"The first Volkswagen Golf GTI, the origin of the species, was, and still is, a little bullet of fun," says Erin Baker in The Daily Telegraph. Can the latest generation, the MkVI, live up to the standards set by the 1981 model?
Well, it almost "seems like heresy to say it", but the 2009 model is even better. When you climb behind the wheel it seems like a heavy, lumbering beast, but once you're on the move, you realise "what a wonderful invention power steering was, ditto servo-assisted brakes".
And as for its modern day rivals, including VW's own Scirroco? "I'd take the GTI above all others," says Baker. It's the answer to the question every motoring journalist dreads: if you could have any car, what would it be? The GTI is the answer because it's so many cars in one: a family load lugger, urban commuter, sports car, icon.
Subscribe to MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
There are faster hot hatches on the market, says What Car, but the GTI "is still seriously quick". The 0-62mph sprint takes just 6.9 seconds and "it doesn't stop accelerating until you're nudging 150mph".
If anything, the low- and mid-range pull is even more impressive: "even when cruising in a high gear at a handful of revs, you can floor the throttle and flash past slower traffic".
As with all Golfs, the GTI is "about as swanky as small family hatches get", and the comfortable, tartan-trimmed cloth seats are heavily bolstered to hold you in place during hard cornering. Other sporty touches include a flat-bottomed steering wheel and drilled aluminium pedals.
In short, says Ben Barry in Car, this is "the 911 of hot hatches". "And there's no greater praise than that."
-
Christmas at Chatsworth: review of The Cavendish Hotel at BaslowMoneyWeek Travel Matthew Partridge gets into the festive spirit at The Cavendish Hotel at Baslow and the Christmas market at Chatsworth
-
Tycoon Truong My Lan on death row over world’s biggest bank fraudProperty tycoon Truong My Lan has been found guilty of a corruption scandal that dwarfs Malaysia’s 1MDB fraud and Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto scam
