Scots VW dealers open Golf order books 02 | 02 | 2017
SCOTTISH VOLKSWAGEN DEALERS today opened their order books for the newly updated, semi-autonomous, Golf, with first deliveries scheduled for March. The subtle midlife tweaks to the seventh-generation come ahead of the more heavily altered eighth-generation Golf in 2019. (Related: 40 years of VW Golf GTI)
Headline improvements to the 2017 model include subtle styling changes, upgraded interior appointments and a newly developed 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine.
Last year the Golf accounted for one in three new VWs sold in the UK, with almost 73,000 leaving the showrooms.
The average price of the new 2017 models cost around £650 less than their corresponding predecessors; that said, the entry-level 1.0 TSI 85 three-door retains its price of £17,625.
The Golf GTI now starts at £27,865 in three-door manual form, with the Golf R topping the range at £33,935 with five doors and a DSG gearbox. Prices for models with the new 1.5-litre petrol engine have not yet been released.
In estate form prices for the 2017 Golf start at £20,370 for the 1.4 TSI and rise to £34,985 for the Golf R.
You’ll need to look hard to spot any exterior changes to the 2017 Golf. Whole there’s a lightly re-profiled bumper with altered grille and air duct styling, there’s also lightly restyled wings and revised headlights with altered graphics. The 2017 version also gets LED daytime running lights, plus a new full LED main beam function in place of the earlier Xenon operated units.
Rear lights have also been improved, with full LED tail-lights and a newly designed bumper featuring integral tailpipes on the popular R-line styling package.
The new Golf line-up retains the familiar trim line-up which includes S, SE, SE Nav, GT, R-Line, GTE, GTE Advance, e-Golf, GTD and GTD BlueLine to GTI, GTI Performance and R. (Related: Toadtest — VW Golf S 1.2TSI)
Meanwhile, the estate family will be available in S, SE, SE Nav, GT, GTD, GTD BlueLine, Alltrack and R guise. The new Golf sees the debut of the turbocharged petrol 1.5 TSI Evo powerplant.
The four-cylinder engine generates 150PS and features Active Cylinder Management (ACT) to reduce the number of cylinders employed at a cruise to reduce fuel consumption.
A BlueMotion version of the new unit, producing 130PS, also features the complete engine shut-down function as seen in the hybrid Golf GTE.
VW has also upped the power in the Golf GTI, which now develops 230PS, or 245PS in GTI Performance guise, while the range-topping Golf R sees power hiked to 310PS. That means it can now scamper from standstill to 62mph in 4.6secs.
There’s also a new seven-speed DSG dual-clutch gearbox which contributes to lowering CO2 figures by up to 10g/km, according to VW.
Inside the cabin — which gets revised trims for the doors, dashboard and centre console — the updated Golf gets VW’s new Discover Navigation Pro radio-navigation and online system; this can be operated via gesture control and is supported by a 9.2-inch screen.
There’s also an updated App Connect feature which allows it to integrate with the latest versions of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and MirrorLink.
As you’d expect, there’s also a clutch of new or updated driver assistant systems, including Traffic Jam Assist, which automatically applies the brakes to ease driving in stop/go traffic at speeds of up to 37mph.
There’s also Lane Assist plus ACC for active lane keeping with countersteer ability, and Emergency Assist, which sounds a warning and subsequently initiates an emergency stop when it detects the driver is incapacitated.
As if that wasn’t enough, you can also get an updated City Emergency Braking system that brings pedestrian detection to the existing Front Assist function that employs autonomous braking for collision avoidance, and Park Assist 3.0 which provides semi-autonomous parking in both parallel and perpendicular spaces.
“The arrival of a new or updated Golf is always a special occasion,” Alison Jones, director of Volkswagen in the UK, said, “but in 2017, the debut of this car with its semi-autonomous operation; revised styling; new engines; and exceptional new infotainment systems really does feel extra-special.
“The updated Golf will, I’m sure, retain its place at the head of the compact car class but, just as importantly, will strengthen its place in the hearts of countless UK owners thanks to its exceptional quality, classless appeal and, now more than ever, its hugely competitive pricing and whole-life value.”
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Jim McGill