I daily with a 3 1/2 year old and a 7 month old in my Mk VII GTI, plus occasionally a 60 lb dog in the hatch. It’s tight, but it all fits. I also have a roof box if we need to bring more.

The only bummer I’ve found with rain rides is when you arrive somewhere - there’s no avoiding the part where you walk in soaking wet and have to throw your wet gear in a corner. But the ride itself is all the things you said. Should be done more!

Instant purchase.

Will it baby? Will it also baby with a large dog in tow?

Each time is prompted by a lifestyle change for me. The reasons why I fell out of love/sold:

This is often one of my top answers to the question: “What’s a movie you know isn’t very good, but you love it anyway?”

Well, they did lengthen the warranty (now 6 year/72,000) so they’re halfway there. We’ll see if lowering costs includes parts (plausible) and maintenance (unlikely).

Yeah, I was all ready to pony up for that GTI in green, assuming Americas was getting this:

Hold up: We can’t complain about the weight up high of the sunroof, but then also advocate for lifting the car. Let’s pick our priority here and stick to it.

The lack of a manual has always been the bummer with these (not including the drivetrain swap you cited).

I have wanted a GTI since I was about 14 years old. Every time I have looked at buying a car it has always been the most expensive option I’m considering, for a variety of reasons (used/out of warranty scares me, service costs, MSRP higher than most hatchbacks, ownership window is shorter, etc).

I can’t decide if you’re trying to give him a compliment or take him out to dinner.

“220-mile range for $35,000. That’s after tax incentives, of course.”

2018 GTI. You can now get plaid seats with a sunroof, a 6 year warranty, and it comes in green. The longer warranty will help resale value immensely if I want/need to swap in 3 years (potential kid on the way).

Counterpoint: The 2018s will have double the warranty (6 year/72,000 mile), hence the massive discounts on the 2017s. I believe this will greatly reduce depreciation on the 2018s, so any savings on a 2017 now may be passed on to when it’s sold. The 2017s are basically the same car, but from a value standpoint the 2018…

I’m glad it’s not totally gone. But as has been mentioned many times over:

For 40k sales would be steady. For 35k they’d be flying out the door to the performance enthusiasts.

My wife and I are driving an Audi A3 around Norway for our honeymoon that requires 95 octane (standard here). Combined with the small 1.4 turbo, we’re getting nearly 50 MPG consistently.

Still very high on my dream car list. An absolute shame to see it discontinued.

Completely agree. The weight is detrimental to new riders, and the cost puts it very, very close to some incredible middleweight bikes. Not good first bikes, mind you, but better bikes than the Rebel.