For the type of driving I do, and the econmy stats of the TSI, getting the diesel never appealed to me. Turning off the radio to listen to the quiet supercharger and turbocharger on a twisty B road is pure joy. The beige interior looks, great, but can be hard to keep clean. I know what you mean about coming out on top. I test drove a Ford Focus, Mazda 3, Honda Civic, Subaru Impreza, Mitsubishi Lancer, and a new Toyota Corolla, but the Golf was way ahead of most of the other cars. The Mazda and Mitsubishi got close, but both had rubbish interiors (imo). The Impreza was nice inside, but was insanely slow. It would seem that everyone else just made a car, whereas VW went to lengths to work out what the driver would like. There are a lot of little things, some novelty features, that all add up to make the Golf more special. It might not do well on the cool wall, but I'm not trying to impress anyone other than myself.
A VW guy told me the other day that the diesel Golf drinks a lot of oil, whereas he said my one usually lasts between services (1 year/15,000kms). I've got a bottle in the shed just in case anyway, since he said the more you use the turbo, the more oil it uses. :)
Even more impressive is the options list. I've got the RNS 510 and a bluetooth system on the way, and I would've liked to get a reversing aid (camera or OPS) but while there are kits available, installation doesn't look all too easy, and they don't come with comprehensive installation guides. I can live without it, but it is handy to be able to reverse inch-perfect. I better stop rambling before someone accuses me of being a VW salesman :p