2016 Volkswagen Golf GTI Autobahn
While VW didn’t actually invent the hot hatch, we can credit the company with making it successful and popular. I can vividly remember lusting for one in high school, and the GTI, now in its seventh generation, has reached a level of honed excellence that still engenders respect.
It retains a look of restrained purpose. Red detailing, larger, slashed air intakes and a lowered stance enhance the chamfered Golf shell, and the cockpit is roomy, tightly fastened and full of lovely details like the golf-ball shifter and tactile delight of a flat-bottomed steering wheel. Plastics lower on the doors obviously come from the less expensive end of the automotive spectrum, but most everything at or near eye level is pleasing.
The newest touchscreen infotainment system is fast and intuitive, albeit phased by large music collections and slightly low-rent graphics. Especially in five-door form, the GTI is one of the most practical of performance icons, with an easy-entry, generous back seat that fashions huge cargo hauling capability with the seats folded.
This Mark VII generation is based on the latest MQB VW-group hardware, meaning it is stiff and light, bolstering both refinement and dynamics. The GTI rides very well, even on non-adjustable dampers and low profile rubber, and filters out wind and road noise well.
The new generation two-liter, four-cylinder turbo has more torque and revs faster than its predecessor. It also boasts a pleasing acoustic signature (which can be amplified or turned down by in-car sound enhancement in the driving mode menu) and comes in two tunes. The test car’s 210hp variant is more than adequate, and it shares a torque rating of 258lb-ft with models equipped with the Performance Package.
That model’s extra 10 ponies may be hard to feel, but its limited slip diff makes a noticeable improvement in hard cornering, keeping the nose from running wide under power, and its beefier brakes easily make this a worthwhile $1,495 option.
Even without, brake feel and modulation are excellent, and the standard brake-activated “virtual” diff does a decent job of keeping the GTI on the driver’s chosen line. Body control is well resolved and it does a great job of resisting high-speed understeer while remaining playful at lower velocities.
The tester also had the available 6-speed manual transmission, whose throws were light and accurate, helped by a clutch that had good progression and a well-delineated bite-point. Pedal placement could be improved, and in congested traffic—the new norm it seems—the twin clutch DSG may be the way to go. Either way the GTI is commendably frugal and fast, and it is wonderful to see it still fitting in well into so many enthusiasts’ desires and lives.
Automotive Editor Isaac Bouchard is president of Englewood-based Bespoke Autos. Read more of his reviews here on coloradoavidgolfer.com and at bespokeautos.com. Reach him at [email protected].
This article appears in the June 2016 issue of Colorado AvidGolfer.
Colorado AvidGolfer is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it. It publishes eight issues annually and proudly delivers daily content via coloradoavidgolfer.com.
