1st Test Drive Reports

[Hajduk]

Courtesy of Autocar who drove the 1.4 TSI

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/...wagen-golf-mk7

First drive review: Volkswagen Golf Mk7

Evolutionary, but incremental improvements across the board make the latest Golf an outstanding overall package


What is it?

As if you don’t know. This seventh-generation Volkswagen Golf is almost clinically evolutionary in its feel and appearance, yet it is ground-up fresh technology from its MQB platform to the all-new motors in its subtly more angular body.

There is no getting away from the fact the Golf is a recipe that works and Volkswagen would be bonkers to change it. The 29 million they’ve sold since it was launched in 1974 proves this.

Here we’re testing the 138bhp 1.4 TSI in top-spec GT trim, complete with seven-speed DSG gearbox (a six-speed manual is standard) and cylinder deactivation, which actually makes this 109g/km petrol engine cleaner than the lower-powered, 120bhp version of the same 1.4 TSI that will sit beneath it in the range and go without cylinder management. Also on offer will be an 84bhp 1.2 TSI, a 104bhp 1.6 TDI and a 148bhp 2.0 TDI.

What is it like?

You won’t be surprised to hear that the experience of driving the new Golf is a very familiar one. And yet there is a subtly classier feel to the car. New softer-edged buttons, a slimmer-rimmed steering wheel, sharper edges to the dash architecture and an optional eight-inch colour screen (a 5.8in version is standard) that dominates the interior in our GT-trim car, all contribute to the high-end ambience.

This 1.4 TSI engine is unrelated to the engine of the same capacity that you’ll find in the Mk6. And you can feel the difference. Cabin refinement is outstanding on the 17-inch wheels of our test car, with very little tyre roar or engine noise creeping into the cabin and only a subdued flutter of wind. And yet you can then choose to toggle through the Audi-like variable drive settings (Eco, Sport, Normal and Individual) that the Golf will get as standard on all but the base-spec cars, and suddenly you have a thoroughly grippy, neutral and entertaining drive. Our car also came with optional Dynamic Chassis Control, which incorporates adaptive damping and a Sport setting.

Despite our car’s high spec, it is still not sparklingly communicative. But with the adaptive elements in maximum attack mode you really can plunder the huge grip on offer, and enjoy the suddenly quite audible and rasping exhaust note that is emitted from the twin tailpipes as the motor spins willingly through its rev range.

The 8.4sec 0-62mph time doesn’t sound quick, but in the mid-range this model of Golf feels spot on for a compromise between satisfying performance and real-world accessibility and efficiency. Because while you can enjoy some hoonery, you can also enjoy free road tax thanks to the 109g/km (116g/km with the manual) and over 60mpg combined.

The whole set-up feels tauter, regardless of your chosen drive and damper settings. Steering response is a little quicker off the dead-ahead the handling is more neutral and less inclined to wash into understeer when pushed hard. The cylinder deactivation is also hard to fault. The switch between two and four cylinders is imperceptible and done with such swiftness that we couldn’t catch it out even when deliberately trying to.

The 1.4 TSI engine is currently the biggest-selling Golf with private buyers in the UK, and its successor deserves the same popularity. It’s hard to believe that any other engine in the range will better the flexibility and reward on offer from this 1.4 petrol.

Even so, the Golf is not flawless. The DSG gearbox hangs on to ratios too long in Sport mode, feeling a little unresponsive to throttle input at quite crucial moments. Using the standard wheel-mounted paddles solves this. The brakes can also feel a little sharp initially and take some familiarity to be able to modulate the pedal for smooth urban progress.

Equally, while the ride comfort in our car is smooth and pliant 90 per cent of the time when left in Normal, coping particularly well with eroded surfaces and high-frequency undulations regardless of speed and cornering force, it does get a little firm and thumpy at higher speeds over bigger intrusions such as expansion joints and raised manhole covers. Sport doesn’t seem dramatically different from Normal, though Comfort is quite noticeably softer, with a little more wallow than you might expect at urban speeds.

Beyond the driving dynamics themselves, there are other practical improvements that will come in useful for life in the latest Golf. The driving position seems to mould itself around you thanks to an exceptionally broad range of adjustment that few class rivals can compete with. Steering wheel rake and reach is particularly impressive next to the class standard.

A slight increase in elbow room also pays off in the front of the cabin, and knee room is marginally more abundant, all of which makes the Golf feel a whisker closer to the class above. And who doesn’t appreciate a bigger boot? The Golf now gets a healthy 380 litres and a usefully low load lip.

To name the most dramatic improvements in the 1.4 TSI specifically, it would have to be refinement and engine performance. Over the range as a whole, it’s likely to be the quite extravagant array of technology.

Premium downgraders need not worry. You could slide down the market ladder from an Audi A8 to a Golf and have comparable safety and infotainment tech, from multi-collision avoidance as standard, through to the optional eight-inch HD sat-nav with smartphone tethered wifi hotspot, voice command and proximity sensor that automatically raises the menu when your hand approaches the screen.

Should I buy one?

Yes. The Golf is precisely the globally appealing and useful car it needs to be. The desirability stakes have been upped, and it is generally a sharper, more complete package. It is a VW Golf, purified.

Best in class? Ford should be very worried indeed.

[Hajduk]

Autoexpress test drive http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/volkswa...wagen-golf-mk7

[2012 VW GTI]

Hi everyone are they going to offer the optional Dynamic Chassis Control in the US Spec GTI?

[Waterfan]

Nice finds. Thank you.

[John Y]

Amazing, neither article comments on whether it feels any lighter on the road than a comparable Mk6 model - especially given the level of detail in the first article.

[Hajduk]

Autocar also has their road test video out http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-video/v...7-video-review

Also, Dutch test with English subs

[randomkoreanguy]

From Autocar's official YouTube channel, their official test drive of the Golf MKVII.

[randomkoreanguy]

Another Golf review from a UK auto mag called Auto Express.



This next one is from a UK website called "Which?".



One from Autoblog.nl, which I'm guessing is in Dutch. (English subtitles available.)

[Nuieve]

http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars...lick=pm_latest

[TurboMan007]

Nice article, thanks!

[Nuieve]

2015 TDI first drive

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...di_first_drive

[Hajduk]

2015 TDI first drive

http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...di_first_drive

Their opening paragraph is hilarious.

Many big Broadway productions start with a preview run in another city to gauge audience reactions, make tweaks to the script and production, and thereby guarantee a hit with critics and audiences when it opens on the Great White Way. This is exactly how Volkswagen has always treated its biggest production, the Golf, perfecting it in Europe for at least a season before releasing it to the toughest American critics.

Yes that's right. The 500,000 Golfs VW sells in Europe are just so they can make sure the 40,000 they sell in the US per year will be perfect.

[Waterfan]

Their opening paragraph is hilarious.



Yes that's right. The 500,000 Golfs VW sells in Europe are just so they can make sure the 40,000 they sell in the US per year will be perfect.

I'm an American and even I can agree that that is indeed ridiculous. (and COMPLETELY backwards).

VW HAS to get the Golf right in EU, everything else is a distant second.

Sounds like they are trying (and failing) to make the rumored US launch delay sound like a good thing ("gotta make sure it's right before we let the Americans see it")

Retarded beyond belief.

[sp_wh]

Two more:

http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-review/...si-act-140-5dr

First drive review: Volkswagen Golf 1.4 TSI ACT 140 5dr

It's the first time we've tested the Mk7 Volkswagen Golf in the UK, and its all-round competence still shines

What is it?

This is the first time we’ve driven the latest Volkswagen Golf in the UK, having been so impressed with it when we tried it overseas.

Our UK test car was still a left-hooker, thus putting its driver on the kerb side of the road in Britain and leaving them susceptible to the worst aspects of a car’s ride.

It came with a 138bhp 1.4 TSI turbo petrol engine driving through a six-speed manual gearbox, with a cylinder-deactivation system that cuts two cylinders on a light load.

What is it like?

Impressive right away. The driving position is straight and widely adjustable, the driver’s seat comfortable and supportive, albeit that I found under-thigh support to be set too high when the seat was in its lower positions. The steering wheel is a thin-rimmed affair, pleasing but for a small flattened section, with an attractive small central boss and a slightly overloaded array of buttons for the cruise control, telephone, audio, and so on.

There are new column stalks, too, which are quite cute. And, unlike in the new Volvo V40 and others in the class, the Golf retains a set of entirely analogue instruments; they’re bold and clear, like the rest of the swtichgear. Clearly they follow Volkswagen standards for clarity and ergonomics, and are much the better for it. It’s not a particularly swooshy, inventive or exciting interior, but that’s the way Volkswagen likes it – and that’s fine by us.

Cabin materials are generally excellent. Soft-feel plastics adorn the door tops and dashboard, while even areas of harder plastic feel like they have a depth, thickness and solidity to them. There’s no low-grade brittleness anywhere. Carpets line the door pockets; there are little illuminated ambient lights in the doors. It all feels classy. You could argue that it lacks the imagination of an Audi A3 or Volvo V40, but you can’t knock what it does. And its materials are a league ahead of those used in any non-premium branded hatch.

Rear accommodation is generous for the class, which is impressive given that the Golf remains less than 4.3m long. If you were downsizing from a larger car, smaller boot aside, I think you’d be pretty pleased with the Golf’s level of spaciousness.

And to drive, it’s very...Golfy. Like before, but with some welcome extra per cent added to each aspect. The ride of our test car was generally smooth on its 225/45 R17 tyres (albeit with £795 adaptive chassis control), while wind and road noise are both well suppressed. They make the Golf a refined, capable cruiser, with pleasingly consistent and well matched pedal weights and a light, positive gearchange with only a little notch.

The turbo engine is all but inaudible most of the time, and revs smoothly to a little over 6000rpm. It isn’t a high-revver, and has a broad spread of power and torque, making peak power of 138bhp at 5000rpm and peak 184lb ft from as low as 1500rpm.

It’s clear of notable lag but, as you move from off to part-throttle, our test car had an occasional hesitation in response. It was hard to know what it was: it felt almost like a traction control system intervening for a nanosecond, but clearly wasn’t. It could have been the cylinder deactivation kicking in or out, but it’s impossible to know for sure. A small foible, but noticeable nonetheless.

The Golf steers accurately and smoothly, without the keenness of, say, a Ford Focus, and the VW exudes a feeling of dynamic solidity and stability that can’t quite be matched by an Audi A3 or the Focus. The VW feels less agile than those, but that's usually been the case with the Gol; if you want the sharpest steering or handling car in the class, that hasn’t traditionally been the VW’s remit.

However, at least this time around it does display a tenaciously keen front end and, for all that of its stability and solidity, it generates a lot of grip and is happy to involve the rear wheels (suspended by a four-link set-up on our test car) in the cornering line if you lift or trail-brake into a corner. It’s now a car, even in this cooking form, that enthusiasts will take some satisfaction from driving. And, when you combine that with its completeness elsewhere, you get a pretty compelling package.

Should I buy one?

If it isn’t on your shortlist, then it could be that you’ve got something against Volkswagens, because this is one of the standout cars of this or any other year. If the criticisms above sound nitpicky that’s because you have to be.

The Golf is so crushingly competent in all respects that you have to look hard and deep for things that are ‘less right’ (nothing is outright ‘wrong’ with it) than other elements. To our eyes, it looks good, it feels good, and in every way it is good. It’s easy and satisfying to drive, easy to see out of, comfortable to sit in and economical to run (the combined consumption figure is 60.1mpg, we comfortably exceeded 40mpg in brisk driving, and the CO2 output is 112g/km).

If you were in charge of small family cars at Vauxhall, Peugeot, Citroen, Fiat, Renault, Honda, Toyota or any one of a number of mainstream manufacturers, the Golf would give you nightmares.

There are still reasons to look to other brands: for me, a Focus with a light petrol engine is a touch more dynamically satisfying, a Volvo V40 is a pleasing proposition and an Audi A3 is satisfyingly classy. But none of them does so many things with the competence of the Golf.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/volkswa...wagen-golf-mk7

Verdict

Volkswagen has made the best even better. The latest Golf is bigger, better and faster than before, yet it’s also cleaner and more efficient. On top of that, it’s packed full of the latest safety kit and boasts one of the classiest cabins in the business. It’s going to take something very special to knock it off its place at the top of the family hatchback tree.

(...)

Any lingering disappointment will be banished the moment you climb aboard, though. First rate fit and finish, top-notch materials and a slick design mean the Golf easily beats the more expensive BMW 1 Series for upmarket appeal.

There are plenty of gadgets and gizmos to play with, too, as all models in the line-up get Bluetooth, a DAB radio and a brilliantly user-friendly 5.8-inch infotainment touchscreen.

Better still, SE and GT models get a whole host of desirable big car kit, including adaptive cruise control and a city safe collision mitigation set-up.

The VW is also wider and longer than before, so occupants in the back get slightly more head and legroom, while boot capacity swells to 380 litres.

Unfortunately for its rivals, the Golf is even better on the move. The steering is well weighted and precise, grip is strong and body control is second to none. Add the optional £795 Adaptive Chassis Control dampers and, in Comfort mode, the VW glides over bumps like an executive saloon.

[Hajduk]

Autocar and AutoExpress also had comparison tests involving the Golf in their latest issues. The results were:

Autocar
1.Golf
2.Focus
3.A3
4.V40

Auto Express
1.Golf
2.Focus
3.1-series

In the Autocar test, the Golf was a 1.4 TSI and the Focus a 1L Ecoboost. Interestingly, despite having much more power (and being 3-sec quicker to 60) the 1.4 TSI also has a better economy rating than the 1.0 Ecoboost.

[sp_wh]

The new Golf VII in comparisons with premiums and non-premiums:

Autozeitung:

1 VW Golf 2.0 TDI
2 Audi A3 2.0 TDI
3 Mercedes A 200 CDI
4 Volvo V40 D3
5 Skoda Octavia 2.0 TDI
6 Ford Focus 2.0 TDCi
7(=) BMW 118d
7(=) Kia cee’d 1.6 CRDi
9 Renault Mégane dCi 130 eco²
10 Honda Civic 2.2 i-DTEC
11 Hyundai i30 1.6 CRDi
12 Opel Astra 2.0 CDTi
13 Mazda 3 2.2 CD

Autobild - "The old king is also the new":

[sp_wh]

"The new Golf VII had a perfect start and wins, but with the A3 Sportback costing only 900 euros more than the three-door version, it is likely to be not only a challenge to the clear dominance of the group brother Golf, but also the premium competition from BMW and Mercedes."



Some interior shots...

[Aonarch]

I can't wait!

[patvan]

Here's the video review from Carbuyer



It's the first time I've seen non-climatronic on a MKVII (visible at 1m12s), and the MKVII keeps the underseat drawer.