Last year, Volkswagen quietly filed a trademark application for a GTI badge in which the letter ‘I’ is replaced by a lightning bolt. The new logo suggests the GTI will live on even after the ninth-generation Golf goes fully electric in 2028. As car enthusiasts, we can all be thankful for that.
A battery-powered GTI is a very different proposition, though. Will it be fast in a straight line and around a lap of the Nurburgring? Undoubtedly. Bedecked with red stripes and tartan trim? Most likely. Fun to drive? That remains to be proven.
Electrification also means that, after 49 years and more than two million sales, the updated, eighth-generation Golf GTI ‒ a Mk8.5 in VW-speak – is the last of its kind. Yes, there will inevitably be a few special models, including a celebratory ‘Edition 50’ next year, but this is your final opportunity to buy a new GTI as we know it. Is the archetypal hot hatchback going out on a high?
A hard act to follow
First launched four years ago, the Mk8 wasn’t a bad car. But its task was made immeasurably harder by following the Mk7 GTI (2012-2019) – widely regarded as the best iteration of all, with lofty second-hand values to match – which set a very high bar.
Chiefly, brickbats were aimed at the Mk8’s complex touchscreen media system and glitchy haptic controls. A stiffer ride and pointier steering also seemed to dent the car’s everyday usability – always a key tenet of any GTI.
My 2021 first drive concluded with a (literal) swipe at the ‘frustrating tech’ and looked towards the four-wheel-drive Golf R as ‘the ultimate all-rounder hot hatch’. This mid-life facelift is tasked with righting those wrongs, and returning the GTI to benchmark status.
Golf GTI with go-faster stripes
You can recognise the Mk8.5 by its more aggressive front bumper, snazzier rear lights and red ‘GTI’ badges on the leading edges of the doors. The 19-inch ‘Queenstown’ alloy wheels pictured here (a £1,270 option) add some pleasing visual attitude, too.
The long-serving ‘EA888’ 2.0-litre engine gains a 20hp power boost to 265hp, alongside an identical 273lb ft of torque. The GTI’s damping has also been retuned (i.e. made softer) and the manual transmission has been phased out due to poor sales – leaving only the seven-speed DSG dual-clutch automatic.
Inside, you’ll find a larger touchscreen with new shortcuts and ventilation controls on the home screen, plus proper buttons – not indecisive touchpads – on the steering wheel spokes.
Prices for the 2024 Golf GTI start from £38,900 and standard equipment includes Matrix LED headlights, adaptive cruise control, keyless entry, heated sports seats and a reversing camera.
Inside the Mk8.5 Golf GTI
Let’s start inside, as that’s where the Mk8 totally dropped the (golf) ball. The new infotainment screen measures 12.9 inches, with crisp graphics, updated software and even ChatGPT integrated into the voice assistant.
I’d still prefer physical controls for the heating and air-con, and a few haptic pads persist on the dashboard (tellingly, CEO Thomas Schäfer says all Volkswagens “will use buttons” for primary interior controls again by 2030), but the latest tech is undoubtedly more user-friendly.
Indeed, the main annoyances now are a nagging speed warning beeper and the over-zealous lane-keep assist system – both mandated by the EU for all new cars. Thankfully, it takes only three prods at the screen to turn them both off: job one on any journey.
Trimmed in Teutonic tartan
The GTI’s figure-hugging seats – upholstered in suede and classic ‘Jacara’ tartan – are very comfortable, although they do limit rear legroom a little. Nonetheless, the Golf remains a practical family holdall, with space for two adults to sit comfortably in the back and a versatile 374-litre hatchback boot.
Exhaling through twin round tailpipes, the turbocharged engine sounds gruff and purposeful at idle. Drive is selected via a small toggle on the centre console, then you can leave the DSG ’box to its own devices or swap cogs yourself using the plastic paddles behind the GTI-badged wheel.
My press car came with the optional Dynamic Chassis Control adaptive dampers (£720), which offer a choice of drive modes from Eco to Sport. As we’ll see, they’re probably the one essential box you should tick, broadening the shopping-trolley-to-sports-car bandwidth that the Golf GTI is famous for.
More power, more weight
The latest GTI might have more than twice the power of ‘Das Original’ from 1975, but it’s also approaching twice the weight: 1,466kg plays 810kg.
Against the clock, the result is 0-62mph in 5.9 seconds, plus a top speed of 155mph. Want more? You can step up to the 300hp GTI Clubsport (from £41,655) or 333hp Golf R (£43,320).
However, rather like the Porsche 911, most Golf GTIs fulfil their brief best in basic guise, and the Mk8.5 strikes a good balance between performance and efficiency (39.6mpg and 162g/km CO2) for affordable running costs.
Covering all bases
With the DCC in Comfort mode, the latest Golf feels more relaxed and pliant than its predecessor, but not to the detriment of composure or control. In fact, the softer suspension restores some of the wonderful sense of flow that characterised the Mk7 GTI.
On austerity-scarred British roads, the car will hold its line without being deflected off-course, the nose tucking gamely into corners as the electronic differential serves up determined front-wheel traction. There isn’t the slingshot feel of the 4WD Golf R, particularly in damp conditions, but you’re rarely left wanting for grip.
Switch into Sport and the Golf tightens its sinews: turn-in is instantly sharper, the ride notably less forgiving. And while it loses some of the fluidity found in Comfort mode, the car’s heightened responses are fun on the right road.
Ultimately, the GTI is still no Honda Civic Type R in terms of hard-wired engagement or sheer point-to-point speed, but nor does it try to be. This is a car that shrugs off the daily commute or school run, yet also relishes those rare moments on roads less travelled. An impressive all-rounder, then – and the same as it (mostly) ever was.
Verdict: 2024 Volkswagen Golf GTI
Volkswagen has addressed the important points with this facelift. The Mk8.5 GTI is easier to operate, easier to live with and more enjoyable to drive than the car it replaces.
Whether it’s also a better GTI overall than a Mk7 is less clear cut, but also a moot point for those who prefer to buy or lease something new with a warranty.
The number of rivals for the Golf GTI is dwindling (the Renaultsport Megane and Hyundai i30 N have already gone, for example, and the Ford Focus ST dies soon) so again the Golf feels like the default choice; not the fastest or most exciting car in its class, but perhaps the best hot hatchback for most people, most of the time.
Me? I’ll stick with my faithful Mk5 (2006) Golf GTI for now, in the hope that Mk7 prices will eventually slide down well into four figures. With a new, lightning-bolt GTI on the horizon, and the appetite for performance EVs looking modest at best, I could be waiting a while.
PRICE: £38,900
POWER: 265hp
0-62MPH: 5.9sec
TOP SPEED: 155mph
FUEL ECONOMY: 39.6mpg
CO2 EMISSIONS: 162g/km
• Tim Pitt writes for Motoring Research
