Volkswagen Golf R: WarrioR

30 October 2018 Redazione News, Tested

VOLKSWAGEN GOLF R

THE WARRIOR

Words by Andrea Balti

Photos by Andy Williams

It has reached its seventh generation, with a series of successes that saw it motorize legions of drivers, regardless of the needs or characteristics they were looking for in this seemingly simple car. It’s the Golf, which has recently undergone the mid-life update and still knows what it takes to be in the breach of the wave and a model after the other (perhaps leaving out the third series) has been able to update a recipe that sees it as absolute protagonist in the hatchback segment. We are not talking about a simple character, but the character to beat, the one towards which everyone should look at, especially when the practical side of the little German goes to join the performance of its sportier versions, the GTI and the R.

This is the new Golf R, also known as Mk7.5, by virtue of small but important upgrades that presents compared to the pre-restyling version. The one thing that does not change and that is maintained is the basic recipe, that of a medium size compact with five seats and five (or three) doors and a 2 liter turbo that reaches 310 horses, remaining a step ahead of the step-sister Leon Cupra 300 – not by chance. If the look of the Golf R is distinguishable thanks to small details such as the R badge on the front grille, completely black except for the chrome blade, black brake calipers, 18-inch wheels as standard and two couples of pipes at the back, enshrine that this is not a simple R-Line version. All in all too sober, the Golf R does not want to scream the world how fierce and effective it is, certainly not like the R32, but we are still talking about a car that will be used in everyday life and not everyone wants to attract too many eyes, especially when you choose to leave the gearbox in automatic mode and the chassis in Comfort.

The gearbox, the very fast DSG, is a double-clutch 7-speed governable even through the paddle mounted behind the steering wheel. Although VW provides the ability to save a few Euros and spec your R with a manual transmission (6-speed), the option of the automatic seems to be the preferred choice for those who do not care to add a handful extra pounds on the scale. Adding weight compared to the less powerful but equally satisfying GTI, there is also the fact that the R is equipped with four-wheel drive, a transmission system all in all simple, but that ultimately scores a total mass of 1505kg. In addition there is everything that is appropriate to a model loved by young people and not so young ones, including an updated infotainment system, precise and intuitive satellite navigator and maximum connectivity with your devices.

If Bluetooth and Android Auto have never took my sleep, I admit that the new 12.3-inch digital display placed in front of the driver is really a gem, but what I was curious to see sits under the hood, a 2-Liter TSI with 4 cylinders delivering 310 horses and 400Nm of torque, enough for allowing you to cruise on anything but rational paces. The impeccable seats and the incredibly vivid feedback of the steering accentuate the man-machine relationship that transforms a simple day of driving into something more intimate. You just have to access the screen from which you can select your favorite driving mode and engage Race mode thus making the Golf R’s behavior just the way you want it. The gearbox gets faster and the way you enter through corners becomes more sudden, even if I would not call it nervous and this says a lot about the car. I find myself immersed in a succession of bends that I know pretty well, but that I rarely faced with so much ease, at least at speeds like these. The brakes feature 340mm discs at the front and 310mm at the rear and represent another aspect that facilitates a sporty driving even inciting to delay the next braking, where a simple ballet between hands and feet allows you to fit in the hairpin turn without even realize that probably you’ve overtaken your very limit a few meters before.

With a top speed of 250 kph and the ability to start from standstill and reach 100 per hour in just 4.7 seconds, the Golf R is by far one of the most performing hot hatches available today. These numbers are able to combine the almost perfect care in the assembly of an interior with simple but still modern lines. Where the road allowed it I was able to see that pushing as much as possible, the behavior of the car is still neutral, without annoying understeer and without forcing me to raise the foot more than necessary. It’s really hard to find defects and it’s here that I really have to talk you about how it sounds. You know, a performance car’s sound is the best entertainment amplifier for a petrolhead and the quad exhaust at the back, regardless of whether they are artificially “helped” inside the cockpit, are not equipped with the voice this blue bullet that deserves and removed some mutterings once reached the red line, it does nothing to instigate the inner outlaw in you.

When the road becomes narrower and forces me to more agitated actions, I notice once again how much the weight balance is exceptional and how much the 400Nm of torque comes into play after an almost imperceptible fraction of a second, useful for reaching 1,850 revs. At that point, a little ‘how to operate a switch, the thrust is progressive and constant and you are pressed on the sports seats finished in Alcantara, but without ever feeling the urge to throw your hands on the steering wheel, which remains the undeterred pin that transmits what is happening below.

Once again VW has a point, the Golf R remains at the top of the food chain of one of the most loved and desired cars in the world, strong of a very solid combination of usability, precision and dynamism. The price, at least € 12,000 higher than that of the GTI that offers just as much fun but only front-wheel drive, is certainly not a friend of all wallets and approaches the € 50,000 with extreme ease if you get carried away by the options list. Choosing one of the two models (GTI or R) is not as easy as it seems and we must not think that the doubt has its solution only for budget reasons, because behind the wheel these are two really different cars. If the GTI highlights a lower weight and an apparently better agility, the R is made of a grip that knows no limits and a more substantial progression, not to mention that the four-wheel drive makes it sharper and safer on slippery grounds. In this case, I realize that the most fearful opponent of the Golf R are not the Focus RS or the Civic Type-R, but it really has to keep an eye on its younger sister GTI, able to offer 90% of the same feelings at a better price.