Said goodbye to the Passat and bought a gt tdi :)

[grover]

Just my humble opinion on the handling.

I buy and sell cars for a living and as i am into VW's when i find a nice one i keep it for a while. I had a mk4 GT TDI (2001) for the early part of the year and then the mk4 1.8 GTI (180bhp) up to this point with the standard -10mm lowered sports chassis which it shares with the Anni. I could tell the 180 had lowered suspension without reading it up as it is a lot harder than normal GTi's even though it is only 10mm. The diesel went well but as always with sporty diesels and it is not just VW's, a heavy oil burner in the nose of the car does the handling no favours at all and it is always going to be a trade with these cars between economy and handling even if the chassis is lowered/stiffened ect.

I remember going on a dealer drive day at Oulton Park raceway and driving hot hatches all day going from petrol to diesel engines but all on the same model of car and the difference was greater still. Almost any road car struggles on the track (brakes 1st then chassis) but the blown TDI's were so heavy in the nose of the car compared to a petrol lump.

If anyone is thinking of trading up to a MK5 GT TDI then make sure you drive one on the hills and see what the handling is like. Very nice cars and quick in a straight line but they are built for cruising and are heavier still.

There are no 'best' GTI's, just different engines/specs for different people/uses.

Cheers - interesting post, and you're absolutely right, the petrol is nearly 180kg lighter if i recall correctly.

I might look at a stiff ARB - i know eibach do them - all in good time though!

Tom