Volkswagen Golf vs Volvo EX30

What's the difference?

Modern cars tend to be judged on what they cost and what’s included in that price. Of course, that’s car-buying 101, but in the case of something like the new Golf, there’s an almost-intangible that must come into the final reckoning. Both the 1.4-litre models and the Golf GTI have a certain accessibility and ability to satisfy your transport needs and your appreciation of quality at the same time. Not every mainstream car manages this.

The refinement is unquestionable and the dynamics of either Golf variant speak of engineering that is sophisticated beyond the price-tag, certainly when compared with the cars the Golf is destined to sell against. Against that, prices on all but the entry-level car have risen, and even that car has lost some standard equipment. It’s also worth saying that not everybody who buys a new car is going to notice this ethereal notion of quality and sophistication. And if that’s the case, there are other cars out there that will do just as good a job. But if you can appreciate a car with a bit of soul, the Golf is truly a class-leading proposition that also happens to be able to hold its own on most other fronts.

Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with accommodation and meals provided.

Volvo has taken a bit of a risk because I'm not convinced that the EX30 knows who its audience is. However, our Twin Motor Performance Ultra test model is well-specified and the overall owner experience (from driving, usability and ongoing ownership costs) is great. This is a fun car and it looks super cute.

As a facelift (and a fairly mild one at that) rather than a new model, the move to Golf 8.5 specification doesn’t represent any major engineering or stylistic shift. But what it does signal is a recognition that the driver interface set-up in the previous version was not without its foibles and faults.

Many owners complained that the touchscreen mechanism for operating many of the car’s functions required two key-strokes, when one would have been the case in a less convoluted system. So, VW has revisited the way humans interact with the car and come up with some genuine improvements.

Now there are quick-access buttons above and below the central info screen as well as physical steering wheel buttons replacing the previous car’s touch buttons which sometimes had a mind of their own.

In terms of styling changes, well, they’re minimal to say the least.

But keen car-watchers will spot the Golf 8.5's new front and rear bumpers, tweaked headlight and tail-light treatment, new alloy wheel designs and an illuminated bonnet badge on everything bar the Style variant.

Oh, and retro design gets a look in this time, too, with the alloys on the GTI bearing a striking resemblance to those on the iconic Golf 5 GTI from the early part of this century and, arguably, the car that gave the Golf concept the shot in the arm that sees it still around today.

The EX30 is gorgeous. It has an interesting shape that makes it look larger than it is and it's unique enough to attract users who might not love the Volvo aesthetic.

You can still see that it's part of the Volvo family with its crisp pleating in the panelling and 'Hammer of Thor' LED headlights, but its look is new and fun.

Large Volvo badging is framed by rectangular LED lighting at the rear and our test model's Cloud Blue paintwork is offset by a sporty black roof and frameless side mirrors.

The interior aesthetic is very pared back - think simple and classic lines, no buttons or dials and large air-vents.

The dashboard is headlined by a 12.3-inch touchscreen multimedia system, which also houses all of the info you'd expect to see on a digital instrument cluster because there's no head-up display or cluster in this model and it does take a while to get used to.

At first the simplicity is a bit too much to wrap the head around but once you do, the interior is incredibly intuitive to use and as a driver, it felt a little Zen-like.

There are four interior design choices Breeze, Mist, Pine and our test model's Indigo which couples 50 per cent recycled denim jeans for its accents, a grey and blue Nordico (synthetic fabric) upholstery and lots of recycled soft/hard plastics in various tones of blue and greys.

To be honest, the materials didn't always work for me but the cabin is still pleasant to look at.

Up front, the Golf is all sensible and grown up. In fact, there’s a sniff of European boardroom simplicity and elegance and none of the gimmickry some of its competitors throw at their products in the name of looking racy or plush. Faux metallic finishes or air vents that look like jet engines? You won’t find them here. That said, if you’re looking for a bit of noise and bling, the cabin might just seem a little austere. At first glance, anyway.

Scratch a bit deeper and the practicality starts to shine through. Okay, so the new quick access buttons seem a bit scattered, but we won’t class that as a criticism, because the alternative where those same functions are buried under multiple menus on a touchscreen is vastly less appealing and ergonomically 'right'.

 The centre console is home to a pair of cupholders and a 12-volt output socket, and there is a pair of USB charging ports tucked under the ledge of the lower part of the dashboard. The sun visors each feature a lit vanity mirror and the lower doors house deep and large pockets capable of holding a full-sized bottle.

Back in the rear seat, there’s decent foot room and very generous headroom, but knee-room might be a bit limited if the person directly in front is tall. In fact, any front-seater getting on for 180cm will be asked to move their chair forward by any person of roughly similar stance attempting to sit in the back. But the rear seat itself is good, although, like so many cars, the rear-centre position is last place in the comfort stakes.

A fold-down armrest is available if the fifth (centre) seat is not in use, and it also hides a pair of cupholders. Assuming those knees allow, there are three pockets in the back of each front seat as well as a good sized door pocket on each side. The rear seat also includes centre air vents, reading lights and a pair of USB charge-points.

With the rear seat in place, VW claims a luggage capacity of 374 litres with a reasonable loading lip height of 675mm. Fold the rear seat down and there’s a huge space for cargo, but if you still need one rear seat, the backrest is split 60/40 and also includes a ski-port, allowing access to the luggage from the rear seat. The luggage area also houses three top-tether restraint fixing points and there’s a space-save spare tyre under the floor. Four tie-down points are also located in each corner of the cargo area.

The cabin up front features plenty of leg- and headroom as well as cleverly designed storage options.

The rear row is surprisingly comfortable for space behind my driving position but I'm only 168cm tall and it might get squishy if you're behind taller front occupants. It's best to think of this car as a four-seater for adults though, the middle seat is an emergency seat.

The seats themselves are very comfortable for long trips, and both are powered and feature heat functions. My favourite feature inside are the door handles - easy to use and they look great too.

Like I mentioned earlier, the design is rather intuitive to use for every day. The only controls in the cabin are the window buttons and they're discreetly placed on either end of the middle console. The front only feature two buttons but you can switch them over for the rear window use via a little touchpad.

Individual storage is great for the class, with a large open centre console that features a dual opening lid with a shallow cubby, which is perfect to hide away any charging cables for the two USB-C ports.

There is a dedicated phone storage space in the form of a 'lean-to' scenario which also features the wireless charging pad and it's large enough to accommodate bigger devices like an iPad.

There is a sneaky glove box which is located underneath the multimedia screen but it irks me that you can only open it via the screen. It's large enough to hold a manual.

The other sneaky but super handy element is the retractable cupholder shelf that slides away into the middle console. You can also position it so only one cupholder is available or slide the cupholder insert backwards for a large cubby.

The rear gets large storage bins in each door, a drawer from the centre console but it's disappointing that the rear row misses out on cupholders or an armrest for added comfort. It does get two USB-C ports.

There is a 7L frunk storage plus the boot is adequate for overnight luggage or a grocery run with its 318L of capacity but that can jump up to 904L if you fold the rear row.

The multimedia system is fairly easy to use but you have to get used to it as it's a bit different from other Volvo systems I've sampled in the past. You also have to get used to accessing everything for the car, even for turning the car off, via the screen. I do like having buttons/dials but not having them in the EX30 mostly works.

There are three grades for the EX30 and our model on test is the Twin Motor Performance Ultra, which is the top-spec version. It is priced from $71,290 before on-road costs and that positions it as the most expensive compared to its nearest rivals.

The popular Tesla Model Y Long Range all-wheel drive is $69,900 MSRP, the Cupra Born (5 Seat) is one of the most affordable at $59,990 MSRP, and the Hyundai Kona Electric Premium N Line at $71,000 MSRP is the closest rival for price.

The EX30's price point and cute size means it's carved out a little niche for itself - little being the operative word as the rivals above are not apples for apples comparisons. The EX30 could be at risk of not knowing what its audience is - the design is fun, which signals a younger crowd, but the price point might rule them out.

Having said that, the EX30 wants for nothing really and manages to be very well-specified.

Standard items include, a 12.3-inch touchscreen multimedia system, wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Google Services (Assistant/ Maps/ Play), Spotify/YouTube apps, 5G Module, over-the-air updates, satellite navigation, dual-zone climate control, four USB-C ports, wireless charging pad, Bluetooth, and DAB+ Digital Radio and a Digital Key.

Luxury and practical items include heated and powered front seats, powered tailgate, heated steering wheel, a premium nine-speaker Harman Kardon sound system which features a long soundbar and a huge panoramic sunroof.

Annoyingly though the keyless entry is truly keyless ... there are no buttons on the key and it sometimes glitches when you try to open the door despite the key being in your hand!

All Golfs apart from the GTI and R (so that’s the Life, Style and R-Line, then) get the familiar 1.4-litre turbocharged four-cylinder engine which makes 110kW of power and 250Nm of torque. It’s a well known unit that provides adequate performance and better than average levels of refinement and smoothness. Based on previous experience, it’s actually more engaging than those bald numbers suggest.

In either case, it drives through an eight-speed conventional automatic transmission driving the front wheels. That word 'conventional' is important, too, and distinguishes the unit from the allegedly sportier (and previously troublesome) dry-clutch dual-clutch transmission.

The GTI, of course, offers much more performance and does so with the latest version of the perhaps the even more familiar 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder. This time, however, it’s been tuned up to provide more power (195kW this time) and the seven-speed (wet) dual-clutch transmission also makes a return. There’s no manual gearbox option and the GTI remains front-wheel drive as one of its major differentiators from the all-wheel drive Golf R.

But don’t go thinking front-wheel-drive plus big power and torque equals an unruly drive. Because the GTI has a pretty sophisticated front differential which, based on past experience, does a good job of sending torque to the wheel that can best handle it, as well as helping the car corner more effectively. Plenty of people have driven more recent Golf GTIs and wondered aloud if the all-wheel drive of the Golf R is really necessary.

Part of that is the variable steering assistance and ratio of the GTI that can lighten up the steering for low-speed moves, and then add weight for high-speed stability. The rest of the secret lies in the electronically operation of the diff that allows it to lock and unlock quickly and effectively depending on the grip available and the torque being fed through it at the time. Like the adaptive dampers, VW claims the differential has been tweaked and improved over the Golf GTI 8.0 which also featured this tech.

Volkswagen also claims an electronic differential for the Life, Style and R-Line models, but in reality (and while it does offer advantages) it’s a braking-based system that can brake individual front wheels to maintain traction, rather than an actual limited-slip differential.

The Twin Motor Performance Ultra grade is an AWD with twin electric motors which combine to produce 315kW of power and 543Nm of torque (115kW front/200kW rear) + (200Nm front/323Nm rear).

The EX30 has a single-speed auto transmission and can go from 0 -100km/h in just 3.6-seconds - making it the fastest Volvo.

Without the extra weight of an SUV, it’s no surprise to learn the new Golf is a fuel sipper. The 1.4-litre variants all claim an official combined cycle (urban/extra-urban) fuel consumption number of 6.3 litres per 100km. And thanks to the efficiency of the entire platform, you’ll probably get closer to that in the real world than a lot of cars do to their own official number. Take it as read that you’ll be comfortably into the sixes on a highway cruise and perhaps even knocking on the door of a five.

And that’s just as well, because the VW requires 95-octane fuel which (depending on the price of diesel on the day) is about the second most expensive per-litre brew you’ll find at the bowser.

Based on the 50-litre tank fitted, the range of the 1.4-litre Golf should be comfortably beyond 700km.

The extra power of the GTI, of course, as well as the greater capacity, dictates that it will use more fuel. And it does with a government number of 7.2 litres per 100km. But the other thing to consider is that you’ll almost certainly drive it harder, too, at which point it can start to use even more fuel.

That said, a spirited strop on an alpine road during the launch drive netted a fuel number in the mid-10s, while our overall score after a long day on the road equalled 8.5 litres per 100km.

So it’s hardly a greedy car given the performance on tap. Again, 95-octane ULP is the order of the day. And that same 50-litre tank should be good for at least 600km between visits to the servo.

The EX30 Twin Motor Performance Ultra has up to 445km (WLTP) driving range, which felt pretty accurate this week despite throwing some heavy open-road trips into the mix.

This variant has a 69kWh nickel manganese cobalt battery and an official energy consumption figure of 18.0kWh/100km (WLTP). After doing some urban and longer trips I saw my trip computer flitting between 19.0kWh and 22.0kWh/100km.

The EX30 has a Type 2 CCS charging port, which means you can hook it up to a DC charger and it will accept up to 175kW on a DC charging system.

On an AC 2.4kW standard domestic plug port, expect a long charging time of around 38 hours to get up to 80 per cent.

On an AC 11kW system, you can go from 0-100 per cent in eight hours (again, a little slow but reasonable enough for overnight charging).

On a DC 175kW system, you can go from 10-80 per cent in around 28 minutes.

The Golf has, for at least a decade or more, been at the absolute top of the small-hatchback tree when it comes to driving sophistication. And whatever else you think about the product, a lack of refinement and driver involvement has not been missing from the formula.

This time around, VW claims to have tweaked the suspension rates slightly for the Life, Style and R-Line and it’s hard to argue with the result. Just as all Golfs for the last couple of decades have, the 8.5, even in its simplest specification, rides and corners with a combination of balance and ride quality that few small cars - and pretty much no mainstream hatchback - under $50,000 can match.

It sounds like a big statement, but the first few kilometres will convince you this is how all good cars should steer and handle bumps and lumps. There’s no sense that the Golf will ever run out of suspension travel, nor any suggestion it’s anything other than an entertaining and engaging thing to drive.

The same goes for the engine. Peak power of 110kW mightn’t sound like a whole lot, but the torque is always where you need it and the zesty, zingy feel of the little engine makes you want to work it even harder; something it absolutely loves.

While the eight-speed automatic suggests a slightly lazier experience than a dual-clutch, this time around, the differences in shift speed and smoothness between the two types of trasmission are all but eliminated. Not only that, the Golf’s conventional automatic now obeys the paddle-shifter's commands with a degree of relentless faithfulness that makes you think it’s a dual-clutch after all.

Just as the more mainstream models have been class leaders dynamically, so too has the Golf GTI shown the way to the rest of the hot-hatch pack. This time around, though, there’s a sense it’s a more serious performance car than ever, and that has consequences.

While previous GTIs have felt immediately rewarding and flattering to pretty much any driver, this time, the GTI’s performance envelope has been stretched to the point where it now kind of needs to be driven faster than ever to offer those rewards.

It’s certainly not unfriendly at low speeds, nor an uncommunicative car by any means, rather the limit is now so sky-high, it seems a shame not to tap into it. Which means you need the right time and the right place to most enjoy what the car has to offer.

But let’s not ignore the fact the GTI has so much poise, grip and general ability up its sleeve that it will make any driver look like a superstar, and a good driver look like Oscar Piastri. The paddle-shifters are foolproof, the power delivery exacting and relentless and the steering and handling designed to never let you get in over your head. Which is not to say the GTI is uncrashable, but it has more ability than most drivers will have bravery.

Even the suspension, which is now firmer than ever, is far from too stiff or too harsh.

In 'Comfort', only big lateral thumps will get your attention, but even in 'Sport' mode, the shift in ride firmness is subtle enough to make either mode viable on even fairly lumpy roads.

And if that brilliant front end doesn’t make you question the need for the AWD Golf R, it should.

Driving the EX30 Ultra is a mostly fun and lighthearted experience but it's not cutesy, no matter how adorable the external design is.

The twin motors deliver serious power and you can fully expect 'tummy-sucking' moments of pure enjoyment whenever you put your foot down.

Coupled with a graceful on-road presence which assures you that the car will stick to the road like glue, and you have the fun-factor.

The lightheartedness comes from how nimble and easy the EX30 is to manoeuvre. The steering firmness can be customised and its compact dimensions makes it your best friend in tight city lanes.

You can't customise the regenerative braking, or at least, I couldn't figure out an easy way to do so outside of selecting the one-pedal drive option.

The cabin is mostly quiet and there's a refinement to longer journeys because of it. You get occasional wind noise at higher speeds and a little bit of road feedback too but longer journeys are lovely.

My only real nag is that there is no head-up display or instrument panel for your speedometre and I found my eyes directed away from the road because of it. You can find your speed info on the central multimedia system but I prefer something in front of me.

Parking my little blue cloud this week has been easy as pie because the 360-degree camera system is clear and the large windows provide excellent visibility.

At the time of this review, the EX30 has not been tested by ANCAP and is unrated but it has all of the safety equipment you'd expect of a Volvo.

Standard equipment includes, blind spot monitoring, driver attention alert, safe exit warning, rear occupant alert, tyre pressure monitoring, tyre mobility kit, rear collision warning, forward collision warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure alert, lane keeping aid, hill start assist, traffic sign recognition, intelligent seatbelt warning, adaptive cruise control, parking assist, a 360-degree view camera system as well as front and rear parking sensors.

The EX30 is also fitted with seven airbags and the Volvo-designed whiplash injury protection system (WHIPS) which helps to reduce the risk of whiplash injury if your car is hit from behind. On impact, the entire front backrest and head restraint moves with the occupant to support the neck.

Like other Volvos, the EX30 also has side impact protection (SIPS), which helps protect you and your passengers in a side collision. The body's steel framework displaces the impact of a side-collision away from the occupants to other parts of the car body.

The EX30 has ISOFIX child seat mounts on the rear outboard seats plus three top tethers but only two child seats will fit. If you have an extra-large booster seat, like me, then expect some of the back window visibility to be compromised when it is installed.

The facelifted Golf carries VW Australia’s five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty. Servicing intervals are every 15,000km or 12 months which ever comes first and there will be capped price servicing, but the actual cost had not been revealed to us as we published this review.

But for reference, the previous Golf could be had with capped price servicing at around $2100 for the first five years which is not exactly the cheapest out there when compared with its logical rivals.

It also pays to remember that even though the engines are both quite efficient, you will need to stump up for the more expensive 95-octane stuff every time you fill up.

The EX30 is covered by Volvos five-year/unlimited km warranty and the electric battery is covered by an eight-year term - both are normal terms for the class.

What endears the EX30 to me is that servicing is included, which is very rare for a luxury brand to offer. Servicing intervals are reasonable at every two years or 30,000km, which ever occurs first.