Category: Hot Hatchbacks 
Price Range: £23,015 to £23,600
Refined, civilised and sophisticated, yet still sporting; containable running costs.
Too cosseting and not raw-edged enough for some.
This grown-up GTI is a consummate all-rounder.
VW's reputations has slipped since the ads told us: 'If only everything in life was as reliable as a Volkswagen'. It managed an average 13th in last year's JD Power survey, and the Golf itself 30th out of 100.
The Mk5 has been much better than the Mk4, however, and this re-engineered Mk6 does look more like a return to traditional form. Certainly the cabin of this GTI is well-finished, with excellent-quality plastics and trim, and an attention to detail worthy of a luxury car twice the GTI's price. The only blip we noted was a faulty sat nav in one of the cars tested.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Volkswagen Golf GTI
wrote on 04 02 2008
wrote on 19 09 2007