VOLKSWAGEN GOLF GTI Mk1

1976-’83: nail-biting brakes for RHD drivers Although Autobianchi and Simca can rightly claim to have pioneered the hot hatch, VW perfected the breed when it revealed its Golf GTI at the 1975 Frankfurt IAA. Brits had to wait until 1977 before they could get their hands on one, and then only to special order with left-hand drive and an eye-watering price tag. Despite its favourable UK reception, no factory-built RHD models were offered until ’79. To add insult to injury, when the hot Golf finally arrived, right-hookers had a tortuous linkage between the brake pedal and servo, depriving the driver of the confidence and feel that LHD GTI motorists enjoyed with their direct connection. This situation was compounded with time as linkages and bushes loosened and perished, making hard braking a nerve-racking affair. Anorak fact By the time that the MKII replaced the MKI in 1984, a quarter of all Golfs sold in the UK were GTIS, with almost 20,000 examples sold: 5000 in ’81 alone