Volkswagen Golf R: Great handling, ride comfort

1.591503-1168512831 — The new R offers VW's twin-clutch DSG transmission as an option. Image Credit: Supplied

Modern cars seem to get inexorably bigger, heavier and more complex with each succeeding generation. VW's current Golf is no exception, the MkVI version weighing almost double the basic MkI's sylph-like 790kg. Sure, there's more comfort, performance and safety and the technology available would shame a space shuttle, but there's the inevitable price to pay in terms of fuel economy and emissions.

So VW's decision to ditch the much-loved 3.2-litre V6 from its flagship R32 MkV Golf was a brave one. Instead, there's a highly-tuned version of the four cylinder turbo, in this guise punching out a heady 267bhp and 345Nm of torque. That's a full 60bhp more than the ‘basic' GTI, and a useful 20bhp improvement on the outgoing R32. The new version of the engine has a reinforced block, new cylinder head, special pistons and conrods, new high-pressure fuel injectors, a new turbo and a more effective intercooler. However, it's a shame that all this high performance technology doesn't sound a bit more dramatic.

Putting all this power down through two wheels was always going to be a problem, so the Golf R comes with an updated version of VW's 4Motion system. This responds faster to changes in grip, and can send as much as 100 per cent of the engine's torque to the rear wheels if it detects the front tyres are losing traction. New springs and dampers, revised anti-roll bars and specially tuned power steering give the R a sharper and more direct feel than the GTI. But despite the extra 160kg weight of the system and 25mm lower, stiffer springs, the R sacrifices very little in the way of comfort and compliance. It feels very sure-footed and copes extremely well with less than perfect road surfaces; a welcome improvement over previous hot Golfs.

The new R also offers VW's twin-clutch DSG transmission as an option and this is what was fitted to our test car. Unfortunately, VW's pursuit of fuel economy means that in ‘D' the box shifts up to the highest gear with unseemly haste, rather obscuring the driver-focused nature of the beast. Switching to ‘S' is much better, perhaps too much better, because now it hangs on until the dizzy heights of the rev range before changing up. Which it does with great speed and a momentary ‘brrrap' as the ignition is killed to take the load off the transmission for faster shifts. When you're in the mood for some serious fun, this is all highly entertaining, but when you're not, the only alternative is full greeny granny mode. Better to stick the box in manual and choose the shift points yourself.

On the move, the overriding impression is just how complete a package the R is. In the past, the 4Motion transmission tended to blunt the steering response, compromising the Golf's brio. Not so in the R — this latest version responds faster and serves the driver with an experience that is entertaining, responsive and secure. In fact, the lighter four-pot engine helps in this, eliminating the R32's nose-heavy handling and tendency to plough on across bends rather than turning in as sharply as you want. Instead the R simply savages a bend, turning in keenly and then powering round with the security only a well sorted four-wheel drive platform can deliver. Sharp changes of direction and instant traction. It's a beguiling combination, and rather shows how much the R's rivals (Focus, Megane) are compromised by the decision to put all the power down through the front wheels.

Ride comfort is good, despite the fact that our test car wasn't fitted with the optional VW Adaptive Chassis Control suspension. On steel springs and standard 18in wheels, it was comfortable, well-controlled and quiet. This is a much more driver-focused Golf than the R32 and a much sharper tool than even the GTI, which seems to be turning ever more sensible with each generation. The R is no hooligan, but it is by far the most entertaining and involving Golf in a very long time.

While the R lacks the aural appeal of the outgoing R32's V6 lump, it more than compensates on the road — this is VW's fastest Golf yet, storming to 100kph in as little as 5.5 seconds with the DSG ‘box. It is quick and responsive and there's nothing too obvious shouting about the performance. It just gets on with things in a quietly devastating way. Less is definitely more.

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