I'm about to sell my beloved GTI and buy a GTD for the economy benefits. It's an odd trade and I can't really work out whether its a step up or down. My (early) Mk2 GTI is lovely and fun. It's a 3dr. It has a sunroof but that's pretty much all the toys. The (late) 5dr GTD's seem to have electric windows, PAS and central locking. All bonuses. My only concerns pertain to performance and economy. I have heard they are easy to tune but how much and how badly that affects economy I haven't seen yet. I would be up for swapping in an AAZ 1.9TD if that was deemed beneficial as they are cheap to get hold of. Can anyone report real-life experience of the GTD?
Hi mate, i own a mk2GTD. Havent owned or driven a mk2 GTI so i cant compare the two directly. I love the gtd, mine gets between 45-53mpg averages about 47mpg. They are tuneable but ive not dabbled much with mine in that area. Gas flowed head, stainless exhaust and k&n filter. Not had it on a rolling road though. Gti 16v brakes, rear beam, arbs ect. Recaro interior. Theres loads of tuning info on the net to do with turbos and tweeking the fuel pump ect. I have tweeked my pump very slightly to compensate for general wear n tear and the increased air flow. Not going mad as i use it everyday just now. There are ways to up the boost by fiddling with wastegate but i have no gauges to see whats happening. Overall.... Rare model, mk2 golf thats fun to own and has good economy. All the gti goodies fit so great handling too. Must get mine up against a gti or any other mk2 for comparison. Get one im sure u will be happy.
you state that you want the gtd for economy, but surely if you tune it you will be losing some of this economy
I'm interested in whether there is a balance to be had. My GTI will average about 30 cruising. Can a GTD be tuned but produce enough more MPG to make it worthwhile?
A tuned GTD will still have economy benefits compared to a GTI though. Its possible to increase the fuelling and boost using a few hand tools so can be done diy for no cost and changed back when economy is prefered.
I would say so mate, but suppose it depends on how far you tune it. I would think the tuning would have to be pretty wild to get a gtd to do 30mpg in everyday driving.Lol.
I've found if you tune diesels in a certain way you end up with more economy on some engines. They're confusing.
