CD Article: 2007 Volkswagen City Golf & Jetta

[2hondas]

Very nice. 

[walter_wpg]

I managed to pick up some used alloy rims this summer (only $50 each!), the same size as the steelies that came with my City Golf.  I've now installed new snow tires on my steel rims, and moved the all-seasons to the alloy rims.  Here's the result:

Very nice rims.  A lot of aftermarket wheels look overdone and don't actually work with the lines of the car.  These could be stock on an upper-trim-level Golf. 

I agree...  They "could be" stock, but they aren't, which also means there aren't a bunch of other Golfs driving around with exactly the same wheels. So, my car looks a bit unique, for what that's worth.

Speaking of unique combinations, this past summer I sold the stock 4-bolt alloy wheels from my old '86 GTi to a fellow with a mid-1990's Honda Civic.  He sent me a picture with the rims installed, and it looked slick!  The car and rim styles were nicely compatible.

[Paul Chan]

quickly browsing through these forums... the general consensuses is that:

It is a good deal relative for this MK4 considering the price point of entry and options

but buying relative "old" technology in terms of the engine and features

well.... I own a first gen 99.5 GTI 2.0L

What I have to say is even by todays standards, my car to me is a solid performer even in comparison to any "new" car in it's relative class

Would I buy a City Golf?
Well the engine has been refined, and all the recalls have been fixed on the new models
so you're buying yes a 10 year old car, which has ironed out all of it's previous flaws, providing Piece of Mind!

Bear in mind that even up until the point of roughly 2003, this car was never considered dated and always considered a wolf's in sheeps clothing...
I've always considered the MK4 a car that bridged the gap between an economy car to a luxury car
If you had never driven an MK4 you would never understand, but if you have, you do know that it shares drive characteristics similar to far more expensive European vehicles. They have always had a great suspension and body which dampen and yet has steering responsiveness that is firm yet not fatiguing.

To be honest... knowing VW's reputation, the MK4 City editions are probably the most reliable new car from their production line

My MK4 transitioned me from looking at any other "eco" box to a more substation statement car.. I.E. Audi A4s, Volvo C30/S40s etc..

Think about the Volvo 240\740\760... essentially unchanged technology which stood the test of time as a functional and reliable people mover

My GTI has the following features:
Moon Roof utiliazing a dial (Audi's still use this)
Adjustable heated seats (dial 1-5)
Ergonomics and Incredible usage of space... rear seat headroom and trunk space)
Cruise control
Heated Mirrors and water jets
Power Windows/Locks with keyfob for the trunk as well
and standard stuff like A/C

Now... if you were to find a new car with those features within the City's price range, you'd be hard pressed
let alone you do not have nearly as well built of a subframe nor suspension (being for typical drying)

I've looked, honestly I have
The benefits of new cars are usually the:
Integration of SatNAv
Incredibly fuel efficient small displacement engines with multi valve/cam configurations

Other than that... the 2.0L engine is very capable, torquey, and again is appropriately geared for daily use
Coupled with ESP and a new transmission and you're really gold

I am debating ridding myself of the GTI and had initially thought to go with another sporty eco box in a simular price point... they were:
Civic SI & Sentra Spec V

They both handled exceptionally better and had an incredible engine performance, but I found that even in comparison to a almost 9 year old car
they were still unrefined
Suspension dampened well, but was still yet uncomfortable
Didn't feel solid... again going back to the whole aspect of not getting that solid "thud" when you close a door or lid
Missing features, such as heated washer fluid jets (not important but helps in our climate), no heated seats and everything that you could touch or turn, felt cheap in comparison

For me, it's Audi, BMW or Volvo to go forward from this point

[Mitlov]

Good points about the "new doesn't mean better."  Newer automatically means better in the following categories:

*  Safety.
*  Horsepower.
*  Roominess (almost always).

Newer does NOT mean better in the following areas:

*  Handling (unrelated to the platform's age).
*  Interior quality (unrelated to the platform's age).
*  Reliability (where older platforms are often better, because they're field-tested).

My understanding is that a City Jetta may actually handle better than a base MkV Jetta.  MkIVs definitely have nicer interior materials in my experience.  And the MkIV is behind the MkV in safety, it's still darned good.

So unless you want the size or power of a base MkV Jetta, the City Jetta may actually be the better car.

[r3cc0s]

I'm not saying that the MKVs are not better cars, as they are

just saying that the City's are probably going to be one of the best bang for the buck!

The only exception to the Audi's/Volvo's etc... that I listed above is the new GTI
IT is a HOT daily driver
I'd take that car over any non 335 BMW 3 series right now

[sirAQUAMAN64]

I stand by the City car's appeal. To me, although the design is older (intro'd in Europe in 1997!) and yes the HVAC controls look it, and the engine isn't exceptionally fuel efficient (doesn't feel gutless either), and rear seat leg room is lacking... the car has remained competitive somehow. Safety scores are admirable, safety equipment still ranks near the top, with the AUX/USB 8-speaker audio you're ahead of just about everyone in the audio department, and it's the only one with a 6-spd automatic - nevermind a Tiptronic one. City Jetta likely has the biggest trunk in segment - or close to it, and the City Golf's hatch is quite large as well. They have comforable seats and an excellent driving feel, with a mature bigger car ride and superb stability. Depends what you're after, but give 'em a whirl before you pass judgement on how 'ancient' they are because truth is they were waaaaay ahead of their time and were never designed to compete at this price level.

As for comparisons between the new and 'old', the MkV's handle appreciably better than the IV's IMO. Immediately noticable when I took the first turn, whether it was a GTI or a Jetta.

The V interior doesn't have a few of the touches of the IV (3dr fold sunvisor, 1-motion sliding seats in the 3dr, etc), but it is still super solid and has other touches IV doesn't (ambient lighting, 3-flash turn signals). The V interior is FAR FAR more durable than the IVs where plastics are concerned, notably the soft touch peeling which plagued the IVs. Overall I think the Vs are a significant improvement in the areas I saw the biggest faults, including reliability which my IV didn't suffer from but statisically others did. For that, you pay the premium, but it doesn't mean the IVs are immediately obsolete... and not at under $20Gs.

[L. Cook]

I am one of the Canadians who just went out and bought a new 2007 City Golf (Mystic blue) -- so far I love it -- the heated seats (never had a car with that) are fabulous!!! 

Talking about these cars having old technology doesn't bother me one bit -- why?  Well being a previous Honda owner, I have read the reviews (Consumer Reports) on VW's and I know reliability is sometimes an issue.  They have had many years to fix the reliability issues so hopefully I will have long happy, trouble-free driving, just like my previous Hondas used to bring to me.  I don't care about how fast it is, I just love the handling and feeling of driving a VW.  I hope in the long term that the "bugs and problems" will not be an issue. 

[L. Cook]

I would like to hear from anyone who has a 2007 City Golf and if anyone has had any mechanical problems -- any problem -- with them for me to be on the look-out for?  I'm counting on that the bugs have been "ironed" out by now.

I absolutely love the stereo system that it comes with -- the speakers give out a nice, fully rich sound (for a "factory" stereo) -- much better than in our Honda Odyssey that has a terrible-sounding stero system (we own an older Odyssey).
I love the way the car handles -- the blue colouring when the headlights are "on".
I love the price.  I got everything on mine except for the power moonroof (and the 15 inch rims).
The seat heater is fantastic -- never have I owned a car with this feature on it.  It is perfect for us Canadians in the winter.
I don't particularly like the amount of gas that it uses though.  I don't like that can be helped the way the engine is set up -- it "revvs" very high. 

[schaste]

I bought one of the first Cities in November '06 from Duval VW in Boucherville, just south of Montreal. As delivered, the driver's side mirror wasn't aligned, and at first I had to have the seat at the lowest position just to be able to see behind me. They fixed it, but still the mirror handle is all the way up just to have the mirror pointed directly behind me. One interior light switch in a rear door jamb didn't work, so they had to fix that. And mine seems to have an interminable case of rattles that come and go - not anything that others in the car notice much, but enough to drive me batty on roads with lots of sharp bumps. For example, the light cluster over the mirror has something loose inside (for a long time I thought it was bottom of the windshield, but the sound's location was very deceptive). I think as much as anything, it's SO QUIET inside that the normal noises other cars make... are actually noticeable in this one. Other than that, so far it's very reliable and drives/rides like a Golf.

Oh, and like some have noted, some of the more subtle touches like the red in-door lights are gone, as is any ability to turn on the interior light when the rear hatch is opened. Not fun trying to load groceries into a black hole on a dark night without any lighting

Is anyone else annoyed that the driver's manual has absolutely zero information on how to change any light bulbs (inside or outside)?

[safristi]

don't VW's EAT BULBS.....there is prolly a 120 Page seperate MANUAL for that in the trunk...... .....plus you'll get LOTS of PRACTICE....