Volkswagen have given its most popular car a mid-age facelift. Cue the Volkswagen Golf 7.5. What’s new about this Golf is the engine line-up, most notably the introduction of a 3-cylinder 1.0TSI petrol.
The Volkswagen Golf is an old reliable, each new change is very predictable. Volkswagen have lived off the Golf’s success for years now. How do we know? Just look around you when walking down the street and I’m sure there is more than one Golf of any generation on it. Whether it is a Golf GTI, Golf R, an estate or even the hatchback. There is a Golf for everyone.
A Volkswagen specced in a flashy metallic colour, much like this Turmeric Yellow paint job, is starting to become a Volkswagen trend. Gone are the days of Black, White, Grey and Silver cars and coming back are the weird and flavourful colours of the 60’s and 70’s.
Up front, not much has changed in terms of the face for the Golf. The chrome that surrounds the grille is continued into the headlight, like on the Golf GTI. Thankfully Volkswagen have taken the leap and decided to build the front sensor into the logo, a much neater design. Around back, not much has changed. A more angular lower rear bumper and a feature that we all hate in the motoring media, fake exhaust. Why, oh, why the fake exhaust?!
Inside, the infotainment system has been revised. Taking a page out of Apple’s book by using minimal buttons, Volkswagen have cleaned up the look of the infotainment system. The volume and scroll buttons are the only physical buttons on it. The rest is an 8-inch touch screen, which is prone to holding onto fingerprint smudges. It offers MirrorLink, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as part of the 171 Pack. The system is similar to use from previous versions of the system but the interface has been given a facelift. A joyous occasion for Android and Apple users; you can connect your phone via USB to be able to use Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.
Materials up front have a good quality feel and there is plenty of storage space along with two cup holders on the centre console. Similarly, in the rear there two cup holders in the armrest. But this is where the good vibes for the rear ends. It seems like Volkswagen began to care less. The seats are still comfortable but a large transmission tunnel means that five adults will be fighting for leg room. The plastics aren’t as good quality but the benefit to this is they are easy to clean. Therefore, your kids can go wild in the back and there will be no worries about the consequences.
Volkswagen Group offer the 1.0TSI in most of its line up so it was only a matter of time before it was offered in the more family orientated Golf. The Up! gets up to a 90hp version while the version we had in the Golf is the 110hp. Initially upon start up, it sounds rather like a diesel, much like the Opel Astra 1.4. It’s noisy as it clatters into life. I for one, think that a 3-cylinder engine has a characterful little grunty noise to it. I am probably the only one in the world who thinks this. But considering that Volkswagen dominated the diesel trend for such a long time, it’s peculiar to hear a sound other than a diesel rattle.
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Driving around the city and suburbs, the 1.0TSI performs well. The turbo kicks in at around 2,500 revs giving an initial burst of life and dies out at roughly 4,000 revs. This is particularly noticeable when entering a motorway. On the road, the cabin is quiet and bearable. However, taking it to motorway speeds, the tyre and wind noise take over the cabin and becomes tiring.
As for the cost, almost every car we get to test is an unrealistic price because they are packed with optional extras. This is no exception with the Golf. This one is priced at €30,211, but the Volkswagen Golf range with the 1.0TSI with 85hp starts at €20,895. With this comes low running costs. Emitting 109g/km, the 110hp version of the 1.0TSI is €190 per year to tax. We averaged 6.7l/100km for the week.
Overall, the addition of the 1.0TSI is a good move for the Golf if used mainly for city and suburban driving. The Golf still remains a predictable car and by the looks of things, so does new Volkswagen Polo. This shouldn’t put you off the Golf though, as it stands up well against competition such as the Honda Civic, Ford Focus and Peugeot 308.
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