[max_sensation]

WOW...look what i came across...maybe you people came across this but twhen i saw it ona magizaine the ither day i thought it was mazdas 2005 Mz3 sport COUPE...but than it wasnt..its a VW 2003 golf...sure the lights and some of the exterior looks like a next generation mz3 sprt..thou the mz3 does look alot better.....

 

[factrzero]

Toyota

It looks like an Echo hatchback or a Suzuki Swift. :lol:

 

[zaimon]

The photos are not showing for me.

 

[max_sensation]

here is a link to the photos
http://f1.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/littlerat56/my_photos

 

[max_sensation]

 

[cowtown]

It's a good looking car but they seem to have a few issues. The headlights and front end to me scream WRX. The headlights and grill look good to me but the area around the foglights is plain nasty. And there is something wrong in around the C pilliar and how it wraps around to the bumper, just looks weak compared to the relatively strong front end. Also trying to throw a little Porsche Cayenne in there too.

Heh, yeah that's it, they took a Civic SI and mated it with a WRX.

 

[zaimon]

Ah yes. The new VW Golf. Expect it to come stateside for 2005.

That's probably the Mz3's biggest competition in Europe. It tied for second place in Europe's COTY competition, with the Mazda3.

The exterior is nice, but the interior is probably the worst one I've seen from Volkswagen in a long time.

SOURCE: www.autobild.de

 

[Yuki]

what the!!! Copy Cat!!!
but it is so ugly!!!!
mazda 3 is much better man!!!
what's wrong with VW?
is like a hybird of echo and mz3 sport...WTF! :evil:

 

[vaBooM]

The exterior gets a 4...

Interior gets a 8. Its a lot nicer than what they have been putting out.

 

[BudgetM3]

Lets see the 3 hang with the GTI in performance though! Don't get me wrong... I love my new 3, and was really surprised by its performance, but the GTI will have a 2.0L 16V Turbo putting out 200hp from the factory. No powerhouse by any means, but will probably be quicker than the 3 and have a lot more room for improvement due to the turbo. I also own a 92' 16V VW GTI which was the last real performer VW made, but I like the new VW R32 Golf, and this new GTI show in the pics. I agree that it does look like the 3, however the mazda has a more muscular sporty look.

 

[M3-GT]

Lets see the 3 hang with the GTI in performance though! Don't get me wrong... I love my new 3, and was really surprised by its performance, but the GTI will have a 2.0L 16V Turbo putting out 200hp from the factory. No powerhouse by any means, but will probably be quicker than the 3 and have a lot more room for improvement due to the turbo. I also own a 92' 16V VW GTI which was the last real performer VW made, but I like the new VW R32 Golf, and this new GTI show in the pics. I agree that it does look like the 3, however the mazda has a more muscular sporty look.

Sure it will be faster than a 3 but it will also be more expensive. I think that a when and if Mazda comes out with a Mazdaspeed 3 then we'll be able to compare oranges to oranges.

I like the front but hate those HUGE tail lights. And even though I love to drive a VW and had one in the past, reliability just plain sucks.

 

[BudgetM3]

Sure it will be faster than a 3 but it will also be more expensive. I think that a when and if Mazda comes out with a Mazdaspeed 3 then we'll be able to compare oranges to oranges.

I like the front but hate those HUGE tail lights. And even though I love to drive a VW and had one in the past, reliability just plain sucks.

That's true about the price issue! That's actually why I didn't buy the GTI now. I was really impressed with the performance and fit/finish of the 3 so I went for it and saved myself about 6 grand. The VW's are nice though! Beautiful interiors and a nice solid ride. Like I said though, performance has been lacking ever since 1993 when they starting adding weight to the cars and not power. THe electrical gremlins I've had with my 16V GTI were plenty, but when you take the time to make them run right you are awarded greatly!

 

[LeeLee]

I don't know what VW has done to improve the Golf/Jetta but if the what is under the skin has been changed to the same degree as the outter skin, which is to say not much, then I have no interest in this car.

The styling of the Golf has been gradually updated in the past decade or so, much of the shape of the car, dimensions, layout, etc, is retained. Newer Golf gets crystal-clear lights, smoother body panel lines, etc. This strategy may have kept the car looking up-to-date on the outside, but sitting in and driving the Golf/Jetta reminds you of a 10 year old car. All engines, including the VR6, serves up a healthy serving of noise and vibration, which is exacerbated by chassis and isolation materials that appear to do very little in subduing the racket. The suspension may handle well after being touched my aftermarket hands, but stock it provides neither confidence nor comfort. Miles of black-on-black trim on the inside places the mood somewhere between somber and morose. Switch gears are mushy to push, dials are gritty to turn, and someone, for the love of humanly detectable spectrum wavelengths, change that purple cluster illumination. These days, comments about VWs having a nice interior is just a knee jerk reaction - it might have been true 10 years ago, but the rest of the world has moved forward.

In short, driving in a Golf/Jetta of any trim provides the feel of a heavy small car that feels nervous, unsubstantial, and cheap. Looking at the sticker brings to mind a host of better executed automotive designs that you could have instead.

The above is the impression my wife and I got after test driving a host of VW cars during our car shopping. And with this new VW, the styling is again very evolutionary. I don't think the average person would be able to tell that this is a new Golf from the rear or side. The front treatment looks positively weird, like the current Passat. Different is only better if it is actually better.

I'll test-drive the car when it comes out, but as it stands, the Mazda3 is a far more refined vehicle with a more premium feel (thought I'd never say this about a Mazda). Is the new Golf a big improvement on the old one? I am not holding my breath.

 

[jintegra]

I agree with LeeLee that the exterior is more evolutionary than revolutionary, but that isn't always a bad thing, since the existing Golf isn't a bad looking vehicle. The new vehicle does have more muscular lines like the 3, but I wouldn't call it a copy. It's more like Mazda used the Golf as a baseline, then revolutionized the styling to get the 3, & hence the similarities to the new Golf. I've always found VW interiors to be utilitarian & a bit bland, but I applaud VW for the maximizing utility by having the split fold back seat with trunk pass thorugh+armrest, which is an invaluable feature for those who ski. However, I doubt I would ever buy VW due to suspect reliability & assembly issues. Not to mention that VWs aren't as affordable (based on my research a few years ago).

 

[cowtown]

I was looking at the Golf when I was considering putting down for the 3, just to make sure I looked at it all. After 20 minutes on the build and price page I just gave up, way too bloody expensive for it's own good. To get a car that matched the 3 in overall options and could equal or better it in performance it was a good 6-7000 Cdn more. Sure there were some bonuses over the 3 with some features (the keylocks etc.) but nothing worth 5+ grand.

My buddy bought a puke green VR6 GTI full load back in 2000, a nice car by all accounts, was pretty brisk, I felt the interior was nice, at least when I compared it with the 15-20 year old Mustangs I had been driving for the past 5 years at that time LOL. But now, yeah just not there any more. I'm sure that by and large they are a good car still however they certainly are not the VW that I started out with (my first car was a canary yellow 76 Rabbit). They've lost their fun to drive edge and have rather transcended into a poor mans Audi.

 

[vaBooM]

VWs have known to have whimpy suspensions.

My 2001 Jetta VR6 had front and rear sway bars, 60/40 Weitec cup kit, full poly urethane under neath and a fronts strut bar.

And STILL, my 3 feels tighter. But I will give VW credit for their interiors. Definately nicer than the competition.

 

[zaimon]

The Golf V suspension is ALL ELECTRONIC. I've heard so much criticism about it, basically stripping the car of any feedback or responsivity...

The Mazda3s has gotten similar criticism as its suspension is electrohydraulic, that there's less feedback than the Protege. The Mazda3i actually has a full hydraulic suspension from what I understand, so that car will actually be the handler of the bunch.

 

[lmp180psu]

The whole suspension on the Mazda3s is electrohydraulic? I thought it was just the steering that was electrohydraulic?

 

[zaimon]

Oops. My bad. It is just the steering column.

 

[Snooters]

wow the vw bashing here is insane. the golf/gti has been one of the best hatchbacks since the 80's. give credit where it's due. i'd definitely would take an mk5 gti over a mazda 3, but price/availability are issues.