# VW GTI - Base/Low Mileage or Fully Loaded/High Mileage



## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

Hi, looking to upgrade my MK6 TSI Golf to a GTI. Very excited as I've been wanting one for 3 years. Now, I've had my eye on these two cars in my local area.

The Edition 35 (2011) is obviously a lot nicer, much rarer, fantastic wheels, fully loaded spec xenon's, leather, DSG etc but it has just over 50k miles.


















The base level GTI is pretty average, denver wheels, halogen headlights/taillights, cloth interior but it's only done 11k miles.










Now my budget is £18k. It just about buys one or the other, the ed 35 is a few hundred pounds more. Is the higher mileage something to be deeply concerned about? other than the notorious water pumps. I'm planning on doing oil changes every 5k miles which is all I've heard is needed in terms of maintenence for these cars. What are your thoughts guys, obviously I'd rather the ed.35 but my sensible head is telling me go lower mileage and not have as much to worry about. Cheers :thumb:


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## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

50k is hardly high mileage - how long are you planning on keeping it and what will your annual mileage be?


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

andy665 said:


> 50k is hardly high mileage - how long are you planning on keeping it and what will your annual mileage be?


Roughly 10k a year and hopefully at least 5 years.


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## Mini devil (May 4, 2014)

50k mileage is nothing on modern cars these days mate  why not treat yourself to the fully loaded one!


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## andy665 (Nov 1, 2005)

5 years is a long time to regret not having some of the toys you could have had

Will running / maintenance costs be higher on a car at 100k than one with 60k - possibly but if I was me it would not be a big concern - cars can throw up expensive problems at any time and good maintenance is better than low mileage at helping to prevent them


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## Andyg_TSi (Sep 6, 2013)

So the 'high miler' is 3.5 years old in march & covered 50K.
That's covered an average of roughly 14K per year.......hardly stellar mileage if 12K per year is average.

If you're gonna keep it for 5 years, it'll even itself out over the period you'll own it.

The key thing for me is how it's been looked after.

If it's got a comprehensive history with bills/receipts or history stamps and is how it should be, get the fully loaded one.


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

Ed35 all the way, i thought it was going to be something like 100k, just bare in mind things like brakes, dsg fluid changes etc but you might find the higher mileage one has had all of them done.


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## robertdon777 (Nov 3, 2005)

The 35 easily

No one will want a bog standard GTi in 5 years time, the spec on them are too low even by modern standards.

The 35 will be a far better car to have for 5 years, you will get more enjoyment out of it.

You could get a mint under 60K edition 30 for 10-11K though and buy a nice watch that would increase in value over the 5 years. The edition 30 will give you just as much pleasure as the edition 35.

http://www.beechwoodcarsalesltd.co.uk/used-cars/volkswagen-golf-2-0t-gti-edition-30-5dr-dsg-wednesbury-201412169675475

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201501059943215/sort/default/onesearchad/used%2Cnearlynew%2Cnew/keywords/edition%2030/page/1/usedcars/postcode/b369td/fuel-type/petrol/model/golf/radius/200/make/volkswagen/price-from/9000/price-to/11000/engine-size-cars/2l_to_2-5l?logcode=p


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## b9rgo1234 (May 3, 2009)

I would be going for the ED35, it will hold its value better than the low mileage base model.
If you look at prices the Edition 30 over standard GTI you will see a big difference


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## WhiteRoc_170 (Jan 31, 2013)

Ed35 without a doubt.


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## jay_bmw (Jan 28, 2010)

its a no brainer, the resale value of the ED35 will be much higher too 

ED35!!!


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

Lol I was expecting actual high mileage

Vag go forever so higher mileage and epic spec deffo


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

ED35 (also maybe look further away for more with lower miles), not sure it needs oil every 5k, just follow the manufacturers spec and you will be OK, just use the VW long life oil in it (on a T&D regime) as it IMO is a better oil for it.

Info on Longlife oil recommendations :thumb:

http://www.golfgtiforum.co.uk/index.php?topic=65779.0


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

If annual mileage is low then I would go with a service every year, long life is only needed if you go for 2 year intervals or roughly 18k, 12 months or 10k is the longest I would push it. Our tt covers 2k a year and gets a service every 12 months.


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## slineclean (Dec 23, 2011)

The Edition 35 for me :thumb:

Looks the biz and love colour and the alloys too


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## Starburst (Oct 10, 2014)

I'm with the majority, get the Edition 35.

50k miles is nothing for a VW engine, it's just getting run in. :thumb:


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

Thanks chaps. Will get booked in for a test drive with the ed35. I'm a bit wary of spending close to 18k on a VW with 50k miles but as you say they are built to be driven. Cheers.


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

Or haggle on this at VW Harlow :thumb:


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## m500dpp (Feb 17, 2006)

Definite Minority here but low mileage for me every time. OK so you will miss some unnecessary toys bit equally you wont have those toys to go wrong and cost you money. Its not just the engine that will have done 100k miles in 5 years its every component, shocks, brakes suspension, electrics wheel bearing etc, some of those items will need replacing!

I really dont bother about stamps in a book, its how car drives that matters to me, ny the time a car is 10 years old full service history would have cost you a fortune but added little to the value.


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## jay_bmw (Jan 28, 2010)

As long as its got warranty (extendable) Id not even let it cross your mind. They're just numbers on the dash


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## Kimo (Jun 7, 2013)

m500dpp said:


> Definite Minority here but low mileage for me every time. OK so you will miss some unnecessary toys bit equally you wont have those toys to go wrong and cost you money. Its not just the engine that will have done 100k miles in 5 years its every component, shocks, brakes suspension, electrics wheel bearing etc, some of those items will need replacing!
> 
> I really dont bother about stamps in a book, its how car drives that matters to me, ny the time a car is 10 years old full service history would have cost you a fortune but added little to the value.


Lol

Cars can go wrong at any mileage

Short trips to town or trips on the motorway at constant speed

I know what I'd choose


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## VW Golf-Fan (Aug 3, 2010)

I'd go for the Ed-35 but of course you can't go wrong with any Volkswagen, especially a GTI.

Aren't Petrol engines not meant to last as long as Diesels or is that a thing of the past? That would be my only concern especially as one of them is already on 50k.

Good choice of car I say, but then again I am biased!


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## dubber (Oct 2, 2011)

Editon 35 all day long mate. Will hold its money much better.


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## dubber (Oct 2, 2011)

As an example, i had a candy white edition 30 (40k) on clock, i sold it this time last year for 13k. Ok it was low miles and mint, but it shows the limited edition vw's sell well.


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## WhiteRoc_170 (Jan 31, 2013)

afctom said:


> Thanks chaps. Will get booked in for a test drive with the ed35. I'm a bit wary of spending close to 18k on a VW with 50k miles but as you say they are built to be driven. Cheers.


50k miles really isnt that high . I would be more concerned if it was well over 100k.


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## VW Golf-Fan (Aug 3, 2010)

dubber said:


> As an example, i had a candy white edition 30 (40k) on clock, i sold it this time last year for 13k. Ok it was low miles and mint, but it shows the limited edition vw's sell well.


That's actually quite cheap I would say for an ED-35. It didn't have that high a mileage on it by the sounds of it, what year was it?

I've seen bog standard GTI's sell for around that price, if not slightly more.


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## m500dpp (Feb 17, 2006)

> Lol
> 
> Cars can go wrong at any mileage
> 
> ...


Yep and so do I lol!

We bought my daughter a '96 Polo with 34,000 miles, been standing 6 years, and given it's 18 years old at that mileage must be the ultimate stop start short journey car. The engine still has that new car rattle free slight whine, and every part of it drives like new, only potentially issue is some of the suspension bushes may need replacing as they are perishing! We paid £100 for it!!!

Each to their own, as you rightly say, cars can go wrong at any time but for me there is less wear on components on a low miler.......thankfully we have different views so both cars the OP has found will sell to someone!!!!


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## 182_Blue (Oct 25, 2005)

VW Golf-Fan said:


> That's actually quite cheap I would say for an ED-35. It didn't have that high a mileage on it by the sounds of it, what year was it?
> 
> I've seen bog standard GTI's sell for around that price, if not slightly more.


He had an edition 30 though not an edition 35 which Is a MK5 and therfore over 6 years old, probably a 57 plate.


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## JB052 (Mar 22, 2008)

VW Golf-Fan said:


> Aren't Petrol engines not meant to last as long as Diesels or is that a thing of the past? That would be my only concern especially as one of them is already on 50k.


My everyday petrol C200 Mercedes is now on 212,000 miles, just run in.


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## richtung (Apr 14, 2008)

Not sure on what the age of the base GTI is but i presume its around 4 years old. A car that has done 11k miles in 4 years would concern me as it either means the car is hardly used at all or only used for very short journeys. this usually means the engine oil doesn't get chance to reach operating temperature - not sure what long term effect this has on the engine and turbo? 

On another note, the ED35 is a 5 Door and if you want to start a family in a couple of years time, baby seats wont be a problem! :thumb:

I own an ED30 and love it to bits - its bewildering to see how many other MK5 GTI owners that try and retrofit ED30 parts to get their GTI up to ED30 spec at huge expense!

Hope this helps

Rich


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

I can't believe you were even questioning it.

50k miles on a 2011 car = not high whatsoever.
Spec level = very desirable.

Xenon headlights are a HUGE step over the Halogens on the Mk5/Mk6. LED lights look better.

I suspect this is where gaining information without gaining knowledge comes in negative way (not as a dig towards you)
You don't need to do 5k oil changes, every 10k using good quality oil is enough.
Your sensible head isn't that sensible if that's how you're looking at it...

As an FYI, I had a Golf GTI DSG which was Stage 2 Revo tuned and used to get driven in the way it was intended, over 110k on it by the time I got rid of it, and it didn't skip a beat. 

Mileage means NOTHING.

Likewise saying "go for the lower spec, it means you won't have expensive bills in the future" - WHAT??!?!??! lol.


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## tictap (Sep 15, 2010)

Edition 35, it's stunning!!


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## percymon (Jun 27, 2007)

If it were me then I'd be considering..

1. what condition is the ED35 in - 50k of motorway miles means potentially many stone chips, respray etc. Wheels will have had more exposure to the elements, and generally more wear n tear on all bushes and mechanical componets
2. How much of the extra kit of the ED35 is really needed ?
3. How easy is it going to be to sell a ED35 with 100k miles on (UK buyers still wary of 100k miles and dealers won't be interested come trade in) ?

Both cars will obviously need regular maintenance but the list of replacement items and MOT issues will be much lower on the 11k car.

The GTI might be plain Jane but once you're sat in the drivers seat you can't see the external appearance or the seats - you're basically looking at 95% the same view.


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## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

Whats 50k these days on a 61 plate car, my in laws have a 60 plate Saab 9-3 with over 200k on it now and climbing at about 55k a year still.

As it happens, that ed35 was registered 20/01/2012 so it was 3 years old literally yesterday so the manufacturers warranty ran out with that and the tax was taken off on the 15/07/2014 so it has done 50k miles in 2 and a half years and hardly used since.

None of that matters though as they've just dropped the price I see, only £17k for you to find now, try getting a few more £££ off :thumb:

Get it down to a VAG indy and a 60k service done as I can't see it having had a proper 3 year service if it's not been taxed for 7 months and only had it's third birthday yesterday, so for piece of mind I would do that regardless of what the cars computer says as it'll be set up for longlife servicing doing the miles it has been doing, then you know all is well; that boggo one looks just that, boggo! Hardly the kind of car worth spending £18k on, I've bought cars with more toys than that has at a tenth of that price.

Good luck with your choice but can I just say... http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2011-Volk...7176103?pt=Automobiles_UK&hash=item25983194a7


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

percymon said:


> Both cars will obviously need regular maintenance but the list of replacement items and MOT issues will be much lower on the 11k car.
> 
> .


Lol no it won't. A very wrong (and common) misconception!

Brief car history for me

Bought a 2005 Golf Mk5 1.9 TDI. With 99k on the clock
I sold it at 149k (after more than doubling the stock BHP).
Only break down was a boost pipe popping off. It passed every MOT it had and only required front wishbone bushes which I uprated anyway.
Drove like new (better than my friends car with half the miles)

Bought a 2006 Golf Mk5 GTI with 87k on the clock.
Sold it at 115k and never broke down. Passed it's two MOT's with no advisories. Again, uprated the front wishbone bushes

Bought a 2009 Scirocco Cr170 TDI with 114k on the clock.
Passed every MOT it's had. All of the bushes etc were mint. The DPF had loads of life left. The guy who owned it before lived in Guilford and traveled to Newbury every day to work. Also on original clutch and dmf. Even with a remap it still holds with no slip and no DMF vibrations!

Long, motorway journeys are the LEAST wearing to the car.
What can negatively effect cars health .... SHORT journeys. Most engine wear occurs when it's cold.
Why do you think variable servicing exists, for long life service plans, they do more mileage so can go further between oil changes. if you are doing 30k a year, sitting on the motorway at 70-80 does virtually no wear to the suspension components (because they're not having to hit potholes and lots of turning /braking/bumping up curbs like you would around town) and oil is nicely up to temperature and under no real pressure or strain..

At end of day it's OP's decision but if he doesn't get the ED35 he's a muppet. :lol:


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## O`Neil (Aug 13, 2007)

I`d go for the Ed35 :thumb:


The problem is that the Ed35 looks just like all the other Golfs on the road.


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## jay_bmw (Jan 28, 2010)

jesus christ, i cant belive some noobs on here think 50k is high miles for a car these days, its not a 1982 ford fiesta, the bushes and all other components are designed to last 100k plus these days. get a grip!!!!


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## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

jay_bmw said:


> jesus christ, i cant belive some noobs on here think 50k is high miles for a car these days, its not a 1982 ford fiesta, the bushes and all other components are designed to last 100k plus these days. get a grip!!!!


I've only just changed a couple of bushes on my Volvo S40 as they were starting to wear out at 10 years old and 106k miles

The DB9 is 9 years old and hardly built like a Golf with 46k miles on it and despite its other faults, the mechanicals and consumables like that still have years left in them :thumb:


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## percymon (Jun 27, 2007)

xJay1337 said:


> Lol no it won't. A very wrong (and common) misconception!


There will always be exceptions and perhaps all your examples had wear n tear items replaced not long before you purchased them?

As a general rule, a lower mileage newer car will have more life left in its components than an older one with more miles.

Of course no-one knows whether the low miler has been ragged and the ED35 been cossetted.


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## yetizone (Jun 25, 2008)

I'd go for the ED35 as well. At 50K the car is barely run in and as long as the service history is present, and it comes with a decent warranty then I would choose the higher spec over poverty standard every time. Especially having recently been in this situation and hung out for a M6 in black with sunroof / 18" Shadow Monza Alloy wheels. Close, but not quite the full spec I was after.

In in the end I needed a car pretty quickly and perhaps now wish I'd bought a cheap nail while I waited even longer and found a car that had factory xenons / parking sensors / camera, (plus sunroof) especially having since retro-fitted them and the associated (initial) teething problems.

Any Anniversary Golf will hold its value better than an equivalent standard model, unless its specced very highly. Plus, those Watkins Glen alloys are a peach


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## percymon (Jun 27, 2007)

A few quick observations of the ED35 - 

Its in a car supermarket - could be ex-lease car, auction buy or dealer trade-in that won't economically make the grade for resale

RAC inspection completed 4.5 months ago - why's it not sold in that time ?

Uniroyal tyres all round - OK but that smacks of penny pinching to me. Front tyres 3mm - budget for changing them in 5k miles

Brake discs don't look too great front or rear

Rear wheel has marks, maybe kerbing but possibly just conducive with mileage ?

wheel centres corroded, 12v socket in boot has cover missing - hardly deal breakers but extra expense on your part if you are paranoid about these things

boot plastic threshold trim badly scratched - chances are the bumper cover is marked or repainted



Before I get flamed there is nothing to say the newer car isn't/wasn't in similar condition prior to sale in a few of those aspects.


We can debate all day, the physical condition and history of the cars would be my main priorities. The higher mileage won't necessarily put me off personally , but I'd factor in the potential difficulties selling on at 100k plus


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## Horatio (Oct 30, 2011)

The Edition30 & Edition35 has a bigger turbo than the standard GTI models. A nice little remap will see some good gains in BHP. Defo the Edition35. :thumb:


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## Horatio (Oct 30, 2011)

Shaun said:


> Or haggle on this at VW Harlow :thumb:


Think they have had that one for a while, they usually get snapped up quick whenever they get those R's in :driver:


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## Bero (Mar 9, 2008)

I would look at it ENTIRELY differently.

Decide what extras (if any) you need or _really_ want on a GTI,. Then find a car than meets this criteria and within budget.

No point paying more for something with more miles if it has a 6th cup holder and special edition tartan rug on the parcel shelf.


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

percymon said:


> There will always be exceptions and perhaps all your examples had wear n tear items replaced not long before you purchased them?
> 
> As a general rule, a lower mileage newer car will have more life left in its components than an older one with more miles.
> 
> Of course no-one knows whether the low miler has been ragged and the ED35 been cossetted.


I just think looking at mileage as a way to purchase cars is stupid.


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## SteveTDCi (Feb 8, 2006)

percymon said:


> There will always be exceptions and perhaps all your examples had wear n tear items replaced not long before you purchased them?
> 
> As a general rule, a lower mileage newer car will have more life left in its components than an older one with more miles.
> 
> Of course no-one knows whether the low miler has been ragged and the ED35 been cossetted.


So a car that starts up once in the morning, drives 200 miles at an average speed of 70 mph has more wear and tear than one that starts and stops 8 times a day, crawls along at 5 mph putting stress on the clutch etc .... not ever getting fully warmed up under constant acceleration and braking ...

I think not, high mileage in short distance for me any day of the week.


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

xJay1337 said:


> I can't believe you were even questioning it.
> 
> 50k miles on a 2011 car = not high whatsoever.
> Spec level = very desirable.
> ...


Hmm, seems perfectly reasonable to me to be questioning it. £18k is a lot for a used car with 50k miles, ok granted not 'HIGH MILES' but its 50k into the engines lifespan regardless. I've spent the last 18 months or so saving up so I can buy myself a car I've always wanted outright, never wanted to touch car payments. I don't want to make a decision which could have big financial implications. Although one other point aren't ed.35 belt driven so don't have to worry about the timing chain/tensioner issues on these cars. Like I say I will be giving it a thorough once over, and not rush into a decision.

As for the little dig about lack of knowledge, that's not an issue, I've driven my MK6 Golf for 75k miles from new and I like to think I know the car inside out and whilst maybe a bit OTT, oil changes every 5k can do the engine no harm, and at £40 a pop its worth it for my own peace of mind.

And thanks for all the replies, they are very helpful. I am a little concerned about why it hasn't sold yet and it has been listed for a while, with several price drops but I'll be going down there and spending a good few hours with it checking EVERYTHING. If not I'll wait for another ed.35 to pop up in the local area, hopefully with lower mileage.


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

percymon said:


> A few quick observations of the ED35 -
> 
> Its in a car supermarket - could be ex-lease car, auction buy or dealer trade-in that won't economically make the grade for resale
> 
> ...


Yes this is quite concerning mate, nice observations there. Will be giving it a thorough going over.


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## jay_bmw (Jan 28, 2010)

I bought my 320d 11 plate coupe m sport with 51000 miles on clock, as i said in a previous reply, i paid £18,500 for it last november & it had the extended warranty on it. Should any issues arise they're taken care of and even if i put 30,000 on it in the next 2 years, 70k on a 6 year old car is still reasonable miles!


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

afctom said:


> Hmm, seems perfectly reasonable to me to be questioning it. £18k is a lot for a used car with 50k miles, ok granted not 'HIGH MILES' but its 50k into the engines lifespan regardless. I've spent the last 18 months or so saving up so I can buy myself a car I've always wanted outright, never wanted to touch car payments. I don't want to make a decision which could have big financial implications. Although one other point aren't ed.35 belt driven so don't have to worry about the timing chain/tensioner issues on these cars. Like I say I will be giving it a thorough once over, and not rush into a decision.
> 
> As for the little dig about lack of knowledge, that's not an issue, I've driven my MK6 Golf for 75k miles from new and I like to think I know the car inside out and whilst maybe a bit OTT, oil changes every 5k can do the engine no harm, and at £40 a pop its worth it for my own peace of mind.
> 
> And thanks for all the replies, they are very helpful. I am a little concerned about why it hasn't sold yet and it has been listed for a while, with several price drops but I'll be going down there and spending a good few hours with it checking EVERYTHING. If not I'll wait for another ed.35 to pop up in the local area, hopefully with lower mileage.


I'm not having a dig about your knowledge at all buddy, well, sorry if it comes across that way
Just that you appear to be looking at buying a car in a cynical way, and people with limited mechanical knowledge tend to buy cars based on mileage which is what you seem to be doing.

All MK6/2009 Scirocco onwards are TSI (not TFSI to be confused) and as such have CHAIN driven engines. TFSI's as found in the Mk5 and all the TDI's have belts.

As with all cars there are issues and one issue, far more prevalent than the water pump, is where the timing chain tensioner fails causing the engine to lunch itself at start up.
As with anything if you look on the internet people only ever post up their failures which of course brings in self doubt.
The failure rate is less than 5 in 10,000 cars and VW are often covering costs especially if you have either an extended warranty (which you will be eligable to get) or with a full service history they are providing good will.

All I'm saying (and what other people are saying) is that if you're spending 18k on a car why not get the car which is

a) faster (ed35 have larger turbo and better engine internals)
b) more valuable (being ed35 will be worth more long term)
c) better equipment (xenons, led rear lights etc)

but your concern soley is the mileage which is my issue personally
at end of day you buy whatever car you want. i hate getting involved in the "what car shall i buy" because people never really listen and rather already have an idea of what they want but just want the masses (us random people on the internet :lol to re-affirm their inklings.


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## percymon (Jun 27, 2007)

afctom said:


> Yes this is quite concerning mate, nice observations there. Will be giving it a thorough going over.


and you need to do the same with any main dealer car too - ask for the detail of what they did to bring it up to grade for sale. At 11k miles I'd expect them to have swapped the front and rear tyres so check all of them for tread, not just the fronts !

Also bear in mind the main dealer pricing will be £500-1,000 higher than a car supermarket type establishment on like for like cars.


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## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

The 11k car is £16k at the main dealer, I can't see anything being changed on that car since brand new, if it has gone through a set of tyres in 11k miles I'd want to know why, 50k it should have had a couple of sets of tyres by now.

So you start with your 11k miler @ £16k, that'll be inflated from about £14.5k for sale outside the VW dealer network so you are already down by £1.5k in theory. I would reckon if you wanted a p/x price on either car you would lose less on the ed35, if you bought that red GTi, didn't like it, then took it back to the dealer 2 weeks later, you would drop the thick end of £4k. If you bought the ed35, then took it to a VW dealer to trade it, I would think you would lose less money. That ed35 is quite well priced tbf, that red one is overpriced from the off. If it was £14,750 like it should be and the ed35 was £17,295 which it is then there is something to be said for it, but the gap isn't there.

It sounds to me like you have made your mind up that mileage is of huge importance, so I would go off and find yourself a better spec GTi with a lower mileage at that price, you will only concentrate on all the faults you find on that ed35 and deem them to be down to its mileage. There's no shortage of regular GTi's and I think that is why some peeps here can't see why you are still erring towards the red one; the ed35 isn't so common so you won't find one easy and irrespective of mileage you will lose less money in your ownership period. The whole life cost over the 5 years would still be less on that ed35 due to depreciation and more competative pricing and even if you were to have to change a part or have something fixed, you would get that money back in increased sale price in 5 years time and losing less money when your regular non optioned red GTi is lost in a sea of other GTi's, most of which have a better spec and more people are going for spec so you will have big trouble moving it on. Just look at the market more widely, the cars fetching more money or getting easier sales are the well equipped ones. 

Also, when it comes to toys, don't just think about what you want if buying used; get everything! The person you are selling it to in 5 years time might have a very strict criteria and want a well equipped ed35 and you will be the one losing less money when you get the best price for the car in 5 years :thumb:


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

CoOkIeMoNsTeR said:


> The 11k car is £16k at the main dealer, I can't see anything being changed on that car since brand new, if it has gone through a set of tyres in 11k miles I'd want to know why, 50k it should have had a couple of sets of tyres by now.
> 
> So you start with your 11k miler @ £16k, that'll be inflated from about £14.5k for sale outside the VW dealer network so you are already down by £1.5k in theory. I would reckon if you wanted a p/x price on either car you would lose less on the ed35, if you bought that red GTi, didn't like it, then took it back to the dealer 2 weeks later, you would drop the thick end of £4k. If you bought the ed35, then took it to a VW dealer to trade it, I would think you would lose less money. That ed35 is quite well priced tbf, that red one is overpriced from the off. If it was £14,750 like it should be and the ed35 was £17,295 which it is then there is something to be said for it, but the gap isn't there.
> 
> ...


Thanks mate. And I don't think I am leaning towards the standard one, i'm coming from a MK6 golf and to go into that it would be like the exact same car with some fancy cloth seats and a bigger engine. I want all the gizmos but mainly leather interior and xenon headlights. As you say, I want to stay away from main VW dealer to be honest as can get much better deals elsewhere, the only concerning thing about the ED35 is why it has been for sale for 4 + months and not been sold! but thanks for the help everyone has helped a lot, guess for a modern engine 50k isn't much to be worried about.


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

xJay1337 said:


> I'm not having a dig about your knowledge at all buddy, well, sorry if it comes across that way
> Just that you appear to be looking at buying a car in a cynical way, and people with limited mechanical knowledge tend to buy cars based on mileage which is what you seem to be doing.
> 
> All MK6/2009 Scirocco onwards are TSI (not TFSI to be confused) and as such have CHAIN driven engines. TFSI's as found in the Mk5 and all the TDI's have belts.
> ...


I know that the TSI engines are chain driven but I'm pretty sure they changed it to belt for the ed.35 which would be a massive bonus. But yeah, I guess its just the thought of the car doing 50,000 miles and I have no idea what went on during those said miles, but as other people have stated 50k motorway miles is considerably better than 11k worth of 5 mile trips. And coming from a mk6 tsi, belive me bud there is nothing more I want than the Xenons haha. Anyway going to view the ed35 at the weekend so fingers crossed all is well.


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

Could possibly be! If it's a TFSI ea113 rather than the ea888 tsi then it would be a belt 


hopefully you like the car.


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## VW Golf-Fan (Aug 3, 2010)

Is it just me or from the first picture of the car on the N/S front wing it looks like it's got a whacking huge dent in it.

I know it's probably just the way the light is shining on it.


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## xJay1337 (Jul 20, 2012)

It's the light


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## CoOkIeMoNsTeR (Mar 6, 2011)

afctom said:


> Thanks mate. And I don't think I am leaning towards the standard one, i'm coming from a MK6 golf and to go into that it would be like the exact same car with some fancy cloth seats and a bigger engine. I want all the gizmos but mainly leather interior and xenon headlights. As you say, I want to stay away from main VW dealer to be honest as can get much better deals elsewhere, the only concerning thing about the ED35 is why it has been for sale for 4 + months and not been sold! but thanks for the help everyone has helped a lot, guess for a modern engine 50k isn't much to be worried about.


Possibly because not everyone knows what it is, it's quite an anonymous colour, not everyone likes the wheels; I know that might sound odd to you, but some people really want polished Monza's and find the ed35 wheels a bit dull, also some people like the GTi checked cloth seats and find the leather a bit too plain (I know I do tbh), some people still prefer the manual gearbox, you can get an R for not a lot more, less if you look at the one I found, and with 50k miles perhaps some other people do see it as high, but if you are putting 10k a year on it then it'll have 100k at 8 years old, works out at 12,500 miles a year average. It'll be fine


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## Bero (Mar 9, 2008)

I find it funny everyone saying they would go for the higher mileage car and referencing motorway miles etc.

All things being equal, a car with higher miles IS _nearer_ the end of it's life - FACT.

Do you know how ether car was driven for it's life? Do you know how each owner used it?

I'm not saying you should stay away from a 50k car, just commenting on people saying a 50k car may be/is preferable.

The 11k mile car could be all motorway miles, but just once a week journey. The 50k car could have been a town car for a sales guy dotting about quoting work.

p.s. just for clarity, I'm not saying a car with 50k IS near the end of it's life.


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## percymon (Jun 27, 2007)

I would expect a better p/x price at the a dealer than at the car supermarket, maybe not much but perhaps £300-500 which closes the cost to change.

I don't like WhatCar valuations reports (normally a little optimistic), but if you run both cars thriough their online form you'll get..


ED35 Dealer price £15,700 Private Sale £15,200 Part Ex £12,700 Trade £12,200
GTI Dealer price £16,400 Private Sale £15,900 Part Ex £14,000 Trade £13,500


Given the ED35 cost £4.5k more when new I think those numbers give you a view of what the motoring trade think about the mileage of a car, even a relatively rare limited edition one. Take those numbers for what they are, simply one online view of their values. 

They do suggest you should hang on another week before hanggling on the red GTI - end of month i can imagine they'll be dropping the price £500 or so. 

Since you are planning to keep the car 5 years, you should also weigh up whether a 3 or 5 door better suits your needs ( e.g. if you are young and planning a family you may well want the extra practicality of a 5 door model)


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## afctom (Jul 26, 2014)

percymon said:


> I would expect a better p/x price at the a dealer than at the car supermarket, maybe not much but perhaps £300-500 which closes the cost to change.
> 
> I don't like WhatCar valuations reports (normally a little optimistic), but if you run both cars thriough their online form you'll get..
> 
> ...


Thanks mate you've been extremely helpful.


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## dubber (Oct 2, 2011)

Shaun said:


> He had an edition 30 though not an edition 35 which Is a MK5 and therfore over 6 years old, probably a 57 plate.


08 plate and yes an ed30.


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## Rayaan (Jun 1, 2014)

afctom said:


> Thanks mate you've been extremely helpful.


Dont use the whatcar values, they literally make them up.

CAP (Current Auction Prices) are the ones you need to be looking at. They have a cost calculator on their website after you've done the value search which should prove to be helpful.

I know for a fact that Lexus dealers use CAP for their pricing and Im sure other dealers do too. Glasses is another trade one but it always give's a trade in value which is, as you'd imagine, really low.


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## john90 (Nov 22, 2012)

I would go with the 11k miles one out of the two originally mentioned, no way would I would pay £18k for a 50k mile golf, I'd take this everyday before that, special edition or not


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