2015 Volkswagen Golf R: The Hot (and Refined) Hatchback
On this episode of Ignition
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00:00 This might look like your standard Volkswagen GTI, and that's because it is.
00:06 Now, this is a Volkswagen Golf R. Past the badges, the differences are hard to spot.
00:13 Volkswagen seems to enjoy subtlety.
00:16 But you might be surprised to hear that this car commands a premium of over $10,000 above
00:21 a base GTI.
00:23 Why's that?
00:24 It's what's underneath.
00:25 [MUSIC]
00:35 Visual changes on the Golf R are very subtle.
00:47 You have new headlights, you have different bumpers front and rear.
00:50 The front bumpers have bigger air inlets to let you know you're sucking in more air,
00:53 because you're going to make more power and torque.
00:55 You have different wheels.
00:57 The Golf R comes standard with 18-inch wheels, but this particular model, we're on the upgraded
01:01 19-inch wheels.
01:03 Behind that, we have the GTI Performance Pack brakes.
01:07 They're larger in diameter.
01:08 And behind that, this particular Golf R has adjustable dampers that the driver can control.
01:13 They go from comfort to normal to sport, depending on what you're looking for the car to do.
01:17 Now, there's two big changes that you should know about for the Golf R.
01:20 The first is, of course, engine output.
01:23 This car makes 292 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque through a new head, new internal
01:28 components, a new turbocharger.
01:30 It's making more power higher up in the rev band.
01:33 Now, it does weigh a bit more because of the second thing you should know, and that is
01:37 the fact that this is all-wheel drive.
01:39 You have a Haldex center differential that can selectively send torque front to rear,
01:45 depending on your traction situation up front.
01:47 And it can also disengage completely under low throttle or low speeds for fuel economy.
01:52 The car can also use its brakes selectively to help limit wheel spin or help the car turn
01:57 around.
01:58 But it also has four exhaust tips.
02:01 Yeah, four exhaust tips.
02:03 But the biggest thing we're most interested in finding out is how it works with the stability
02:07 control completely off.
02:09 For the first time in the Golf R, you can finally defeat stability control.
02:13 And we'll be real eager to find out how that works on the test track.
02:16 [MUSIC PLAYING]
02:27 With all-wheel drive, the Golf R is much faster than the GTI, shaving nearly a second and
02:32 a half off its 60 mile an hour time and its quarter mile.
02:38 The Golf R hits 60 in 4.5 seconds.
02:41 And it passed the quarter mile in 13.1 seconds at 104.9 miles an hour.
02:49 The extra horsepower made the Golf R slightly faster around the figure eight, posting a
02:54 best lap of 24.9 seconds.
02:58 [MUSIC PLAYING]
03:07 We've had an interesting relationship with the Golf R through the ages.
03:12 We've been quite hard on it for not having defeatable stability control.
03:18 And now it finally does.
03:20 Let's talk about what that gives you.
03:27 When you have stability control off, it doesn't reveal any sort of magical limits past what
03:33 the Golf R could do with the stability control on.
03:35 What that stability control would do on the track is it would intervene so early and ruin
03:43 the experience.
03:44 The stability control in this car, not only is it defeatable, it's far less invasive as
03:50 a whole.
03:57 So with that done, with that over, we can finally enjoy the car as it was meant to be
04:03 driven.
04:07 And you can imagine it was meant to be driven very hard.
04:10 This is a Golf R. And R is the letter you associate with things that are sporty or racing
04:16 or fun to drive.
04:24 The word I want to associate with this car over the GTI is premium.
04:28 This is a GTI plus.
04:29 The question, of course, for most people, is this car worth the extra $10,000 over a
04:35 GTI or a little bit over $10,000 over a base GTI?
04:39 And I think for most people, the answer is no.
04:42 Because you're probably not going to appreciate the differences.
04:46 I think this car is only really going to satisfy the Volkswagen diehards who really appreciate
04:52 the stuff you're getting in this machine and the experience you're getting in this machine.
05:02 We are, of course, using the DSG.
05:04 A manual is an option, but it won't be available until next year.
05:08 This is what we had available to us now.
05:10 And that's OK, because the DSG is a good transmission.
05:18 I'm actually most impressed with the overall balance of the car.
05:23 And I'm pretty impressed with the balance of the GTI, too.
05:26 This is a very confidence-inspiring, stable, well-balanced machine.
05:32 It's able to dig out of corners pretty quickly without much fuss.
05:36 And it delivers some pretty strong speed in the process.
05:41 The thing feels really controlled and just nicely balanced, again, with not a lot of
05:46 either over- or understeer.
05:48 It just sort of digs out of corners and drives in a very controllable, balanced way, which
05:54 is ultimately, I think, what you want out of a hot hatch.
05:58 You've got to admire Volkswagen for their tenacity at building this car.
06:06 They obviously really want to make the Golf R to be a high-power, all-wheel-drive, stable,
06:12 nice GT-almost machine.
06:14 And it seems that they've done that here.
06:16 This is probably the best Golf R yet.
06:20 I mean, it doesn't have the wonderful sounds of that VR6 R32.
06:31 But in terms of balance and body control and, again, that premium sensation, this is tough
06:38 to beat.
06:38 So the question is whether the Golf R is worth the money.
06:53 If you're looking at it from the perspective of a GTI, I suspect the answer for many is
06:58 a likely no.
07:00 But from the vantage of an Audi S3 or a BMW M235i, the Golf R gains some serious appeal,
07:06 sharing the combination of performance and refinement you'd expect of those cars at a
07:10 lesser price.
07:11 The Golf R has a nice balance, then.
07:14 It's able to satisfy a similar driving itch as the WRX STI.
07:19 It also offers a comfort and functionality to make it an extremely competent commuter
07:24 car.
07:25 I mean, this basically is an S3.
07:30 Really?
07:31 Yeah.
07:32 I think it's the same engine.
07:33 I'm not sure if the platform's identical, but it's close enough.
07:38 And this is just cheaper.
07:39 I think that's the thing.
07:41 Because this does just-- I mean, that's essentially what it is, just a well-sorted Audi.
07:47 It's a nice car.
07:48 Like, this is-- I think of this, and I'm like, eh, I'd love my 328d, and this would be like
07:53 a nice analog of the 328d.
07:56 It's just a solid, fun little runabout.