Raced An Xr5

[turbo4wd]

By all reports the 3 mps goes like a cut snake yet has good road manners and very little torque steer. Its tricky LSD and smart electronics do the trick nicely. My guess is that they probably tried making it 4wd like the 6mps and found that it was much the same in performance as the 6mps. By making it FWD they created a true "hot hatch"

The price is prety high though as is the VW GTi. The XR5 comes in at a much more reasonable price and still has a lot more power and torque than the GTi.

[turbo4wd]

I understand all that, but I dont think this is the cae with XR5, by all accounts it is a beautifully balanced car. Aimed at a reasonable market. It is no STI or Evo killer. But will tempt your Golf GTI, wrx crew etc.

Scotty

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I think the GTI would tempt the XR5 crew

The two car's don't even compare...

The XR5 is a torque steering, tiny, cheaply put together using cheap materials, creaky sh*tbox that freaks out when seeing a corner. A XT Falcon handles better.

The GTI doesn't have torque steer even when using launch control, and handles brilliantly with next to no body roll, and is a very solid car.

I can see why Aniken, and my workmate chose the GTI over the XR5 after I drove both of them..

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Obviously the GTi has less torque steer - but it also has much less torque - lol that's no achievement. They are both made in Germany the focus weighs more so is probably more "solid". Perhaps what you should have said is that the GTi has more of a quality feel and is more refined but it costs more and is slower.

http://autoweb.drive.com.au/cms/A_3052/article.html

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story...5-13232,00.html

http://www.drive.com.au/Editorial/ArticleD...eID=12572&vf=22

http://www.webwombat.com.au/motoring/news_...s-xr5-turbo.htm

[XR68UZ]

the vw gti is a great car. nice solid gear box, handles very well, even in the rain. yet to drive an xr5 turbo, but I agree with the above comment, the build quality is outstanding

[bobcatsrus]

In my mates Xr5 T, we kept up with a BA xr8 auto last night, yeah I was surprised too! We put a Bmc air filter in and the thing opens up a bit more now, its really fun to drive.

[MYWPN]

Im surprised it did'nt blow off the XR8

[dingah2]

By all reports the 3 mps goes like a cut snake yet has good road manners and very little torque steer. Its tricky LSD and smart electronics do the trick nicely. My guess is that they probably tried making it 4wd like the 6mps and found that it was much the same in performance as the 6mps. By making it FWD they created a true "hot hatch"

The price is prety high though as is the VW GTi. The XR5 comes in at a much more reasonable price and still has a lot more power and torque than the GTi.

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are you kidding?

The 3MPS is a goat to drive, torques steers every time you plant it - reminsicent of the Cordia Turbo and about as attractive.

Dingah

[LikeEmFast]

The biggest shame is that they dont come out 4wd

That is actually a good thing. After directly comparing one to a WRX as my next purchase I chose the XR5 for a few reasons. Yes the WRX was a little quicker all round but the XR5 was no slouch through the corners in the wet either. The WRX that I was looking at getting was $8K more than the XR5 I bought. It wasn't $8K more worth of car.

I then compared insurance. WRX was $250 more per year. Doesn't sound a great deal but at the rate I get that is 25% dearer.

The AWD cars use more fuel on average. I don't drive much but still a consideration.

Now the big one. Service costs. The WRX servicing is almost double because of the AWD.

The XR5 is a nice balanced package for the cost.

[LikeEmFast]

Then they should have got it right to start with and made it RWD

What about the Mazda 3 MPS, gives all the others a right rogering in performance and it definitely needs 4wd.

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By all reports the 3 mps goes like a cut snake yet has good road manners and very little torque steer. Its tricky LSD and smart electronics do the trick nicely. My guess is that they probably tried making it 4wd like the 6mps and found that it was much the same in performance as the 6mps. By making it FWD they created a true "hot hatch"

The price is prety high though as is the VW GTi. The XR5 comes in at a much more reasonable price and still has a lot more power and torque than the GTi.

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are you kidding?

The 3MPS is a goat to drive, torques steers every time you plant it - reminsicent of the Cordia Turbo and about as attractive.

Dingah

I have to agree there. I drove all the hot hatches before I got the Ford. The MPS is an accident waiting to happen in the hands of anyone besides an experienced driver. The torque steer on them is horrifying when you plant it. To make it worse I took one on a second test drive in the wet, as I did all the hatches, and the torque steer problem was multiplied by 3.

To make it worse the steering wheel is a thin standard Mazda 3 wheel simply wrapped in leather, that gives you nothing to grip when the beast is trying to drive you everywhere you don't want to go. Come on Mazda, not even a sports wheel.

The MPS and the HSV VX-R are both unrefined torque steering cars that really need some work to make them worth the $40K asking prices.

All these comments from a person who wasn't going to buy another Ford because I have been hit so heavily on resale market on the previous XR6 Turbo and 2 Fairmont Ghias.

In the end the XR5 won out for being damn fun to drive. Not as quick as the others but a better package.

[tig]

Guys, I like to be in a fast car as much as the next guy, but I reckon if you had a GTi for a week and an XR5 for a week most would opt for the VW . Always feels good when you get into some of these cars for the first time, however the initial buzz does wear off and then you start to look a bit deeper into what they are really like and any pros and cons that you miss on the test drive. Not bagging the Ford at. I dont drive or work for VW buy the way. Just have driven both for a bit and its just my 2c. Maybe im just getting old and lke to have a complete package in a car not just a go-fast car. Feel free to disagree with me that's what the forum is about.

Cheers, Geoff

[LikeEmFast]

I didn't like the VW at all. Particularly when I weighed up the price difference. If I was spending VW money the WRX wins every time and still leaves cash over.