Volkswagen Golf 2010 News

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Since cars all deliver on the same basic promise of personal mobility, and many vehicles do it with incredible value and panache, good design can often make the difference between buying and losing.Ian Callum knows it and, after more than four decades of top-class design work on everything from HSV Holdens to Volvos, Aston Martins and now Jaguars, he is the right man to be talking. "This is a time of car design. It's not just styling any more. You really have to understand design, and the elements that make up a good design," Callum says. "We're also seeing a lot of change in the automotive world. The make-up of cars is changing. Designers are going to have an incredible influence."Callum has revolutionised Jaguar design over the past 10 years and just visited Australia to showcase his all-new XJ flagship, which steps right away from anything which has previously worn the brand's leaper mascot. "I didn't want to be a slave to heritage," he says simply.Callum believes good design is simple but incredibly difficult, elegant and timeless, but also challenging and filled with tiny little details. He is rare among designers because he backs his promises with commitment and talent, and is also happy to give an opinion.So, then, how does he judge the work from some of his rivals? Surprisingly, Callum is happy to go on the record with a simple tick-or-cross verdict on the latest designs in showrooms.Here are his ratings: Aston Martin Rapide - tickAudi A5 - tickBMW GT - two crossesBMW X6 - crossFerrari F458 Italia - tickHSV EII Commodore - tickLexus LFA - tickMercedes E-Class - crossMercedes SLS Gullwing - crossNissan GT-R - crossPorsche Panamera - crossRolls-Royce Ghost - tickToyota Prius - tickVolkswagen Golf - tick 

The new European star is doing big things in Australia off the back of impressive quality, comfort and driving enjoyment.

Joining the sixth generation garden variety Golf and its hot-hatch GTI cousin will be a first-time wagon, the performance-leading Golf R and possibly a diesel version of the GTI, the GTD.  "There will be lots of new models by next year," says Volkswagen Group Australia managing director Anke Koeckler. "A part of that new model line will be a Golf Wagon which is due in the first quarter of next year."Koeckler says the decision to bring the load-carrier Golf to Australia is not a sudden one but rather one delayed to await the arrival of the new generation car.  "This will be the new wagon with the new powertrains. We were a bit patient because we did not want to run with an old model ... what is the point of having a model that is already outdated."VW has been able to watch the success of another small wagon in the Australian market, the Hyundai i30CW, and draw confidence that the style of car is one Australian buyers will embrace.  "People want a bit more space without wanting to go to a big car," Koeckler says. "In Europe 60 per cent of Golf wagons go to fleets and that may also be an opportunity for us here to expand our fleet business."While the wagon is likely to appeal to a wide range of buyers, the GTD and the Golf R will have a much more focussed market appeal -- and ironically could be the final nail in the coffin of an Australian future for the sporty Scirocco."The Scirocco is still under assessment -- it is definitely not off the table -- but sports market, particularly in Australia, is only small and it could be difficult to make a case for that car and the GTI and the R and whatever," Koeckler says. "We will keep looking closely at it, but there are a lot of questions."The all-wheel-drive Golf R, the replacement for the superceded R32, will sit clearly atop the Golf range. The car boasts improved performance over the outgoing V6 model with a 199kW output from the high-po 2.0-litre turbo giving it a reputed 0-100km/h sprint of just 5.5 seconds, 1.4 seconds clear of the GTI.Plans to import the GTD, the diesel version of the GTI already on sale in Europe, is moving along confidently and with VW's strong footprint in diesel offerings in Australia looks to be a perfect fit for the range.  "We already have a strong experience and presence with diesel and with more companies recognising the value of diesel the acceptance in Australia is growing," Koeckler says. "Diesel offers a good performance option with low fuel consumption."The GTD is powered by a 2-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel. Down 30kW on the GTI it has an additional 70Nm of torque give it a very impressive 350Nm of urge available almost from idle.  Typical of diesel cars the raw sprint times are not scintillating with a 0-100km/h burst of 8.1 seconds but the acceleration through mid-range when torque is king and a fuel efficiency of 5.3L/100km should make it an attractive option.VGA would not talk about pricing for either R or the GTD, saying only that they would be competitive.

Brands under the VW umbrella have some on the way in the form of the A5 Sportback and Skoda Superb Combi, and Volkwagen also has a Golf Estate on the way early next year. For Sportback, Combi and Estate, read station wagon in Aussie lingo.The Golf is based on the European Golf 5, but has been given a styling makeover to bring it into the Golf 6 line, with new front fascia, lights, interior touches and more prominent exhaust tips.The Golf in hatch form has a choice of four engines, but Volkwagen Australia says it will not bring all of those. “We’ll probably limit the number of engines … it won’t be as many as in the hatch,” their spokesman Karl Gehling says. “It would make the line-up too complex if we had every variant.” However there are no further details other than ‘every second Volkwagen is a diesel’.And with Volkswagen’s diesel reputation in Australia it would be a fairly safe guess that one of the engines will be a diesel, and with their stated goals of continually improving economy the other is likely to be the frugal 90kW turbocharged petrol, while the diesel could be either the 77kW 1.6-litre or the 103kW 2.0-litre.Or both… Transmissions will most likely be a six-speed manual and the twin-clutch DSG automatic in either six or seven speeds depending on the engines.

The GTi will be here soon but even sooner, last week, a hotter hatch was caught in Europe by the Carparazzi scoop crew. It's the latest member of Volkswagen's stove-hot R-car family, the R20. The R20 takes over from the outgoing Golf R32, which packs a 186-kiloWatt V6 engine and a $56,990 pricetag in Australia.The best news is that it cranks out 201 kiloWatts, according to European sources, even without a V6. Instead, the R20 has a 2-litre turbocharged four with direct fuel injection, a significant step up from the similar turbomotor used in the Golf GTi.Performance is expected to peak with a 0-100km/h sprint time in the low five-second range and the car will be limited to 250km/h at the top end. Styling of the R20 is as conservative as any of the members of the Golf VI family, although the Carparazzi pictures show a more aggressive treatment at both front and rear ends. It also gets a giant centre-mounted exhaust pipe.The development car points to a three-door start to the go-fast Golf program, although there is also likely to be a five-door hatch further into the future. The R20 is currently being tweaked at the Nurburgring ahead of European sales later this year. With the GTi expected in Australia at much the same time, the R20 is likely to be a second-half arrival here in 2010.

Where will it all end? Australian automotive manufacturers and importers are hoping the answer is: right here, right now.For the first time in months, there's a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel that may not be another oncoming train.The Federal Government's cash handouts have helped the Australian economy dodge a recession on a technicality, consumers are spending again and car showrooms are beginning to fill with a whole lot of shiny new offerings.With a fresh financial year dawning, something in the order of 60 all-new or refreshed models are waiting in the wings before the end of 2009.Ranging from the first of the Chinese invaders to a couple of machines from the supercar stratosphere, these are the recession-busters the automotive industry is relying on.Here are a handful of the key players in this revival.Great Wall Motors AFTER what seems an age of yes-we-are, no-we-aren't games, the first of the Chinese-made brigade will be in showrooms next month.A pair of workhorse utes — the 4x4 V240 (known as the Wingle in China) and the 4x2 SA220 — will come as single-specification models with prices expected to be "around two-thirds of their logical competitors".That could mean a starting figure of $17,000 to $19,000.Alfa Romeo MiToTHE classic Italian marque's new baby, which arrives next month, has the task of taking on BMW's iconic Mini in the quest for buyers with more cash than responsibilities."It's a growing market as people downsize their cars to achieve better fuel economy but don't want to give up performance or style," Alfa Romeo Australia's Edward Rowe says."Our aim is to beat the Mini on both price and equipment."To that end, Rowe says the newcomer — which sits on a Fiat Punto platform — will launch as two models: the 88kW MiTo and a sparkier, 114kW MiTo Sport.Both have turbocharged, 1.4-litre petrol engines with six-speed manual gearboxes. Expect a starting price in the low $30,000 range.Hyundai i20AFTER the success of the i30 hatch and wagon, Hyundai has high hopes for its German-designed, Indian- made small car.Expected to hit showrooms towards the end of this year, the three-door and five-door i20s will sit at the higher end of the light-car segment, beginning at $16,000 to $17,000.This will leave the popular Getz as Hyundai's entry-level model, but will likely spell the end of the Accent.VW Golf GTITHE sixth-generation Golf GTI arrives in October with all the shiny new technology seen on its more mundane stablemates but lots more go.With 155kW driving through a new limited-slip differential, it promises all the attitude of its predecessors wrapped into a more refined package."It has all the safety and enhancements of the Golf VI and more power than the outgoing GTI, yet it's quieter and more efficient," VW Australia's Karl Gehling says.Pricing isn't yet set, but should be close to the outgoing model's $39,990.Holden VE CommodoreTHE first mid-life makeover for GM-Holden's "billion-dollar baby" is likelyto be remarkable for what ishappening under the skin rather than for any cosmetic body changes.A founding member of the Large Family Car segment — the hardest- hit sector of the industry over the past couple of years — the Commodore will celebrate GM's survival with a much more focused and fuel-efficient engine package.Although a four-cylinder option isn't on the cards, a smaller V6 is. That could be a three-litre or even a version of the 2.8-litre that has recently been shipped to Mexico for the Cadillac SRX.Expect to see it around October.

Volkswagen is seriously considering importing the Golf Estate, a wagon based on the Golf hatch. It will join a diminishing small-wagon sector occupied now only by the Holden Astra and Viva, Hyundai i30, Peugeot 308 and Skoda Roomster.Volkswagen Group Australia spokesman Karl Gehling says the Estate is definitely under consideration but it was "too early" to talk about when it could arrive.Effectively a Jetta with a longer roofline, the Estate sits on the Golf/Jetta wheelbase. It is the same length and width as the Jetta though is 45mm higher.The Estate was announced this week in the UK as a right-hand drive model that is expected early in 2010. Though Volkswagen doesn't say it, the new Estate appears to be a Gen 5 model with Gen 6 grille and headlight details.It does, however, get all the latest Gen 6 Golf drivetrain options. It will share engines with the Golf including a new 77kW 1.6-litre turbo-diesel that squeezes just 4.5 litres/100km from the tank and emits only 119 grams of CO2 per kilometre.The latest Golf Estate will be the fourth generation of the model.It was first launched in 1993 and has since sold more than 1.2 million examples to make it one of Volkswagen's most popular models.

When the doors open on the ‘project lab’ it looks like you’re going to be treated to a bit of computer-generated artwork. But in fact the track, the cars – and every possible outcome – have been filmed for real. When you crash, expect the project engineer’s giant hand to come in and pick you back up. If you get a time of less than 40 seconds (and live in the UK) you’re in the running to win a three-month visit from a Golf VI GTI. If you live anywhere else, just have fun with it. Play the GTI Project race  

Golf GTI was already a legend by the time Mk2 arrived, but from there it was softened to attract a more mainstream buyer. “The Mk2, Mk3 and MK4 models became gradually diluted - between those models we gradually lost touch with what the car should be,” says Volkswagen's global head of engineering for Golf and GTI, Rolf Trump. “It was the marketing decisions of the time." “It was not until MkV that we tried to rekindle the values and performance of the old ideal “However I would not say the models from MkII to MkIV were unloved - they were not a failure in terms of sales. “What I find disappointing is that we did not do what we could have with the potential of the car - we went more mainstream." “From an engineering point of view I may have regretted some of the decisions taken to put the car on a wider footing." “It was not unsuccessful, when you look at the volumes sold. But it deprived GTI of that character that is so essential to it.”