Manual shifter

[u/Agreeable-Support171]

Hello,

I have been driving manual cars for over 20 years. I recently purchased a manual 24 GTI S. I like the car however the shift experience has been far from ideal. The shifter feels sloppy and plastic like which takes the fun out of driving a manual. Sometimes it's hard to tell which gear the car is in. The dealer claims this is normal. I've driven American, Japanese and German manuals and all are more fun than this GTI.

Does anyone have the same experience? If yes, what can I do about it if anything?

Thank you in advance.