May 2024 will mark half a century since Volkswagen presented the Giorgetto Giugiaro-designed Golf in May 1974. Series production of the Beetle's hatchback-bodied successor started in March 1974, and to date, more than 37 million examples have been sold worldwide. The Golf clocked its first million in 1976, the year VW introduced the GTI.
Revealed in October 2019 in the German automaker's hometown of Wolfsburg, the eighth-generation Golf will soon receive a mid-cycle refresh. The Mk8.5 – or whatever you want to call it – will be revealed in a matter of weeks as a 2025 model. According to the release attached below, pre-sales will kick off in the spring of 2024. It's not clear whether VW UK refers to the UK or European market, but in any case, you can bet your bottom dollar that even the US specification will hit dealer lots by the end of 2024.
Said release confirms an evolutionary development for the Mk8, which is exactly what you'd expect from a facelift. In addition to minor styling updates, the largest German automaker of them all further promises new powertrains, assistance systems, infotainment solutions, and software. Given that Volkswagen had to postpone the eighth generation's release over software issues, here's hope that the new software won't result in yet another unwanted delay.
It's hard to believe that the Golf 8 uses in the ballpark of 100 million lines of code as opposed to roughly 10 million for a new car from 2009. The Golf 8.5 is pretty certain to exceed 100 million lines, especially given the new assistance systems confirmed by Volkswagen's British office. Also worthy of note, the 2025 model won't be available with a manual.
For most markets, the DSG dual-clutch transmission will have to suffice. It's not known whether the Australia-specific Golf 8.5 will continue to rely on the pre-facelift model's 8-speed automatic. Said transmission is exclusive to the 1.4-liter TSI, whereas the 2.0-liter TSI is connected to the 7-speed DSG.
Photo: Baldauf
Mk8.5 could be the final internal combustion-engined Golf due to emission and fuel economy regulations. The Volkswagen Group believes that electric vehicles will make up 80 percent of the group's overall sales in Europe by 2030. Over in North America, the estimate is 55 percent. Regarding the Golf's all-electric replacement, it's not clear whether the ID.3 will be renamed or discontinued in favor of an e-Golf after the Mk8.5 runs its course.
Speaking of which, the e-Golf is widely considered as being the forerunner of the ID.3. Unveiled in series-production form at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show, the e-Golf was updated for 2017 with a larger battery and a WLTP-rated 232 kilometers (144 miles) of driving range on a full charge. By comparison, the ID.3 Pro S offers up to 575 kilometers (357 miles).
Regarding the internal combustion-engined Golf, the German automaker will definitely put a bigger focus on hybrid assistance for the Mk8.5 series. Be that as it may, there's no denying the engine lineup will be mostly unchanged from the 2024 model. Think 1.0-liter TSI as the base powerplant, followed by the 1.5-liter TSI, 2.0-liter TDI, and plug-in hybrid 1.4 TSI.
As opposed to all other powerplants, the 1.4 TSI in question is joined by a 6-speed version of the DSG. The 1.4er is a member of the EA211 engine family. Back in May 2023, the Skoda brand was tasked with developing a new generation of EA211 powerplants.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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