Owner Review: 2019 Volkswagen GTI Autobahn

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Canadian winter conditions led Raymond Oesterreich to give up his toy and invest in a vehicle more suited to everyday commutes, as well as cross-province travel. His make-or-break requirement of his new purchase? A manual transmission.

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Before deciding on a new car, he was driving a 2013 Nissan 370Z. “It was modified and pushing 350-hp at the wheels,” he explained, “It was a blast! I sold it to some kid who’s going to bring it up north to a track.” Lucky kid.

Prior to that, he spent some years driving a B7 Audi A4, as well as a few other Audis and BMWs. With an obvious taste for luxury vehicles, it seemed like the obvious choice for his next vehicle.

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But there was one other brand that held a special place in his heart. “I’ve had tons of Volkswagen products in my life,” said Raymond. “My first [car] was an ’84 GLI.”

In March 2019, a fter seven months of car hunting, he decided to purchase the 2019 Volkswagen GTI Autobahn for $36,000 and says, “It was nice to get back to the Volkswagen.”

He is so enthusiastic and pleased with his choice; his satisfaction comes across in the way he speaks about all of its features. He settled on the Autobahn edition, which he recalled as the most dressed. The only other option available was the Driver Assist package; he wasn’t interested in the radar and beeps every time there’s a car beside him. “Personally, I find all that business annoying, so I didn’t take it.

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“I’ll tell you the reason I chose this car – is that it’s the last thing remaining with a manual transmission.”

Pros (and one con)

Raymond’s enthusiasm about his GTI came across so simply; it made me want to drive one! He had tons of amazing things to say, but made sure to detail his approval of the manual transmission – his main priority – in addition to performance.

It’s easy to sense how important that is to him: “I wanted to stay with my manual transmission,” he said. “And, it shifts amazingly! You can literally shift it with two fingers.”

From there, the pros kept rolling in.

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“You know what’s a nice feature that Volkswagen does?” he asks and continues to explain, “They put the camera under the Volkswagen symbol in the back. When you put it in reverse, the Volkswagen symbol tilts and there you see the camera – it’s a very, very cool feature.” For many other makes, a rainy day could mean a drive through a dirty puddle, in which case the camera becomes useless.

He also says parking in the city, or anywhere for that matter, is easy, confirming that the turning radius “is right up there with the best.”

He even detailed the pros, in comparison to older models: “What’s nice about the Mk 7.5, compared to the Mk 7, is that it’s got some nice little features that have been upgraded. It has the limited-slip differential and the upgraded brakes –the bigger brakes of the Golf-R. They added some great things for 2019, without really changing the price.”

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Raymond mentioned that he even stands corrected on what he thought might be a potential issue of too much oil consumption, which isn’t the case, at all. “I think one of the reasons [it doesn’t consume too much oil] is because they packed that turbo nice and tight, really close to the engine, and the engine cooler seems to be doing its job.”

The one and only fault he mentioned was that it doesn’t come equipped with self-folding mirrors, at least for its price point and trim level. “The only reason I mention the self-folding mirrors,” he explained. “On my last trip to Paris, I rented a Yaris that had that feature. If they can put it on a Yaris, they should be able to put it on a GTI.” Valid.

“The reality is this car is so rounded and so balanced between performance, handling, economy, [and] comfort.”

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Competitors

Originally, he was looking at used Audis or BMWs; he and his wife both had experiences with the luxury brands and hoped to stay on that end of the spectrum. He said Volkswagen crossed his mind, but at the same time, he wasn’t completely convinced.

“I looked at the Golf-R – I found it too expensive for what you get.” For that money, he explained, you’re pretty much into BMW territory. He continued. “If the R was a true quattro, if it had the Torsen and all-wheel-drive systems, like they put in Audi, I would have considered it.”

“If I had a choice, and money wasn’t really an option, I would get a Mercedes C43, but I can’t give up the clutch… yet.”

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After nearly seven months of hunting for a new car, he came to the conclusion that a used Audi A5 or A4, or a 2- or 3-series BMW with a few years and upwards of 40,000 km on it would be roughly the same amount as a brand new GTI.

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So, he took another trip to the dealership for a more intense test drive. This time, he exclaimed, “I drove it like a GTI is supposed to be driven,” and ultimately, thought to himself, “Wow, this is it.”

Comparing vehicles

Between his wife and himself, they currently own two vehicles: his 2019 GTI Autobahn and her 2018 Toyota RAV4. While he agrees it’s a practical vehicle, dubbing it a “soccer mom car,” Raymond says it’s not preferable for road trips.

Sure, it’s great for his wife’s parents, who needed something easy to get in and out of when running errands. However, he mentioned a trip from Montreal to Toronto a couple years ago, where upon getting out of the RAV4, he vowed to never take it on a road trip again and cited numerous reasons including lack of comfort.

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More recently, they did the trip again, but this with the GTI. Raymond ensured that he and his wife arrived fully rested, thanks to the comfortable seats and he reiterates his love for the car, “It’s really well done!”

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Alluding back to his love of luxury vehicles, he says, “Sitting in it, I honestly felt like I was in an Audi.”

He also included that another great feature on the GTI is the panoramic sunroof. “In the Volkswagen,” with the sunroof down, “you can have a conversation on a route where you’re doing 70-80 km/h, which is a really great feature.”

Comparing it again to the RAV4, he says, “Driving at any speed with the sunroof open in the RAV4, there’s limited ability to hear yourself think.”

He assumes his wife will eventually give up the RAV4 and go back to a luxury car – which seems to be a preferred option in their household.

Future

When asked if he thinks he may ever go back to another sports car – or if he’s got a potential dream car in mind, he responded, “If money were not an option, there are some things I would look at; perhaps an M2 – they still come with manual transmissions.”

For now, the GTI is exceeding all his expectations, “It’s quiet inside, super fast for a four-banger, front-wheel-drive. It’s a really, really good car!”