Undoubtedly the flagship of fun driving, just wish we had highways with 135 km speed limit here in the U.S. The car is sound just don't like the range I prefer my TDI for that. I can drive 700 to 800 miles on a fuel cell of 14.5 gallons. Average around 54 to 57 MPG with it and guess what it's good for the environment. Would really love to get my hands on a LUPO VW but it's not offered here in the U.S. I saw it in Germany last September and it looks real similar to the Golf just a wee bit smaller. So what's all the hype with these Hybrid cars anyway??? German engineering beats it hands down for economy and it has been around since the 70's. Oh by the way I don't own an R32 however I do have on 07 GTI and my 01 TDI and I'm happy with them. The GTI is the fun drive car but my TDI is the workhorse.

Have the DVD-Navi option which I've grown to like but it's a bit old school. Wonderful car, very good commuter if you don' t mind the fuel economy which is my only gripe. BUT, this car is 4-wheel drive and does encourage hard driving (because it so much fun). With mixed driving in the North East, I'm getting 23mpg, not bad and better than my last car which was a Subaru WRX. Very nice interior accomodation as well. Handles the snow and wet pavement very well if you opt for the all-seasons, the only option on this car. I paid full-pop when it 1st came out, now they are discounting them like crazy. So if you want a european 4-wheel drive, every-day performance auto, there really is nothing else like the R32. The only other thing that comes close in luxury, all-wheel drive practicality and performance is the BMW 3-series which is over $10k more for the all-wheel drive option. Look at it this way, the R32 is not a bad deal.

Amazing car. Purchased it for invoice from a dealership in Dallas, TX. Its something i have always wanted and i have been driving VW and Audis for some years now. Everything has been great so far first 2k miles have been awsome. the radio could be a little better and the speaker mounting isnt the best. but the car is very well built and feels solid. The all wheel drive system is awsome, very little understeer in tough corners. There is a small market for this car in many areas, shop around and you can get a great deal. If this thing holds its value as well as the 2004 R32 has then its almost an investment

I was in love with my Subaru Impreza 2.5RS. It had everything I wanted; AWD, 2 door (my wife drives the family car!) and sun roof. All the things the newer Subaru's don't have. And then came along the R32!
I am also not a fan of automatics. The tiptronic is great, and the ability to overide the automatic by just hitting the paddle shifters is great. And an extra 85 HP to boot (over the Subaru).
My other 'dream car' was an STI, and having driven one (family member owns one) I understand what the critics say about a 'hard' to drive car. Definately not the case with the R32. It responds to power out of corners without the oversteer you get in the STI, and at a better price. The Mistubishi dealer wouldn't even let me drive an Evo!
Overall, I rate this car an excellent step up from an Impreza 2.5RS, especially if you want to stick with a small 2 door.

I just bought a red R32 this past weekend. It will mainly be used as a commuter car from central NJ to Brooklyn, NY by my wife. I'll flog it on the weekends for more of what it was originally designed. So far both of us a happy with the car. Power is good, but could be a bit more. MPG or "OK" as she is averaging 21-22mpg on her commute which is mixed highway and local roads.

If you want a car that will give you a lot more than you pay for -this is it! You get a "luxury BMW for thousands less". It is very quick with a growling exhaust note complimented by a near-luxury interior. Add to that the exclusivity of the R32 and you have a true keeper that should retain value.

vw group put all of its best and current technology in this car except a ultra high powered engine.drive this car! launch controll is made just for drag racing and works.the dsg with paddles still has not made it into the porsche,but it has the lambo and bugatti.the price is stunning.the engine is no slouche and makes significently more then 250hp.estimate 273 at the crank.why would the vw make this car for sucha low price,i do not know but i am glad they did!

wish list : sunroof is bigger,Eu. seat with better support, steering column is too low hit knees.

A fast little car that could use a 6sp manual transmission... I know in europe they get the 6sp manual and 4dr... oh.. not to mention they also get that fancy recaro seats... hmm... hello???
VW made it clear at the launch of the car that this wasn't suppose to compete with STIs or the EVOs... but putting the 3.6L engine with close to 300horses in there would have been awesome... if any VW guys are reading this... can we please have around 300 horses in the next R????
Having said that the seats is not at all comfortable... I'm not a big guy.. but the seat back is very narrow towards the top and I find it very annoying that it does not give enough room to support my shoulders...again.. I'm not a big guy so I can't imagine how uncomfortable it would be for the guys with big weight lifter shoulders... I just think that overall they should have made more changes in the cabin to differentiate the car a little more from the regular GTI. The GPS is nice.. but the IPOD connectivity is not so good.
The Exhaust does sound nice but, again, it seems like the system we get here in the US is not quite as good as the european ones... seems like the european ones are louder... and this is what annoys me most... the left exhaust is dirty with exhaust soot where as the right exhaust is almost clean... whatsup with that????
The engine pulls hard from low speed but gives up a lot of power towards the top end... VW can we have an engine with better top end power??? The launch control though, is very cool...
They need to put the premium sound system in this car.. or at least make it available as an option.. because the current one is not so good.
Fuel economy is not so good... the tank is small... depending on how you drive you probably won't get more than 280 miles per tank...
Those of you shopping for one... DO NOT PAY any extra above sticker!!!! shop around... and don't believe them when they say that its not going to be sitting there for long.. can't find it any where else etc etc... these cars are not moving off the lot very fast.. or at least not as fast as most people seem to think... I live in Connecticut and at least 4 dealers in the area here have 2-4 of them on the lot that they can't sell...
The suspension is tight and not too rough even on New England roads... the Brakes are awesome.. huge rotors up front... its like driving a Audi TT with the 3.2L engine but for 15K less...

Once Again Volkswagen made a great car that I fell in love with. R32.

The VolksWagen Golf R32 is just shocking. The car was better than I could expect and out performed my expectations. I think its the best out of its competition. The All-Wheel-Drive System 4MOTION was just great. It handles soo nice. It feels like a Ferrari, and let me mention
its performance. Its fast and handles great its interior is just so nice. All I have to say its got such a nice Interior quality and design cause everything is so nicely placed that its not annoying where the radio buttons are and so on. I'm a technology guru and it definatly saticfies me.

Like I said for the cons, the trunk room is kinda tidy and leg room for back passangers could be bigger. But front driver and passangers
have great leg room. Im 6'4, and it fits me perfectly. I sat in the back and was ok, but could be better like I said. Overall its worth its money
every pennies worth because your getting such a great car with excellent quality and performance. A+ and 5-Star