Comparison: 2003 Elantra GT vs 2011 VW GTI
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Comparison: 2003 Elantra GT vs 2011 VW GTI
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Jun 29 2011, 10:01 PM
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Nanomember Group: Lifetimer Posts: 7,787 Posts Per Day: 1.11 Thanks Received: 57 Trader Stats: 2 (100%) Joined: 27-January 05 From: College Park, MD Member No.: 106 Mood: Blah |
So um... I bought a new GTI. I've had it a week these are impressions. Maybe they'll be useful for someone else car shopping someday. Keep in mind I'm coming from a nicely modified Elantra (wheels, tires, sway bar, camber bolts, Hawk HPS brake pads, short shifter, lightweight flywheel, etc) to a bone-stock GTI.
The styling differences inside and out I don't need to go into. Maybe I'll post a photo for reference later. Subjectively, the GTI has a really nice interior and great seat bolstering. From the outside... I like the Elantra GT just fine. Engine & Transmission performance Let's skip right to the driving. The main reason why I got this car is the power. It has more than enough power... above 2000rpm. On the highway it's always above 2,000. (I would've made 6th gear longer, personally) It's great when there's a momentary gap in interstate traffic to drop down two gears and burst forward. Merging is easier, changing lanes in a limited time is much easier and quieter (more of a rumble than roar), so the effect is to turn trucks and slower cars into slow moving obstacles to be passed. It's a lovely smooth engine that revs easily. I've found myself cruising at 4,000rpm because it's so smooth. However, below 2000rpm... it feels no sportier than the Elantra. On the contrary, in the Elantra I'm used to reving it and engaging the clutch as nimbly as I want and can. Which brings me to the longest part of this review... the DSG. In summary, I think the DSG is a neat gadget and I'd opt for it again given its advantages, me being married and all. But if you're used to a stickshift and like it, get the stick, of course. It comes down to the same manual/automatic difference. In a manual car the transmission is just a dumb, simple passive tool. Once you're familiar with it (which does take time) it's completely transparent and predictable. When you're in the wrong gear, or dump the clutch too harshly, you have nobody to blame but yourself. Automatic transmissions aren't passive, so they become an 'entity,' an unwelcome third party if you're used to a stickshift. It's like chopsticks. While you suck at using chopsticks, having someone feed you is relaxing and more efficient. But once you've learned, you just want to be alone with your food. Occasionally dropping your food is still more relaxing than being fed by someone else. Now, the DSG is one of the nicest automatics I've seen. In "Drive," it will cruise relaxedly and act like an efficient automatic with noticeable engine braking and subtly noticeable downshifts. It also crawls forward like an automatic. How? and.. why? It's also never ready to suddenly accelerate in Drive, so I use that mode when I'm groggy or stuck in traffic. In "Sport" mode... I don't know, I'm not obnoxious enough to leave it in Sport for more than a few seconds. That leaves Manual mode, my favorite. The nice thing is most shifts are super-quick and you don't need to ease off the throttle at all. (In fact if you do it gets confused and takes longer to shift). It'll rev to or past the redline, but it won't stall out - it will downshift for you if you stop. Every upshift and every downshift is the same arm/hand motion, so I lose count and have to check with the instrument cluster LCD what gear I'm in. The downshift rev-matching is cool but I rev-match and heel-and-toe all the time - sometimes quickly and loudly, sometimes more quietly. With the DSG and the GTI's exhaust, it's never that quiet - which is obnoxious. Lastly, about the DSG... the initial clutch engagement. I've noticed two philosophies: Engage around 1,000rpm and then wait for the turbo to spin up (Drive, Sport, Manual) or rev to 3,000 and dump the clutch, leaving a single dark tire mark on the road (aka "Launch Control"). I'm hoping whatever computer controls the clutch engagement starts to learn how to do a subtle quick getaway without peeling out, or I discover some magic combination of throttle pressure and timing that will do it. In the next part I'll review the ride & handling (preview: The Elantra is a lot of fun, actually), and then the features and details (preview: dizzying array of buttons and LCD display options to distract you, but no auto-off headlights?!). -------------------- Help keep ElantraClub running and free for all Elantra owners: Donate.
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