2019 Volkswagen Golf GTI: New Car Review
What's New for 2019? Smart looks; entertaining driving experience; high-class cabin; hatchback practicality. DSG automatic transmission a bit slow to respond in stop-go traffic. Propulsion comes from a turbocharged 2.0-liter 4-cylinder engine developing 228 hp and 258 lb-ft of torque. The GTI is front-wheel-drive only, and a 6-speed manual transmission is standard. The automatic option is a 6-speed DSG transmission. Strictly speaking, this is an automated manual, but it can shift gears itself or allow manual selection either by moving the lever or using steering-wheel-mounted paddles. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates fuel consumption at 25 miles per gallon in the city, 33 mpg on the highway and 28 mpg combined with the manual transmission, or 24 mpg city/32 mpg hwy/27 mpg combined with the DSG. At the time of this review's writing, the EPA did not have figures for the 2019 GTI, but these numbers from 2018 shouldn't be far off, despite the little hike of 8 hp.
If it comes on again after they "fix" it, they didn't. 50 to read the computer output. There are places out there that will read it for free if you will get it fixed there, and with the age of our cars, that is not a bad deal. I do like VW dealers for service though because they usually have seen someone else's car with the same problem before and will get to the solution faster. The code will tell you what is going on. The scanner will let you reset the code too (turn the light off). It could be something as minor as a loose gas cap, or as major as impending failure of the engine or transmission. The car's computer runs diagnostics continuously and when something goes wrong it throws a code (specific problems have specific numeric codes). When something important goes wrong and stays wrong, the computer lights a light on the dash to let the driver know that the car needs to be serviced.
Thing is, you don't know what the engine computer is complaining about unless you find out what codes got thrown. You do that by getting some OBDII (On Board Diagnostics, second revision) hardware (a cable) and software (for your computer) that lets you read the codes. Another option on this front is Alldata. Usually people at car forums will be able to help you find out what the codes mean and how to fix them, or estimate what it'd cost to get it fixed by a pro. You can, of course, just reset the computer and clear the codes by disconnecting the battery for a couple minutes and see if the problem comes back. It's better to find out what went wrong and what needs fixing, though. That light means something is wrong, but it doesn't tell you what is wrong. For that, you need a diagnostic computer. 50. Or you can go to some auto parts stores, and they will let you borrow one to pull the error codes.
Along with the computer comes a book that tells you what the codes mean. Once you know the codes and their meaning, you may or may not know what to fix or how to fix it. It is possible that the problem was temporary, and just clearing the error codes will solve the problem. If after the codes are cleared, and the light goes off, and you drive 50 or 100 miles, the light comes back on, then there is still a problem. Some problems require additional equipment to diagnose the problem. Most do it yourselfers do not have this equipment. Borrow a computer and pull the codes, and then decide from there. I hope this helps. VW Jetta's as a used car? 100,000 or so miles? 00/01 jetta, and they seem surprisingly cheap. Excellent cars and good values. Being somewhat plain, the Jetta is just undervalued. They also took a hit in value when VW stopped selling them in the US for 2 years because they started up a plant in Mexico, and then the 1993 models did have lots of assembly defects. But they took care of all that a long time ago. Like most cars, the trick is to find a good mechanic. Dealers not only are expensive, but want to sell new cars instead of work on old ones. 1997 jetta and it has about 135,000 miles on it and it runs great! However the engine did have to be replaced at about 80,000 miles so just a warning. The front struts had to be replaced at about 100,000 miles also. The transmission is definitely not the greatest but i havent had any problems with it. Overall it is a great car for a daily driver and extremely easy to work on if you ever want to have your friend do the maintenance for you or something.
Another supermini with a 2.0-litre engine squeezed under the bonnet. The original Renaultsport Clio 172 was a standout car in its day - few cars this small had such a large, highly-tuned motor as this 2.0-litre beefcake. A kerbweight of less than 1.1 tonnes meant it was a real firecracker, and Renault's impeccable chassis tuning made it a blast to drive. The obvious choice if you love the new Civic Type R is to look at an older model for a 拢2,000 budget. Here, the first UK-built model, called EP3 by experts, falls within range. Thanks to an ultra-high-revving 2.0-litre i-VTEC engine, it does 0-62mph in 6.6sec, and what it lacks in low-down pull it makes up for in high-speed excitement. The suspension isn't quite as super as the engine, although the firm ride will leave you little doubt as to its sporty intent. But it's decent on fuel, cheap to service and naturally extremely reliable - it does wear the Honda badge, after all. If you want to see how Honda VTEC screamers used to feel, it's a great blast from the past for a song.
