Volkswagen Golf Hatchback (2009 - 2012) 2.0 TDI (140bhp) GT 5d Owner Review

My VW Mk6 Golf has been a reliable workhorse for nearly a decade now. In that time I have changed jobs twice, gone from being single to married with children and gone from doing 20k+ miles per year to a handful of miles and mostly working from home. The Golf has breezed through it all. An annual service keeps things ticking over nicely. The only repair that was annoying was the EGR valve failing around 5 years ago which was a £500+ replacement through a 3rd party specialist garage. The only annoyance I can comment on is that is when using the car for short trips - the DPF fills up quickly. By quickly I mean within 6 weeks doing minor local lockdown trips when the weather was too nasty to walk. That said it is easily recharged by a short motorway drive and leaving it in 3rd gear. The interior cabin is a sea of inoffensive plastic and material which while not groundbreaking in terms on design, has all the controls needed to keep things comfortable. The cabin carpet copes with the abuses of mountain bikes being loaded in the boot and a young family leaping around. The dealer network quality varies wildly in terms or customer service. One I used to use for a service recommended I get new brake pads and I said I'd change them myself, only to find out that there was still plenty of pad left. The dealer I used to use also missed the timing chain replacement - which again was carried out by a local VW specialist. I have owned a Mk4 Golf which was good, a Mk5 which was excellent as a drivers car but the interior finish left a bit to be desired. The Mk6 shields you from the environment more so is less of a drivers car but as a result is more suitable as a more suitable as a motorway mile muncher or as a country lane cruiser.