Faults:

Rattles!

Dashboard rattles, dealer cannot fix problem so they've decided to fit a new one.

Headlining rattles.

Centre console rattles.

Horn works intermittently and sticks on.

General Comments:

Car is comfortable and quick, but seems thrown together rather than built properly. Interior is a bit gloomy, but is comfortable enough.

The seats are a bit hard for my liking.

Good economy and reasonable insurance costs add up to a good package, shame about the build quality as it's spoiling my enjoyment of the car.

Most of the faults are known to Volkswagen and their dealers, so why can't they have sorted them out on the production line?

Faults:

Veered to the left when new.

Rattle from parcel shelf. Found to be a snapped bracket.

Handbrake number due to be installed three due to rattles.

Still rattles from the dashboard.

Central arm rest fell to bits. Threaded screw.

Told me it needed a service after 200 miles.

Intermittently tells me it needs a service.

Wheels starting to tarnish after just 8000 miles. Despite weekly cleaning.

General Comments:

VW seem to be resting on their laurels in terms of build quality. The materials used to build the interior are of a suitably high Germanic quality. Sadly they're thrown together in a hap hazard fashion that results in numerous rattles and bits and pieces falling off. Despite that...

I still love this car to drive. The 1.9 diesel delivers torque (and rapid acceleration) in abundance. Overtaking on A & B roads is a doddle. Six speed gearbox is slick.

You won't find the handling excites like a little sports car, but you'll glide through the corners in safety, comfort and most of all - rapidly.

Fuel economy is at worst 40mpg. At best 60mpg. Most normal journeys will see 50mpg. Best was 560 miles on a tank of diesel. Very frugal.

I have the 3 door, so rear leg room isn't its strong point. Ample boot.

My car is an import, but despite this dealers are keen to resolve problems.

Dealers are helpful and courteous. Sadly, they are generally the cause of most of my car's problems. Of the seven visits its had, five have been the car going back to fix the shoddy work of the previous visit. With any luck visit number eight will solve the rattles and I'll be left with the rapid diesel that doesn't rattle.

Faults:

Central locking fault

Loose trim on B pillars

Poor idle quality when the engine gets warm

Damp patches on boot carpet after heavy rain.

General Comments:

After a promotion at work, I was so excited to change my car from a Focus 1.8 Zetec to this gorgeous looking turbocharged Golf. But 9 months on, I feel a bit short changed. Where the Focus was ten times better in reality than I was expecting, the Golf was nowhere near as good as I thought it would be.

It's not a bad car to drive. In fact, it's a very nice car to drive, being extremely comfortable and with a beautifully designed interior. The turbo engine is torquey and performs well, and delivers a wave of smooth, punchy acceleration in the midrange.

Here's the "but". It's no fun whatsoever. The steering and handling are not a patch on the Focus's, and despite the Golf being a sizeable amount quicker, I reckon the Focus would leave it for dead on a twisty road. The Golf feels nice when ambling, but up the pace on a typical British B-road and it quickly feels out of its depth. It wallows, bucks and understeers if you press it in the twisty bits. By comparison, the Focus felt alive and composed when driven enthusiastically.

Build and reliability have also transpired to be disappointing. For a car which initially appears so lovingly crafted, it's been a real let down. There are several squeaks and rattles inside, the central locking intermittently goes mad, the engine idles like a top fuel dragster in traffic, and the boot appears to have sprung a leak. Pretty shabby on a 9 month old car really, especially one on which the quality reputation is so hyped.

The biggest disappointment of all this though, is that despite that emotive combination of VW, Golf and GTI badges on the tailgate, and decent outright performance, the car is really quite boring to drive. Combined with the indifferent quality, and truly woeful dealers, it adds up to an unsatisfying disappointment. If I'd spent my own money on it, I would be depressed beyond words.