It’s a thankless task to change a public favorite, but you can always make minor adjustments. The updated Volkswagen Golf MK8.5 may be difficult to distinguish, but it has definitely become more pleasant to deal with.
What am I talking about? Because the VW Golf has always been attractive to consumers. For fifty years now, it has been on the top of the ratings and on the list of must-have cars. You probably have or have had an owner of one of the «Golfs» in your environment. Even I once thought about buying one for myself Volkswagen Golf I was a fifth-generation citizen, but something prevented me from doing so.
Nowadays, owners of any generation are divided into two categories: those who are delighted with the hatchback and pack it with extra bells and whistles and those who have gotten rid of it and exhaled calmly. That’s why I was interested in getting to know this cult «mid-size» car. Or is it almost premium?
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Detailed comparison
Getting behind the wheel Volkswagen Golf with goosebumps. Has this hatch changed so much? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen it up close. The last eighth-generation came out in 2019, and we got it only during the quarantine period, when it was difficult to work and test drive. I recall that the release of the eighth generation was quite controversial: some people said that the hatch was no longer the same and had lost its personality, while others complained about the complex interface and inconvenient sensors. The restyling should correct the situation a bit.
We removed the touch keys from the steering wheel and returned normal physical buttons, fixed bugs and increased the multimedia screen from 10 to 12.9 inches. The interface may seem a little confusing, but once you get used to it, you quickly find the information you need because it was even more confusing before. Almost all systems are controlled here and it is important to find them sometimes.
So now I see a modern, stylish car that has all the necessary bells and whistles from LED lights all around to a three-zone climate. But the 10.2-inch fully digital cluster hasn’t changed and offers two styles of instrumentation to choose from and variable information on the trip computer. There seems to be nothing superfluous here, even something to remove. I’d also replace the light and heated rear window control panel to the left of the steering wheel with buttons, but it blends in so well with the dashboard that you forgive it for being so bright.
Color graphics show the work of active assistants Volkswagen GolfThe car has a full set of features that will be available from the initial version, as well as wireless smartphone connectivity with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Wireless charging is also included, and there are Type-C ports in the front and rear for passengers.
The touchscreen panel for quick access to the climate, changing driving modes, and turning on the cameras is not very convenient either, but you’re glad that it’s there at all. It’s not very convenient to control the climate when you need to constantly get into the menu: the steering wheel heating button is not placed separately, nor is the airflow power. At least the panel under the monitor allows you to adjust the temperature and volume. I feel that many practical solutions were sacrificed for design and the desire to stand out.
Interior Volkswagen Golf has always been stylish and practical. Depending on the trim level (Life, Style, R-Line), it will change its style and feature set. The test Golf is right on top, in the R-Line version, and it seems to embrace you with comfort and confidence and prepares you for an interesting journey right from the start. Bucket seats with significant lateral support do not allow you to move during sharp maneuvers, the black ceiling creates comfort, absorbing excess light and focusing you on the outer horizons. A really cool mood here, complemented now by diode interior lighting with the ability to choose from 30 shades — and such expanded potential is already an advantage of the upgrade.
However, I would personally choose the version with massage in the seats, which will be in Style. It also comes with electric adjustment and seat memory for different drivers. Over the years, I wanted a little more comfort than drive. It’s a good idea for VW to offer to select a version to suit your taste. Especially since the price does not fluctuate much from 1,316,768 UAH ($31,737) to 1,385,736 UAH ($33,399).
If you don’t go into details and don’t touch the plastic once again, you get the feeling of a solid and expensive car everywhere. In our version, we added suede inserts on the seats and door cards, no chrome elements and a restrained use of glossy plastic, which is constantly stained and covered with dust. Softness, of course, is not inherent in this class, so don’t expect any premium features, although many believe that modern Volkswagen Golf can easily compete with the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and BMW 1-Series.
I can’t say that I’m not happy about replacing the robot with an Aisin torque converter. It is much more practical and reliable in maintenance than a box with two clutches, which required special care and replacement of the same clutches. I can’t count the number of round-eyed owners at the service who saw the prices for replacing consumables.
The loss of such a substitution is felt only during dynamic driving. If someone thinks that this is a sportier version and tries to squeeze an instant reaction out of the hatchback, they will be disappointed. The automatic works perfectly in this pairing, if you don’t demand too much from it. It shifts quickly and softly without any jerks or noticeable delays, and works in several driving modes (Eco, Comfort, Sport, Individual). Starting from a traffic light and overtaking are performed without pauses or lags. Acceleration to 100 km/h is kept within 10 seconds, which is a good result.
Volkswagen Golf I was impressed by the progressive steering, which grips the rail when maneuvering at speeds over 30 km/h. This setting doesn’t even require the sport mode to be activated, the steering wheel is automatically filled with effort and every degree of deviation works for efficiency. Amazing behavior of a city hatch. Now I understand those who like to tune their cars and slalom in traffic.
The main thing is not to forget that the fuel consumption will not be gentle with you and will instantly shoot up to 15 liters. In general, I would not call the engine economical, even looking back at the eight steps in the box. The hatchback consumes 8.4 liters in the city, and during mixed driving with the addition of traffic on the highway, it does not drop much.
This is not the first Volkswagen Golfwhich is built on the modular MQB platform, so the chassis here does not change even with generations. The conventional configuration with independent MacPherson suspension in the front and multi-link with stabilizers in the rear. This means that the hatchback offers the most comfortable handling on the road and for rear passengers without losing stability. In Europe, there are even versions with progressive shock absorbers that compress the suspension during dynamic driving.
Pendant Volkswagen Golf is well calibrated and does not allow unnecessary vibrations and noise to enter the cabin. You can hear it working on potholes, but this does not affect the handling or comfort of passengers.
It seems that Golf has become noticeably quieter in the cabin. Noise insulation absorbs harsh sounds, muffles street noise, but does not eliminate wind whistling and gravel grumbling. There is still room for improvement because premium offers much greater acoustic comfort, and the Harman Kardon audio system, which creates a sound dome around you, helps a lot.
In general, you won’t find any changes even with the seventh generation in the mechanics. Everything has been left in its place, even the rack and pinion settings and suspension parts. Why fix something that worked so well?
A restrained concept
Volkswagen Golf — is one of the old-timers on the market, so the manufacturer tries to stick to the basic concept and recognizable features with each generation. Of course, it does not succeed as well as the Porsche 911, but it is still easy to recognize the Golf on the road. It has the same silhouette of a typical hatchback: narrowed in front and widened in the back, a slanted roof, short overhangs. It seems to be everything that unites the first Golf Mk1 with our hero. Well, except for the story.
Almost everything has been modernized, and with the update, not only an illuminated strip in front of the hood, but also an illuminated logo, like in the VW ID4. And, of course, the headlights were only slightly adjusted, and the bumpers were replaced with more aggressive ones. Everything else was left as it was.
The updates are rather deeper in the options, as it now has the Park Assist Pro self-parking system and surround view cameras. Our R-Line has only matrix light, which works perfectly in the dark and cuts out oncoming traffic without blinding it, leaving the roadsides perfectly illuminated. Another thing I noticed about the cornering light is that it seems to follow the steering wheel.
The saturation of safety systems in all versions is excellent. After all, they offer not only full multimedia from the start, but also keyless entry with self-driving door opening and closing, adaptive cruise, and rearview cameras. Style and R-Line will also have lane keeping assist and reverse assist, which will stop the car if someone or something is in the way.
I don’t think you need to hear about the history of the model. I think everyone who was at least a little interested in cars paid attention to Volkswagen Golf and can recognize it in any generation. The first one appeared in 1974 from the Giugiaro design studio and exceeded all possible expectations of its creators. Since then, the model has been continuously produced, and sales have already exceeded 37 million cars worldwide. It was this car that launched the golf class and is still looked up to today.
There was a time when resembling the VW Golf was considered the greatest success that guaranteed consumer love. Peugeot 205, Ford Focus, Honda Civic, Mazda 3 — all of them tried to be similar, but Golf remained the benchmark and set the style for all rivals, which appeared more and more every year.
Today, everyone has their own individual style, some, like the Focus and Civic, have grown so much that they no longer fit into the segment. Some have simply disappeared from our market. And only a few are still trying to satisfy the «golf segment» fans, such as Opel Astra and Citroen C3, Ford Focus and Seat Leon, as well as Skoda Scout. They are not much cheaper, but they lose Volkswagen Golf in the equipped. All that remains is for the German to strive to squeeze customers away from his countrymen and the more luxurious Mercedes-Benz A-Class and BMW 1-Series, which already seems even more realistic.
Volkswagen Golf — like Coca-Cola in the world of cars. It has always been the default choice for an incredible number of customers for five decades. And just like «Coca-Cola«, there may be alternatives that offer similar or even better products, but in people’s minds, «the default choice» will always be the first choice, and they will compare others to it.
PROS: comfortable ride, handling, suspension, security systems, lighting.
CONS: high fuel consumption, the quality of materials in the cabin could be better, difficult access to some functions in multimedia, too little space in the back for three.
Technical characteristics of the Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI 8AT R-Line
| Body, type | Hatchback |
| Dimensions (LxWxH), mm | 4282х1789х1483 |
| Wheelbase, mm | 2620 |
| Declared ground clearance, mm | 140 |
| Trunk volume, liters. | 381 |
| Curb weight, kg | 1304 |
| Engine | gasoline |
| Working volume, cubic cm | 1.4 |
| Power, hp. | 150 |
| Torque, Nm | 250 |
| Type of drive | Front |
| Suspension in front of. | Like McPherson |
| Rear suspension | Multi-jointed with hydraulic shock absorbers and springs |
| CHECKPOINT | 8 AT |
| Dynamics 0-100, s | — |
| Maximum speed, km/h | 180 |
| Fuel consumption, l (mixed) | 8.4 |
| Cost, UAH | 1 237 825 |
| The cost of the test car, UAH | 1 385 736 |
| Competitors | Opel Astra |
| Ford Focus | |
| Honda Civic | |
| Seat Leon | |
| Skoda Scala | |
| Mercedes A-Class | |
| BMW 1-Series |
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