2022 Volkswagen Golf

Standard equipment in the Volkswagen Golf wagon includes:

• IQ Drive highway driving assistant
• LED headlights
• Digital Cockpit (10.25-inch digital instruments)
• 8.25-inch infotainment screen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Cloth upholstery
• Keyless start
• Automatic headlights
• Tri-zone climate control
• Leather-wrapped steering wheel
• Paddle shifters
• Rain-sensing wipers
• 16-inch alloy wheels

Moving to the Volkswagen Golf Life brings:

• Digital Cockpit Pro (configurable digital instruments)
• 10-inch infotainment system with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Wireless phone charging
• 10-colour ambient lighting
• Keyless entry
• Factory satellite navigation
• Microfleece cloth seating with brushed inlays
• Front seat lumbar adjustment
• Rear centre seat armrest
• 17-inch alloy wheels

Jumping to the Volkswagen Golf R-Line adds:

• Sport seats with leather trim
• 18-inch alloy wheels
• Lowered (15mm) R-Line suspension
• R-Line exterior trim
• 30-colour ambient lighting

Atop the range sits the Volkswagen Golf GTI, which features:

• Tartan-trimmed sport seats
• 18-inch alloy wheels
• Twin exhaust pipes
• GTI exterior trim and highlights
• Adaptive Chassis Control

t’s not short on wow factor.

Volkswagen has committed to touchscreens and gloss black capacitive controls in place of the buttons and dials that have gradually evolved over three generations of Golf.

Unlike the entry-level car and its 8.0-inch central display, the mid-range Golf Life gets two 10.25-inch displays atop its dashboard. It almost looks like a concept car, especially if you’ve just hopped out of its predecessor.

Plenty of the things that were good about the previous Golf remain. The driving position is excellent in the Life, thanks to comfortable cloth-trimmed seats that drop right down to the floor, and the leather-wrapped steering wheel is a quality item.

You still get plenty of soft-touch plastic trim, the stubby gear selector slots into place with a satisfying click, and the indicator stalk is beautifully damped. It’s all classic Volkswagen.

There are some signs of cost-cutting though. The cup holders aren’t hidden under a sliding lid anymore, and the fold-down cubby for garage keys or coins near the driver’s right knee his gone.

They’re small things, but they’re the small things that have always elevated the Golf above its competitors. In some ways, Volkswagen is a victim of its own high standards.

The screen in front of the driver is excellent, which is exactly what we’ve come to expect from Volkswagen Group products. The graphics are crisp, and it shows just the right amount of information.

It’s annoying you can’t change the colour of the display from what’s a pretty uninspiring shade of aqua unless you option the Comfort and Style Pack, though.

The central touchscreen is similarly sharp, but it’s being asked to do too much. If you want to change the fan speed, for example, you need to press a button on the dash and then fiddle with the touchscreen.

That means you lose your media display, and have to spend more time with your eyes off the road compared to how things worked in the old Golf with its physical dials.

Familiarity helps, but there’s no getting around the fact things that used to be easy are now harder. That’s not good enough in what’s meant to be an evolved take on the Golf.

On the plus side, wireless Apple CarPlay works flawlessly, and the infotainment system itself feels thoroughly modern.

Rear seat space is generous for what’s still a reasonably compact wagon, with space for adults or tall teenagers.

Rear passengers get their own temperature controls and air vents, along with a USB-C charge point and a fold-down central armrest.

The big choice in the Golf range is between the regular and R-Line models.

The latter gets bigger wheels, and a more aggressive look in line with the more powerful, all-wheel drive Golf R.

The Golf GTI has extra red detailing on its grille, along with a more prominent rear wing and unique wheels, while the R sits lower and is the most aggressive-looking Golf money can buy.

On the core range, metallic paint is a $600 option while premium metallic paint is a $900 option.

The following shades are available on the core range:

• Candy White
• Deep Black
• Dolphin Grey
• Reflex Silver (excludes R-Line)
• Moonstone Grey (R-Line only)
• Atlantic Blue
• Pomello Yellow

All shades are a no-cost option in the GTI, but for Kings Red which costs $300. The following shades are available:

• Pure White
• Dolphin Grey
• Deep Black
• Moonstone Grey
• Atlantic Blue
• Kings Red

Maintenance is required every 12 months or 15,000km and Volkswagen offers three- and five-year prepaid service packages for $1200 or $2100 respectively.

The Golf GTI is more expensive to service; a three-year plan costs $1400 and a five-year plan will set you back $2450.

For all that’s changed, the Mk 8 Golf still feels like a Golf.

It’s smooth and quiet, with a planted feeling that wouldn’t be out of place in a bigger, more expensive car.

The switch from a dual-clutch transmission to a more conventional torque converter means the new Golf uses more fuel than its predecessor, but it also makes it smoother and easier to drive in the city.

Even the best dual-clutch transmissions carry some kind of learning curve, the eight-speeder in the new Golf doesn’t.

It’s smart enough to keep the 1.4-litre engine in its torque band most of the time, slurring inoffensively from gear-to-gear when you’re cruising.

As has always been the case, the turbocharged four-cylinder engine in the Golf is an effortless companion. Its outputs are down on what you get in the latest warm hatches from Hyundai and Kia, but its buttery smooth power delivery and torquey mid-range mean you never need to work it hard.

Where it does feel like a backwards step is when you’re in a hurry. Even in Sport mode the eight-speed Golf doesn’t snap through the ratios with the confidence of a DSG, and taking charge with the paddles isn’t as satisfying.

Is that likely to worry the average owner? Probably not, although it’s arguably more of an issue in the sporty Golf R-Line than in its more demure siblings.

The coat of polish applied to the engine extends to the ride and handling, too. The R-Line sits 15mm lower than the regular Golf, but it soaks up the worst the city can throw at it without breaking a sweat.

It’s a bit firmer than the related Skoda Octavia, but it’s still perfectly usable day-to-day.

In traditional Volkswagen fashion, body control is tight without feeling outright sporty. It deals with speed bumps in one movement, the body settling quickly.

Unlike some of its rivals, Volkswagen has stuck with a multi-link rear suspension on the Golf. That has a negative impact on boot space, but it also contributes to the car’s planted, neutral feeling from behind the wheel.

Flick it into a corner and the nose just goes where you want it to, with very little in the way of understeer or lairy, lift-off oversteer.

Even in R-Line guise the Golf majors on low-fuss stability rather than outright thrills, although it’ll put a smile on your face if you’re willing to take it by the scruff of the neck.

It’s not perfect, though. The tyres are noisy on the highway, especially Australian coarse-chip highways, and Volkswagen’s adaptive cruise control won’t pass to the left of a slower car.

In Europe, where lane discipline is drummed into drivers from day one, that’s a good thing. In Australia, where it’s common for drivers to sit in the right lane doing 10km/h below the limit, it’s annoying.

A trio of options packages will be offered. The first is theSound and Vision Package ($1500, GTI, R-Line, Life). It brings:

• Head-up display
• Harman/Kardon 480W premium sound system

The Comfort and Style Package ($2000, Life) adds:

• Microfleece-trimmed sport seats
• 30-colour ambient interior lighting
• Panoramic glass sunroof

The R-Line can be optioned with a panoramic glass roof for $1800.

The GTI is available with a unique Luxury Package ($3800) that adds:

• Vienna leather trim
• Heated and ventilated front seats
• Powered driver’s seat with memory
• Heated steering wheel
• Panoramic glass sunroof

The 2022 Volkswagen Golf is backed by a five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty.

A look at the Volkswagen Australia website reveals the Golf 110TSI Life and R-Line, along with the GTI, are in stock at some dealers.

Boot space is a claimed374Lin the hatch and611Lin the wagon with the rear seats in place. Their load volume expands to1230Land1642L, respectively, with the rear seats folded.

Volkswagen sold 1926 examples of the Golf in 2021.

While the Volkswagen Golf is pricier than before, it still stacks up well against its competition (especially against its Skoda rival, funnily enough) and packs more standard equipment than the old car. That the IQ. Drive suite of technology is standard from the base level is commendable.

There’s also still that basic Golf goodness, with a polished ride/handling balance and a smooth powertrain that is none the worse for having dropped the dual-clutch auto.

The Golf has long been a benchmark in the European C-segment plus a consistent top-seller. A higher base price and increasing movement to SUVs over here in Australia may dent Golf sales but the Mk8 should still be at the top of your list if you’re in the market for a circa-$35k hatchback.

The latest Golf is no longer the most important hatchback in the Volkswagen range. The new ID.3 electric car is designed to take the Golf formula into a new era.