Yeah, so I did it. I left the safety of the Polo family and I'm now a Golf idiot because you know, I just wanted a bigger Polo.

 

Actually there's a legit reason. Since I'm now a sales idiot at work I get a car allowance. The car policy at work meant that the old 9n wasn't fit for service and at approaching 170,000 miles, doing a lot of business miles in it was becoming a bit touch and go at times. So since the company were going to give me money for me to effectively buy myself a new car I thought I'd stick with the VW family. Initially I thought new Jetta, but the boot isn't all that practical, then I thought Passat, but really as a mostly single driver it seemed like a bit of a boat. Plus parking is a right bitch at my yard so it wouldn't take long before I hit something or someone hit me. That really only left the Golf or Polo (Scirroco is out as the policy states the car needs 4 doors). Since my sister has a new Golf and my parents have a new Polo, I'd had a test drive both. Now going from a Mk2 to a 9n is a huge jump. 9n to 6R is actually quite an improvement. And the Golf is next level again. 10K better? Probably not but since I might have to take clients around and I'm a customer facing rep for the company, the Golf seemed the grown up choice. Plus the 1.2 tdi in the Polo is gutless and I wasn't going to go for a performance model (mileage costs and all that) so GTIs and R lines were out of the question. So I went for a Golf 1.6 TDI Match. I didn't go brand new as the allowance won't stretch to that, so I hit up my boys at Motorpoint and ordered a 65 plate Golf in pacific blue with a cool 7k on the clocks, barely worn in! Since these cars are everywhere and make up large portions of fleets, resale prices from Motorpoint are very low, especially considering the things you get as standard on a Match (parking sensors, infotainment system with full colour display, Adaptive Cruise Control, shit alloys etc.) so it seemed a no brainer really.

 

So this is the monster. Or should I say, this WAS the monster.

 

 

The more eagle eyed of you will have spotted the pile of wheels and tyres in that picture. That's right, I wasted no time modifying my new sensible daily/company vehicle! However, since it's a company-funded vehicle, I've kept all modifications pretty standard looking and using quality parts. The head of finance at ours is totally risk averse so i know he'd have kittens if he knew I'd modified it, so it's had to be done subtly. 

 

 

First off, wheels. These are 18 x 8 MK4 Golf R32 reps with 225/35/18 Nexen tyres. Those sorts of numbers are scary to a Polo driver, I'm more used to 165/60/13!

 

 

Then VWR springs. These are the choice for maximum lowering on standard shocks and they're what all the cool big boys are putting on their Golfs. I toyed with coilovers and wanted good ones as it will be a daily, but for the money (I was looking at KW V1s at circa £1000) compared to the final drop i wanted to achieve, the £230 I spent on springs seemed better. I don't want to be mega low, and the stance I've achieved is actually what I would have wanted, so the extra £770 would have been wasted. Additionally the ride is practically stock, so it's a win win!

 

 

They also came with this pointless certificate!

 

 

Then spacers. There is something called an ECS flush kit you can buy which consists of 2 x 15 mm for the front and 2 x 20mm for the rear plus bolts. This costs £200. I got these ones (not ECS) for about £80. 

 

 

I read a couple of how-tos before doing the spring change and by reading them you'd think this was a difficult job. It wasn't I'm happy to say. It's far easier than working on the suspension on an old Polo hands down. Those old boys in the US (most of the posts were written by Americans) have no idea! It's actually the same as doing a strut change on a 9n, so there are a few tips I picked up. Like making a spreader as pictured below to loosen the hub/knuckle assembly. You can buy one, but I just ground down an old Allen key

 

 

So after 3 hours in the sun, I was all done up front 

 

 

And another few hours and completely done.

 

 

 

And a few more with slightly better light

 

 

 

It should settle a little more, but I'm really happy with how it looks atm. It does rub a little over larger bumps or with someone in the back, so I may get the spacers machined down a few mill each side. All the mods cost under a grand and they've totally transformed the look of the car. I'd like to say that's as far as I'll go with this car, but since we're all car people here, you know that's unlikely! However, there's very little else I'd change on it...

 

Thanks for reading

Came back to my car earlier to find a little cousin parked next to me. For a second I thought the Polo was my Golf, they look so similar (the wheels especially). And yes, I'm straddling 2 places. It was at the far end of the car park and was quiet.

 

 

 

Looks good Si, to be fair that Polo does too!

Did realize you were in sales? I thought you were in teaching?

 

The Polo's and Golf's don't look that much different now anyway

I left teaching about 18 months ago to do software training and recently moved into accounts management/sales.

 

I was impressed with the Polo to be fair, It was a GT and I just love the colour. The Golf is a Beaut too however, nice to drive something (a little) different than a Polo!

Not a great weekend for the Golf. First I curbed an alloy parking up in the dark and rain and then I also noticed so F**king scrote had spray painted down the side of my car. Bastards. They did a load of cars down the street. Luckily a bit of G3, Polish and a quick wax have solved it but still. Also the curbing isn't that bad, but it'll still be a ball ache to get fixed. 

 

Arse!

Since lowering the car and fitting the spacers and wider wheels it's been rubbing over harsh bumps. Luckily my brother has a lathe and was able to take 3mm off of each spacer. This has cured all but the worst of the rubbing now. And it's only running on a little screw holding the arch liner in place, so not bodywork or anything that's likely to cause too much damage. 

 

However whilst having the wheels off I did notice that one has been cracked, which is a worry. I'm currently trying to get a replacement as after 1000 miles and no crashes or curbing I'd not expect this to happen. 

 

On a more positive note, getting the curb damaged alloys repaired today

Got the damaged alloys back yesterday and straight back on the car (fuck standard wheels). Also managed to get a replacement wheel for free too. I really have no idea how it would have cracked like that. The manufacturer, after looking at photos claimed I must have hit a pot hole or something but there's nothing I remember hitting that hard to cause that much damage. Plus there's not damage to the paint at all. Either way, I'm happy! 

Bought these. Bargain price 

Put these in today. Bit of head scratching as the loom had been cut instead of unplugged on the donor car which meant I didn't have the plugs for the airbags resulting in me taking the plug from my seats. Not ideal as if I sell them, I'll have to mention this. Also there were a few bits and pieces missing that I didn't notice until I got home. Nothing major but when you buy 'perfect condition' items you expect, well, perfect. Serves me right for buying them in the dark I suppose. Still all in now. Need to do the armrest as well but that looks like it could be a challenge. Love the look, but wondering if I should have gone with the gt seats instead. Hmmmmmmm

I like the subtle mods! How is the ride now you've had the VWR springs on for a while?

 

Been considering a set for my MK6 Golf but really love how comfy it is compared to the philj kit on the polo!

Cheers buddy. I'm not a huge fan of in your face mods and since this is a daily being paid for by the company, I can't really roll around on a set of splits and bags! 

 

It's much better than any philj kit! They have been designed to work with the standard shocks so aren't progressively wound (like the popular Eibach springs) so ride is pretty good. Of course they're not going to be as soft as standard and they do bottom out on big bumps. I also have much lower profile tyres than standard and since both were changed at the same time, it's hard to attribute the altered ride to either one or the other. However I came from a very soft and comfortable 9n and these aren't a big shock. Ultimately they're a great compromise.