsmoke said:

Mazda CX-5? Should have enough power.

She looked at an AWD Mazda3 hatch and was not a fan of the styling.  I suspect the CX-5 won't paddle her kayak, but I will suggest it.  Thanks!

I agree that the Alltrack is the go to answer for them. The Gen III EA888, which is found in all the MK7 based cars is pretty stout motor. In terms of defects, early (MK7) GTI's had some turbo failures that have been resolved and thermostat housings had a QC issue a while back, but that seems to have been ironed out as well. In terms of design, the weak points of those engines have to do with the use of plastic and the direct injection nature of the engines. The oil pan itself is plastic and easy to break and the oil filter housing is plastic as well and prone to cracking with over tightening. The direct injection issue isn't unique to VW, but something to be aware of. They will have carbon build up so you should plan accordingly. 

The DSG is generally considered a pretty stout transmission, but it does need servicing every 40K miles. Whether that matters to you depends on how many miles you are racking up. A good indy will generally charge you $400 for the service. Interior quality was very high on my MK7, granted I only had it for 42k miles, but it was still like a new car. I haven't heard too many horror stories about the suspension, chassis, or general electronics. In summary, it'll need more maintenance than a Corolla/Civic, but it shouldn't leave them with any eye popping repair bills.

If they want to try something from another manufacturer I'd suggest the Mazda 3 hatch. I think it might feel a bit slower than the GTI, but it will meet most of the other criteria without being quite as needy as the GTI. Someone else will have to chime in, but I will say that my wife's CX-5 was a bit on the noisy side when it comes to NVH. Not sure if the latest 3 has addressed that.

Outback with the flat 6?

Civic hatch sport seems to meet the needs, but styling is polarizing. 

Not a GTI:

Golf R  (4wd)

GTI falling apart after 100,000 miles?  What is this, the 60's? Did you change the points and condenser?

mini clubman s all4...  should tick all the boxes.. AWD, quickish.. not too tall

Radom flyer: Buick regal tourx   https://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/road-tests/a27072687/2019-buick-regal-tourx-road-test-review/  <-- cars.com shows its kinda unloved and can be had for less that 30K well appointed. 

MTechnically said:

I agree that the Alltrack is the go to answer for them. The Gen III EA888, which is found in all the MK7 based cars is pretty stout motor. In terms of defects, early (MK7) GTI's had some turbo failures that have been resolved and thermostat housings had a QC issue a while back, but that seems to have been ironed out as well. In terms of design, the weak points of those engines have to do with the use of plastic and the direct injection nature of the engines. The oil pan itself is plastic and easy to break and the oil filter housing is plastic as well and prone to cracking with over tightening. The direct injection issue isn't unique to VW, but something to be aware of. They will have carbon build up so you should plan accordingly. 

The DSG is generally considered a pretty stout transmission, but it does need servicing every 40K miles. Whether that matters to you depends on how many miles you are racking up. A good indy will generally charge you $400 for the service. Interior quality was very high on my MK7, granted I only had it for 42k miles, but it was still like a new car. I haven't heard too many horror stories about the suspension, chassis, or general electronics. In summary, it'll need more maintenance than a Corolla/Civic, but it shouldn't leave them with any eye popping repair bills.

If they want to try something from another manufacturer I'd suggest the Mazda 3 hatch. I think it might feel a bit slower than the GTI, but it will meet most of the other criteria without being quite as needy as the GTI. Someone else will have to chime in, but I will say that my wife's CX-5 was a bit on the noisy side when it comes to NVH. Not sure if the latest 3 has addressed that.

Who the hell decided that was a good idea?

It's been widely criticized as one of the biggest flaws of the MK7, especially given the VW crowds penchant for lowering. I believe that the justification was lighter weight, but it seems like a bad tradeoff in this case. Luckily there are aftermarket options to remedy that issue, but it probably shouldn't have been a problem in the first place.

You can swap the oil pan for a steel one, that's also a VW part.  Direct swap/fitment. 

Yeah, I just can't imagine the meeting where the plastic oil pan got approved. Somebody else on here cracked the plastic oil pan on their Audi TT due to some boost bypass or something of that nature.

The Mazda 3 would be my first move, but since she doesn't like the styling, I would be looking at the Mini Clubman All4. The new ones are supposedly much improved in terms of maintenance issues. 

docwyte said:

You can swap the oil pan for a steel one, that's also a VW part.  Direct swap/fitment. 

There are also aftermarket skid plates available.  My dad bought a new GTI, he likes hiking and tends to drive it up some fairly rutted dirt roads to get to hike locations, so I recommended he add one.

In reply to codrus :

Yeah, ECS Tuning has one, I've run them in the past.  I'll more than likely buy another one for my new R soon.