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Few cars have had the impact of the Volkswagen Golf. With worldwide sales in excess of 30 million, it's fair to say that VW's small-sized hatch is a pretty big deal.
Introduced in Australia in 1976 as a replacement for the classic Beetle, the Golf has undergone a series of growth spurts and facelifts to stay up-to-date and remain a viable option for Australian families. The Golf pulls off a neat trick – it's big enough to seat four in comfort, but small enough to park with ease. It's reserved enough to not draw attention, but classy enough that you don't feel short-changed at traffic lights. It's quiet enough to sit all day at freeway speeds, and interesting enough when you turn onto a back road. The Golf Life starts at $38,690 up to $72,490 for the Golf R Black Edition and is available as everything from a city-bound hatchback to snarling GTI and R performance versions.
This vehicle is also known as The Volkswagen Golf is also known as Volkswagen Rabbit, Volkswagen Caribe in markets outside Australia..
The answer to this question depends entirely on one thing: Are you trading the vehicle in on a new car or selling it privately?
If it’s the former, then the trade-in value won’t be too much different regardless of whether it’s had its 100,000km service or not. Dealerships can service a car for a lot less money than they charge you to do it. But if you’re selling privately, the car will be a lot more attractive to a private buyer if the cost of this major service has already been taken care of.
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The trade recommends a fully synthetic oil for either the diesel or petrol engines of the Golf Mk 7. The correct grade and specification is 5W30 which will give you maximum engine protection and performance.
The other engine-oil recommendation for this car is to not skimp on checking the oil level with the dipstick. These engines – in particular the 2.0-litre petrol unit – are designed to sip a little oil between changes, so don't be caught out with too little oil in the sump as that can cause catastrophic damage to the engine. The engine does this because it's a low-friction design, but the small amount of oil you'll use will be more than offset by the fuel savings engines designs like this can deliver.
Make it a habit to check the oil level every Saturday morning; it's a simple thing to do and something that we all once had to do in the old days when most engines burned a little oil.
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Your recommended tyre pressures can vary a bit depending on what size wheel and tyre combination is fitted to your car. But broadly speaking, you should be looking at something like 30 or 32 psi front and rear as a good starting point. If you're moving heavy loads or driving at freeway speeds in mid-summer, a little more inflation pressure might be a good idea.
As for recommended fuel, the best advice would be to stop using ethanol-blended (E10) fuel right away. That's because there's a fair bit of confusion on the subject as it relates to Volkswagen models. The Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries tells us that all post-1986 VWs with fuel-injected engines are fine with E10. The NSW government website, however, says that E10 should not be used in VWs. Some VW owners have also been told by VW head office that E10 fuel is not suitable for their cars.
So it's confusing, but if in doubt, stick with the safe option which, for your car, would be non-ethanol fuel with an octane rating of 95 or more.
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The TCR builds on the regular GTI, adding things like a dynamic cornering function to the LED headlights, a revised (louder) exhaust, black mirror covers, 19-inch alloys, TCR decals on the vehicle’s flanks, a gloss-black roof and very cool TCR puddle lights that illuminate the footpaths when you open the front doors.
Inside, you’ll find a sportier material on the seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with a red marker at the top, more red trim on the seat belts and floor mats, and Alcantara on the gearshift and and door trims.
All of which joins the regular GTI’s equipment list - think an 8.0-inch touchscreen with in-built nav and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a digital driver display, keyless entry and push-button start, and all the safety equipment you can shake a traffic cone at - and you’re left with a vehicle in which you want for little.
The VW Golf GTI TCR interior is similar in most ways to that of the regular GTI, though this special edition vehicle adds a sportier material on the seats, a leather-wrapped steering wheel with a red marker at the top, more red trim on the seat belts and floor mats, and Alcantara on the gearshift and and door trims.
The Golf has a 374-litre (VDA) luggage capacity, above average for the mid-size hatchback segment. It leaves room for a space-saver spare under the boot floor.
The VW Golf GTI is a five-seat hatchback, with two spacious chairs up front, and a bench across the rear that includes ISOFIX attachment points in each of the window seats at the back.
The VW Golf GTI will accelerate from 0-100km/h in 5.7 seconds.