Sorry to say it, but this site is on the decline

[AlanH]

I've just scrolled down some of the threads in the general area, and hardly any of the topics get any replies or very few....
Is the Scirocco such a niche car? Or have people just moved on?

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[skippy]

I think it is both Alan, we are never going to get the same amount of responses compared to say the Golf GTI forum, and probably about 90% of a Roc owners are not true enthusiasts, which equates to a fairly low user base.

As we know, the Roc is no longer in production which is another reason, so questions tend to be all around modding rather than the excitement of waiting for a new car.

Your correct also in that I think some members have moved on, being a coupe the Roc may not fit people’s lifestyles anymore so probably tends to be a car which is only owned for a short time.

So yes, certain topics get lower responses these days, and maybe because VW are not producing a MK4 version is yet another factor that enthusiasm for the model has waned a little. But, we are still here and we are grateful for everyone’s contribution.

[Cuprabob]

Sadly , all forums like these seem to be on the decline for a number of reasons. There are less car enthusiasts around these days and those that are around prefer to use Facebook.

[AlanH]

Having thought about it, I seem to see so many youngsters driving around in high performance cars and wondering how they afford to run them....
When I was a lad (I'm making myself sound very old now at a very young 47) the cars I had were "rough" to day the least...
MK1 Astra, MK1 Nova etc etc.
Is it because cars are more accessible these days and youngsters don't have to "tinker" to keep them on the road?
My son's are prime examples..... both have brand new cars. They only have to wash them....

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[Kev]

PCP has sorted that out Alan.

80%+ of all new car sales are on PCP now. People have £200 a month spare. They don't have £20,000. So the kids get in to a new car for a 'relatively' small outlay, free servicing etc, and in 2-3 years they give it back and get a new one. Just like they do with their smartphones.

We still get 10 new members a day or more. I'll keep the site going as long as the traffic is there. But like skippy says, the Scirocco is out of production now so I suspect it will tail off over the next few years.

[AlanH]

PCP has sorted that out Alan.

80%+ of all new car sales are on PCP now. People have £200 a month spare. They don't have £20,000. So the kids get in to a new car for a 'relatively' small outlay, free servicing etc, and in 2-3 years they give it back and get a new one. Just like they do with their smartphones.

We still get 10 new members a day or more. I'll keep the site going as long as the traffic is there. But like skippy says, the Scirocco is out of production now so I suspect it will tail off over the next few years.

Don't take what I said as a slight Kev. It was more an observation and thinking out loud. When I first joined the site, you could guarantee lots of replies and views etc. I've received lots of help from here in the past. And for that I'm really grateful. It's helped me no end.
I've really enjoyed ownership of my Roc, and if you look at the recent posts I've put up I still lavish it with love [emoji16]


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[skippy]

We can see you still love the Roc Alan, as your recent pictures testify, and no, I don't think either Kev or myself would see your response to be seen as criticism, infact you have been a major contributor over the years to the forum.

Likewise, I used to post a lot at the start but my posts have tailed off over the years. The model started off fresh and there was a lot of excitement about it, but over the years it has matured and people have got the answers/knowledge they want now and have moved on, so its a natural lifecycle like anything.

Regarding PCP etc. I am a similar age to yourself and yes, I had to start out with old bangers so to speak, and work my way up, but I guess it is the way of the world now. People don't finance cars with one big cash outlay, they tend to be leased.It is a shame in a way that cars are seen as such a disposable kind of commodity, but maybe my view on these things is a little old hat!

[blower]

I don't even have a ROC - i have a Golf!, but i've always liked this forum.
Firstly it's UK based, unlike golfmkX.com and secondly it is a more enthusiasts site so you get more interesting posts (unlike volkswagenforum where you tend to get posts more from Joe Bloggs asking why their handbrake is making a different clicking noise and does this mean the engine will explode)

Plus if have the fabled 1.4 TSI engine which is popular in the Roc and know that engine inside out (literally), so tend to help out here when i can.

[lewisheywood]

Like Cuprabob said, Facebook is much more commonly used now, with a new post every 20 minutes or so it seems, all getting good replies. Shame really.

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[Kev]

It's ok Alan, I didn't take it as a criticism. As you say, people move on. I have! I got my Roc in 2009 and kept it until 2016 but I don't own one any more and so my own posting has tailed off too.

I think the golf sites have more momentum as there's a history of people keeping the older versions going and thus a bigger fan base. The Roc was good for its day and people have now been there and done that so the ownership will tail off over time.

It is a shame that Facebook is taking a lot of members from perfectly good forums but that's really hard to stop. You can't handcuff people to the site unfortunately! It also costs nothing to set up and you don't have to look after all the back end server stuff so anyone can do it. I've noticed that the Scirocco Owners Network site closed recently and SciroccoNet which used to be just as big as this site has only had a couple of posts in the last month or so.

[Roy_01]

Most of the topics are about problems or questions that are being discussed many times and easily could be found using the search function. I can understand people don't react to them anymore. And there are not many people on this forum that are doing stuff that is really interesting like mechanical / electrical changes (Xjay, Mostic, Uklee, Tom, Isun, etc.) My thought is that many young people are not that skilled anymore or have the money for it someone else changes things for them.
On Facebook you are getting Zucced.

[Paradox1]

remember most info is on FB these day aswell.

Kinda taken over the forums. I used to be on so maybe.

When was the last time any of you logged into Edition 30 forum

[Mofo]

I've just bouht my first one and love it. So much more fun to drive

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