VW Golf PD130 TDI Owner Review

I wrote this blog post several years ago when I owned my PD130 Golf. I kept the car for another couple of years adding 15,000 more miles to it when I sold it at 191,000 for £1700. I've also done a video review of the VW Golf Mk4 here

In my view and it seems many others, the PD 130 is the pick of the MK4 Golfs. It has the perfect balance of economy, reliability and performance and doesn't suffer from some of the turbo lag and reliability issues that can trouble the PD150 engine with its front mounted intercooler.

My love affair with the VW Golf TDI 130PD Mark 4 diesel continues. We've just had our third MOT since owning the car and again the Golf has sailed through without any issues at a current mileage of 176,000.

The car is in daily use for long journeys and on the most recent fill up with diesel recorded 54mpg. Even brand new cars struggle to reach that consumption and at a much higher annual cost. The car cost £3500 when bought 3 years ago and on worst case giving it a zero valuation that still works out at less than £100 per month. More realistically based on current valuations for a similar mark 4 Golf Tdi PD 130 on Autotrader it would seem reasonable to assume a value of £2500. A total depreciation of £1000 over 3 years is incredibly low and shows the popularity that the VW Golf mark 4 still maintains.


Photo of VW Golf TDI 130PD Diesel Mark 4 

The best points about the VW Golf TDI PD 130 diesel are:

• Fuel economy and VED rates
• Performance and ease of acceleration
• Driving position and seat comfort. The seats are extremely supportive and make long journeys a breeze
• Steering and handling. The steering has great feel and has the perfect weighting
• Instruments are positioned for good visibility and controls are all well placed
• Holds value very well with exceptionally low depreciation
• Handles high mileage amazingly well with little obvious sign of wear

And the negatives about the Golf Diesel TDI130?

The main one is that the front valance below the bumper is quite low and invariably catches on kerbs. On this Golf TDI 130 it has been torn off a couple of times and the same happened on the Golf TDI90 estate that I had previously.
Rear space isn't fantastic but is sufficient for children up to late teens