The prodigal returns
The ultimate all-round hot hatch is back. We were the first to step behind the wheel in South Africa
GTI. Often repeated, never forgotten. Three simple letters that carry huge significance when uttered in the same breath as Volkswagen Golf. In case you’ve been living under a rock since 1976 or weren’t born until the noughties, the acronym stands for Gran Tourer Injection. When tagged to the bodywork of an as-yet-unseen Golf 8 locally, it is, well, cause for outright pandemonium. This is why our exclusive drive of the new Golf GTI, months ahead of the South
African launch, was such a clandestine affair. To keep the King’s Red specimen away from prying eyes and camera phones before the official launch, VW staff chose to move it under cover of darkness. We first set eyes upon it, holed up in an underground hotel car park in downtown Gqeberha.
Forget the pictures you’ve been poring over online for months, patiently waiting for the Mk VIII to reach South Africa, once you clock it in the metal the new GTI is absolutely stunning: smooth, taut bodywork contrasted by deep, aggressive bumpers fore and aft. Most characteristic is the full-length light bar courtesy of the (optional) IQ Light package deftly connecting new slimline LED Matrix headlamps, accompanied by honeycombinspired fog lights. At the back, things are more conventional, bar two fat, fruity exhaust tips and fresh LED taillights with animated indicators. 18-inch alloys come standard but we’d recommend the upsized 19-inch Adelaide rims for enhanced stance. Genuinely, we couldn’t take our eyes off it and fully appreciate why it had to be moved so stealthily to our rendezvous point. It’s a stunner.
The mere act of approaching the vehicle activates the IQ Lights and brings the GTI to life. Climbing in is akin to getting reacquainted with an old friend … one who’s been on a bounteous self-improvement programme. As you slide behind the steering wheel, everything is familiar and
yet, it’s clear the cabin itself has undergone a thoroughly digital overhaul. The seats are inch perfect: supportive, comfortable but not over the top. Minimal adjustment to the driving position and you are instantly comfortable. It is a fast-golf strength, this “intuitive usability” as Wolfsburg engineers call it. As effortless as it all seems, it takes thousands of man-hours to get right.
This is a GTI for the modern, touchscreen-savvy generation and one that’s much less reliant on tartan-patterned seats, golf-ball gear knobs and traditional GTI charm. Everything has a sporty black and red motif, there’s a subtle nod to heritage with the honeycomb pattern on the door and dash inserts but it’s elegant and minimalist. Dual screens are connected by gloss black plastic on the dashboard. Hard controls marked Light, Mode, Climate, Parking and Assistance are clustered together on the facia, as if banished from the touchscreen for their old-school ways and there’s haptic feedback to the steering wheel buttons which we’ll explore in a bit more detail later on.
Photographer Peet wanted to shoot at the city’s famous Cape Recife Lighthouse before it got late and we ran the risk of being engulfed by the iphone paparazzi. Even though it was only a few kilometres down the road, with the sun starting to paint the sky with colour, we were already drawing too much attention. For the next few hours, we knew we would have to keep moving, in the words of Funkadelic, we’d have “to hit and quit” each photo spot before Gqeberha’s car spotters cottoned on to what was happening.
Thankfully, moving quickly and effortlessly comes easy in the new Golf GTI. Its genius is there’s no need to alter or finesse your technique: a GTI always shines off the bat from rev one. A small, stubby gear shifter is straight out of the Porsche 911 parts bin and on closer inspection, its size might suggest this digital-first GTI has changed priorities … as if shifting gear has become of secondary importance.
Not a bit of it; with 180 kw and 370 N.m from the revered EA888 2,0-litre turbopetrol driving the front wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, it delivers a zero to 100 km/h sprint in a claimed 6,40 seconds and a top speed of 250 km/h … chapter and verse from the Golf GTI bible.
True to type, standing starts are compromised by the front tyres spinning up on anything other than a perfectly dry, warm road. A flurry of whinnying Hankook rubber is calmed by a short shift to second gear to maintain forward progress and better access the torque-rich turbo motor. It’s not tidy off the line but it is more engaging than just mashing the throttle pedal and catapulting to 100 km/h. It requires precise management of the power and traction.
Likewise, the GTI’S firmer suspension is instantly recognisable. At first, it is at odds with the package; as in, it’s enough to come up in conversation with your passenger. Spend time playing with the optional Adaptive Chassis Control,