New Volkswagen Golf on sale later this week
Volkswagen’s heavily revised Golf arrives on sale later this week, complete with a new longer-range plug-in hybrid and a next-gen infotainment system with ChatGPT.
Debuting 50 years after the original model, it’s priced from £27,035 for the hatchback and £28,400 for the estate.
Sales open on 11 April for the Life, Match and Style trims for the hatch and Life and Style trims for the estate.
Engine and transmission choices for the first wave include 115hp and 150hp 1.5-litre TSI petrol manuals, also available as mild hybrids with automatic direct-shift gearbox (DSG).
Golf R-Line models will be available to order from 25 April, adding in sporty styling and additional features, such as 17-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights, leather-wrapped and heated multi-function sports steering wheel, 12.9-inch infotainment display, a rear-view camera, adaptive cruise control and Lane Assist.
R-Line models come solely with the higher-powered petrol and mild hybrid petrol and are priced from £30,285 for the hatch and £31,650 for the estate.
The eHybrid PHEV models and higher-performance GTI and GTE versions arrive in the summer. The plug-in hybrid uses a new-gen powertrain that delivers more power along with a big bump up in electric range, which now stands at about 62 miles, with a total range of about 620 miles. It’s also equipped with a 50kW DC quick-charging function and has official CO2 emissions of 27-28g/km, putting it in the 8% Benefit-in-Kind bracket for 2024/25.
Latest features on the rebooted Golf include newly designed LED headlights, including the optional high-performance IQ. LIGHT matrix headlights – first seen on the range-topping Touareg.
The ‘Mk8.5’ model also gets a new infotainment system with a free-standing touchscreen up to 12.9 inches, featuring a fast processor and intuitive operation, plus illuminated touch sliders on the back of customer feedback.
Also new are the enhanced multi-function steering wheel – complete with physical buttons – and the ChatGPT-enabled IDA voice assistant. The latter, showcased at this year’s CES event in Vegas and also rolling out to other VW models and group brands, will be able to “seamlessly access the ever-growing database of artificial intelligence”. Occupants can interact with the car using natural language and have researched content read aloud to them while travelling.
Latest assist systems include the enhanced Park Assist Plus and Park Assist Pro, which will be available for the first time for the Golf and enable driving in and out of parking spaces using a smartphone. A 360-degree Area View is also new.
The first series-produced Golf, the successor to the Beetle, was built at the Volkswagen plant in Wolfsburg, Germany, at the end of March 197 and has sold more than 37 million units over eight generations.
The Mk8.5 Golf will be the last combustion engine version of the family car and the updates are expected to tide it over until the end of this decade, when it will be replaced by the electric Mk9 Golf.
“This latest evolution of the Golf going on sale here in the UK marks an exciting moment in the history of our brand,” said Rod McLeod, director of Volkswagen UK. “The world has changed a lot over the past 50 years, and this latest model showcases everything that today’s motorists want: style, dynamic driving, ground-breaking technology, intuitive controls, excitement and efficiency.
“The Golf story is remarkable, and that is set to continue with this latest version and with future models as Volkswagen evolves as a provider of e-mobility.”
Natalie Middleton
Natalie has worked as a fleet journalist for over 20 years, previously as assistant editor on the former Company Car magazine before joining Fleet World in 2006. Prior to this, she worked on a range of B2B titles, including Insurance Age and Insurance Day.
Leave a comment