VW's latest GTi is a class act and still the most desirable Golf.
Six generations on and the iconic GTi continues where the Mark V left off.
The exterior changes are subtle and the power increase marginal but it was never going to be easy to improve on the outgoing GTi. The 200bhp Mark V was a return to form for the German brand which had taken its eye off the ball and allowed the GTi to get increasingly fat and lazy with the marks II, III and IV. The last GTi handled well and was much truer to the original 1.6 litre from the mid-seventies that all petrol heads fell in love with.
Like all Golfs, the hatchback GTi has a simple elegance that is almost classless. You'll get envious glances from all sorts of drivers in this 210bhp car. The 2-litre turbocharged four-cylinder will potter around the place nicely but when provoked can deliver a very manageable amount of zip through the front wheels. The GTi features a new electronic differential 'XDS' that helps keep wheel-spin under control with great effect. It takes a brisk 6.9 seconds for 0-100kph and top speed is 240kp/h. I particularly like the way the speedometer is graduated so that lower speed increments are well spaced, ie 100kph is at the 12 o'clock position on the dial, while 240kph is at about 5 o'clock. In other words, real world speeds are given priority and easier to read on the go.
The GTi makes a wonderful if sadly muted noise on the go (Curse you, Europe!). The automated manual 'DSG' gearbox blips down through the gears wonderfully. On the road my test car's massive 18-inch telephone dial alloys looked brilliant but they also made a bit of a racket and sadly road noise was louder than the lovely hum of the engine.
The new GTi sits in band 'D' for tax but if you want a greener machine, there is a GTD version of the GTi. The GTD has a 2-litre, 170bhp engine, lower CO2 and an average fuel consumption figure of over 50 to the gallon or 5.6 litres per 100km/h. It doesn't sound the same but certainly looks the part and pulls like a train. From a distance the tail pipes are the only giveaway - the GTi has one pipe on either side while the GTD has two pipes together on the nearside.
My test car had a good few optional extras fitted like leather seats, bi-xenon lights, adaptive chassis (Normal, Comfort and Sport suspension settings), multi-function steering wheel with paddle shifts for the DSG gearbox (a must!) and 'Climatronic' air con. All these toys, added to the quite reasonable base price of €35,175, brought the total to a very sobering €47,325 - ouch! You could have a new 300bhp Focus RS, a new couch and a giant plasma TV for that money or even a new E Class Mercedes! Sure, the Focus RS beats the pants off the GTi, but VW's Golf R will be a truer rival to the stunningly fast Ford, although it has fewer horses (270bhp), it does have four wheel drive.
The VW GTi is the benchmark hot hatch. It is fun, yet sensible and not too flash to cause embarrassment. I love it.
Michael Sheridan
