Really appreciate your thoughts on all of this.Mowflow wrote:Well looking at your requirements of less than 3yo and £20k max I don't actually think there are any alternatives since you didn't like the golf in terms of interior quality. The only things better in that regard are the a45 which is way over budget and the s3 which again will probably be over budget and not necessarily better in terms of drive.
When I said alternatives I really meant within the C segment. Considering drive alone the Golf, facelift a45, facelift S3, type r, cupra, focus RS and of course the megane all offer a bit more satisfaction in factory form. Some of them, such as the megane are a bit too 1 dimensional in that they want to be driven like hooligans all the time. That can get very old very quick. The BMW is really at the opposite end of the spectrum. Fast for disposing of the odd chav buzz bomb but I found it just didn't respond well to what most would call "a hoon" it felt at home charging along a motorway or dual carriageway.
You could look at alternative specd gtis. It's amazing what the upgraded nav and a bit of leather can do. Admittedly, if you're the type of person that goes about tapping foot level plastics you will be disappointed and the climate control dials are abysmal but everything else ie steering wheel, stalks, door controls etc were all on a par or in a few cases slightly better than the BMW I felt. A well specd performance pack gti is definitely worth a look if the one you looked at was a low spec.
The only other thing that might be worth looking at is an Audi S1. Bare with me. I know it's a fair bit smaller but Gti engine, 4wd, Audi interior, good reviews. A mate recently sold his DB9 and bought one as a stop gap and he absolutely loves the thing.
I know what you mean about the Golf i.e. leather seats, large display etc. I also think it was that I'd driven the BMW first and I found the quality of the interior very nice indeed and so then going to fabric upholstery with a small display it didn't feel as nice. I think I could do with test driving the GTi afresh and see what I think. I did like the feel of the steering and ride in the Gti i.e. I felt connected to the road and could feel the bumps in the road - something I always really like in a car. I know a lot of people prefer a really smooth ride with light steering but after having 205 GTi's and a Type R that doesn't really bother me.
Also, I know it's a bit of a different class but I was also having a look at Autotrader this morning at Polo GTi's. They seem great value so it'd be interesting to see what the ride is like in one of those. Ultimately I only drive around 4-5000 miles a year so I'm after a fun car but that has a few little gadgets that I can play with
2009 Z4 3.0 sdrive auto :2016 TTS roadster
You went for the sunroof which I did as well which I find helps lighten up the interior a tad, I really like the look of it in white.
its hard not to stray over 4500 
Time to move it on after 4 great years, so excited for the new motor though