For 46 years, Volkswagen has been making the Golf. Now it’s the year 2020 and the all-new Golf 8 is on its way into South Africa. Looking to put a technological foot forward, VW wants this to be a big shift in the Golf family. This car has many new features and designs while keeping it the Golf so many people know and love.
Golf 8’s design
Looking at it, the design makes the 8th generation stand out, however, it is still clearly a Golf. The face has lines running down it and is a bit sunken down, VW says that it improves aerodynamics despite being a bigger car. The grill is smaller and shows a little bit of colour, which I personally like. The rear of the car doesn’t have too many changes.
Let’s see what it does
The Golf 8 has five different engine options and a choice of automatic and manual. Although, in South Africa, we may only be getting the automatic.
The first engine is a 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine with 130 or 150 horsepower and gets up to 84 kW or 110 kW. Then there’s a 2-litre diesel with 115 horsepower or 150 horsepower reaching
The hybrid options start with a 1.4-litre turbo petrol engine. It offers 96 kW and 110 kW while getting up to 205 horsepower or 245 horsepower is you go for the sportier GTE model.
The smallest engine is the 1 litre that reaches up to 90 or 110 horsepower and developing 66 kW. In combination with the hybrid option, it really improves the fuel economy.
Then finally the engine with the most talk, the one that combines it all. A 1.5-litre turbo petrol engine with a gearbox-mounted electric motor, offering 110 kW and 180 kW. The electric motor could drive the car up to 60 kilometres by itself.
Another feature the hybridisation brings is regenerative braking. When you brake in this Golf, it will use some of that power to recharge the battery. This does affect the feel of the braking but not by much. Overall, it adds a lot more fuel efficiency.
The driving experience in the Golf 8 is smooth and silent. It offers a lot of customization from the infotainment system which we will get to later. It comes with three different options, eco, comfort and sport. These settings speak for themselves in terms of what they do, however, there is a custom setting where you can individually change each part of the car to your liking.
Opening the doors
Taking a seat in this car feels great, which is what you would expect in a Golf. There’s tons of room and very nice squishy surfaces. If you went for the automatic transmission option, the very small “gear stick” allows for a lot of room, for whatever you want to put there.
The big goal of this car was the technology and from the moment of opening the car doors, it stands out. Greeted with two monitors, first the driver’s screen and then the infotainment system. This is where most of the concerns for this car lies. The system is complicated and it’s all touch screen, even for things like air-conditioning and music volume. The only real physical buttons are for the windows. While you can get around it by saying “hello Volkswagen” – yes, you can talk to this car – it’s doesn’t always understand what you are saying unless you are very direct.
The steering wheel has some cool tricks too. You can use it to control what is displayed in the driver’s screen, but it does something a lot cooler. With limited abilities, the Golf drives for you. The car can pick up the edge of the road or the white lines and steer for you. It parks too, and very effectively.
We are excited
Overall, VW’s Golf 8 is a very nice car that steps up the use of new technology. With the only downside being the infotainment system that replaces all physical buttons, Volkswagen has managed to improve the Golf even more.
Looking forward to it too? We can expect to see it toward the end of this year.