Connectivity name of the game
EIGHTH GENERATION: GOLF WILL BE PERMANENTLY CONNECTED TO INTERNET FOR FIRST TIME
TSI, GTI and R derivatives set to make their way to SA from 2020.
After a series of teaser images, leaked specification details and pictures, plus numerous preproduction and postproduction online spy shots, Volkswagen officially unveiled the eighth generation Golf at a gala premiere in Wolfsburg last week.
The Mk VIII is the first fully connected Golf, being permanently coupled to the internet, thanks to car-to-X technology.
It boasts measurements of 4 284mm in overall length with a wheelbase of 2 636mm, height of 1 456mm and width of 1 789mm.
Despite being narrower and taller than the outgoing Mk 7.5, the Mk VIII is longer by 16mm in wheelbase and 26mm longer overall, with the Klaus Bischoff-penned lines confirming spy images leaked mere hours before the launch in showing a sleeker front fascia highlighted by slimmer LED headlights, a thinner grille complete with the new corporate logo, tapering bonnet, a wider lower air intake and at the rear, new tail light clusters and a restyled bumper.
As before, an R-Line styling pack will be available consisting out of a model-specific body kit, R-Line badging, up to 17-inch alloy wheels and a selection of unique interior trim pieces.
Volkswagen reserved the biggest changes for the inside where buyers will have the option of a new Head-Up Display, interior ambient lighting and a complete range of new safety and driver assistance systems.
The three-cylinder 1.0 TSI will have an output of 66kW or 81kW, while the 1.5 TSI Evo will produce 110kW or 96kW in the case of the natural-gas TGI.
On the diesel front, the 2.0 TDI is newly developed and uses twinscroll SCR catalytic converters to reduce NOx levels by 80% and, according to Volkswagen, improve consumption by 17%. Like the 1.0 TSI, the TDI will come in two outputs; 85kW or 110kW.
The new mild hybrid eTSI offers the same displacement as the regular TSI with the outputs being similar at 81kW for the 1.0 eTSI and 96kW or 110kW for the 1.5 eTSI.
Volkswagen has confirmed that the GTI will make its debut next year, powered by the new EA888 2.0 TSI motor that will allegedly produce 180kW, while the R, which is set to receive the same four-pot but with an alleged output of 298kW, will arrive in 2021.
The Mk VIII will have a sixspeed manual gearbox or a seven-speed DSG, now activated by a toggle switch as opposed to a traditional gear lever.
On some models, it will be offered with 4Motion four-wheeldrive, while the DSG will be sole option for the eTSI.
Going on sale in Europe in December, the Golf has been confirmed for South Africa but only next year with the exact date still to be confirmed. What has been revealed though is the engine options; a retuned version of the Mk 7.5’s 1.4 TSI that will produce 110kW, the GTI and the R.
Volkswagen South Africa has also confirmed that a manual gearbox won’t be offered and that all derivatives will be fitted stwith the DSG.
Expect more details and pricing to be revealed only at the official launch next year.