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Why Do So Many People Switch To TDI?

Q

QuitersLOSE14

Ready to race!
Searchingtom said:
I live in Wisconsin and I was told by some TDI owners that the diesel does not provide enough warm air on cold winter days compared to a gas engine.

Can anyone confirm that ?
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Diesels hate the cold, thats a fact since they were invented. Thats what the glow plugs are for. They help it get started in the cold by warming the cylinder chambers for fuel to combust at a more ideal temp. Now once it is started and sucking in that cold winter air, it will be more difficult on the engine until it is warmer. But I believe it was a topic on here a while back, some winter drivers were concerned their mileage would suffer in the winter months and offset the economy of the car. Can't remember the result though.
 
Q

QuitersLOSE14

Ready to race!
toproy said:
You see, the old MKV was designed and made in an era where VW did not put so much impetus on profits, ergo their cars were a lot more beautiful and a lot more fun.

The MKVI has "improvement" that are gimmicks and marketing tricks but in reality it is a cheaper car.

But the interiors, lets check that. Our GTI had dials in blue and red which I though twas the coolest thing. And that set up was there since 2000 or so, since the MKIV. Why did they went to a boring white that looks like anything else out there, beats me.

The glass on the dials was glass, not plexi that gets scratched. It was not just glass, it was tempered glass with a non reflective coating, like a Porsche.

Down to the hazard button it was cooler. The MKV hazard button was a red triangle that looked awesome, the new one is just an old fashioned painted rectangle.

And the Xenons were standard even on the cheapest set up.
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So I've never driven a MKV, but IMO I always thought they looked more bubbly and girly than the MKVI. So I kindly disagree with that aspect.

To say that it is a cheaper car though I do not believe to be completely true. Laser seam welding for the chassis and a severely upgraded interior make the car more appealing to me, and unless they have some fantastically great IE's in their company to keep costs down while still improving over all quality, it seems like it is still on par.

Now I will say it is a surprise that they quit using tempered glass for the cluster, as that is a reduction in quality to me, since my plexi is scratched. Switching to the white lights for back lighting was also a disappointment for me as well, as I always loved seeing the indigo gauges when I passed VDUBs at night.

Hazard button, nbd, this one looks ok and glows in the dark which I think is ingenious. Old one definitely more unique though.

As for HIDs standard, you're talking about just the GTI right? A lot of MKVs have halogens that are not GTIs, which the TDI is not, more so just an upgraded Golf.

Good points to bring up though, much more out of the usual scope of what people critique.
 
Q

QuitersLOSE14

Ready to race!
I chose TDI over GTI for torque and the fact that I've wanted a diesel because of how amazing those engine are. I drove GTI, just not hard, and the TDi definitely has a better real world fun factor. With my MT I love being in control around the turns, and with TCS off, this car hauls for a diesel around the turns. I do notice that body roll, but hey lets face it that car still would handle and feel better than most cars in its class. With a Bilstein coil over kit, those problems disappear, as well as an upgraded set of tires (which I will have to be getting a lot sooner than I expected because the garbage conti's wear out too fast).
 
F

fierce bad

Ready to race!
I am thinking about switching to a TDI to avoid the insurance a$$ raping that takes place if you have 2 male teenage drivers in the home and a GTI. Just having one added to the policy cost $4,000 per year.
 
maxtdi

maxtdi

Go Kart Champion
fierce bad said:
I am thinking about switching to a TDI to avoid the insurance a$$ raping that takes place if you have 2 male teenage drivers in the home and a GTI. Just having one added to the policy cost $4,000 per year.
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I don't see a GTI being that much more expensive than TDI... but always check with your agent... Regular golf is always the cheapest choice.
 
M

MM48

Passed Driver's Ed
maxtdi said:
^^^ You need to brush up a little more on the GTI/TDI.

The suspension is very very similar as are the seats, and the TDI does have a rear swaybar.

If you wanted to firm up the ride and make the car handle better the single best mod is 18" wheels and summer tires. But you will give up some ride quality. This car is still very firm.

And these cars are not bulletproof, the 2.5 I5 is bulletproof.
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Well, I must have bought the worst 2011 Golf TDI ever built, because it handles nothing like my 08 GTI, and the seats dont feel the same one bit. And it cant just be the tires, because my GTI never had the kind of bad bodyroll that the TDI does. I cannot get through turns without scrubbing speed, period.

Considering trading it for a GTI if the VW dealer has any insane end of summer offers. I really don't care about getting an MKVII, because they're just as ugly as the MKVI's.

MM48
 
maxtdi

maxtdi

Go Kart Champion
ick

ick

Ready to race!
What body roll? I got no body roll! :thumbup:
 
McQueen77

McQueen77

Banned
maxtdi said:
Yep, ppl do a lot of irrational things when it comes to cars. If you already purchased a GTI it makes no sense getting a TDI.

Lets just say you do a trade straight across... and only pay for tax and reg. $2300

Now lets say one drives 15,000 miles a year

At 3.80 a gallon for premium and 26mpg. $2200 in fuel per year for the GTI vs
At 3.80 for diesel and 38mpg, $1500 per year in fuel for the TDI.
That's ~700$ a year in fuel savings... or $58 a month.

It would take over 3 years to recoup the tax/registration fees alone... :lol:
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exactly. no one ever seems to get that and they just go on and on about all the money they are saving on fuel. i may consider the diesel after the GTI has run its course, which for me, will be in like 5 or 6 years. at that point, who knows what will be on the market. we may end up moving out of the city of l.a. and into the burbs which would add massive miles to the commute at which point, a tdi might make sense.
 
Saabstory

Saabstory

.:R32 OG Member # 002
Depends on the commute. My commute is more than double that "average" 15000 a year, and diesel in my area is an average 20 cents cheaper than premium gas, so it makes a huge difference ;)

Then again, I moved from a 22mpg R32 to a 42 mpg TDI; so that makes a huge difference as well... :lol:
 
troyguitar

troyguitar

Go Kart Champion
There's a reason I only said I would trade if I could do it at no cost. Since that is not actually possible I won't get one. It's more an 'if I could go back in time I'd have gotten the TDI instead' type of statement.
 
Sandwich_Dan

Sandwich_Dan

Ready to race!
maxtdi said:
http://blogs.insideline.com/straigh...lkswagen-golf-tdi-vs-2010-volkswagen-gti.html
QUOTE]

And those figures don't include any in-gear times which is where the diesels really show their pace. Standing start figures are never that representative of real world diesel performance.

First gear in the diesels is so short that it's useles for standing start stuff wheas 30-60 mph in 3rd in my GTD feels properly quick, in fact it doesn't feel that far short of what my old 335i (302 bhp, <5.5 s 0-60) could manage in the same gear.
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