Volkswagen Golf 2009 review

There is a little bit of black magic at work in the new Golf GTI. Through the dark arts of electric pulses, lightning-fast data transfer and endless streams of 1s and 0s between on-board computers the sixth generation of Volkswagen's most popular little sporty has shed its nasty understeer habits and learned to love corners.

"It is quite amazing, the first time I drove this car it was quite unbelievable," dual Le Mans winner and former F1 driver Hans-Joachim Stuck says. "It is all through electronics but the performance is very, very close to a mechanical limited slip differential. "You can drive it through corners now where previously it would have required specialist technique to avoid understeer."

Stuck, speaking at the Australian launch of the GTI, joined the VW group just over two years ago under the stewardship of long-time friend and former VW chairman Bernd Pischetsrieder. His role covers a wide range of motorsport but specifically his initial task was to provide input and confirmation on the suspension and handling of the new GTI.

The system that so impressed Stuck is the XDL (extended electron differential lock) which combined with the existing EDL (electronic differential lock) gives the front driver nearly all the characteristics of a limited slip differential assisted car. Simplistically, XDL uses sensors to read the wheel rotation, steering angle, wheel slip and a host of other parameters to compute the best combination of brake and torque to ensure maximum effect of the unloaded drive wheel when the car is tipped hard into a corner.

The upshot is that power can be applied earlier and more enthusiastically through the corner without undue fear of the front end pushing through.

Pricing and options

And all of this is standard across a range in which the prices remain unchanged at $38,990 for the six-speed manual three-door and $40,490 for the five-door manual. As with the previous model the DSG automatic adds $2500.

There is a substantial list of options: $1900 for a sunroof, $2500 for satellite navigation, $1300 for an upgraded audio system, $500 for a rear view camera, $3300 for leather trim, $2000 for dynamic bi-Xenon headlight, etc, etc — but the one must-have extra is the three stage adaptive chassis control ($1500), flowing on from the basic Golf VI and available for the first on the GTI.

Volkswagen Group Australia is confident that the extraordinary level of pre-release interest will quickly translate to sales.

"This time there is not going to be the same supply issues we had with the last car," VGA general manager for marketing, Peter Dierks, says. "There are already 650 cars on the ground in Australia and another couple of hundred on the water. The longest a customer should have to wait for a special order car will be three months."

Unlike the previous model the sixth generation GTI will be made at the home of Volkswagen in Wolfsburg.

Appearance

The design of the GTI pays homage to the original 1974 model with a tight horizontal grille rather than the gaping opening of the fifth generation, the use of red striping on the grille and placement of the lower air intake.

"It is a re-interpretation of the classic cues, but still recognisable as a GTI at first glance," Dierks says.

Drivetrains

There is little news on the raw performance front with the 2-litre turbocharged four up 8kW to 155kW while leaving the torque delivery untouched still a flat-bed of 280Nm peak urge on tap and ready to go from 1700rpm right through to 5200rpm.

The minimal changes result in no real performance improvement but tweaks have allowed the claimed fuel efficiency to be improved by around 0.5L/100km, now 7.7L/100km for the manual and 7.6L/100km for the DSG.

Driving

The big changes are in how the car drives and the refinements that now make the manual a viable option to the DSG for anyone who still enjoys the idea of a connection with the car through clutch and gearshift.

The adjustments to the manual give the gear lever a much more defined on-centre neutral position, shorter throws and a far sweeter and precise engagement of the ratios. With the amount of torque on hand sixth gear is only ever going to be seen on highway cruising with most of the business taking place between third and fifth.

Overall, the nuts and bolts of changes to the GTI over the stand Golf are not huge but clearly very focussed.

The car rides 22mm lower at the front and 15mm lower in the rear, the front track is 7mm narrower than it's more common sibling with a 1mm increase at the rear, it does get unique spring, rollbar and damper settings and of course the XDL programming.

The safety package is impressive, with stability control, traction control, EDL, ABS, EBD and brake assist all standard along with seven airbags and a 5-star crash safety rating.

Interior trim and equipment is as good as has come to be expected from VW with the standard tartan cloth trimmed sports seats both comfortable and supportive with a good range of manual adjustments.

It doesn't take long on a twisty road to see just how big an improvement this generation Golf is over the one it replaces. The first tightening corner, approached with the caution instilled by a history of understeer, is dismissed by the GTI with an arrogant shrug and a "let's get on with this" attitude.

More aggressive approaches, early application of throttle and increased steering inputs are all met with a balance and confidence the GTI, for all it's heritage as a sporty toy, could never previously claim. Obvious intervention from the stability control comes only after it becomes a challenge to find the limits of the little VW's new cornering prowess. For the record, it is well out beyond territory most owners will ever visit.

Ride on the basic static chassis is a good compromise of tautness and comfort — not perfect, but no compromise is. However, with the optional adaptive chassis control the ability to suit the ride to the circumstance is considerably expanded. The comfort setting is considerably softer and best suited to situations where enthusiastic changes of direction are unlikely, or road surfaces are broken to the degree of being uncomfortable. The middle, or standard, setting is comparable to the static chassis experience while the sport setting both tightens the ride and sharpens the steering.

Overall, an excellent compromise of sporting intent and day to day practicality.