# TT vs Golf R - cross shop



## storey01 (Dec 3, 2015)

I bought a used mkv gti after the engine blew on my toyota mr2 spyder(which i sold) and have been impressed with the fit, finish and overall drivability. I figured a golf r would be my next car and have been trying to buy a MK7 Golf R for a while now and it has been a frustrating experience. However, i do miss the sports car experience of my old mr2 and think a tt may be a better fit for me.

I have always liked the TT and have been thinking about a Mk3 TT instead of the Golf R. I don't really need rear seats so for me the TT will be basically as functional as the Golf R. The TTS would be over my budget so I would have to buy a non-s TT. The TT has less power than the Golf R but weighs in at ~200 lbs less which is a nice plus. While I like the looks of the Golf R inside and out the TT looks great and I love the interior. I am going to find a TT to test drive but test drives on Golf R's are usually not allowed. I am really wondering the differences on how the two cars drive.

I haven't found any comparisons of the two cars so i guess they dont get cross shopped often. Has anyone had the opportunity to drive both cars that would be able to share their thoughts?

Thanks


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## Tom82 (Oct 19, 2015)

I'm quite well placed to answer this as I came from a MK7 Golf R to an Audi TTS

The Golf R was lovely to drive, smooth, fun but a lot of the noise in the cabin is false (pumped into the cabin to make it sound nice, when outside it doesn't sound that great/loud at all). I had a few issues with mine and to be perfectly honest the dealer let me down which was my main reason for chopping the car in after only a year.

Most people get in to a car and know its the right car, they smile, they feel comfortable at the wheel, the console makes sense, etc. This is how I felt when I got in the MK3 TT.

We test drove the TT as my dealer didn't have a TTS to test drive (I actually walked in wanting an S5 and walked out having placed an order for a TTS).

My own personal feeling was the TT was the car I should have bought a year ago. The Golf R was a great car, the TTS just did it better.



storey01 said:


> I am going to find a TT to test drive but test drives on Golf R's are usually not allowed.


Whoever told you this is talking nonsense, we test drove the Golf R a few times, both my and my Mrs. Some dealers may not have one which is a totally different story.


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## Pugliese (Aug 4, 2010)

Having test driven the Golf R twice, I was convinced it was the car for me, it is a superb piece of kit and great value for money compared to the TTS.

On that fateful Saturday I set off with the intent of buying the Golf R. However before making my mind up, I had arranged a test drive that day in an S3. Compared to the Golf I found the S3 was just a little too sensible. It was definitely the Golf for me. However, I had taken my wife with me, who was lured by this Vegas TTS sitting in the showroom. After an hour's deliberation, we opted for a test drive in the TTS. Contest over. As Tom says above, you know when a car is right. The TTS won on every account apart from 4 doors and unassuming.

I haven't driven a Mk3 TT but my guess is that for sheer driving enjoyment the Golf R will win. It is just that the TTS does what the Golf does (which is superb IMO) but better.

You must go and test drive the cars


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## jont122 (Sep 7, 2012)

Hello

Having contemplated buying a Golf R, when changing my previous car Audi TT 2.0 S-Line. I test drove several and thought the drive and spec where good. But having seen the MK3 TT, I ended up buying a Mk3 TT S-line Quattro.

Because the interior is a nicer place to be and the seating position of the golf seemed high to me. Peformance wise I could hardly tell, It's only 0.6 second slower to 60 than the Golf.

To be honest in the real world there is nothing in it, might be my imagination but I think my TT pulls from low revs better than the Golf.

Being a early purchaser the TT cost me probably £9,000 more than the Golf R. But I do like it better than the Golf.

Regards


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## no name (Feb 16, 2014)

Still just a golf though...


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## aquazi (Dec 24, 2014)

placeborick said:


> Still just a golf though...


But isnt a TT just a golf in a pretty frock?

I test drove the Golf R in September last year as they had fantastic finance deals (£200pm with a dealer deposit contribution)

Not driven a mk3 tt but thought the golf r is a brilliant package.... But badge snobbery prevented me getting one!

Sent from my iPhone 6s using Tapatalk


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## storey01 (Dec 3, 2015)

I forgot to mention that i am in the US. I havent found a very active TT forum here in america.

Unfortunetly i wasnt joking when i mentioned that our vw dealers dont typically allow Golf R test drives. The dealerships here are being kind of jerks about the car. Here in the US vw is slowly trickling in golf r's. We cant order a golf r and they are usually sold before they arrive at the dealership. If a dealer does have one in stock then they typically add a $3000-5000 "market adjustment" to the msrp price.

I have a refundable $500 deposit for a golf r at msrp at one of the local dealerships but they dont know when they will be allocated one.


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## visuar (May 26, 2015)

I'm in the U.S. too with a Mk3 TT Roadster. If you can't find the R to test drive then I would at least try to do a TT test drive then. They are at the U.S. dealers, but you may have to check a number of dealers in your area as there's not a lot of them.


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## no name (Feb 16, 2014)

Me personally,

I drive a lot. If I am to be sat in a car most of the day it needs to feel special, be comfortable and fun when required.

When choosing my beast this year it was going to be Golf R, RS3 or TT/TTS

The golf and the RS3 just didn't feel right, performance wise yeah brilliant but not special.

I agree that 200 a month is a fantastic deal on an R but you can also negotiate a cracking deal on a TT at the moment if you stick to your guns.

Of course this is a completely biased opinion, make of it what you will :-*


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## Toshiba (Jul 8, 2004)

Forums will always be focused in a particular direction, you wont get much support for a Golf here would be my comment.
That said, i don't like the cabin design or materials quality.

One is practical, the other is a coupe....


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## General (Nov 24, 2015)

Yup the Golf R is far too boy racer for me, despite the power. Has no presence for me unlike the R32 and will date very quickly. TT gets my vote any day let alone the TTS but each to their own.


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## Rev (Nov 17, 2015)

They're both pretty similar performance wise... the TTS is just a more prestige version of the Golf R (or you could say a Golf R is a cheaper version of the TTS). The Golf has an understated look, I don't really like it, I would even get a TT S-line over the Golf R. I feel the design of the TT was done with some passion but the Golf looks like what it is, a practical hatchback.

The TT sets the tone of a more special car, with a more sporty feel - from when you approach the car and see how it looks, to when you sit in the seats, and looks out of the smaller windows, and the virtual cockpit - they aren't necessarily practical, but they change the way you feel before you even drive forward 1 inch.

By contrast, with the Golf R, you might as well be approaching a 1.4 Golf with big wheels and aftermarket exhaust and body kit. In a lot of cases, since you're not making full use of its "R" spec on the roads, its might as well be a 1.4! So whats left to make things feel special? Not that much IMO.

I would only get a Golf R if I really needed the practicality, or if I for some reason didn't want the car to stand out.


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## storey01 (Dec 3, 2015)

Rev said:


> The TT sets the tone of a more special car, with a more sporty feel - from when you approach the car and see how it looks, to when you sit in the seats, and looks out of the smaller windows, and the virtual cockpit - they aren't necessarily practical, but they change the way you feel before you even drive forward 1 inch.
> 
> By contrast, with the Golf R, you might as well be approaching a 1.4 Golf with big wheels and aftermarket exhaust and body kit. In a lot of cases, since you're not making full use of its "R" spec on the roads, its might as well be a 1.4! So whats left to make things feel special? Not that much IMO.


That is a really good point.

I did test drive a mk7 gti to get a general idea of what a golf r would be like. I remember after the test drive thinking "its just like my car mkv gti just better in every way". Which makes sense but didnt make me more excited to buy a golf r like i thought it would. Maybe thats to be expected when buying the newer version of the same car i already have.

One thing that is a shame about the TT. Is that we dont get the s-line option here in the US. Regardless i think im starting to lean more towards the TT.


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## TortToise (Aug 22, 2009)

I went from Mk2 TT 2.0TFSi to Golf R (mk 7) and don't regret it.

At the time the Golf just offered so much more than the TT for a lower price. Basically I paid more than 10% less for my R than it would have cost me for a TT 2.0TFSi with Quattro, nevermind a TTS. That said, since then Audi dealers seem to have got a lot more sensible with their pricing on the TT (lots of good discounts available) so it's more competitive now.

If you really want a car with sporty looks and a coupe shape, then the TT is going to be better for you. But on price/performance the Golf R is much better IMO. However, you may not want to spend a lot of money on something that is basically a hot hatch and looks very much like a standard Golf hatch.

Then again, under the skin the mechanicals are much the same on the TT so with that you are getting a hot hatch (with the handing compromises that entails) clad in a coupe bodyshell (with the practicality compromises that entails).


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