NEW TECH TO SEAL THE DEAL
Two decades ago, when the Mk4 Golf and new Ford Focus were duking it out for class honours, cabin quality and driving dynamics were the key battlegrounds. Today it’s all about the tech, and this is the kit VW thinks will help persuade buyers to go for a Golf rather than one of the many increasingly tempting alternatives.
Generous standard kit
LED headlights and tail lamps, keyless start, digital instruments and that big 10.25-inch screen feature across the range as standard in UK-specification cars. One bit of Golf Mk8 kit available in Germany from launch but not in the UK is Mobile Key, which, as the name suggests, allows you to use your smartphone as a key.
Personalisation
Drivers can store their preferred seating, climate control, media preferences, and lighting and mirror settings in the cloud, and then retrieve them using the Mobile Key so the car is already configured for you, even if you get in after someone else has been driving. But not in the UK. Bah!
Connectivity
Brits might be denied Mobile Key, but here comes the sweetener: We
Connect Plus is offered as standard for three years in the UK, compared with just one in Germany. It provides information about charging and parking and can remotely control the central locking and heating. Some owners will even be able to receive deliveries in their car through We Deliver, by passing a digital key to a firm’s delivery driver – though again, UK buyers will be denied this feature.
Safety
‘Safety is hugely important to our buyers,’ stresses product marketing manager Nicole Hempe. Lane-keeping assist, front-assist automatic braking and a new junction assist all feature, but one of the biggest arrivals is Car2X networked driving, which uses communications from other vehicles and trac infrastructure to warn the driver of upcoming hazards. Not that there’ll be many other drivers to share information, at least initially.
Upgradability
Optional kit includes a head-up display, Harman Kardon hi-fi and LED Matrix headlights, the latter selectively dimming full-beam to illuminate the road without dazzling other drivers.
But what if you forgot to order a must-have gadget, only to realise you can’t live without it six months down the line, or you bought the car secondhand and the spec isn’t quite as you’d hoped? Volkswagen’s We Upgrade scheme will enable owners to retrospectively activate installed but dormant features like ACC adaptive cruise control and navigation. What, you mean it was there all along?
Owners will be able to retrospectively activate dormant features, like navigation