Volkswagen Golf R vs Golf GTI vs Golf GTD 2010 review

BMW is king (or should that be president?) with the 3 Series offering 37 variants in sedans, coupes, convertibles and wagons. But Volkswagen isn't far behind and catching with 23 Golf variants, plus seven Jettas - a Golf with a boot - and four Eos - a Golf with a folding roof. And there is the promise of more to come with several models not yet available in Australia.

The Golf family tree doesn't just have a lot of lower branches, but several offerings at the top, including the GTI, R and GTD. So if it's a fast Golf you want, you can still select five or three doors, manual or double-clutch automatic, petrol or diesel, all-wheel drive or front-wheel drive. But you can't have a six-cylinder engine anymore.

VALUE

Even though the AWD Golf R series has dropped the six and gone for a turbo four, it has also dropped the prices dramatically. The first R32 cost $63,000. It was followed by the R36 at $55,000. Now the new R arrives at sub-$50,000 for the three-door manual. Two more doors cost an extra $1500 and DSG an extra $2500.

In another surprise, the GTD five-door manual and DSG cost less than the equivalent GTI, although the three-door GTI does come in slightly cheaper. All are packed with technology and creature features, making them a good-value high-performance package.

TECHNOLOGY

Despite VW dropping the 3.2-litre V6 engine in favour of a two-litre, four-cylinder turbo for the new R, power and torque have increased substantially from 177kW and 320Nm in the R32 to 184kW/320Nm in the R36 and now a whopping 188kW/330Nm. At the same time, fuel consumption has gone in the opposite direction from 11.6 litres per 100km to 8.7 in a sign of our tough economic times.

It might seem a stretch to add the GT moniker to a diesel, but the figures stack up. The GTD has the two-litre turbo diesel engine from the Passat and Jetta but with 125kW of power, up from 103kW. That's down on the GTI's impressive 155kW, but the GTD has Commodore-sized torque of 350Nm compared with the GTI's 280Nm. It also sips fuel at the more genteel rate of 5.5L/100km in manual compared with the GTI's 7.7.

And if you believe a GT should be a Gran Tusimo or Grand Tourer then the GTD is worthy with a touring range of 1000km from its 55-litre fuel tank. Like past R models, the new R model comes with 4Motion all-wheel drive while the GTD and GTI have front-wheel drive.

All three high-performance models have optional Adaptive Chassis Control ($1500) that modifies the dampers to the terrain and can be selected on the fly for normal, sport or comfort settings.

STYLE

A GTI badge has been around since the 1970s and brings with it a hero status among hot hatches. R and GTD don't have the same ring to it. But they all have that GTI style with muscular wheel arches, discreet badging, schimcko wheels and tasty grilles. The GTI has the nicest nose with that red outlined grille.

Out back they can be distinguished by the twin exhaust layout. They are on either side on the GTI, on one side on the GTD and together in the middle on the R.

Inside is more discreet badging, brushed aluminium trim and various rally-style pedals, sports steering wheels and sporty seats. Yet despite all the sporty accents, the cabins are a very comfortable and homey place to be and the layout of the generous back seats and their 60-40 spilt flat-folding abilities, it's quite a practical cabin for loading anything from groceries to skis.

DRIVING

Here are the biggest differences.

While all are turbos, the performance varies with the R snappiest off the line and screaming out at the top end, the GTI the quickest to respond with giddying revs and the GTD the best for mid-range torque.

Turbo lag is almost a thing of the past, but the GTD does have a slightly wider gap between right foot and reality. If track days are your thing, the R has 4Motion all-wheel-drive and the best grip levels as well as the biggest brakes and lowest suspension. The GTD seems to have the most compliant ride, although the nose does feel a little heavier with accompanying gentle understeer.

The petrol models have a delightful sound with that signatory thump on gear changes of unexploded fuel. Surprisingly the GTD also has that sound but without the usual diesel clatter at idle or groan at full tilt. Steering in all three is light and positive with plenty of feedback and no rack rattle and only the GTD has a modicum of torque steer.

The six-speed manual gearbox is a delight to use, but like many these days it sits too close to the centre console buttons, so you are forever accidentally hitting switches when you change to first, third or fifth.

The DSG is a snappy cog-swapper but sometimes takes a while to change its mind about your driving style if you momentarily drive aggressively. It can take forever to change up a gear once you have settled down. Best to override it and just flick the steering wheel paddle shifters.