[BimmerNugget]

My 2011 328i is hot, sexy, attractive, aggressive but yet still classy. Only one problem...NA engines are not tune-able unless you dump in massive amounts of $$$.

I'm thinking about getting a 2007-2010 VW GTI (2.0 turbo) for under $7500 around 75k-90k miles. And tuning that cute little GTI into a street beast.

I will daily drive both the GTI and 328i, probably alternate everyday. What do you guys think? Anybody had a boosted GTI before getting into an E90?

[tlow98]

You could prolly get a 335 for that money these days

[OP3NAIR]

I had an A3 (same thing with a different suit on). Fun car, pretty easy to mess around with, but no BMW. Being FWD, there’s a bit of a limit to how much power you can reasonably put through it. You can buy more than what’s probably reasonable. The fuel pump follower on the BPY motors is a notorious failure point. Whether someone has come up with a solution in the last few years, I don’t know. I traded mine in when I needed a bigger car. Its not a roller, but a little cup that looks like a thimble. There’s supposed to be a DLC coating on it that keeps it from wearing but it doesn’t. Once the coating is gone, the cam lobe eats the follower and ruins the cam shaft, and the HPFP. I was replacing that follower (a $40 part) every 10K miles as preventative maintenance. They also suffer from carbon build up like the N54s

[racermp]

I had a mk6 gti. 2013. Dsg. Get mk6. Alot nicer than mk5. Plus the dsg which is awesome is better in mk6. Lots of like mods from China like auto headlights and stuff cheap. Dsg needs service every 40k so make sure previous owner has done so.

Manual is always awesome. But dsg is a whole diff world

[CTinline-six]

I'm jealous of you guys who can actually use your HP without having a cop at every corner.

[Joebie]

My other car is a Golf TDI, its tuned, bigger turbo, bigger injectors, but nothing in the world can hide the shame that is 61:39 weight distribution and FWD.

It's great to tow a trailer around for small stuff and great for the winter, but my 328i, although slow as hell, still feels like the more performance car given the handling, weight distribution, engine, and drivetrain layout.

I'm probably being a bit harsher than I should on my ol' Golf. The GTI is a nice choice for the money, but I don't see myself going back to FWD for a "fun" car ever again if I can help it. I wish I had a better suggestion for you but I really don't. Just wanted to share my experience with my turbo VW Golf.

Good luck!

P.S. - I test drove a MK7 GTI maybe a year ago and I was pretty underwhelmed. I know they can be pretty fast when tuned though.

[rick100]

Gti is as slow as a 328 .

And contrary to popular believe the 328 is not that expensive to make it fun. 2k and u have a different car .

If u want something worth ur while look at a 335. Since u are going to hace 2 cars , you can afford to work on it. Even a wrx is a bettee choice

[GATORB8]

As enticing as it sounds, I would only run two cars if they are very different or if you have ample garage access and room. I have an F-150 that I alternate with my car, I drove the truck today (like I do most days) because it's a PITA to move everything around to access the car and not block my wife in. That said, putting the car on jack stands for weeks at a time is not an issue with the backup vehicle.

[HawkeyeGeoff]

GTi? Go get a Mazdaspeed3 if you want a real FWD performance car.

[max_330i]

why bother if you already have RWD? in my opinion, the characteristics of the driving experience matter more than the horsepower numbers or raw feeling of acceleration. you really want to give up your nice 328i so you can make a GTI's front tires skip at every stoplight?

[racermp]

Originally Posted by HawkeyeGeoff

GTi? Go get a Mazdaspeed3 if you want a real FWD performance car.

I would also vouch for that. I drove the Mazdaspeed 3 and it was alot faster and handled better. Gti was a better daily. But I should have gone for the ms3.

Iraced my mk6 gti against my friends 328i a few times. Manual 328i kept beading my day off the line.

The worst thing I hated about the gti. Hard to get traction in the front. I swapped to pss and it was alot better. But still fwd will always be a fwd. Rwd is the way to go and how I ended up with my 335i.

[CTinline-six]

Its hard to compare since the cars are in different classes of vehicle.

I drove a bunch of FWD cars before the E90, and while some of them were nice, they really didn't compare.

I liked the idea of a Subaru WRX, for example. An AWD manual fun little car, but couldn't justify the price. It basically felt like a fast AWD Civic on the inside with cheap interior and rough ride. The GTI is nicer inside, but still.

[N52UNED]

... if you're looking at Volkswagen for tuning ... find something with a VR6. The issue with tuning a GTI is you'll always be dealing with torque steer. After a while it gets a bit tedious, IMO ... so you'll have to customize it even more to limit its effects.

[atmosphericM]

Looks like everyone here has this covered, ha.

I used to have a Mk4 GTI (337 edition), and while it was a fun, cool car that I enjoyed, it was more suited to that time in my life (younger, etc.). I had the standard bolt-ons, and yes.. the newer ones are a bit quicker.. but still, they are by no means fast without a turbo upgrade. Honestly I'd put a fully modified 328 up against any FBO stock-turbo GTI. And even there, we're only comparing straight line speed. In pretty much every other way, the BMW wins hands down. Yes, for the price, I even thought the styling and interior of the GTI were freaking awesome... but still: BMW>VW. Also, my GTI was far from maintenance free. Not super unreliable, but less reliable than my 328 has been so far. Turbos just mean issues, at least that's how it was in the 2000-2010 years (maybe manufacturers have improved their implementation more recently).

Cliffs: FWD, FI, small motor, still EURO maintenance costs.. no thanks IMO. GTI's are fun for youngsters, race car drivers, and DD's/communters, but I'd look elsewhere for a street play-thing.

If you really want something fun, as well as a way to LEARN, pick up an older cool car.. something you like.. that is NA, and then piece together a DIY turbo kit for it. It will take time but it will be super rewarding, way more fun, and most likely faster.

[atmosphericM]

Just reread your initial post and wanted to add..

It's going to take a minimum of $3-5K to make any GTI a "street beast" unless you're suuuuuper thrifty and do everything yourself (then, maybe $2-2.5K).

[N52UNED]

Originally Posted by atmosphericM

Also, my GTI was far from maintenance free. Not super unreliable, but less reliable than my 328 has been so far. Turbos just mean issues, at least that's how it was in the 2000-2010 years (maybe manufacturers have improved their implementation more recently).

... pretty much right there.

FWIW ... according to JD Power's vehicle dependability studies - VW is in the bottom 3rd as far as reliability all of the years you're looking at ('07-'10).

BMW is in the mid-3rd for those same years if you're wondering.

[GATORB8]

Originally Posted by N52UNED

BMW is in the mid-3rd for those same years if you're wondering.

This makes me question the reliability of JD Power's survey.

[BimmerNugget]

I totally forgot about the Mazdaspeed3!! Really trying to get a turbo car for under 7500.

[Biginboca]

Originally Posted by BimmerNugget

I totally forgot about the Mazdaspeed3!! Really trying to get a turbo car for under 7500.

For the last 5 months I’ve owned 2 cars that are both basically toys that I alternate between daily driving. Adding the second car my insurance went up $150/month even after dropping the mileage on the first car. I just renewed 2 registrations at $100 ea/yr.

So the added expense of a second car is $1900/year before I’ve even driven it. Then I now have to wash 2 cars instead of one. For some reason even though both cars see half the mileage they still both dirty every week lol. So there is added effort in maintenance.

My advice, take the $7500 for the GTI (or Mazda or whatever) and the $3k you would spend on mods, add it to the trade in of the car you have now, and roll it all into one nice car like a 335is or e92 M3.

You might even come away cheaper when all is said and done with insurance and registration... and car washes, lol

[rick100]

Originally Posted by BimmerNugget

I totally forgot about the Mazdaspeed3!! Really trying to get a turbo car for under 7500.

turbo cars for under 7500 are not going to be reliable and you are probably looking into replacing the turbo rather sooner than later. Aside from other turbo related components.

If that is your budget I would probably look NA , 350z , mustang gt, g37 . Add a little more and you may be in corvette c5 territory ( maybe), 370z

Now if you really want a turbo car , think that it is going to need work , like turbo replaced. If that is the case then get the one with the most potential , like 335 , 135, mazda speed 3, wrx,

Keep in mind , 328 with bolts on is in the 230- 250 whp territory , and that is not more than 2-2.5 k investment and the GTI would need more than a apr stage 1 to get there. And if you want to go apr stage 2 I believe you need downpipes, if I remember correctly stage 2 is only 245 whp.

6k in the 328 will get you a supercharger putting down 300 whp in the 328 . You would need 8 k to buy a gti and another 3k or more to get to stage 3 and hit 300 whp . And one is a AWD or RWD while the other one is a FWD. One handles much better , looks better.

my point is , if you are really bore of the 328 , and you want something fast , make it worth your while. 350 whp or more. Or get something that has real potential otherwise you are going to be in the same spot you are right now.

[Captain comic]

Sell your 328i and add that $7500 and you can buy a nice e92 6MT 335i n54 that you can mod to your liking. It will be fun to drive, look good and potential is there to tune it to a beast - real beast (not golf pseudo beast)

[BimmerNugget]

Ok, so I guess that the generally consensus is that the math just doesn't make sense to spend 7500 on a turbo'ed car that will most likely require repairs.