At $16,900, Would This 2012 VW Golf R Swing?

Going the full asking on today’s Nice Price or No Dice Golf R not only gets the new owner the car but also extra wheels and tires and a Yakima roof rack. Let’s see if we’re all in on the deal.

Joe Pantoliano ‘Accidentally’ Learned How to Handle Hills With A Manual

Mitsubishi once created a TV ad in which a man working out in a gym refuses to concede ownership of a minivan with its lights left on in the parking lot despite repeated announcements of the issue over the facility’s PA system. At the time, I guess Mitsubishi thought shaming people for their practicality was a smart marketing move. We can see how well that worked out for the company today. There was no shame evident in owning the 1993 Toyota Previa minivan we looked at yesterday. A five-speed stick and refreshed engine countered the van’s extremely high mileage (it had been used for flower deliveries) but unfortunately couldn’t overcome its $6,750 asking price in the voting. That resulted in a 76 percent No Dice loss, which is bad but better than a lights-left-on dead battery.

Speaking of dead, apparently, Volkswagen has decided to kill off the manual gearbox in both its GTI and R performance hatch models. Volkswagen says this is due to increasingly tight European Union emissions standards, with the stick seemingly being dirtier than the slushbox. For those with their performance panties in even more of a bunch over emissions, Volkswagen has also announced a new GTI concept based on the upcoming short-wheelbase MEB platform ID. 2 all-electric.

Some of us are just traditionalists, and should that be the cut of your jib, you might be more in the market for something like this 2012 Volkswagen Golf R. It rocks it old school, with both a six-speed stick and an engine that makes vroom-vroom noises.

Volkswagen introduced the Mk 6 Golf R in 2009 as a nominal replacement for the Mk 5 R32 and, as such, the next performance crown-wearer in the Golf hagiography. While sporting a turbo four instead of a naturally aspirated VR6, the R is in almost every way a better car than its 3.2-liter six-cylinder predecessor, with more power, lighter weight, and better overall performance as its calling cards.

The engine is a 256 horsepower edition of Volkswagen’s long-serving TSI four, which it shares with the Audi TT, along with its Haldex full-time AWD drivetrain. The Audi gets a few more ponies since it was positioned at a higher price point, but the VW makes up for that by being much more practical on a day-to-day basis, owing to its standard Golf origins.

This Mk 6 R comes to us in black over black and with just 72,900 miles on the ol’ ticker. According to its seller, the car has enjoyed a recent 70K service and is presently in “absolutely perfect mechanical condition.” There don’t seem to be any complaints to be had about either the bodywork or the interior either.

The car presently is running summer tires on its factory alloys, although the seller teases that a set of studded snow tires on 2018 R wheels will come with the car — along with a Yakima roof rack — if their asking price is met. That’s seemingly necessary for the seller as they claim to still owe on the car. Of course, the outstanding loan may make the title transfer a bit more of a chore than one would like, but at least said title is clean. The seller says they are offering the car on Craigslist as a fishing (no, not phishing) expedition, and if they don’t get any bites, they’ll go the Carvana route. An impending automotive purchase is apparently the impetus for this R’s sale.

Per the ad, that sale — wheels, rack, and all — comes with a $16,900 price tag. That’s a bit under half what this car MSRP’d at a decade back when it was new. A quick check of the classifieds shows few other Rs with as low of mileage or without any monkeying. This car is as factory as you could want and does seem to have plenty of life left in it.

What do you say? Is this R worth that $16,900 asking as it sits? Or, for that much, would you let them keep the snow tires and feed the car to Carvana?

You decide!

Portland, Oregon, Craigslist, or go here if the ad disappears.

H/T to Bill Lyons for the hookup!

Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at remslie@kinja.com and send me a fixed-price tip. Remember to include your Kinja handle.