This is the new golf GTI and Volkswagen have made it not only faster than before but more
economical too.
But if you want performance and economy, is there a better bet?
The Golf GTD.
It costs £25,285 which is around £500 less than the GTI.
It has a 2.0-litre diesel engine, with 181bhp and 380Nm of torque.
Yet despite this performance VW have said it will return a remarkable 67.3mph and emits
just 109g/km of CO2.
The GTI on the other hand has a 2.0-litre petrol engine, with 217bhp which is 36 more
than the GTD.
However, it's 350Nm torque output is 30 less.
It also returns over 20mpg less at the pumps with a figure of 47.1 and emits 30g/km more
of CO2.
VW claim the GTI goes from 0-62mph in 6.4 seconds.
Which is about a second faster than our equivalent GTD.
So what happens over a longer distance?
Well that was even more decisive than I thought it was going to be.
The GTI took 6.9 seconds to get to 60 the GTD needed 7.9 was doing 123mph the poor old
GTD was trailing at 11mph.
Ok, so the GTD lost out in the drag race, but it did win in one crucial area, mpg.
Over the course of the kilometre it returned 12.4mpg whereas
the thirsty old GTI could only manage 6.9.
On the road, in many respects, the GTI is practically perfect.
There's tonnes of grip, the steering is beautifully weighted and it's got naturally feedback.
posited, agile.
but it's just not that much fun.
The Megane RS is much more engaging, and that's the same with the GTD.
The biggest difference between the GTI and GTD is the engine.
There's not much different in outright performance, but it's the delivery.
With the Golf GTI there's that urgency to
the delivery, and lots of top end power, whereas the GTD is
a bit gravely and diesely.
So which Golf delivers the best blend of performance and economy?
Well, for ultimate mpg the GTD is hard to beat, and better still it's cheaper than the
GTI.
But the GTI is hardly uneconomical, and for me, the extra top end performance and handling
make it the winner in this test.