Short Take Road Test
When you hear the words “Volkswagen” and “icon” in the same sentence, you’re likely to entertain images of the beloved Beetle.
Wrong icon. The Beetle, nearly 22 million of them, eclipsed the Ford Model T as history’s bestselling car, but the Golf puts the Bug on the trailer. Almost 27 million Golfs have been sold since 1974, according to VW. And here’s generation six, in showrooms now.
We hear you saying something like, “Looks pretty familiar.” The front end has been freshened; ditto the rear, which sports an enlarged hatch. But it takes a dedicated Golf watcher—or owner—to spot these distinctions. Dimensions are very close to those of the gen-five car—a smidge less front overhang, an inch more width, a slight increase in front track, unchanged height.
However, there’s something new under the hood, or at least new to the gen-six U.S. Golf: VW’s 2.0-liter, direct-injection turbo-diesel (TDI) four. (The standard engine is still the ho-hum 170-hp inline-five.) The Golf TDI, which produces 140 horses and 236 pound-feet of torque, is a shade slower than the Golf 2.5 regardless of transmission—six-speed manual (standard) or optional six-speed, dual-clutch DSG automated manual. We recorded 8.0 seconds to 60 mph, a little quicker than the long-term Jetta TDI currently in our test fleet (thanks to a curb weight—3186 pounds—that’s 167 pounds lower).
In any case, fuel economy is the TDI’s bragging point: 30 mpg city and 41 highway for the manual, 30 and 42, respectively, with the DSG. We averaged 34 mpg.
You’d expect that benefit, of course. What you might not expect is a high fun-to-drive index. Diesel buyers get the benefit of firmer suspension tuning and more precise steering, yielding turn-in and transient responses that are all but indistinguishable from those delivered by a GTI, the performance prince of Golfs. Okay, the GTI hustles to 60 almost two seconds quicker. But think of it this way: The Golf TDI teaches the art of momentum maintenance. And unlike GTI owners, you’ll never have to replace the spark plugs.
There are other pluses. Though all Golfs are improved in terms of fit, finish, and interior detail, the TDI provides better materials inside than the standard car, plus bucket seats that feel identical to those of the GTI (great support and comfort) and a steering wheel that’s as pleasant to grip as your senior-prom date. Maybe more.
There are also demerits. You pay a hefty premium for that diesel—$4500. And watch out for those options. The DSG adds $1100, a sunroof is another grand, adaptive xenon headlights are $700, a 300-watt audio upgrade is $476, and a Cold-Weather package (heated seats, heated headlight-washer nozzles) adds $225. Oh, yeah, can’t forget Bluetooth connectivity ($199), a required option. How do you say “oxymoron” in German?
We wound up with a $26,440 as-tested price tag, which does seem a bit dear. Then again, diesel thrift doesn’t get much more affordable, and for the money, it doesn’t get to be any more fun to drive.
