Volkswagen Golf

Perhaps not the fleet favourite pick, but the TSI R-line Golf 8 might well win over some hearts, minds and chequebooks regardless, just as its first generation forebear did back in 1974.

Of course, back in ’74, the only Volkswagen of note was the Beetle – at least in terms of passenger cars – and when the first Golf broke cover, the newcomer was pretty radical.

Seven generations later with electric cars from the factory due soon, the Golf 8 picks up the mantle of its ancestor and is – according to Volkswagen – going to pass it on to Golf 9, eventually.

For now, the Golf 8 is considerably more organic than its forebear in appearance, very much in keeping with a car of the 21st century.

Despite this however, there is a connection between the OG Golf and the Golf 8, both physically and – for Volkswagen – spiritually.

Fiscally, the Golf 8 is breaking new ground, especially with the entry level ‘Life’ spec’ and pricing. The R-line does ramp it up with it’s $10k premium over the

Life being a tough pill to swallow.

Not that there isn’t $10k’s worth of value in the R-line spec’, a good example being the upgrade from 8” to 10” infotainment screen, allowing for sat nav, voice control and wireless app connectivity.

Under the body packaging, there are other significant upgrades in the form of progressive steering and a sports suspension set-up.

These can be adjusted with the Drive Select function, allowing for ‘sportier performance’ in terms of handling, engine and transmission response.

Two other ‘sporty’ features the R-line has over the Life, are the heads up display and the side bolstered sports seats, which might lead you to think you have a seriously hot hatch on your hands.

The R-line is – by and large – cosmetically sporty, with the same drivetrain as its entrypriced twin.

So, the sporty nature of the R-line is best regarded as something of a bonus. Performance is not the be all and end all, it is technology which is the most significant consideration for this generation.

This is most obvious in the cabin, which has gone all-digital – well almost. Here, there are a few actual buttons, but they are very small and very much the secondary consideration.

Air conditioning adjustment is primarily via touch sliders as is the sound system, with the ubiquitous steering wheel controls also provided for the audio.

Voice control is obviously the better way to go if you don’t want to put fingerprints all over the screens and their polished black surrounds, but there are times when you might just have to.

When you do, you’ll find the buttons are haptic in their actions, which means you

‘feel’ a button sensation when you use them.

It’s all very “Buck Rogers” with two large and driver-centric screens replacing the conventional dashboard accoutrements and giving a very techy – or is that a very Star Trekkie – cabin.

The 25th century minimalism is reinforced with the apparent lack of a gear shift… oh, wait, there it is: that teeny tiny little lever which looks more like an electro-mechanical parking brake switch.

Life and R-line Golfs don’t come with the much lauded seven-speed DSG transmissions, but rather use conventional eight-speed automatic transmissions. An interesting departure for the brand.

The ‘dumbed down’ transmissions are due to (Australasia’s) outdated emissions considerations. Apparently, we’re not allowed to have hi-tech toys until we grow up in our emissions commitments.

Well, that’s as maybe, but the joke’s on the Germans: the eight-speed auto is a welcome change which improves the quality of the drive overall, smoothing it out considerably and making it much more pleasant for regular road going duty.

If you can convince the financial powersthat-be that an R-line fleet is well worth the $10k premium, you’ll be fulfilling your duty of care to your drivers too.

The R-line Golf 8 introduces a new Advanced Driver Assist Safety (ADAS) gadget, in the form of Travel Assist. This system is a driver activated one.

It handles steering, braking and acceleration in a semi-autonomous fashion using the adaptive cruise control and lane keeping assist functions to enhance road guidance safety.

The driver’s hands must remain on the wheel, but the car effectively does the driving unless told otherwise. Not ‘hands free’ driving then; but getting there, and very useful for long distance trips.