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FK8 Hard Decision

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27
Morning all,

Really struggling to decide which car to buy, an FK8 or a Golf R. Both amazing cars but totally different.

This will be my daily commute car which is nothing in distance, 8 mile round trip. Test drove both cars yesterday and both were a great drive.

Both cars are up for the same price, Type R is on a 19 plate and Golf R is on a 69. Woke up to an email from VW offering a further £100 off their car and an additional £100 for my 59 plate Civic SI.

I've emailed Honda here in Sunderland asking them if they can match that. I must say they've seemed very reluctant to budge on anything even refusing to put mats in the car! I think it's because they know these cars sell no problem. The thing is I've given them business previously and my father buys his cars from them.

Anyway, what are people's thoughts on the two cars? I understand I may get a few biased views and wouldn't expect anything else!

Thanks
 
I haven't driven an FK8 but did test drive a Golf R whilst deciding on my FK2.

For me the Civic just felt more responsive and gave more of a driving experience whereas the Golf, whilst very capable, felt numb in comparison.

The boy racer in me did love the blip on downshift of the DSG box though :lol:
 
Hi Welcome to the Forum, I really feel for you because my experience of the two cars it was such an easy choice, If the Golf has the DSG box and you want to drink a coffee on the way to work... LOL
I'm into my third year of owning the FK8, when I was looking to upgrade my 13 plate Octavia VRs I test drove all the usual suspects and the Type R wasn't even on my list (way to outlandish)
I found all the cars lacking in some respects and was not willing to buy any.
I was sat in Starbucks and a Type R drove in, I had a chat with the driver, He was a sales rep for honda, he took me for a drive, I had three more FK8 test drives all of which produced the biggest **** eating grins I have ever had from a car, two weeks later I was the proud owner.
The shape doesn't bother me now, infact I like that it stands out so much, It's an awesome car and far more engaging to drive than a Golf R IMO
 
Hi. I own an FK8 and it was for sale recently, I had a few offers.

The reason for sale was I was interested in a 7.5 golf R with a view to getting a cheap ep3 for the annual pilgrimage to spa and the ring.

I hasten to add that my plans for selling the FK8 are now aborted after taking the 8 out for a couple of “spirited” drives I’ve decided it’s not going anywhere.

There’s many comparisons online. The general consensus is that the golf R is a better all round car , it’s generally concluded that if the car is a daily driver then that would be the one to go for, however I don’t see why you couldn’t daily an FK8, though I think I’d get smaller wheels if it was a daily. The FK8 without question would be the car to choose if you enjoy driving and engaging a manual gearbox.

What are you going to be using the car for ?
 
8 mile round trip? Neither. Can't imagine they would warm up enough to enjoy.
I'm sure you'll use it other than the commute, out of exclusivity I'd go for the FK8, both decent cars though.
 
8 mile round trip? Neither. Can't imagine they would warm up enough to enjoy.
I'm sure you'll use it other than the commute, out of exclusivity I'd go for the FK8, both decent cars though.

The car will be used for everything, commute, golf, weekends away, absolutely everything.

I was just getting the opinions for using the Type R as a daily commute, obviously the car wouldn't be unleashed until it's fully warmed up. Difficult to give it any beans as the roads are all in built up areas, maximum speed limit on any of them is 40!
 
Hi. I own an FK8 and it was for sale recently, I had a few offers.

The reason for sale was I was interested in a 7.5 golf R with a view to getting a cheap ep3 for the annual pilgrimage to spa and the ring.

I hasten to add that my plans for selling the FK8 are now aborted after taking the 8 out for a couple of “spirited” drives I’ve decided it’s not going anywhere.

There’s many comparisons online. The general consensus is that the golf R is a better all round car , it’s generally concluded that if the car is a daily driver then that would be the one to go for, however I don’t see why you couldn’t daily an FK8, though I think I’d get smaller wheels if it was a daily. The FK8 without question would be the car to choose if you enjoy driving and engaging a manual gearbox.

What are you going to be using the car for ?

It's going to be used for everything mate from commuting, shopping, golf, weekends away, going to pick my son up from his mothers, the odd grandchild drop off, absolutely everything you would use a Honda Jazz for!
 
The car will be used for everything, commute, golf, weekends away, absolutely everything.

I was just getting the opinions for using the Type R as a daily commute, obviously the car wouldn't be unleashed until it's fully warmed up. Difficult to give it any beans as the roads are all in built up areas, maximum speed limit on any of them is 40!

For Dotty to change his mind and keep a car, it says a lot for the FK8 :D Tough choice but a good choice to have. I think the 8 is more of a head turner.
 
Real world performance nothing in it all, subtle or wild inside and out so personal, comfort similar, FK8 possibly better. The FK8 hasn’t lost as much as the Golf R and longer term a safer bet. Overall very little in it unless you are doing track days or want on the limit performance which has the FK8 win all areas as per the many reviews. I have to say I didn’t consider one, purely based on the bland looks.

Go with the one you like for the sake of a couple of tanks of fuel. If the Civic has the service plan that will save you that money.

Dotty is on his third so that should tell you something!
 
Was in a similar situation last year, went with the type-R in the end as it felt better all round. (Not quite as fast launching of the mark but everything else I preferred the type-R)
I agree with the guys above and the fact that the golf-R manual I looked at was only getting mid 20's mpg wise also helped me in the choice of going with the type-R as this is my daily driver.
I Also found Vertu Sunderland & Honda Durham a little expensive, I drove to Blackpool area for my car in the end as the prices where way better (and it had service plan) :D
 
Real world performance nothing in it all, subtle or wild inside and out so personal, comfort similar, FK8 possibly better. The FK8 hasn’t lost as much as the Golf R and longer term a safer bet. Overall very little in it unless you are doing track days or want on the limit performance which has the FK8 win all areas as per the many reviews. I have to say I didn’t consider one, purely based on the bland looks.

Go with the one you like for the sake of a couple of tanks of fuel. If the Civic has the service plan that will save you that money.

Dotty is on his third so that should tell you something!

It has the service plan, I wouldn't buy one without it.

At first I was thinking am I bit on the old side to be driving an FK8 and then I thought who gives a flying f*^* about what anyone else thinks!
 
Was in a similar situation last year, went with the type-R in the end as it felt better all round. (Not quite as fast launching of the mark but everything else I preferred the type-R)
I agree with the guys above and the fact that the golf-R manual I looked at was only getting mid 20's mpg wise also helped me in the choice of going with the type-R as this is my daily driver.
I Also found Vertu Sunderland & Honda Durham a little expensive, I drove to Blackpool area for my car in the end as the prices where way better (and it had service plan) :D

Agree with the pricing up here, they seem to overprice their cars.
 
Agree with the pricing up here, they seem to overprice their cars.
See if you can find a similar car in another dealer (one that offer free delivery) and ask them to match it. It's worked for me in the past ;)

Would be great to see another type-R around the area though! :D
 
One of the things for me (apart from the performance) was the interior. The Golf is ultimately higher spec, but just dull and old fashioned. Too safe.

The FK8 interior looks Japanese and fits the car perfectly. OK, the infotainment is gash but I spend more time listening to the engine rather than the stereo.

Apart from that the FK8 is pretty much faultless. Both me and the wife love it, and our 17 year old has been out in it a few times before his test (supervised of course) and thinks it's the best thing ever. Would recommend 100%
 
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So clearly not a direct comparison by any stretch but I came from a face-lift Scirocco R (280 bhp).

Both cars were used for daily driving including a similar commute. Hands down the VW was the more refined, better built, comfortable cruiser and for just putting your foot down on a short stretch of b road, equally enjoyable. In fact they quote the same 0-60, despite the power difference.

I had this very same dilemma before I got my Type R. Loved the rocco just needed something more family friendly. In truth I will probably go German for the next motor and stick to it but my advice is get the Type R.

Stick an exhaust on and probably a smaller set of wheels as I'm considering and you'll not regret it! How many golf Rs do you see?! Nice but its just a golf at the end of the day! All the extra kit, camera, adaptive cruise and so on make daily driving a piece of cake. You'll struggle to get a car that turns heads like the Type R.

As for Honda Sunderland. I'm local to them too, didn't give me the lickings of a dog everytime I went in. Maybe because I was late 20s when I was shopping around so they just thought I was a young lad in for a look. Ended up buying it from Leicester and get it serviced at Durham which is an equal distance.

Just try carwow if you're after a new one, they likely throw in free delivery and you get your first year's tax included.

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Off the lights and on a greasy road, a Golf R would show the type r a clean pair of exhausts, but the Fk8 is not a point and squirt machine, you do have to work it to get the best out of it in my view, which does relate it to type r's of old. Sometimes if I am honest and I am being lazy, it feels a little flat, but when you hook it up right, work the sweet manual box on the right road its epic.

So OP, if you want effortless performance in all weathers, but blend in with the crowd, Golf R is fantastic. If you want some really nice positive attention (mostly!) but work for the thrills, get the civic.
 
Driven the golf and it's a great car but just a bit to boring for me . Don't get me wrong, it does everything just fine but there is just no sense of occasion for me with it. I can look back at the FK8 after parking and it makes me smile. I daily drove my FK8 ( about 30 miles a day ) and it's fine in comfort mode and then then joining the motorway its a TOTAL grin factor up to the legal speed limit. Just my pennies worth.
 
Anything VW = Boring!! I’d rather spit in my hand and have a posh w@nk than drive one.


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Off the lights and on a greasy road, a Golf R would show the type r a clean pair of exhausts, but the Fk8 is not a point and squirt machine, you do have to work it to get the best out of it in my view, which does relate it to type r's of old. Sometimes if I am honest and I am being lazy, it feels a little flat, but when you hook it up right, work the sweet manual box on the right road its epic.

So OP, if you want effortless performance in all weathers, but blend in with the crowd, Golf R is fantastic. If you want some really nice positive attention (mostly!) but work for the thrills, get the civic.

To be honest that isn’t my experience, spent three days in Scotland January 2019 in all conditions and at no time did my mate say he felt he could go quicker. In the wet I found I was pulling better out of the corners than the Golf but yes from a standing start would struggle, but not much of that around the highlands!
 
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