So I'm looking at hot hatch type cars and found a 2004 GTI

>>15343689
Bland as fuck and slow for the GTI badge.
Save a bit more and get a R32.

>>15343689
It will break. Everything will break, all the time, forever.

Sincerely, a former golf owner.

Why not an Audi TT? Same platform only that bitch has Quattro

>>15344085

More shit to go wrong, less interior space, more expensive.

>>15343732
>>15343752

I thought wigger tuners drove these things to 250K. No?

>>15344807
No. Don't worry about that guy. VR6 and R32 fanboys are all just bench racers.

There is literally no better VW engine for tuneability than the 1.8t. 300WHP is literally commonplace with just bolt-ons.

Be very aware of engine sludge (which commonly clogs the oil pickup tube - result of not using VW 502.00 spec oil/ not changing it), PCV system fuckery (cracked rubber hoses), and oil in the boost hoses (failed seals). Also, of course timing belts need to be done every 80k. So make sure they have documentation for that.

>>15344840
Sauce: I am a Volkswagen/Audi technician.

>>15344911
kek

>>15343689
Mk4 is obese but 1.8t AGU motor is the nuts.

>>15344840
New metal bladed water pump with timing belt replacement

>>15343689
>3800
Personally i think golfs and rabbits are awesome but from a maintinence standpoint you are probably going to be looking at lots of parts i agree with the person who said everything will always break but if you treat the car well it will treat you well. I work as a pit man at valvoline and i have to say i literally have never seen one of these that isnt leaking oil and transmission so expect to be getting it resealed often. As someone else said these cars do sludge pretty hard. Something you should check on the one you are looking to buy is if the dip sticks have any burn marks on them if they do just walk away its already dead.

>>15344840
300 at the WHEELS with bolt-ons? KO4/Injectors/map will give you about 300 at the flywheel.

They break a lot OP however they are common as anything so parts are everywhere, Also they handle like boats.

See if you can get one with the heated leather interior, they do make good compact long distance cars despite their faults.

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Owned an '03. Loved the hell out of it, but prepare for that nice dash glow as the lights keep coming on. Also, don't lower the living fuck out of it.

What typically breaks on these things? Like engine sensors or what?

Car I'm looking at has had two timing belts done and it's a leather interior. Looks super clean in the photos.

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i have a mk1 and its a turd
vw are some of the most OVERRATED cars ever
require special tools
often break
need a VAG-COM
horrible scene

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What wheels are these? Base Golf wheels?

>>15343689
>1.8T

Be prepared.

That's all I'm going to say.

>>15343752
Nothing major will break. ever. In 20 years.

Sincerely, a current owner of 2 golfs.
Based VW TDI

>>15346222
Everything. Just everything.

>>15346266
for sick mpgs

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>>15346225
>usdm bumpers

Bump. Drive a Miata right now but looking for something with more space inside and more power.

>>15347748
That's really depressing when you're looking at stock 15-year old Golf for more power.

>>15346225
>every gen is still a first gen
>overrated because haven't met some Anon's requirements
>doing maintenance is 666 level wizardry
>scene means anything to a guy who separates himself from those guys
Not OP but hey man, relax. Maybe it's still repairable and you can sell it either to some scraping boi or anyone who sees any value in this car.

>>15347792
>180 horsepower in a 2800 pound car

Anyone else? Might look at it tomorrow.

>>15349148
You're going to be disappointed at how it drives coming from a Miata.

No, really. They understeer horribly and feel bigger than they are. Even when they were new they weren't known for their handling. Its the shittiest handling/least sporty generation of GTI. Save your pennies up and look for a MKV or a 02-05 WRX/350Z/E46 330i.

>>15350319
>You're going to be disappointed at how it drives coming from a Miata.
No wonder, but he's looking for a hot hatch so it's up to be expected; especially after driving a benchmark. Imo he's already accepted the fact of the new car being inferior drive quality wise.

>tl;dr boring, probably already leaky but comfy and roomy

>>15350490
I wouldn't consider a MK4 GTI being a hot hatch. Their competitors were hot hatches (SVT Focus, Civic Si, etc), the MK4s weren't anywhere as agile or fun to drive around a corner like a hot hatch should be.

>>15350498
That MK4 GTI is slower or more numb may put it behind its competition but it still is.
If we were again to judge what is a hh and what not, that term would probably start to exist past 1990.

>>15343689
If the pic is the actual car you are looking at, my dad has the exact same car, down to the color and even the wheels. About the same mileage too. His water pump recently failed catastrophically, and he's constantly chasing after electrical problems, but I used to drive it to work once in a while and it's a really fun car to drive. I would love to have it for myself, although I'd prefer something more reliable. Very classy and sporty IMO

>>15343732
R32's are way overpriced

>>15350533
6 cylinders in an eurocompact car is something unusual, so here's the justification of their prices. Even if they are going to be mechanics' (and wallets') nightmares, there's a lot of people loving that car.

>>15346619
fuck off i can ram shit with them.

>>15343689
Can you afford a mk5 GTI? They are much improved over the mk4.

How about this?

http://boston.craigslist.org/sob/cto/5655418345.html

>>15346270
But you don't drive them, do you?

>>15346246

Bump for wheel info. Base wheels right? Did GTIs ever come with these?

>>15343732
>Save a bit more and get a R32.
>implying the R32 isn't even more disappointing than the GTI
Post yfw you learn the following fact from this post:
An R32 is no faster than a V6 camry of the same model year.