I was traveling north on a 4-lane divided highway with trees in the median. I spot a rather low flying blue GTI southbound. It clearly had wheels with lots of smaller spokes seeing as how they were spinning this is only my best guess. Still had the window sticker in.

That's all I've got. I only looked for less than a second so my details are sketchy at best.

i tell by looking for the r34 badge

When I dropped off my car at the dealer yesterday for its 10k mile service there was a Blue R32 outside...I didn't have my camera though, so when I picked it up this afternoon I brought it with me but they had already sold it (no surprise there).

Fucking beautiful car though!

They've finally added it to the VW site. That is definitely what I saw today. Hopefully I can get some wheel time. It looks like fun.

Edit: F' this I'm getting a black one!

Very sweet car, the STi/Evo duo now has a close cousin.

I don't think it will be able to compete, but thats just what i think.

Eh, the R32 really isn't in the same realm as the STi or the Evo. It's slower, but more luxurious, with more emphasis on creature comforts...in other words, it's more of a GT car than an all-out performance car like the Evo or the STi. If I had to compare it to a specific car, I'd say it kinda follows the Porsche 928 in spirit, even though it doesn't have quite so much pedigree or overall performance, but it's a fast yet comfortable sporty car with some cache in its name.

I'm seriously diggin' the interior of the R32. Much much much nicer than the STi in my opinion. Hey and it comes with a radio from the factory! No large wing either.

The hardest part will be convincing my wife. That tends to be the roadblock to a lot of my toy purchases.

But the Golf is such an immensely practical car! It seats four real human beings and has a huge trunk! Fold down the rear seats and you're almost on par with a BMW X3 for cargo space! Brilliant!!!

lol fanboys.

Shush, don't knock it!

Besides, it's not my fault if I get all excited when the topic of cool VWs come up.

I'd love it a lot more if it didnt have the MKIV chassis. The awd V6 must have some MASSIVE potential for tuning as we saw before, but the 4 motion system though isnt my kind of AWD system.

Well, I dunno if you mean you don't like the AWD system because you don't like how it operates (aka, too much front-drive bias, etc.) but at the very least we know that the stock mechanicals of the haldex system can put down some serious power without any complications...AKA 400+ HP.

The haldex system is almost beautiful for drag racing, but unfortunately that's not my style of driving. I mean its a FWD until it slips then power is sent to the rear wheels. Plus after working at a VW dealer I dont think I could ever own one. I don't like how their interiors wear. They look awesome at first but my god they show their age.

Well, they don't show their age if they're well-maintained, but yes, it's true, they don't take a beating well. If you want an interior that looks just like it did the day you bought it then you buy GM or something like that, but the tradeoff is that it isn't very good in the first place.

It's still tough for me to like a water cooled VW but this may be the one to convert me.

It's all about that sex-ay exhaust if you ask me.

In case you haven't seen before: http://www.squick.org/ffa/bin/golfr32.mov

link doesnt work.

edit:

nevermind it does watching now.

Just fixed it Black Fire, try again.

I was looking at: robust engine, six-speed manual, All-Wheel Drive and seats four in relative comfort. True, the R32 lags the STi and Evo in performance but it's still in that same unique group.
All very nice cars!

that exhaust definatly sounds nice.

well i lost alot of my respect for it when i was called a "stupid kid" for not knowing how to open the hood, then my wit kicked in "you must be a VW owner, or maybe just gay *walks away* "

Here's a comparison list between the R32, STi and the Evo.

The VW hood latch is the best thing ever...instead of groping around blindly under the hood after you pull the lever in the car, there's this plainly marked little pullbar thingy that pops out...the best way I've ever seen it done.

That my brother couldnt find.

That surprises me to see that, in pretty much every non-performance arena the VW performs admirably. Hence its different focus.

A positive article from edmunds.com that pretty much mirrors what I've been saying about the R32 so far:

Edmunds.com article

For those too lazy to read that, here's their conclusion:

So is it all worth it? As usual, it depends on what you're expecting. Buyers looking for an ultraquick street machine that answers to no one will be disappointed. Go head-to-head with an Evo or WRX STi and you'll get smoked. The R32 wasn't built to beat them and it won't.

If, however, you're a buyer who sees a little further out than the next stoplight, the R32 won't seem quite so deficient. You get plenty of corner-shredding hardware at each wheel, a butch V6 that sounds sweet and styling that won't make you look like you just raided the local Pep Boys with your parents' credit card. Factor in the upscale, Euro-style interior and the R32 presents a pretty enticing package.

I HIGHLY disagree with their statement about the EVO and STi being stoplight racers.

I think the fact that it's only 2-door is going to be a big deal breaker for my wife. I'm thinking she'll like the WRX more. Too bad we're moving into the new house this weekend. Otherwise I'd be hittin' up the dealerships.

Xeno: Don't worry about it I did the same thing when I went to drive the Jetta.

Well, you're definitely right to get upset over that statement because the STi and the Evo also handle like nobody's business. I think their point was, though, that while the STi and the Evo are serious no-holds-barred performance machines (or about as close to that as you will ever get these days) the R32 is a lot softer around the edges and trades a lot of that "let's race" attitude that comes with the STi and the Evo for a bit of mature luxury.

You tell by the bumpers. It appears to have dual exhaust, but the pipes merdge into one... so it's a "Dual exhaust", chrome exhaust tips, 18 inch multispoke wheels, blue painted calipers, it has no bumper rub strips, colours are red, black, blue, and silver. There is no R32 for Canada. It's 30,000 dollars american.

Actually, RedLine, the R32 has a true dual exhaust (even though it has one muffler) because it has two seperate exhaust runs from the engine to the muffler. Uses the muffler as the crossflow pipe is actually part of where the R32 gets its unique sound.

You're thinking of the TT225, which is definitely a fake dual exhaust.

Really? Shows how much I know about MKIV's. Yeah, I knew it had one muffler.

so what, my volvo has that. You pull it and it pops out of the grille near the badge.

That interior is awesome, exterior is allright, but I dont think that the rims fit the car quite right. Perhaps 17" with a few less spokes.

I think 18s are a necessity for this car, but perhaps some fatter 235s instead of the 225s woulda helped the look....at the moment the car sorta looks like it's riding on rims sans tires...although it's not so bad in person.

BTW, the R32 uses Goodyear Eagle F1 GS-D3s stock from the factory

Man, do I feel your pain!