2013 VW Golf GTi – Car Review – VW Turns Up The Heat To Gas Mark Seven

We would like to say a very big thank you to the team at Gazley VW Wellington (35-41 Kent Terrace) for allowing us use of their New MkVII VW Golf GTi for this road tested review. Drop in anytime to see them and to check out their complete range of new and used VW’s.

In June we road tested the amazing MkVII Volkswagen Golf TSi, which was the first car to ever get top marks for being an all round great package at a jaw droppingly good price. And no sooner had the latest Golf been release, auto enthusiasts everywhere waited patiently in the shadows for any news on what the GTi is like.

First impressions

The GTi means business, the front and rear end have had face lifts with sporty vents, grills, diffusers and a large rear spoiler. All of which gives the GTi a very aggressive look over the standard golf. The expected tartan print was covering every seat, I get that its a legacy thing, but it wasn’t my thing. But to each their own, it really didn’t bother me that much once I started driving. One odd thing we did notice was with the new 18” alloy wheels, that their angular directed design looked different depending on which side of the car you’re on, with one side pointing forward and the other side pointing to the rear.

The Test Drive

The majority the new Golf GTi is the same as the Golf TSi highline we reviewed in june, and instead of covering what we have already covered we thought we would just stick to the important stuff. And that is, does this Golf deserve to wear the GTi badge. Every previous Golf GTi has done exactly what it says on the tin. A punchy, feistier version of the base model golf, providing consumers a sporty fun car at an affordable price, a philosophy that has given VW a home run every time. Will this latest GTi follow in the footsteps of its predecessors.

This GTi comes packing a 2.0 litre turbocharged petrol engines, with 162 kw (217 hp) and 350 Nm of torque. This is 12 kw and 70 torques more than the MKVI GTi, and thanks to the MQB platform it’s also around 150kg lighter. And if there is one thing we all know, its that more power and less weight is a good thing and results in a 0-100 kmh time around 6.2 seconds.

This car is a great to drive, for the day to day its very comfy, the suspension felt slightly stiffer than that of the TSi model, but not too the extent that its annoying. Our test model was also equipped with the DCC (Dynamic Chassis Control) like the TSi Highline, but I did not feel like it made as much of a difference in overall performance as it felt like it did in the TSi, and found myself leaving it in comfort for the majority of the test.

The exhaust note was really nice too, while driving around it hummed away in the background, loud enough so you knew its no ordinary car, while not being a constant drone. Once you flicked the gear stick down into sport mode and gave it some gas this all changed, and with each gear shift you were rewarded with a short deep gurgling pop from the exhausts. The fuel consumption did seem to be higher than stated, we averaged around 9.5 L/100km, which is quite a bit above the 6.4 L/100km that is advertised, we estimated that if we drove the GTI like we drove the TSi model you could get dramatically closer to the stated figures.

Its very easy and quick to direct and every time you dropped the hammer and it held on to second gear, it put a grin on my face. This is what a GTi is all about, its not the most powerful hot hatch, its not the fastest hot hatch, its aiming to be the most enjoyable hot hatch.

What it’s up against.

The GTi finds itself in quite a different position than the TSi model, the saving we saw due to the introduction of the MQB platform, which cut costs that were passed on to the consumer don’t seem to be as evident. This GTi has become more expensive than the MKVI model, which in turn gives you a lot of other options to choose from.