Is the R32 being delivered to dealers yet? I just drove past the VW dealer near my house, and I noticed a blue Rabbit waiting at the light to pull onto the main road. As I pulled up the VW, I noticed that the Rabbit had center-ish dual exhausts with a matching bumper, blue calipers, big wheels, and, unfortunately, no badging. The guy driving it pulled out very slowly, so I didn't get a chance to hear any engine noise that could help ID the car. I didn't think that the R32s had made their American debut yet, but this one looked suspiciously like the pictures available online. Could this be a newly delivered R32, or was it just a GTI made up to look like its meaner brother?

 

I saw one in Pasadena. I couldn't check out the interior or drive it cause the dealer said 'something is wrong with it.' It was also marked up 5k. Making it 38k..

 

Yeah the R32s are definitely out now, I work at a dealership and our VW store has had some for a few weeks now.

Cool car, but I wouldn't buy it. I'd either wait for the R36, or just buy a GTI and chip it.

 

Hopefully it has cup holders and an armrest. The Mk4 R32 didnt have either of those.

But for $38k I would much rather have a STi. More power, more doors, cheaper to mod, and the quality of Subaru, VWs are pieces of ****.

 

I almost bought an 04 R32 when I bought the 8, those were the final 2, and it came down to insurance, the VW was 40 more a month. No regrets on the 8.

Anyway, this one only available with an automatic, so I dont care.

 

Exactly. The DSG is a cool gearbox, and performs wonderfully, but I've got to have three pedals to dance around or I'm not happy.


Have to agree with you too Vasichko...not exactly, because I wouldn't buy an STi, but for that kind of money there are certainly other cars I would buy before an R32.

 

I came SOOOO close to pulling the trigger on an 04 R32. Getting the STI instead broke my pattern of VW ownership. Now with this new one, I admit it's tempting, but I just don't trust the reliability of their high hp AWD cars yet. Stll though, next time I'm at dealership getting my Mazda 6 serviced (hopefully not anytime soon), I'll check out that new one, and pretend I'm interested in a trade, so I can test drive it.

I still have a thing for VW, Best looking interior and feel. Even my Dad's 06 Base Rabbit feels more solid and refined then my Speed 6. Reliability, and of course the lack of incentives are what have detered me over the past few years.

 

Nothing to fear with those cars. I had an '04 R32 and it was flawless and I know of many without any problems at all. Far more reliable than an Evo.

The DSG is a love it or hate it thing. I didnt think I'd like it, but when I drove it I really did like it. Shifting with the paddles and hearing the car rev match on its own when downshifting is pretty cool. Only problem I see with it is that it would be too tempting to just leave it in sport mode and drive it like an auto since it works so well, thereby losing the interaction with the car that many of us like.

Also the R32 is not, and never has been about having the most power. There are a lot of cars out there with more power for the money, but the R32 was/is the whole package. Very nice to drive, plenty of fun and power, great interior, more luxury than an STI or EVO, more sophistication than a Mustang GT and a great Euro feel. Its not about being the fastest, its about an entire package in a fast car.

 

i would just rather get a mazdaspeed 3

 

I found the first R32 somewhat interesting. I could care less about this current one since it's even more dumbed down and performance appears to be about the same as it was 4 years ago.

 

Its kinda weird how they did the R32.

The MK4 was only offered in DSG for Europe and only 6MT in US.

Now the MK5 is only 6MT in Europe and DSG in US.

Wonder why that is?

 

I think it's because the Grrmans love to FF with Americans.

 

VW probably realized there are more MT drivers in Europe than in the US =P
Seriously everyone in the US drives AT besides sports car enthusiasts and maybe the older generation.

 

I really do not like the new R32. All the new VW's just look weird now.

 

Theres a silver R32 with the funky blue brake calipers at work. Immediately caught my eye. The exhaust pipes are a bit weird.
You guys know the curbweight is 3547 lbs?!?
Still looks like a nice car...

 

Outrageous for a Rabbit! Great car--overpriced.

 

I don't understand why they don't just put a tweaked version of their 2.0L turbo in the R32. It would be an instant tuner's dream and would weigh around 3300lbs. Maybe they don't trust their all wheel drivetrain with modified boost?

 

I don't think 250+hp is gonna be very durable long term on that 2.0. That's a lot of HP for that engine, and it means very high boost. I mean, my Speed 6 is pushing out nearly 16psi just to put out about 230whp. Not to mention, that's a luxury sports hatch, and I drove an 04 R32, and the power delivery is so so smooth. No way you can make a 2.0 smooth. VW is about luxury, just as much as they are about performance. I'm trying to imagine a smooth, lagless 2.0 with 250hp, and I can't.

 

The 1.8 liter turbo GTIs are pretty strong. I think the rods are good for around 350-400whp.



QUOTE=VikingDJ;2020351]I don't think 250+hp is gonna be very durable long term on that 2.0. That's a lot of HP for that engine, and it means very high boost. I mean, my Speed 6 is pushing out nearly 16psi just to put out about 230whp. Not to mention, that's a luxury sports hatch, and I drove an 04 R32, and the power delivery is so so smooth. No way you can make a 2.0 smooth. VW is about luxury, just as much as they are about performance. I'm trying to imagine a smooth, lagless 2.0 with 250hp, and I can't. [/QUOTE]

 

[/QUOTE]


Notice I said reliably and long lasting, with the smoothness of the 3.2 engine. That was my point. It's not smart for them to make their luxury sports AWD version with a high boost engine. Even if it's reliable, there's no way that car will be friendly and smooth in it's power delivery. Not saying it can't be, but from a car companie's point of view, it's too risky. They need to get their reputation back on reliability.

But hey, if someone can show me a 1.8 300whp GTI with 200k miles on it that feels like a luxurious daily driver, then I will retract, and say I am wrong.

 

I sorta like how the R32 looks and would think about buying one. But 3547 lbs! Wow! I wounder what they build those cars out of.

One thing i would never do would be buy a VW that came out of Mexico. Any VW south of the border has tons of problems. Luckily the GTI and R32 are built in Germany

 

Have you driven a Solstice/Sky with the 260hp, 2.0L Ecotec? Most reviews comment on how little lag there is with that engine, and I'm sure VW could manage the same with their 2.0L if they had wanted to. The very existence of the 265hp, 16.8 psi, 2.0L Audi S3 shows that power and reliability is not the issue with this engine, though it's supposed to be a little laggier than the GM turbo engine of comparable output. It could very well be that NVH concerns were what drove them to drop the VR6 in the top Golf/Rabbit. Of course, mMaybe they just didn't want the top of the line Golf to compete directly against the top of the line A3, and so went with the heavier engine in the Golf to try to keep the two differentiated in overall feel. It's anyone's guess, at this point.

 

I just went to a VW dealer over lunch to try to take a look at one. They didn't have any, but kept talking about how they had one the last few months sitting in the back of the showroom, but it just got sold yesterday.

I realized after I left, they had no idea what I was talking about, they thought I wanted to see an old R32! They had no clue there is a new one out. The guy I talked to asked 3 or 4 of the other guys working and none of them made the connection that I wanted to see the new one. Maybe it hasn't hit CA. yet, but I know they are already out there in other parts of the country. They should at least know it's coming any day now, even if they've never seen one!

 

Well, if you've ever driven an R32 then a Solstice GXP, you'd feel the lag. They have come a long way with making high HP out of these small engines, but minimizing the lag. However, the 3.2 engine in the R32 is one of the smoothest engines I've ever driven in my life. It's a great engine, and I'd take over the 2.0 personally. Even my Speed 6 is impressive as far as lag, but when you get in a equally powerful N/A car, you really notice a difference.

EXAMPLE: Nissan Altima vs Speed 6 in smoothness. Same HP, Altima engine far smoother in it's power delivery. One is a 2.3 turbo 4 cylinder, the other a N/A 3.5 6 cyl. Equally powerful, the smaller engine has to use a blower and 16psi of boost to equal the power of the natural 3.5. You're guaranteed to feel a difference.

That engine is definitely more luxurious. Anytime you compare equally powerful turbo cars vs higher displacement n/a cars, you're gonna see a difference. Not saying that's the reason, but from a luxury standpoint, that 3.2 is ABSOLUTELY the best choice.

If you look at the EOS, they offer both options, the 3.2 engine being the top of the line luxurious model, so that's where I got the idea from.

 

FYI, a blower is a supercharger not a turbocharger.