My love affair with my Golf

I have a 2002, 52 plate VW Golf GT TDI 1.9 (150) and I love it with a passion. I've had a few cars in my time, including a couple of Fords, a Lexus and even a Smart - and there were things I loved about pretty much all of them, and lots of things that griped me too.

The Mark 1 Focus handled brilliantly and was great to drive. I liked the styling but I hated the lack of air con, the steamy front windscreen that wouldn't demist and it's total inability to tackle hills with any sort of gusto. It was a 3 door hatchback and although it looked great, it was awkward for passengers and cramped in the back. I bought it brand new, kept it for 6 years and put 100K on the clock. We had a fair few adventures, and a few bumps too, some more serious than others. We were battered and bruised by the end, and i sold it (too cheaply) to my ex.

Before the Focus I had a T reg Ford Ka. Again, I bought it new but I couldn't afford metallic paint, so I opted for Belladonna because I liked the name and it was better than red or white.
I called it Charlie, it was cheap to run and, as my first car, it gave me a liberty that I'd never experienced before. We were united for 18 months, and it was great whilst it lasted.

When I reached 30 I did what most thirty-somethings do - I went in search of some fun. That came in the form of a Smart Roadster-Coupe in Star Blue and silver. I bought it used from a guy in the next town and kept it until the novelty wore off. I loved the electric roof that would work at any speed, the fantastic fuel consumption, the heated seats, the retro styling and the precise handling, but I hated the dreadful gearbox, the appalling lack of comfort and the plasticky interior. I was weary and, being newly single and a one car household, I desperately needed some practicality. We parted company soon after.

On a whim, and without reading any reviews, I bought a Lexus IS200. It drank me out of house and home. The more I filled it, the more thirsty it became. And if ever a car lacked balls it was that one, talk about snail's pace. As each day passed I despised it more; I felt imprisoned by it's fuel consumption and frustrated by its performance. Being a saloon with privacy glass, parking was a nightmare - even with sensors. Our relationship lasted a traumatic 4 months, and I traded it in with not a backwards glance. It was the first of my cars that I wasn't upset to say my goodbyes to. It's brilliant xenon headlights were the only things I loved about it, and the only things I miss.

And so the Golf - a great all-rounder, with the best bits of all the previous cars I've owned. The four door practicality and comfort of the Lexus; the heated seats of the Smart; the handling and hatchback body style of the Focus; the frugality of the Ka; and best of all, something none of the others could lay claim to: decent bhp and foot to the floor pleasure. It's also the first car I've not had finance on, so it's mine, all mine.

I wouldn't trade it for the world.