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It's very tempting, I've always been a VW fan and this looks like a really great car. Has anybody test driven one of these? Anyone like to venture comparisons to the MINI? It has no where near the body styling and appeal of the MINI, but still looks great. I'd like to know how it performs. Check it out and tell me what you think.
i saw one of these on the road today (same color)! the performance was amazing and boy! was it fast! almost tempted to look into this car but, the price tag is steep. not too sure if it is front wheel drive? the spoiler was between the rear window and the trunk space which made the car look a little different.
they're building 1500 for sale in the US and all of them are Silver! Kind of boring but cool for a 25th anniversary edition. The price is $22,225 with a $550 destination charge. 180hp.
>>they're building 1500 for sale in the US and all of them are Silver! Kind of boring but cool for a 25th anniversary edition. The price is $22,225 with a $550 destination charge. 180hp.
i just read the article -- is it front wheel drive? ops:
"The 337 name comes from the codename for the Golf model back in the early 1970s," said Frank Maguire, vice president in charge of sales and marketing at Volkswagen of America, Inc. "The GTI is the sport version of the Golf and since we didn't begin selling the GTI here until 1983, the name 337 seemed like a nice way to recognize the history of this vehicle and make it meaningful to our most enthusiastic drivers. This is a very unique car for the Volkswagen lover."
Hello, but wasn't it called the "RABBIT"? There was the RABBIT GTI in this country. Nice try on the marketing dept to forget the poor old RABBIT. The MINI is much better, that 337 doesn't look any different than all the others I see on the road. Probably fun to drive but not to look at , or be looked at.
I considered getting the GTI as well.....because the acceleration was so much better than the mini.....the thing was I had a golf for 14 years and really couldn't take more of the same looking car...Plus, the mini has so much more personality, handles much better, try cornering on the GTI and you'll really feel your body sway.....
rabbit is to golf as gti is to gti. the old GTI never wore rabbit badging, in fact, the rabbit was ALWAYS called a golf in europe.
I also looked at the aniversary GTI, but aside from it only coming in silver, there are NO options. one package, that's it. and I want a sunroof! same reason I eliminated the subaru Impreza/WRX. No available sunroof.
My best friend drives a 337 and it's nice, but to me it looks and acts pretty much like every other VW on the road (almost ALL of my friends drive VW's.....) And there is definite body roll through the corners....he is trying to scrape together the money to get sway bars while my little Mini corners like a dream without all that extra work....
He got his for slightly more than I paid for my Mini and after spending time riding around in both I would still take the Mini at the drop of the hat.....the 337 is faster off the mark but definitely lacks the personality and handling that the Mini does.
Cheers!
L.Mini
It's also funny.....I know they only made 1500 of them....all in the same color....but I have seen more around in my area than Minis and I know they are not all the same car....
I've driven the 337. The Recaro interior is Great. It is front wheel drive. The 6 speed is alot smoother than the MCS but not as positive feeling and the clutch is more of a granny clutch than the MCS. For $22,775 it is not a bad deal. Try to find a Mini S for under that on the lot ready to go. The 18" BBS wheels are nicer, lighter, and more expensive than the 17" Mini wheels also. Yes the Mini handles better and thats one of the reasons I am getting it instead of a new VW. Oh and my friend has a suspension kit from H&R on his 337 and it solves body lean tendences without being too harsh.
The interior includes standard front red and black Recaro sport seats designed for extra support during enthusiastic driving,
nice...if only the mini would have gone with these instead of the lousy design seats they included....had recaro on a bimmer I had and they were heaven, couldn't have been that much of a bigger cost factor. Talked to a friend of mine over the weekend that took his mini in for service and was bitching to the service manager about the seats....the service manager told him BMW was addressing that issue now and seats would be redesigned for next year........he told him he had a few mini owners that went to a custom car upholstery and had the lumbar removed and padding added which helped...he said it was just a bad design oversight and that he had many complaints on minis in for service.....also told him BMW was addressing the lack of solid cover for the sunroof and that the software for the engine lag problems would be available mid sept....cheers!
GTI was nice 10 years ago, but the styling is very tired now, but they do know how to do engine performance and obviously the right seats....
I personally like the Mini sports seats better than the Recaros in the 337. Whenever I am in my friend's car I feel like I am sitting wrong no matter which way I adjust them....trust me, I have tried. The interior of the 337 is larger, but that is why I got the Mini and NOT a 337....because I wanted a SMALLER car. The seats might suit me better because I am a relatively little person, but they haven't hurt my back in the least. No complaints here! My friend's car is nice and all, but I think the Mini is more attractive overall. Plus power is not so much of an issue to me.....I'm not trying to race everyone I see on the street!
>>rabbit is to golf as gti is to gti. the old GTI never wore rabbit badging, in fact, the rabbit was ALWAYS called a golf in europe.
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The Rabbit GTi did indeed wear both the Rabbit and Gti badging (A Mk1 GTi was my first, and still is, a car of mine)
Since I work in a VW perfornance shop, and I do chip tuning on 1.8t's (like the 337) all day long, I've driven every type on V-Dub and Audi out there...and the 337 is an awesome car out of the box....I've been in love with Recaro seats ever since they were offered in the late 80's early 90's GTi and GLi...BUT, it has issues. The brakes are awesome, engine can be bumped to 215hp and over 250ft/lbs of torque with simple mods, the trans is great...etc etc. The suspension, although improved over the stock GTi, is good, it still has way too much roll in corners, it still floats over bumps, and doesn't inspire confidence like a MINI does. I've only owned VW's my whole life, and the only new car I would buy is a MINI. All the tuning in the world can't make up for the fact the Mk4 golf is big and heavy...
Why buy a 20k car if you have to put another $2k in suspension mods on it? VW has dropped the ball...MINI picked it up and is running away with it. Unless a 20v turbo Polo comes out in the next year...I'm getting a MCS...and I think the MINI sport seats are great!
I had a 78 diesel Rabbit. Nice car until I moved to the Florida coast and it rusted to pieces. I felt a little insulted when they changed the name to Golf. What was wrong with Rabbit. I don't know any german, but in english a rabbit is a cute little critter that's really fast. My car was kinda like that. What does a game where you hit a little round ball with a stick have to do with cars? Of course, I didn't like changing Peking to Bejing, or St. Petersburg to Leningrad, or Cape Canaveral to Cape Kennedy. So, maybe it's just me. Gotta agree though, compared to the MINI, the Golf needs a personality transplant.
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electric blue/white S on the way. Premium+sport wheels.
Read this article, from car and driver.... explains why the GTI isn't a good car.... anymore... and these guys know what they're talking about.Car And Driver Hatchback Comparison
>>I had a 78 diesel Rabbit. Nice car until I moved to the Florida coast and it rusted to pieces. I felt a little insulted when they changed the name to Golf. What was wrong with Rabbit. I don't know any german, but in english a rabbit is a cute little critter that's really fast. My car was kinda like that. What does a game where you hit a little round ball with a stick have to do with cars?
Yes, clearly you don't know any German :smile:
The car's name was always Golf everywhere except the U.S.
VW has a habit of naming their cars after winds: Golf has nothing to do with the game, it is a short version of the German word for the gulfstream.
Scirocco is a desert wind
Passat = tradewind.
Bora (Jetta in the U.S.) is some other kind of wind, I forget what :smile:
Obviously not every VW car name follows this trend, such as GTI, EuroVan, Vanagon, Beetle, etc :smile:
Bora (Jetta in the U.S.) is some other kind of wind, I forget what :smile:
I'm almost certain that BORA is a trade wind that cuts over Italy. I should really know for sure, considering I went by BORA VR6 over on Vortex for a while. :smile:
>>VW's rock... too bad I cant find a darn dealership with GOOD service...
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>>This is why I am leaving the VW family after 5 cars in a row.... I finally have had enough.
I'll tell you what, the grass (so far) doesn't get any greener, my mini dealer treated me like a number, not a person.
ops: 
