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.
No need to grit your teeth: despite its lowered suspension , the Golf GTI is smooth-riding and quiet. The ride is obviously firm, but free of jolts and jars, and even on the 18" and 19" wheels it remains refined. The excellent sports seats are supportive in all the right places, including under-thigh, and long-distance missions should be entirely manageable.
All the expected niceties are present and correct, including dual-zone climate control, an MP3-compatible CD/radio, cupholders, armrests, storage holes and heated front seats.
The standard cloth trim gives attractive checked seat inserts - a nod to the original MK1 GTI's, though looking utterly contemporary as well - though leather upholstery is optional along with touch-screen sat nav, various audio upgrades, digital radio, cruise control, Park Pilot parking assistance (sizing up a space and automatically turning the steering wheel to guide the driver in), rear-view cameras, tinted rear windows and electric rear windows in the five-door.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Volkswagen Golf GTI
wrote on 04 02 2008
wrote on 19 09 2007