MK4 Volkswagen Golf R32 Review! The GTI's Big Brother 

R32 or GTI?

Fun fact about the r32: When I hung out with my best friend for the first time, I loved Japanese cars, but knew nothing about German stuff, but my friend was the opposite. So I mentioned wanting an r32(skyline), and he said he wanted an r32 also. I mentioned wanting to upgrade the turbos, and he looked at me shell shocked, and said they(thinking I meant golf r32) were na from factory. I had no clue he was talking about the skyline, he didn’t know they existed, but I didn’t know the golf r32 existed either, so we both learned something that day😂😂

Been daily driving mine since 2007. I will never get rid of it. The sound alone is worth the price of admission

Mk4 r32’s are really a slept on gem of German engineering! Vr6, awd, IMO timeless styling they’re wonderful. Definitely on the bucket list to own one day.

I purchased a stock R32 Mk4 about three or four months ago. The R32 has always been my dream car. My neighbor had one and took me in it once when I was 15. We got up to 140 MPH which was the fastest I'd ever been in a car. I remember my legs were like jello when I got out. I had never experienced anything like that before in my life. 14 years later, I'm driving one and I get to experience that all over again but this time as the driver.. There is something special about the R32. It's balanced so well. The people who engineered that car need to be proud of what they did. It's such a joy to drive. Thank you for the great review! I'm glad to see that you had fun driving it.

The sound is relatable to as a "Wookie" from star wars, lol

One of the cars I have lusted after for years. PS. They aren't cheap and they can require a decent bit of work as humble mechanic is showing at the moment.

Still my most favorite vw of all. It might be strange but this is a bucket list car to have. they are vary under rated in my opinion

lettttssss goooooooo I’ve been waiting to see an R32 for so long on your channel

@1:02 waking up the dead with that launch!

this channel needs more vw love

This is my favorite car of all time. The VR6 engine is heavenly

:(

One of the most underrated car and engine combinations ever

Yessssss!!! Finally! My favorite VW! This car is an absolute beast and I love building a RU-vid channel around this car!

Dead hook launch in front of a cemetery🤣

I have Europe's little brother of the r32, it's a mk1 seat leon based on the mk4 platform and it has a 2.8 24v vr6 also with 4wd

That launch looked fast af

Nice cars, I used to have one, but now I bought a MK5 R32, which is my all-time favorite car.

The MK4 R32 is an automotive Icon. The VR sound is absolutely pure sexy. My favorite sound of all time.

I am from Sydney Australia. VW sent 200, R-32s to Australia in 2004. I have one of them from new., Number 175 Australia. Unsurprisingly, VW Australia sold 197 before they actually arrived in Australlia but 3 just would go!! So, Porsche Australia bought all three (all black) for about 65% of list price for their sales staff to drive and that how I got mine, new, care of Porsche Australia. My R-32 now has approximately, 54,500 kms on the clock 1st June 2023, , it is black with NO sunroof. It is amazing. It shared the garage with the both the first 996, Yr 1999 GT3 and Yr 2001 GT-2 for Australia but I still love the R-32 most because of it's pure wholesomeness and it actually sounds better than the GT-2 !!!!!!! It was my daily drive. Today, all the Porsches are gone, yet the R-32 still here !!!!!

I've got the 2008 Audi A3 with the VR6. Such a fun car

The VR engine design is just smart. Smaller engine footprint, same amount of cylinders.

I've always loved the R32. It's got an awesome sounding engine, my favorite design of the Golf/Jetta, and the thought if it having awd when I first heard about it sold me.

Man I have a soft spot in my heart for golf’s. My mom bought me a Golf as my first car.

Amazing how well these are holding their resale of they’re clean and without too many miles on the clock! Love me a Mk4 R32!!

Thanks bro for doing a review on the R32! The R32 is probably one of VW most beloved cars by enthusiasts today. The car is going up in value like crazy and the car is pretty rare! Only 5000 were built for North American and about another 5000 were built for the rest of the world! The car is really under appreciate by people who aren’t in the VW community mostly getting it confused with the Nissan skyline R32 GTR. I’m glad to see that you enjoyed the car and of you interested I have a video on my channel all about the R32!

I remember being a young kid and the r32 being in my motor trend magazine one month with the 3 different packages you could get and it was that sweet royal blue color boooooy!!! 😍😍

1:02 Full Send near a Cemetery in a Clean AF Mk. IV R32.. The dead even came outta their caskets to cheer and revere the legend that is R32!!!

I'm buying a VF supercharged r32 this weekend 😂

I am the original owner of a 2008 R32 and because I have other cars, it has only 38,000 miles on it. I took it to the next level by adding a turbo, a stage 2 APR tune, Peloquin differential, improved suspension, beefed up sway bars, wheels and tires. I call it my Smile Machine as I can't stop grinning when I drive it. I have owned a lot of other performance cars but this one is my favorite and one that I will hang on to. Thanks for the video!

Original Mk IV owner, 138k miles. Owned a dozen vehicles and have driven dozens of vehicles. That being said the Mk IV R32 is the best all around car I have ever driven, even with all its flaws. Lived in it, worked in it, moved with it, drove around much of the country in it. The vehicle was ultimately designed to excel in long distance driving and with that it excelled. I have done many non stop trips around USA east of the Mississippi. It is also fun and very efficient in every day driving and I have used it in a variety of working jobs, and it worked well. Pretty good gas mileage on long trips too. Best car by far when it is running, imo.

I found my golf are 32 for about seven years now. Picked it up with the only thing being done to it was a set of coil overs. its easily been the funniest car ive owned. been upgrading it and growing with the care and now with the only thing left to do being a turbo charger im really stoked because i know its going to be a new kind of beast from there, this care will always be something special to me

Showing the VR6 24v 3.2 some love. Thanks Dave! Yeah The Turbo Charged Jetta was awesome. Love the fact that from the factory that The 12v VR6's were supposed to be a turbo diesels so at the last minute VAG went Nope! So the engines were made for the high amount of torque a turbo diesel 6 would give, so if you want to turbo an engine without having to do to much to it, the 12v VR6 is the engine to do it too. I believe it can withstand without much more than a head spacer 400whp. Plus the 15 angle head gives it such a great sound. The 3.6 went to a 10 degree angle. The 24v and up are great the head flow is nice. My 12v when I had it even after a P&P and BVH and 268 DRC cams didn't flow near as well as your average B16 or D16. So yeah you can tell my opinion on The 12v and 24v VR6 and it's sad to see them go, but EV is the future.

bought my first car a few months back, 2004 VW Golf 1.4 Final Edition. in a couple years a 2002 1.8 GTi will be in my life and i cannot wait.

One difference between a tuner and ricer: Coilovers > Bags

i've owned an mk4 r32. Haldex controller is a must for the AWD system. Stock its about a F60/R40 split and the haldex will allow for a better ratio on that. Also, 300-350hp would be ideal for todays standards. Hood vents are also a must because it definitely gets extremely hot in the engine bay. And the last thing i can think of is the hose connectors for the heater core that always tend to wear down and break. I used to have a catted, non resonated exhaust with an SRT4 muffler. Fit perfectly, looked and sounded great.

The Mark IV wasn't liked as much by critics when it came out. Departure from the original golfs. It got THICC. But it aged extremely well and I will always remember the R32 I rode by just about every day when I lived in the Netherlands. Always parked in the same spot off a street called "Valkenkamp" in Driebergen, the Netherlands if I remember correct. And then there was this guy with a 405 MI16 parked off the "damhertlaan" I loved. Man that brings me back. Just another reason I love the MKIV golfs. Memories of how I eased into the car scene. Lots of engine choices too in Europe, including VR5's and hot diesels. VR6? Yes please. I got an '18 Passat GT just because of that engine. I love the sound it makes. Unfortunately it unleashes it all on the front wheels in my case, and they are not up to the task. Also, no button for traction control either. So it either hooks, or fails miserably at a 0-60 launch. It's my daily, and though I have ideas it'll probably stay stock. My ideas are way too big anyway!

I've owned both the MKV R32 and the MK VI golf R... love them both dearly. I wish the golf r had the vr6 for the grumbles

i live in ga you should drive my stage 1 golf r 2019

Thanks to you, the listing price of these cars just went up 3 grand. and now i gotta wait a couple more years to get another.

David 2021: "I almost killed a squirrel". 😂😂😂😂

This model of the volkswagen golf will always be my favorite hot hatch.

You can get the VR in mk4 GTIs. It was just that the R32 came with a 3.2 VR while GTIs came with the 2.8 and only front wheel drive. Great video though. I had a mk4 gti with the VR for a while. Edit: I now have a Mk5 gti with the DSG and I would take that mk4 over it any day of the week. It sounded fantastic and aside from electrical issues it ran fantastic.

Best experience ever was when a buddy of mine put a vr6 in his scirocco back in the days man sounded good. Thx for the videos. .

The sound of the VR6. I have a MK4 VR6 GTi 12 Valve (2000). She purrs with her Magnaflow exhaust and Neuspeed P Flo. Before they came in AWD.

Just bought an 02' VW GTI 1.8T. Bringing me back to my old VW days. It ain't no VR6 but it is flat out fun to drive! Thanks for sharing!

Love ittt, these cars are so much fun

The MK4 GTI had a 2.8L VR6 that they bored and stroked for the R32. I know this because it was the first car I ever bought with my own money and it was t-bone totalled at an intersection one year in. Fucked up. It was such a great engine in such a small car

I've owned a MK5 R32 and I still would take a MK4 any day. They just essentially made it a glorified gti. The loss of the Konig seats, no manual etc just lost the magic.

I had a 2002.5 mk4 24v Gti. Solid car sounded amazing.

I couldn’t explain how much i love my R32 good video and clean car!!

They use that engine in all the SUVs now pretty nuts. This body style is timeless and love the AWD and 6 cylinder make it a different animal

Don’t forget the GTI and GLI with 24v 2.8l VR6 6speed manuals

The Vr6 sounds great, it's never going to outperform the turbo inline 4 cars but blows them away for engine sound.

I own a MK4 GTI that has a 2.8L 24v VR6 and the same 02M 6 speed manual gearbox that the R32 has. Basically, as far as the drivetrains are concerned, the only difference between my GTI and an R32 is that the R32’s engine is bored out to 3.2L, whereas mine is only 2.8L. The R32 also has the Haldex AWD system, which my GTI obviously doesn’t. I’ve lowered it on coilovers and am running some Audi Fat Fives for the winter. I also have a 2.5” Magnaflow Catback Exhaust on it, which for any VR is a MUST! There’s a bunch of other mods I’ve done (reinforced oil pan, motor mount spacers, raxles up front, etc.) I’ve owned a 1.8t Mk4 GTI too and they both def have their positives and negatives compared to each other. I love BOTH!! Of course the best boosted Mk4 GTI is the 20th Anniversary Edition, but the best N/A Mk4 is the R32 without a doubt!!

they're slept on because a lot of people dont know they're awd. i didnt know that before last year when my boy showed me his. id love one now because i honestly hate fwd cars lol.

I think the Bentleys who's have the w12 is something like "two vr6 conected" in terms of arquitecture 🙂 great video and great car!

I had a 95 Jetta glx VR6 with a muffler delete that sounded just like this. I loved it !

There was also a mk4 GTI that got a 24v VR6, too. Detuned to like 201hp, though.

One of the best Golf's ever since the MK2 2.0 16V GTI. The VR6 is the best sounding engine that VW ever made. I had a Deep Blue Pearl with plenty of go fast parts, wish I still had her only 28K miles on her when I lost her to SUPER STORM SANDY in 2012. I hope one day to get another one but very hard to come buy plus some are ridiculously priced.

Everytime when Americans refer to the A80 Supra as a MKIV this is what I think of.

Ima mk7 GTI owner and this had always been my favorite golf 🤤

I absolutely love this, so clean yet has such a big presence for me!

This car on porsche twist wheels looks nice as well, I love that VR6 sound.

My favorite VW of all time!!🔥🔥👌🏽

It sounds so freaking good, the r32 is rare yet also a gem

Drove a MK4 GTi and it was by far the most exciting car to drive, so If this car is anything like that would love to own it one day

Just bought a Mk4 vr6 GTI. These engines sound insanely good.

Yeeeesss finally!!!!!! Wanted Thatdudeinblue ti review a mk4 r32 for so long 🥳

The MKIV R32 is the pinnacle of Volkswagen Motorsport's engineering. Here it is now 16/17 years later and it's still a ridiculously great car to own, to drive, and to experience. The exhaust note is unmatched in the segment for just how beautiful it is, and in stock form. One of the few cars where an aftermarket exhaust isn't badly needed to bring it to life. For $10-12k it's pretty tough to find a better & more enjoyable drivers car than the VW R32. As a (regrettably) former owner, I may be a bit biased. But watch any review of the car in the last decade and everybody basically says the same thing which is it's a future classic and is a phenomenal drivers car. As well as being quite rare with just 5000 made for the US; 500 of which are Tornado Red, 750 Black Magic Pearl, 1750 Reflex Silver, and 2000 Deep Blue Pearl.

I got mine in 04 I’m the original owner of a red one. still have it parked in my garage with 70k miles.

the gti r32 relationship is super similar to the focus st focus rs relationship. and I love it

Sound is addictive!

As a fairly new VW fan, I've hated and enjoyed playing with this MK4 platform. I bought an 04 Jetta GL from a neighbor cuz my car had issues and I needed a cheap vehicle to get me around. It was in GREAT shape, had a few things already replaced that as typical, the model just has issues with. I've since invested lots of hours and quality dollars to upgrade the suspension and cosmetic mods and I enjoy driving this curve carving lil car. With such a huge following, I'm finding myself continuing to poor more money into this car than it will ever be worth.. Lol of course, I bought the under powered 2.sl0w 5spd NA version in a four door sedan. Yes, it's weak in the power department. So, as lots of other VW fans, I bought two other cars, both with the VR6 platforms and plan to merge them in my project car at some point and possibly even tackle converting it to AWD. I've had to learn myself every step of the way with these German engineered cars as I was an American muscle home mechanic coming from Mustangs. But I turn all my own wrenches and trust me when I say, I've been under this car way too much for my taste. But, with the power plant upgrade and the suspension upgrades along with its esthetics, I am really gonna enjoy this VW world I've dove into. I live near the Dragon and am anticipating taking this car to do some serious cornering challenges and being proud of what it accomplishes for what it is and what I have in it. A simply enjoyable torture of a vehicle that gives you all the proper car guy experiences. The highs, the lows and all worth it. Lol

I just love the VR6. A girl I dated had one in a bright red Corrado, and that was such a dope cat

I had the r32's cousin, a mk4 jetta 24v / 2.8l vr6, and man do I miss that sound...

Beautiful car! Gotta love the VR sound!

That dude in blue that is a awesome Volkswagen golf!

In Australia, the car magazines always had the mk4 and mk5 r32 pitted against the wrx sti. The subaru always coming out on top mostly because aussies fell in love with the rex from day one. I drive the mk5 r32 because the dsg coupled to the vr6 has no lag, the car is inconspicuous, sounds better and is built better and I don't take it to the track. The mk4 has more raw appeal but 2 to 3 times the price!

I think this is really the car that kicked off the modern AWD Super Hot Hatch craze

GTI also came in VR6.. 2.8L for North America, 2.9L for Europe

A year later and I still didn't know about this car. I want one now

The VR6 is top 3 best sounding 6 cylinders imo

I've always wanted one of these and still do. Although I probably won't be able to afford one as they're similar money to my mk7 Golf R-line.

I remember seeing a video of one these on fire on RU-vid in 2006

This was the car that inspired me to get my MKVI GTI. I had a friend in college who had this car and I absolutely loved it. Too bad he sold it :( I miss it.

i remember seeing one of these at a vw dealer shoowroom it was blue and so clean

Absolut dream car right there dreamt of since I was a little kid and I still love it

Were you driving off Route 5? My favorite drive from Richmond to Williamsburg

01:00 - Man woke up the dead from that cemetery on his left 👀😅😂

Nice to see a car that I own on your channel. I must say they’re fun cars to drive, my only real complaint would be how heavy it is but other than that it’s great. I’ve owned mine since 2008 but I don’t drive it as much anymore. I much rather daily my Fiesta ST.

Lol Mk4 R32 is timeless 🔥 own a Mk5 R32 but maybe when I end up getting my own spot I'll look for a Mk4 GTI VR6, only because the original R32 are climbing up in price.

Never been a VW fan, I’ve driven some but they’re just not my thing. I do enjoy watching people spend time and money on a car they love tho

I almost thought the music for the beauty shots was the theme song for total drama island for a second 😂😂

God I always love it when you do vw reviews!! I own a Fahrenheit GTI, so maybe I’m a little biased

OMG, that's my regal cinemas

I want one! lol In blue...manual...then I'll put it right between my 03 VW GTI (BDF 2.8l and 02m 6Spd) and 18 VW Passat GT (CDV 3.6l and DQ 6Spd DSG). That will complete my set of 24v VR6's haha all N/A and sounding fantastic!

i was watching videos about mk4 r32s wondering why you haven’t posted one yet

the audi rs4 b5 has a vr6 in it. Philipp Kaess built a limo version of it. Look him up. I think you could like it