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VW R32, anyone?**Chosen a car**

H

Hellotalkie

Golden Member
I'm looking for a replacement car.

I require AWD, somewhat fun and comfortable. Hatchback is a plus.
I've looked at a 2013 speed3, 2008 WRX,and just tonight, a 2008 R32.

The R32 felt solid overall, the engine felt strong, steering felt great, suspension absorbed bumps very well. Comparing to the WRX and speed, this car was the most comfortable. Has nav, heated seats, xenon lights etc. Both of which the other two cars don't have. Dealer wants 20k (after negotiations). The R32 has 40,000 miles, 1 owner, records, clean carfax. Now i'm just wondering how reliable these cars are. Seems it's a mix when it comes to VW. Either people love or hate them. The R32 has the DSG 6sp transmission, which I actually did not mind (coming from a 5spd protege5).

The dealership wanted 1800 for my current car, I think i'll sell it privately.

Mazda dealer will give me a brand new speed3 for 21,900 (before TTL). Problem is the insane torque steer, and it being FWD. Plus the styling of the car does not appeal to me as much as the other two

Subaru (new) is much higher and not worth looking into. The WRX I looked at has 72,000 miles priced at 16,500.

**Decided to go with the Mazda ~ got them down to 21,400 for a brand new black on black speed3!
 
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I believe throckmorton here has an R32. All your choices are pretty good cars.

Don't have much input on the others but like you, the dealers usually offer a pretty good deal on the speed3 and unless you're going wot in the first 2 gears you're not going to experience much torque steer. Usually the only times I'll get is if I'm trying to induce it.

Other than that it's a ton of fun, handles pretty well for fwd and the chassis is very responsive. It's a little stiffer than the other two you compared it to but nothing that's back breaking.

Other thing you have to take into consideration is totally new vs 40k miles but in the end you can't really go wrong.
 
xSkyDrAx said:
I believe throckmorton here has an R32. All your choices are pretty good cars.

Don't have much input on the others but like you, the dealers usually offer a pretty good deal on the speed3 and unless you're going wot in the first 2 gears you're not going to experience much torque steer. Usually the only times I'll get is if I'm trying to induce it.

Other than that it's a ton of fun, handles pretty well for fwd and the chassis is very responsive. It's a little stiffer than the other two you compared it to but nothing that's back breaking.

Other thing you have to take into consideration is totally new vs 40k miles but in the end you can't really go wrong.
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True. That's where i'm questioning my decision. 40k @ 20,000 or New at 22,000

The VW has an interior of a Luxury car though; auto everything. Interior is really nice. Also I like how the car looks and sounds better than the Speed.

The speed3 has a lot of plastic, sorta cheap looking but still looks nice. No heated seats, nav, sunroof, xenon headlights. List goes on... (that is if I don't get the tech package on the speed).
 
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crabbyman said:
I am still a little scared of VW's electrical problems. They ever get those issues ironed out?
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Not just VW, this applies to pretty much all German cars.

I like the first gen R32, especially since it came with manual transmission.

2008 = no clutch = no thanks (but that's up to OP)
 
Also consider resale value.
I'd expect you'll lose less on a used R32 than on a new MS3, if you have the time to find the right buyer.

Electrical gremlins shouldn't be too bad on a 5 year old car, but make sure to go for a test drive in the wet, if there are any worries. 40k miles is a lot on a high perf. engine, but if it's still stock, it should probably have that again, before you get major issues.

Try to get some quotes on parts (body parts should be relatively cheap, but engine/trans/suspension OEM parts could be quite expensive, due to the relatively small production runs) and see if you can get at least a year of dealer warranty, at that price.

Finally, compare insurance quotes. With relatively rare cars, such as the R32, the quote could be all over the place, whereas I'd expect the cost to insure an MS3 to tend toward the high end. Factor that into your buying decision. (I've payed more than 10% my car's value this year in insurance alone.)
 
Used R32's always seem way overpriced to me. Have you considered an A3 3.2 Quattro? Same thing for less money.

The problem with that generation R32 is you can chip the much cheaper GTI and have a faster car (minus the AWD). You also pretty much have to replace the Haldex controller in the R32 to make it use the AWD system like it was meant to be used.
 
_Rick_ said:
Also consider resale value.
I'd expect you'll lose less on a used R32 than on a new MS3, if you have the time to find the right buyer.

Electrical gremlins shouldn't be too bad on a 5 year old car, but make sure to go for a test drive in the wet, if there are any worries. 40k miles is a lot on a high perf. engine, but if it's still stock, it should probably have that again, before you get major issues.
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R32 engine is NOT "high performance" engine....
 
Would an A3 be more expensive to maintain just because it's carrying the Audi Badge? I don't know how similar the parts are between the two but it seems that the Audi could become a nightmare fast.

The car seem to drive fine. The DSG transmission was more than enough for me. Would rather have a manual for a faster car but not for my DD.
They're suppose to give me a counter offer to 20 today, i'll see what happens.
 
cr2250 said:
Would an A3 be more expensive to maintain just because it's carrying the Audi Badge? I don't know how similar the parts are between the two but it seems that the Audi could become a nightmare fast.
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Identical car under the skin/different interior.
 
Vdubchaos said:
R32 engine is NOT "high performance" engine....
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It's a 184kw 3.2 liter N/A (5kw less than the 3.2 in alfas of the period, more than 10kw more powerful than the chrysler 3.2kW of ten years earlier, and the Holden implementation of the same block as used in the alfas) in the space primarily designed for 2.0 liter N/A engines. It's the most powerful engined fitted to that chassis/body.
Being N/A it needs to be revved to get to the power (though tourque tops out at 3krpm). Compression is at 11.3:1, which is quite high for a naturally aspirated engine.

Still, claiming that the most powerful engine in a generation of Golfs is not "high performance" is quite funny. It may not be boosted, but people don't buy an R32 to tootle around in. And there really isn't that much more performance to be had from a street legal N/A 3.2 V6.
 
Eh, I don't think ~250hp in a 3.2L V6 qualifies as a 'high performance' motor, just my opinion. It's also not really great with torque. It's not terrible, but when I think performance motor, I think stuff like the turbo i4s, actually decent V6s like the VQ37 and Mustang 3.7, and of course the big guns like the 5.0, LS motors, etc.
 
_Rick_ said:
It's a 184kw 3.2 liter N/A (5kw less than the 3.2 in alfas of the period, more than 10kw more powerful than the chrysler 3.2kW of ten years earlier, and the Holden implementation of the same block as used in the alfas) in the space primarily designed for 2.0 liter N/A engines. It's the most powerful engined fitted to that chassis/body.
Being N/A it needs to be revved to get to the power (though tourque tops out at 3krpm). Compression is at 11.3:1, which is quite high for a naturally aspirated engine.

Still, claiming that the most powerful engine in a generation of Golfs is not "high performance" is quite funny. It may not be boosted, but people don't buy an R32 to tootle around in. And there really isn't that much more performance to be had from a street legal N/A 3.2 V6.
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But that SAME motor is in a NORMAL Passat as a option. Nothing is special about it, maybe its tuned a little more for power. Yes it is the most powerful engine option at the time. Take the A3 3.2 quattro, its a common person car and its about just the same as a R32. A 3.5 V6 in the camry makes something in the 250hp range as well and is the most powerful engine to be put in a camry.

i'm going to +1 the A3/ normal GTI option. Same cars, the only higher cost you might pay for is chassis/body items. DSG trans service is like $300-450 every 30k, its not a SUPER SIMPLE drain and fill but its not superhard to do either, it just needs to be filled at a certain temp. And a ECU flash ($500) 2.0T FSI/TSI should put down equal power to a stock R32
 
Vdubchaos said:
Not just VW, this applies to pretty much all German cars.

I like the first gen R32, especially since it came with manual transmission.

2008 = no clutch = no thanks (but that's up to OP)
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Agreed about no clutch. Also, these cars are prone to understeer. They are very front heavy with that big 6 cylinder motor.
 
Arkaign said:
Eh, I don't think ~250hp in a 3.2L V6 qualifies as a 'high performance' motor, just my opinion. It's also not really great with torque. It's not terrible, but when I think performance motor, I think stuff like the turbo i4s, actually decent V6s like the VQ37 and Mustang 3.7, and of course the big guns like the 5.0, LS motors, etc.
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Agreed

VW has ALWAYS been and always will be behind on power/performance.

They make balanced cars that do well in all areas vs shine in any one particular area.
 
I'm sure it's a great car but I can't imagine spending that much on a 5 year old car with 40k miles. This might sound crazy but you might want to look into a VW Tiguan. I see them all the time around here just a couple of years old with 20k miles fully loaded (including AWD) in the 18-20k range. I'd buy one of those over an R32, but then again I'm not in nor have understood the cult of the R32. Sounds like you aren't either.

I would 100% for sure take a brand new speed3 over the R32 at that price, that's for sure.
 
Liked my VR6 2.8 liter 12 valve jetta 5 speed. Fun car to drive, even with only 180ish hp, as small as it was, it flew. The car was just too small for me though and I upgraded to a full size truck.

Never had electrical problems, although the coil pack could be problematic. Did have timing chain guide issues, but I don't know if that carried over to the R32
 
I sent an offer of 18,500

The car overall felt a lot more comfortable than the speed3. I like the fact that it's all wheel drive and plus having an auto is nice with traffic everyday. Luxurious interior too. It's quite loaded.

I'm looking at an 08 WRX today, wants 16,5k.

Holding off on the speed3 once I've looked over my options. AWD would be a plus since I'll be residing on the east coast this coming fall.
 
FearoftheNight said:
Why not bump up your budget? To about 24/25k and get a used BMW 135 or something?
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I rather not jump into a BMW. They're great cars when working but I feel can be quite a bit much to maintain once something goes wrong. Not saying the VW won't be pricey to maintain but I'm thinking a BMW alone, will always warrant a higher labor rate and part rate etc... Plus I rather not maximize my budget. Staying realistically around 20.
 
Looks like I won't be getting the one with 40,000 miles. Too much $$ I decided for the mileage and year (you guys were right 😀)

The speed3 lowered the price to 21,400. Still not convinced on the styling, nor being FWD. Will test drive tomorrow.

Also I found a nice blue R23, with 60k miles. All maintenance records, one owner. Negotiated down to 16.5.

It's still a good chunk of money but a lot cheaper than the speed3 (being new of course though).
 
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