Volkswagen GOLF RANGE
The Fifth Generation
Volkswagen Golf Aims To Distance Itself From The Family Hatchback Competition With Higher Quality, Lower Prices and An Air Conditioned Specification. Andy Enright Checks It Out
What is a Volkswagen Golf? Twenty years ago, that would have been a simple question to answer. The Golf was an inexpensive, no nonsense car that ran and ran. Nowadays however, Volkswagen have loftier aspirations for their staple family hatchback and the question is far trickier to tackle. In fifth generation guise, the car has been taken even further upmarket with an even higher quality look and feel but it also reprises a strand of Golf DNA that seemed to have been an evolutionary dead end driving fun.
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If this Golf has had a problem, it has been that some customers have equated quality of build and driving experience with a price outside their budget. Hence Volkswagens more recent attempts to set the record straight in this respect by reducing prices (which now start from £11,845) and increasing specifications (with now include climatic air conditioning as a standard feature). In the standard three and five-door hatch range, theres a choice of three trim levels S, SE and Sport with the SE level many customers choose also being further boosted by the addition of rear electric windows (on five-door models) and a convenience pack as part of its standard specification. The convenience pack includes coming/leaving home lighting with automatic headlights on, an automatic dimming rear view mirror, a rain sensor and front footwell illumination.
Aside from the entry-level 1.4-litre engine, petrol buyers have the choice of 1.4 and 1.6-litre high-tech FSI engines.
Diesel buyers can opt for a proven 105PS 1.9-litre TDI. In the GTI series, where there have also been significant price reductions, the pace hots up a little more, with GT FSI or GT TDI Golfs offering the choice of either a 150PS 2.0-litre petrol or a 2.
0-litre 140PS diesel unit with or without 4MOTION all-wheel drive. Prices start from £16,995, pitching these cars just below the fully-blown GTI 200PS model, priced from £19,995 and unaffected by the range changes.
"Most will know its a Golf theyre looking at without recourse to clocking the badge on its rump"
One criticism levelled at the two previous generation Golf models was that although the cars offered a ride and refinement package that was hard to beat, they never really offered the sort of infectious handling that many rivals could boast. The fifth generation car adopts a pragmatic tactic in benchmarking the suspension of the
Ford Focus and first impressions are promising. The body is eighty per cent stiffer than its predecessor and the new electro-mechanical steering feel and composed body control are leagues ahead. The styling is evolutionary rather than revolutionary insofar as most will know its a Golf theyre looking at without recourse to clocking the badge on its rump.
As company boss Bernd Pischetsrieder explains: "The only mistake the Golf can make is to stop being a Golf." Theres little doubt that the fourth generation Golf was and is a handsome piece of car design, but the fifth generation marks probably the biggest evolution in the Golfs design language since the Mk 2 became the chubbier Mk 3. Everything is just that little bit curvier, sleeker and more elegant. It runs on the same platform as the latest
Audi A3 and
Volkswagen Touran models and this means that the sophisticated suspension system has a huge scope for tuning from the most affordable city runabouts to hardcore sports versions. The interior keeps the Golf at the top of the family hatch tree.
It uses a fascia design reminiscent of the Phaeton luxury saloon, although the centre console is lifted from the Touran
mini-MPV. With the possible exception of its pricier Volkswagen Group cousin, the Audi A3, the cabin has the beating of anything out there as regards ambience. The interior features soft-feel slush-moulded plastics, high-quality switches, subtle use of chrome, fabric-covered A-pillars plus blue instrument backlighting with red needles, a signature of the fourth generation model. The latest Golf also sets new standards by introducing 2Zone climate control and four-way lumbar support within the line-up.
In addition, ESP (Electronic Stabilisation Programme), no fewer than six airbags as well as anti-lock brakes are fitted as standard throughout the range. Big car features such as automatic activation of headlamps and wipers are built into the cars electronics. Many buyers will opt to go the turbo diesel route and both engines are well worth seeking out, especially after youve driven them back to back with the petrol Golf powerplants, the 2.0-litre TDi being especially impressive.
This engine will punt the big-boned Golf through 60mph in 9 seconds and on to a top speed of 126mph, making it a brilliant long distance cruiser. The 103bhp unit is no slouch though and will get to 60mph in 11 seconds and top out at 116mph. Its also likely to prove the bigger seller. Fuel economy of both engines is excellent, the 1.
9-litre averaging 56.4mpg and the 2.0-litre faring almost as well at an impressive 52.2mpg.
Both engines are Euro IV compliant which means that company users dont get stung for the usual three per cent taxation surcharge and the rest of us can drive around with a warmly sanctimonious air, knowing that were doing our bit for the environment. The emissions figures of 135 and 146g/km respectively for the 1.9 and 2.0-litre engines are among the class best.
The 1.9-litre car is fitted as standard with a five-speed gearbox but the 2.0-litre TDi gets six cogs as standard with the option of the revolutionary DSG twin-clutch sequential gearbox. Volkswagen have made great strides concerning the refinement of these TDi engines and the effects are palpable as soon as you turn the key.
The TDi system was once derided as being far less effective than the new wave of common rail diesel engines that have become popular and in terms of refinement, Volkswagens solution has lagged behind. No longer: the difference is now virtually negligible. Prices for the Golf start at £11,850 a reasonable level considering the impressive specification of even this entry-level S specification 1.4-litre car. The much-vaunted Ford Focus and
Vauxhall Astra models may find that the target they thought they were aiming at has shifted.
What is a Volkswagen Golf? Thats a question which seems to have foxed the opposition too.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Volkswagen Golf range
PRICES: £11,845-£20,495 on the road
INSURANCE GROUPS: 4E-17
CO2 EMISSIONS: 143-178g/km
PERFORMANCE: [1.6] Max Speed 119mph / 0-60mph 10.8s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: [1.6] 44mpg (combined)
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin airbags / ABS / Side airbags / ESP
WILL IT FIT IN YOUR GARAGE?: Length/Width/Heightmm 4204/2010/1485
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