Golf r or m240i

[MTM84]

I’ve had an M135i and Golf R estate....both hugely capable and more than fast enough for the real world...but, and I know many will disagree, after the ‘new car’ novelty wore off, I found them pretty boring. Time and again, I find myself drawn to lightweight, manual hatches which I can thrash when the mood takes me, but still find myself doing less than totally crazy speeds. It’s rare for me to keep a car longer than a year or two but my current Up GTI is going to be a long-termer as it just ticks all of my boxes right now. Other cars that have done it for me in the fun stakes are: the Clio 197, Corsa VXR and Abarth 595 Competizione.

[WarrenVrs]

The golf r is ultimately more capable than the m140. For me, it's a bit too capable. You're travelling at silly speeds when you start to feel like you're driving it hard.

The BMW will be more fun, more of the time. Still has that odd BMW characteristic of the rear axle feeling quite bouncy, and it's not as capable composed as the golf, but arguably more fun as a consequence. I'd want the lsd though.

Harris did a good video a few years ago.
https://youtu.be/TtOZNp6GOxI

If you do go for the BMW, just don't try and keep up with a hard charging golf r on a b road. Won't end well........



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[hilly10]

I had a deal come through on Contract Hire Golf R estate £2500 down £148 a month all plus VAT 8k miles 24 months. If I had not ordered the Merc I would have had one. They must be trying to shift stock

PS The cars allocated went first day

[pete-r]

Those harris videos are full of inconsistencies so go in with a fist of salt.

He reviewed the mk1 m135i and it was all auto box heaven, then later he's banging on about the manual is the one to have etc.

He also had a habit of making out whatever car he happened to have bought at the time (1M coupe, FF, 4.0RS) was the best car in the world at that time and got lambasted for trying to hype them for financial appreciation.

I quite like him though and he's a mighty drifter!

[100thmonkey]

I had a deal come through on Contract Hire Golf R estate £2500 down £148 a month all plus VAT 8k miles 24 months. If I had not ordered the Merc I would have had one. They must be trying to shift stock

PS The cars allocated went first day

So that’s best part of £10k to borrow one for 2 years!

Personally I’d buy a nice 2016 or 2017 for £20k max it’ll still be worth £15k in 2 years so you’ve lost half the dough you would to rent!

I accept it won’t look like your bigger than you are on the drive but if ego is important put a private plate on it.

[MikeB687]

So that’s best part of £10k to borrow one for 2 years!

Personally I’d buy a nice 2016 or 2017 for £20k max it’ll still be worth £15k in 2 years so you’ve lost half the dough you would to rent!

I accept it won’t look like your bigger than you are on the drive but if ego is important put a private plate on it.

Nope it's £7084.80 or £295.20/mth which is approx 20% of rrp, this is in the "Great deal" section of PCH. It means you'll lose less than depreciation would cost you if you bought it outright.

Mind you I keep a close eye on PCH deals on new Golf Rs as mine is going back in Sept unless I extend and I haven't seen one at that price for over a year.

[NikGixer750]

I looked at leasing but just could not accept the cost for not owning anything. I get that if you want a new car it makes sense as it’s less than the depreciation but I always get 2-3 year old cars that have taken the worst hit already. Yes they will still depreciate but not at a eye watering amount, how anyone can spend almost £40k on a car that will be worth £22k in 2 years is beyond me.

Car arrives tomorrow, can’t wait!

[hilly10]

So that’s best part of £10k to borrow one for 2 years!

Personally I’d buy a nice 2016 or 2017 for £20k max it’ll still be worth £15k in 2 years so you’ve lost half the dough you would to rent!

I accept it won’t look like your bigger than you are on the drive but if ego is important put a private plate on it.

I contract hire one car through the business so claim 50% of the VAT back. I have no pleasure in buying cars due to getting rid time, biggest ball ache of all time, when you add in your time and adverts, no thanks.

[Harry Smith]

I’ve had an M135i and Golf R estate....both hugely capable and more than fast enough for the real world...but, and I know many will disagree, after the ‘new car’ novelty wore off, I found them pretty boring. Time and again, I find myself drawn to lightweight, manual hatches which I can thrash when the mood takes me, but still find myself doing less than totally crazy speeds. It’s rare for me to keep a car longer than a year or two but my current Up GTI is going to be a long-termer as it just ticks all of my boxes right now. Other cars that have done it for me in the fun stakes are: the Clio 197, Corsa VXR and Abarth 595 Competizione.

I agree with this. The figures make sense when you consider I bought a 16 reg 11k miles 208 Gti for £11500, cheap tax and insurance, looks great in white and goes very well. Nothing leaves it behind on today's roads with everyone afeared of cameras. Averages 40 mpg whatever I do. After a year of ownership it's still worth at least £10k. I shall look for another one or something similar soon as I like to run a car with a bit of warranty for peace of mind.

[Hennersf]

I looked at leasing but just could not accept the cost for not owning anything. I get that if you want a new car it makes sense as it’s less than the depreciation but I always get 2-3 year old cars that have taken the worst hit already. Yes they will still depreciate but not at a eye watering amount, how anyone can spend almost £40k on a car that will be worth £22k in 2 years is beyond me.

Car arrives tomorrow, can’t wait!

Has it arrived? If so, imagine you've got better things to do than be on a watch forum, but keen to hear how you get on!

[NikGixer750]

The driver had a breakdown so he only got to me at 4:45.

Only drove it home so far but initial impressions are very good. It sounds amazing when opened up and drives really well. The inside is a nice place to be, only missing electric seats and heated seats apart from that has everything I need.

Love the look, will get the wing mirrors carbon or black wrapped, tempted to get all the black parts carbon wrapped to blend with the spoiler and also protect from stone damage, but not sure if it will be too much.

The black wheels really set the car off with the black M sports trim. Always risky buying a car that you have never seen but it’s in really good condition, a few stone chips but apart from that the paintwork looks perfect, inside does not have any marks either.

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[Hennersf]

Good stuff! Although presume the driver was of a car transporter and not that the car itself had a breakdown?

Enjoy getting out over the weekend, you will have a great time!

[NikGixer750]

Yes the driver of the delivery van had the issue with his wheel.

Had a good run out to Blackpool for the weekend, around 220 mil round trip and the car was perfect. Sitting on the motorway in eco plus mode I averaged 40 mpg, not bad for 3L sports car . Really comfortable just cruising for long distances. The cars sound system is impressive, so much bass and mid range. Made the drive over a pleasure.

Acceleration is very impressive, no matter the speed just put your foot down and so much power and torque and a lovely exhaust sound. Still not really had a good play on some twisty roads but had a few little blasts and it’s a beast.

Overall really happy I went for it, just seems the perfect all around car for my needs and still feels miles ahead of the golf. It’s just so smooth and calm when cruising around and at the same time has the power just waiting for be used.

[NikGixer750]

Had the car for a few months now and I made the right decision. Have added a few carbon bits and a BM3 stage 1 map - really is amazing what you can do with your phone these days. Totally transformed the car in sports modes it is now much quicker and has much better power delivery. Drive the car every day and it cruises to work nicely (could achieve 34+mpg if driving sensibly) then stick it in sports mode and it moves. Just being RWD and without a LSD (still think its bad on such a car that is has no LSD as standard) it gets a little squirmy and you can feel the back end moving around under hard acceleration in almost every gear, more so after the map. I like this though, keeps the driving experience more involved where as the golf R or a xdrive m240 would just pull without the drama, but the drama makes it fun.

The interior is nice, had some light grey weave on some interior bits that I had carbon wrapped which has improved the look. Only other upgrade I might do is a android head unit to replace my ID4. I also upgraded the HK speakers to some Etons as the HK are very harsh and the eton upgrades are not that expensive will look to do the subs and amp at some point.

If anyone else has this dilemma go for it!!

[JasonM]

You did a map using your phone! That’s pretty cool. How does that work? Wirelessly or plug it in?

[NikGixer750]

You did a map using your phone! That’s pretty cool. How does that work? Wirelessly or plug it in?

a company called bootmod3 have made the map, most people use a laptop with a OBD cable and you buy a license from them circa £600 (I got a 2nd hand one for £250 - it can only be sold once) then you can download some off the shelf maps, Stage 1 93 and 99 octane Stage 2 93 and 99 and some meth maps. Once you download the file you just click flash and it takes about 2 minutes to map the car, during this time you generally scare yourself thinking you are going to kill the car then it finishes and you get every drive train error you can think of (again more panic sets in). Click online recode and they all clear and you are good to go.

The other option is to buy their Wifi reader for £299 or make one for £50 (I made one) and then it links to your phone so you can do this process via your phone. Once running it displays all the key information about the car and how it is running, they recommend you do a few data logs and send it to them so they can check everything is looking good. There is also a good facebook group that people post logs on to get people to check it looks safe.

You can also hardwire a device in so it shows data on a phone all the time, ie oil temp, boost, etc.

You can also get custom tunes for your car via their app, lots of tuners all over the world will make you a custom tune but the are expensive and the OTS one works well for me.

The app also lets you change the burbles (a bit chavvy but I have mine set to min and it just makes a nice noise on a down shift), open the exhaust flap, disable the cold start etc.

It wont be as good a as custom map done on a rolling road which would cost around £650, but you can self map it back to standard and relock the ecu, change the maps to different settings yourself. They are constantly updating the maps following customers data logs and feedback so you have to update your map every few months / weeks, they add more features going forward aswell. I am going in for a end of warranty check and will just flash it back to standard first just to be safe, don't think anything is wrong with the car but BMW called and offered it so thought why not. I mean if anything is wrong they will know it has been mapped but I think its worth the risk.

Does 0-60 in well under 4 seconds now and generally just feels much nicer to drive.

[JonRA]

What effect does the mod have on your insurance?

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[Harry Smith]

What effect does the mod have on your insurance?

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Sssshhhhhh!

[JonRA]

Sssshhhhhh!

Obviously I don't know about the OP and would like to think that all is in order and it is with interest my question about the effect upon the premium. My own experience of making a very minor mod to my motorbike caused confusion and different messages from the company, but ultimately led to the mod being recorded and new paperwork issued free of charge.

But I do know people who have had their cars chipped and not notified their insurer and are effectively uninsured as a consequence - which would potentially only come to light in the event of a claim. I've also heard that the more serious the accident, the more likely any police investigation is to investigate the chip to determine whether or not it has been modified - though that's hearsay and others here might be better informed?



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[tango]

a company called bootmod3 have made the map, most people use a laptop with a OBD cable and you buy a license from them circa £600 (I got a 2nd hand one for £250 - it can only be sold once) then you can download some off the shelf maps, Stage 1 93 and 99 octane Stage 2 93 and 99 and some meth maps. Once you download the file you just click flash and it takes about 2 minutes to map the car, during this time you generally scare yourself thinking you are going to kill the car then it finishes and you get every drive train error you can think of (again more panic sets in). Click online recode and they all clear and you are good to go.

The other option is to buy their Wifi reader for £299 or make one for £50 (I made one) and then it links to your phone so you can do this process via your phone. Once running it displays all the key information about the car and how it is running, they recommend you do a few data logs and send it to them so they can check everything is looking good. There is also a good facebook group that people post logs on to get people to check it looks safe.

You can also hardwire a device in so it shows data on a phone all the time, ie oil temp, boost, etc.

You can also get custom tunes for your car via their app, lots of tuners all over the world will make you a custom tune but the are expensive and the OTS one works well for me.

The app also lets you change the burbles (a bit chavvy but I have mine set to min and it just makes a nice noise on a down shift), open the exhaust flap, disable the cold start etc.

It wont be as good a as custom map done on a rolling road which would cost around £650, but you can self map it back to standard and relock the ecu, change the maps to different settings yourself. They are constantly updating the maps following customers data logs and feedback so you have to update your map every few months / weeks, they add more features going forward aswell. I am going in for a end of warranty check and will just flash it back to standard first just to be safe, don't think anything is wrong with the car but BMW called and offered it so thought why not. I mean if anything is wrong they will know it has been mapped but I think its worth the risk.

Does 0-60 in well under 4 seconds now and generally just feels much nicer to drive.

Is there a list of models that they will offer tuning for or is it a case of anything goes? I appreciate that they may not see the point of mapping something like a 318, for example- I’ve always been keen to try this, though; your post makes it sound quite reliable and secure so I may well take the plunge fairly soon.

Also, is there any particular reason you went online rather than your nearest appropriate workshop/garage?

Thanks


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[GOAT]

I’d be pretty certain that a main dealer would be able to analyse the ecu and tell it had been modded.
Iirc the 235/240i has a power/torque meter that can be viewed on the dash and presumably downloads to a data log
Surely wouldn’t be hard to see the effects of a re-map.
Very happy to be proved wrong but an M4 I paid a deposit on last year was withdrawn from sale amidst apologies from the main dealer when the pre-sale checks revealed it had been tampered with
Certainly wouldn’t hold back from telling the insurance company

[Liner33]

I’d be pretty certain that a main dealer would be able to analyse the ecu and tell it had been modded.
Iirc the 235/240i has a power/torque meter that can be viewed on the dash and presumably downloads to a data log
Surely wouldn’t be hard to see the effects of a re-map.
Very happy to be proved wrong but an M4 I paid a deposit on last year was withdrawn from sale amidst apologies from the main dealer when the pre-sale checks revealed it had been tampered with
Certainly wouldn’t hold back from telling the insurance company

Yes a dealer would be able to see that the ecu has been flashed , they usually look only in the event of a warranty claim though, it's also against their terms and conditions if the car is under BMW finance (Big story recently about a youtuber and his BMW M4)

The power meter is a gimmick , not accurate and does not show any difference following a remap

Insurance company does need to be told and not declaring modifications can potentially void your insurance , I tell mine everything it rarely makes much difference to the premium for me being an old git

[NikGixer750]

Sorry did not see anyone reply

Tango - if you look on the companies website it shows what models you can tune you need a turbo to make it worthwhile


The car went for its end of warranty check and I flashed it back to standard with a locked ecu, and they never said anything. But like I said above it anything did go wrong the dealers can’t normally normally check but the Bmw techs than come to assess the claim can.

Yes my insurance company knows. I always declare all my mods, last car got written off and I was glad they knew everything!

[NikGixer750]

Yes a dealer would be able to see that the ecu has been flashed , they usually look only in the event of a warranty claim though, it's also against their terms and conditions if the car is under BMW finance (Big story recently about a youtuber and his BMW M4)

The power meter is a gimmick , not accurate and does not show any difference following a remap

Insurance company does need to be told and not declaring modifications can potentially void your insurance , I tell mine everything it rarely makes much difference to the premium for me being an old git

The power meter is not accurate but it does change one the map, before showed a max of 400 bhp and it use to go to around 370 now it shows 480 bhp and goes to around 470. I don’t think it’s that accurate tho, from people’s dynos it will be around 440

[Liner33]

The power meter is not accurate but it does change one the map, before showed a max of 400 bhp and it use to go to around 370 now it shows 480 bhp and goes to around 470. I don’t think it’s that accurate tho, from people’s dynos it will be around 440

Then the power meter was recoded as part of the ecu flash, remapping the engine ecu will not alter the display on the head unit as the graphic would need to be changed

True dyno figures on something like Dyno Dynamics dyno will be around 400hp at the flywheel for a remapped 240 unless you have a lot of other supporting mods

Most dealers don't have to interrogate the ecu the diagnostic software they use simply looks at the flash count that the ECU has ie if the ecu flash count was three last time the car was at a dealership and now its five they know it's been altered by someone else

[NikGixer750]

The graphic has changed on the I drive display, like I said it’s gone from showing 400 to 480 at the max read out.

Only basing the hp on other people’s dyno o have seen, have not dyno my car

[Corrado]

6 cylinders are always better than 4

^This