Escort RS 2000 or Golf GTi

[glojo]

Well my son has served his apprenticeship with his Escort 1.6i, now he is thinking about something different. The purchase is solely down to him so he is looking at a 1996 type vehicle. Ha anyone got any knowledge, experience about either and are there any known weak points to look out for?

I note that some RS2000's are 4x4, are these a better buy or are they problematic? Are Golf GTi's expensive to maintain.

Any advice will be greatly appreciated,
John

 

[jimti]

semi specific.. My wife has had 3 Golfs so far and totaly abused all of them..they all took as much punishement as she could give them without complaint..these are tough cars. keep away from main dealer servicing though..nearly as expen$ive as MB.

there is no way on this gods planet she will ever be allowed to drive my car though..I don't care how tough you or anyone else thinks a Mercedes is she would break it.

 

[grober]

Ford motoring definitely cheaper than VW for servicing and parts. VW probably slightly better in the corrosion stakes but that age of car is really very history dependant. There were only 500 4x4 RS 2000 made, so quite rare?? The rest were front wheel drive. See http://www.rsownersclub.co.uk/car_info/esc5rs2.htm.

 

[ADY1983]

VW its German.. but I do like fords had a mondeo for about 3 years but it never let me down ever.. had golfs too they were good too.

MY old mondy

 

[Will]

Forget the 90's RS2000 - buy a Golf, 16v MKII or a MKIII VR6 - fantastic cars

The RS2000 isn't very popular as they were never very good - more of a badge than anything really. The Golf would be my choice as they have aged very gracefully and if maintained well should hold it's value well.

Depending on his budget you could get a very nice golf with leather/air con/heated seats etc (VR6).

Will

 

[Doodle]

Has the Japanese option been considered?

For similar money you could pick up a nice Civic VTi

 

[jaymanek]

Golf anyday, rs2000 have been ragged about by the baseball hat crew and by now rust will have eaten most the car away and the bumper is almost guaranteed to be broken, cracked or otherwise injured.. ( they are made of crap plastic that falls to bits after a few miles on the motorway)

 

[Alps]

def the golf, rock solid, easy to maintain,my other half has a mk1 convertible.

 

[BaldGuy]

I have may VDUBS in my younger days be it 8v, 16V GTIs a G60 and a G60 Syncro, also Corrado, Polo VR6 and a Passat 1.8T.. The VDUBS no matter what age and flavour are solid, easy to maintain with the likes of German and Swedish and Euro Car parts for bits..
I'd rather be in a VDUB in an accident than a Ford...

 

[timmy]

Defo Golf GTi . I had a Mk1 , and it was probably my favourite ever car, but had to sell it when I wanted a flat. They are good solid cars and reliable too. The original hot hatch, and there are so many things a young lad can do to one to make them unique.

 

[timmy]

They don't make them like this anymore, not the best bodywork, but very east to 'adapt'

 

[A-AvantGarde]

Go for the Golf no competition / comparison. They're timeless.

I was looking for a MK II or III Golf GTI a few months ago as a wekeend plaything there are some original unmolested one's out there but you do have to look hard. I found a nice MK III anniversary but the history was very sketchy although the private seller looked totally legit. Anyway you kind of forget these cars are over 12 years (MK III) or 16 years old

 

[bibamus]

GOLF. We have had a Mk1 Mk 2 Mk 3 ( still have it, loathe to sell such a good car) and now a VR32. The Mk 3 was the slowest but seems more solid. Common problems on the Mk 3 are joints on the fuel pump relay ( causes stalling and engine cuts out, restarts after a few minutes.) Easy fix once you have found it! Throttle body needs cleaning regularly as it causes revs to drop when slowing or stalling.
Other than that, utterly reliable and cost virtually nothing in 3 years of ownership. It does have a full VW SH though

Allan

 

[del320]

Ahhh! - 1988, a very good year.

And it was most reliable car I have ever owned. Had huge spec including PAS, aircon, leccy windows, computer thingy, top ICE, um...towbar...

...cue Paula Hamilton and Alan Price.

 

[glojo]

Ahhh! - 1988, a very good year.

And it was most reliable car I have ever owned. Had huge spec including PAS, aircon, leccy windows, computer thingy, top ICE, um...towbar...

...cue Paula Hamilton and Alan Price.

Looks like you had longer hair in those days!!!

Nice picture,

My son has seen all these posts, but is still leaning towards the 4x4 RS 2000!! He prefers the looks and interior of the Ford. Oh well his money, his choice, at least he asked for opinions.

Regards,
John

 

[Dieselman]

This is quite a thorny question as really neither of the cars are that good.

The Golf will almost certainly last better than the RS but it won't be very good to drive because both MK3 and MK4 Golfs had got a bit lardy and soft so there was no such thing as a GTi anymore, other than the badge.

The Ford might be technically better but the interiors are weak and the later Escorts, Mk5 onwards are renowned for poor suspension geometry.

I would go for the Golf out of these two but would probably try to be a bit more imaginative.

 

[Seamster15]

From My days in Torquay there was a big following for the RS turbo and the GTi, seem to remember being driven up past the Cinema in a "tuned" rs turbo doing way over 80mph......... if I was a young lad in Torquay I would be looking at the MK1 Golf GTi convertable.

 

[glojo]

I would go for the Golf out of these two but would probably try to be a bit more imaginative.

The snag is we seldom get wise heads on young shoulders. For a young single unattached young lad, what would you be looking at?

I am totally out of touch with modern vehicles so am 'going with the flow' on this issue.

John

 

[timmy]

The snag is we seldom get wise heads on young shoulders. For a young single unattached young lad, what would you be looking at?


John

A woman:bannana:

 

[glojo]

A woman:bannana:

Now that is expensive

But it might get rid of him!!!

John