Volkswagen Golf 2005 Review

Volkswagen had forgotten what made the GTI tick, just as it turned the Golf from a taut compact into a bloated 3 Series pretender, but has gone back to the basics for 2005.

The outcome is a fifth-generation Golf hero which is more tightly focused and enjoyable than I can remember.

It is going to rattle its rivals, including the Mini Cooper S and BMW's 1 Series, and give some real enjoyment to people who could have forgotten – or never known – what the GTI was all about.

And the price is tight, too, from $39,990 as a six-speed manual or $42,290 with the DSG (Direct Shift Gearbox) which has become my favourite.

In the Volkswagen line-up, the GTI is much the same as the Subaru WRX. It's a hero car, an image machine and a vehicle which proves the Golf can be more than just a nice hatchback.

"It's not just another Golf. It's a car that you really have to experience, to drive," says Peter Dierks, marketing chief at Volkswagen Group Australia.

The GTI is the fifth all-new model with the badge, and a few facts put the evolution of the car into focus.

The original Golf GTI, back in 1976, weighed 830kg, had 81kW of power and 130Nm of torque, and accelerated to 100km/h in nine seconds. Today's GTI weighs in at 1340kg, delivers 147kW of power and 208Nm of torque, and sprints to 100km/h in 7.2 seconds. So it is a bigger and more refined car, but also much quicker. And not just on the straight bits.

The 2005 GTI – which stands for Gran Turismo Injection – is the first of its type with a turbocharged and direct petrol-injection engine, as well as electronic stability control, anti-skid disc brakes with brake assist and six airbags.

The equipment list runs from leather wrapping on the wheel to aircon, six-stack CD sound and the usual electric assists.

But this Golf is a GTI and so the car is dropped by 15mm on sports suspension, has unique red trim around the grille, side skirts and a roof spoiler, twin chromed exhaust tips and 17in alloy wheels. The cabin is also dressed with the GTI wheel, aluminium dash inserts, alloy pedals and gear lever, GTI seat trim and shift paddles in the DSG car.

The GTI is a big deal for Volkswagen in Australia (VGA), which switched its focus from the postponed super-luxury Phaeton to the hot hatch to try to build brand backing from the bottom.

It is a real favourite with new VGA managing director Jutta Dierks, and she believes it will go well.

"We are expecting to sell 350 cars until the end of the year. We are trying to get more stock," Ms Dierks says. "We want to push it. There is obviously plenty to work on. We have done the first steps and hopefully we did the first steps in the right direction."

She believes the GTI will do the same job for Volkswagen that the WRX does for Subaru, but highlights that the German car undercuts the Japanese one.

And all of its likely rivals, including the Honda Integra and Renault Megane.

The new GTI is a ripper. No other word fits.

It will rip through a 100km/h sprint, it will rip through any set of curves, it will rip into its rivals and the new twin-clutch gearbox even allows it to rip through the ratios.

I expected something good after a week with the Golf turbodiesel but I wasn't prepared for the car that Volkswagen unleashed at the press preview in Canberra.

It is light and tight to drive – like all the fifth-generation Golfs – but has a combination of refinement and explosive performance which will make it a huge hit.

It even makes a ripper "whoomp" down the exhaust when you fire it into the next gear at anything approaching maximum revs.

It comes as unburnt gases are fired by the turbocharger and is just as much fun as any of the whistling, popping and banging you hear in a Subaru WRX.

The WRX is one of the GTI's rivals and it promises an interesting battle, but people who go for the GTI will also be getting a refined European hatch that has been totally revamped and repackaged into its fifth generation.

The newcomer is roomy and comfy, very well equipped and surprisingly priced. But that's not a real surprise, as most of the Volkswagen range has just been repriced – with the Polo from $16,990 and the Beetle Miami from $35,990 – to try to get the sales volume the company targeted when it set up a full factory operation Down Under.

It has not been close for the past few years, but new management and newcomers, including the GTI, could easily make the difference.

The GTI gets along very briskly with its turbo engine, the ride is surprisingly compliant for sports suspension and it also stops and handles well. It is not as sharp in the chassis as the Honda Integra and it doesn't have WRX-style all-paw grip, but it will be more than good enough for most owners.

The turbo motor gives huge torque from just 1800rpm, but it still likes to be pushed to the redline, and the use of a force-fed four also leaves space in the Golf range for a V6 R32 model down the track.

The newcomer proves that Volkswagen has not forgotten the basics, or what the GTI badge really does mean.

Our favourite drive is the DSG GTI with a super-quick twin-clutch gearbox that is as good as anything I have driven.

It can run as gently as an automatic or deliver the best manu-matic F1 shifts I have felt in any car, including a Porsche or Ferrari.

It is hard to find faults with the Golf GTI, which is finally back to its best and everything I expect from a car which put the world's "hot hatch" into the automotive dictionary.