New Volkswagen Golf GTI vs Honda Civic Type R: costs

Buying and owning

Costs, equipment, reliability, safety and security

For private buyers, the Type R in our preferred GT trim starts off with a higher list price, but the gap shrinks to just £122 after discounts.

We also reckon most GTI buyers will want to add the optional 19in wheels (£735) and reversing camera (£300), but otherwise both of our contenders are well equipped, with climate control, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry and front and rear parking sensors all coming as standard.

In terms of running costs, the GTI proved to be impressively frugal on our mixed test route, averaging an impressive 36.8mpg, compared with 32.9mpg for the Type R. The Type R is also likely to cost fractionally more to service and insure, but it’s predicted to hold onto its value just as well. Therefore, there is only £40 a month between the cars on a three-year PCP finance deal, assuming you put down a £3000 deposit and do no more than 10,000 miles a year.

As for safety, both the standard Civic and Golf received Euro NCAP’s maximum five-star safety rating; both cars performed impressively at protecting adult occupants in the event of a frontal or side impact, although the Golf was superior at protecting children sitting in the rear. Both cars also get automatic emergency braking and lane-keeping assistance as standard.

The Golf is too new to have featured in our 2020 What Car? Reliability Survey, but the Civic ranked only equal 15th out of 24 models in the family car category. On the other hand, Honda was a respectable eighth out of 31 in the brand league table, whereas Volkswagen was well down in 20th place.

Costs

Volkswagen Golf GTI

List price £33,460
Target Price £33,460
Fuel cost (36,000 miles) £4861
Insurance cost (3 years) tbc
Servicing costs (3 years) tbc
Depreciation (3 years/36,000 miles) £15,392
PCP finance rate (per month) £397*

Honda Civic Type R

List price £34,820
Target Price £33,582
Fuel cost (36,000 miles) £5437
Insurance cost (3 years) £3006
Servicing costs (3 years) £2924
Depreciation (3 years/36,000 miles) £14,779
PCP finance rate (per month) £437*

*Based on a three-year contract, 10,000 miles per year and a £3000 deposit

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