Road Test: 2015 Volkswagen Golf 1.8 TSI Comfortline
Story and photo by John LeBlanc
The Volkswagen Golf is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. So the timing of the all-new, seventh-generation models seems appropriate.
Throughout its history, the Golf has been the Volkswagen brand’s bullhorn as the cost-effective choice for those customers looking for a German-engineered car who don’t want to pay Audi, BMW or Mercedes-Benz money. And that reputation has been well deserved, as recent Golfs have been built exclusively at VW’s home factory in Wolfsburg, Germany.
But to ward against international currency fluctuations (and make an all-out effort to build sales in North America), Canadian- and U.S-bound 2015 Golf two- and four-door hatchbacks are being assembled alongside VW Jetta sedans and Beetle coupe and convertibles in the German automaker’s Mexican plant. Which raises the question: has the new, Mexican-made 2015 Golf lost any of its Teutonic touches?
Even with added kit like heated seats and air conditioning, VW has managed to shave off about $1,000 from the 2015 Golf’s base prices compared to last year’s models. Two-door Golf hatchbacks start at $20,390 (all prices include freight and pre-delivery inspection fees). If you want two more doors, such as my 2015 Golf 5-Door, you’ll have to pay an extra $1,000.
As mentioned, base equipment is generous. Witness my $25,985 Golf 5-Door 1.8 TSI Comfortline tester. It came with such niceties as cruise control and a rearview camera, plus an optional $1,695 Convenience Package that added automatic headlamps, dimming rearview mirror, rain-sensing front wipers, panorama sunroof and dual-zone automatic climate control.
If you’re looking for the latest in German engineering, don’t let the 2015 Golf’s conservative exterior redesign fool you. Underneath, the new Golf is a technical pioneer. Along with the new-this-year 2015 Audi A3 Sedan, the VW compact is one of the first vehicles hatched from the German automaker’s new global platform. Dubbed Modular Transverse Matrix (MTM), the flexible architecture can be tailored to fit every one of the Volkswagen Group’s 60-odd transversely mounted engine cars, from the micro Up! to the macro Passat.
The biggest benefit to customers of the MTM architecture is a roomier-but-lighter Golf. Get a tape measure out, and you’ll find the 2015 Golf’s front legroom has increased by 20 millimetres and rear legroom by 15 mm. A bit of extra width means shoulder and elbowroom have been bumped by 30 mm and 20 mm, respectively, too.
And while I thought the outgoing Golf set the class standard for interior fit and finish, the new model takes it up a notch — if only the mid-size VW Passat felt this luxurious. And in addition to crystal-clear driver instrumentation, the Golf’s centre dash is now angled toward the driver, with a new iPad-quality infotainment touchscreen.
Although the Golf is slightly longer and roomier inside, it weighs roughly 100 kilograms lighter — an important quality given ever-tightening government fuel economy standards. It allows the base engine in the Golf to be shrunken from last year’s 2.5-litre five-cylinder gas engine to this year’s 1.8 L turbocharged four (the other Golf mill is the 2.0 L TDI turbo-diesel).
Compared to the five-cylinder’s 170 horsepower and 177 pound-foot of torque numbers, the smaller turbo-four matches it in the horsepower department but betters it by eight lb.-ft. Better still for day-to-day driving, the new 1.8 TSI’s maximum torque can be had as low as 1,600 revolutions per minute, compared to the old 2.5i’s 4,250 rpm rating. Power from the 1.8 TSI is delivered in a linear fashion and is super-smooth at higher revs. My only beef in the powertrain is a request for a taller, sixth gear in the five-speed manual gearbox to gain an extra ratio around town. (A $1,400 six-speed automatic gearbox is optional.)
It’s no surprise, then, that the new Golf 1.8 TSI beats the old Golf 2.5 at the gas pumps. During my week in the 2015 Golf, I saw a real-world 6.2 litres per 100 kilometres average, a big improvement over the five-cylinder’s 9.9 L/100 km city and 6.2 highway numbers.
So the new 2015 Golf seems like a more practical small hatchback. Hooray for that. But keen drivers will want to know if the new Golf drives, well, like a “German” car. And I’m happy to report that’s a big, “Ja!”
Despite not wearing a GTI badge, the Golf 1.8 TSI is so composed on the move it eggs the driver on. I often found myself speeding along at a rate that was 20 km/h or more than I would normally drive, mainly due to the Golf’s high level of refinement. Nothing rattles or squeaks in the Mexican-made VW’s finely finished cabin, where it’s eerily quiet for a car of this class. When driven harder, the resolutely stable VW hatch goes where it’s pointed accurately and with little or no fuss in the corners. And while GTI drivers will say the cooking Golf’s steering is too light, it’s very precise and quick at turn-in.
Compared to when the first Golf arrived in 1974, Canadians are awash in European-inspired small hatchbacks. And while cars like today’s Ford Focus, Kia Forte5 and Mazda3 have been chasing the VW rival for decades, it’s hard not to be impressed with the original in its latest form.
Based on its fun-yet-frugal powertrain, roomy-but-light chassis, premium cabin and overall high levels of driving enjoyment, the 2015 Volkswagen Golf 1.8 TSI is once again the European hatch rivals have to catch.