Olu

So I purchased my 1st midlife crisis car 3 days ago and I'm in love. 2012 GTI, manual with autobahn package. I've always been a VW fan and now I remember why. I washed it today, which is the 1st time I've hand washed a car in 7 years.

After 2 1/2 years, my TL never hooked me. I admired the bold styling, but it never went past that. I never got over the harsh ride. The technology, while impressive in 2009 had minor flaws that annoyed me over time. Instead of enjoying the car more with time, average materials and fair ergonomics made the car 'tired' after a year.

Don't get me wrong the TL is an amazing car, but after 2+ years, I felt like it was a jack of all trades and master of none. It may sound corny, but I felt like it lacked a soul. I'm sure in the long run, the reliability and the amazing residual value will trump any VW, but after this car and the Lexus GS300 before that, I realize that those things are far less important to me.

In my brief time in the GTI, I can only hope the Acura "The tech geeks dream" has improved some of these things in the 2012s.

The interior. The GTi's interior is simple but functional. There is such great attention to detail. Switch gear especially on the steering wheel and stalks feel great. I'd put the GTI interior against not only my Acura, but my Lexus. Seats are nicer then the Acura and the leather is of higher quality. Doors close with a solid thump and I won't miss the inside door openers which are metal unlike the Acura. I also find it much easier to get in and out of the GTI even though it's lower then the Acura. The TL's steering wheel was the best wheel I've ever used….until the GTI. I wasn't crazy about the flat bottom and notches during my test drive, but after a few days I love it! The GTI's wheel is nothing short of amazing and I'm liking it more, the more I drive with it.



Bluetooth: When did VW surpass the Japanese? The GTI has MUCH better integration of bluetooth then the Acura. Streaming sound is amazing and consistent. In the Acura, if the stereo didn't start playing my iPhone and I was forced to start it myself (>50%), the stereo and steering wheel buttons didn't work. 1st of all the GTI ALWAYS starts playing the iPhone when I select bluetooth and 2nd if I do start playing it manually, the stereo and steering wheel controls work. I also will NOT miss the "transfer" call function or losing calls when I turned off the car.

Navigation: The navigation screen is crisper then the Acura and the graphic user interface is more intuitive. The screen refresh rate seems to be at least 24 fps. Animations are silky smooth with none of the choppiness of the TL's. 3D view is amazing. The user interface is awesome with the ability to use touch screen or real buttons at the bottom of the screen. Crossfades between screens is also a nice touch. I thought I'd miss setting navigation destinations using voice, but the GTI's system finds things so damn fast, that I don't mind entering in destinations before I start driving.

MFD: Way ahead of Acura here. The ability to choose to have navigation directions, music information, Trip computer, or Phone information between the Speedo and the Tachometer is a no brainer. The display is also bigger and gives a lot more information each screen.



iPod integration: Another win for VW. The RNS 315 responds faster and unlike the Acura accelerates when scrolling through long lists.

Voice Commands: I never understood why the you couldn't voice dial the contacts in your phone book. This is MUCH more useful then "Fan speed high or rear defrost on". The only command I do miss from the Acura is "iPod shuffle".

Driving: The ride of the GTI is more compliant then the Acura. The handling is much more communicative and as expected the car feels lighter and more 'toss able' then the TL. It's a friggin blast!. I also got 27MPG on the way to work (city driving!!). The Acura was a beast however and nothing will ever top the sure footedness of the SHAWD.

Misc: LED DRLs, Bi-Xenon headlights with AFS (lights turn with the steering wheel), keyless entry, 300 watt dyanaudio (not as good as ELS but close) in a car $10,000 less. I'll definitely miss the maturity of the Acurazine community and I appreciate all the great info that I've gotten here in the past few years.

I wish all of you the best of luck!!

A few pics.

combat mediC

iTrader: (1)

Go VW!! I bet its a blast to drive

halls120

A very nice looking car you have there, and while I agree with some of your VW vs. Acura review, as a former very loyal VW owner, there is one reason I will never go back to a Wolfsburg product - mechanical reliability.

Your new ride might have a wonderful soul, but odds are it won't be as reliable as your TL.

Olu

I agree with you. The GTI get's 'average' rating for reliability. Every VW (4) I've owned has had some issue....except for the one built in Germany, my previous GTI. If the GTI wasn't still built in Germany I may have still gotten one, but would have opted for one of the cheaper models.

Also, I've never owned a car for more then 4 years, so while reliability is a great idea, most cars do very well the 1st 3-4 years

ggesq

iTrader: (1)

congrats!!

jasonwdp10

enjoy!!

Steven Bell

iTrader: (2)

Olu, congratulations on your new purchase.

Very interesting write up. I was intrigued by your comparison.

Although I like the looks of the TL much better than the GTI, I'm into technology and drive. So I enjoyed reading your comparison.

At the end of the day, enjoy your new ride!

jangkai

Congrats on your purchase! The car looks fantastic
I like it even more because it's a 4dr, mt, and you got the autobahn package that gives you 'real' European GTI seats. The plaid ones in american versions are of lesser quality due to cost cutting measures I believe.

Did you trade in your TL or sell it privately? If you don't mind me asking, how many miles did you have on your TL and how much did you get for it?

I've had my car for almost three years now and while it is fantastic, I am itching for some change also.

Pete2010

+1 - Very nice pick up. I'm also curious about your TL - how many miles on it did you have? Did you trade it in at the dealer? What did they give you for it?

crazyasiantl

iTrader: (7)

great looking GTI

congrats on the purchase and enjoy it

btw im jealous

Olu

I put it on Ebay and Craigslist for one week, but the GTI came off the boat 2 weeks early so I just traded it in. I had a little under 31,000 miles at trade in (with original tires). Auction price of the car was 25K and change and most dealerships wouldn't go over that. The dealer I finally went with gave me 28,500. Not bad considering I bought it for 38,850 30 months ago. I saw the TL on their used car lot, because they have to sell it on their own to make any money off it.

I'm sure if you're staying in the Acura family you could get a better deal.

jspagna1

Car looks like a blast to drive. Definitely two different animals.

NwTSXmt

"So I purchased my 1st midlife crisis car 3 days ago" Enjoy...You did say first ...

Ant$

CONGRATS...that is a hot looking car.

2 things I hate about my 2010 TL SHAWD 6spd...

ridiculously SLOW ipod scroll and only getting 18 combined MPG (that's about 60% highway, too)

Olu

The accelerated scrolling was a bonus. I thought Apple had a patent on the scroll wheel acceleration, but I guess not.

Other nice touches:
-I can fast forward and rewind through songs on iPod with the steering wheel controls
-If the media screen isn't on the main screen, a small translucent bar appears for a few seconds on the bottom with the track title when the song switches.
-I got 30.7 mpg on my commute this AM (50/50 hwy/city) and I was driving a little more aggressively then usual.
-SD card slot works well for music as well.

One weird thing. Random is a true random. So every time a track is selected it's at random. This kind of sucks if you want to repeat a series of songs because the order changes up completely.

Stew4HD

Ummm... congrats but if I was to give in to my mid-life crisis and get that type of car.. it wouldn't be a VW! ... just saying... Porshe, 'Vette.. SL class merc... yeah!

Olu

I personally don't like any car that your average Joe can point to and say, "Hey fancy car!". I've usually opt for sleepers that most people wouldn't look at twice. So Porsche, BWM, Mercedes, Corvette....just not me.

Anywho, I did say this was my "1st" midlife crisis car . Palatable to the family because a) it's more practical b) get's better gas mileage and c) much cheaper.

Treblig

Nice car. I strongly considered the R.

Olu

If the R was available, I would have had a very hard time turning it down, even though I didn't want to spend that much. However, if there's one thing that I've learned from my prior experience with VW, wait at least 2 or 3 years into a model's life. The 1st year can often be fraught with niggles and bugs.

NIGHTEHAWK

So....does it really go up to 180mph?

TLtrigirl

iTrader: (1)

glad you're happy with your ride. you do realize you are comparing a compact to a mid size sedan right?

so of course the car is going to handle the way it does.

"Driving: The ride of the GTI is more compliant then the Acura. The handling is much more communicative and as expected the car feels lighter and more 'toss able' then the TL. It's a friggin blast!. I also got 27MPG on the way to work (city driving!!). The Acura was a beast however and nothing will ever top the sure footedness of the SHAWD."

its smaller, its lighter...and its a 4 cylinder. so it should be a bit more nimble, and should get better gas mileage.

sorry your 4G TL experience was not what you wanted. at least you have found out what exactly you wanted in a car. i do agree that the 4G TL in comparison to the 3G, that the 4G feels heavy and lumbering, but considering its size, handles itself well. i'm not that much of tech geek, so i'll take your word for it. however my bluetooth connection does not turn off after i turn the car off. i can still talk...my phone diconnects after i walk away from the car.

well now you have more $$ to buy more tri stuff or enter more overpriced events.

Olu

Just conveying my thoughts. I'd never expect people to compare these two cars in general. However there are plenty of mid-sized sedans that feel sprightly.

As for the bluetooth, maybe I had a bum unit, but if I was on my cell phone, walked to my car, turned the car on, I'd lose the call. The call wasn't actually dropped, but I couldn't communicate with the caller for 20-30 seconds while the system 'booted up'. Same with ending a call, if I forgot to transfer the call before I turned off the car, I was left in limbo for 20-30 seconds. Another annoyance was when I was on call. We get our 'pages' by texts. On the iPhone returning a call is 2 clicks away. You click view and then the patient's number. Instead of dialing through the car's system, the call always started on the phone and I'd have to manual select transfer after the call connected to talk through the car's system.

These things should be instant, and shouldn't require any forethought on my part. My wife's Sienna and the GTi don't require any of this. Once connected calls start and end instantly and are always through the bluetooth system.

So....does the TL really go up to 160mph

Some more fun tonight. Received the VCDS tool which connects your PC directly to the car's computer. This allows you further customize your car by enabling or disabling a multitude of features. It's also a diagnostic tool. Lo and behold I found an error. They forgot to install a friggin bulb in my hatch! Oh well, so ends the perfection that is Acura/Lexus

Ant$

My coworker bought the first year of the EOS. of course, she hates VW and thinks that they're the worst car company in existence. I was telling her the same thing, NEVER buy the first year...of ANY car model...

jangkai

Have you planned any mods for the car? A chip does wonders I hear :wink:

compewterbleu

Congrats, wow...I haven't owned a VW since my 1983 Sirocco, wow that seems so long ago. I played with the notion of a mid-life crisis car, but I'm like Stew4HD, I looking at a Porsche, SL class MB, or something funky like that...but hey man enjoy the ride. Too bad they don't bring the new Sirocco over here and beast it out.

Olu

This is a great rule to follow. The Mark VI GTI is in it's 3rd year in the US. I took a risk with the 1st year of the 4g TL, but with Acura/Honda reliability it wasn't too much of a risk.

Oh definitely, I'm waiting till spring when I'll be past the break in period and will be able to fully enjoy any upgrades. Stage I ECU flash will get you over 250hp to the wheels.

The new Sirocco is a beast. They should bring that over with AWD and 300+ horsepower. I'm sure people would be willing to pay for it. As for the more flashy cars. Never was me and never will be me. I like understated.