After many years of gradually downsizing its engines, Volkswagen has begun to do the opposite thing. We call it rightsizing. The updated Golf is the first of its cars to get the 1.5 TSI engine, which is finally available for order.
In Germany, the 1.5 TSI Golf starts at €24,350. That doesn't include the €900 you'll have to pay for the 5-door bod', though. A Golf Variant 1.5 TSI adds practicality but bumps the price to €26,400.
On average, the 1.5 is about €200 more expensive than the 1.4 TSI. But it comes as standard with Active Cylinder Timing technology. On part throttle loads between 1000 and 4000rpm, and at speeds up to 120 km/h, two of the cylinders can be shut down to save fuel.
Available from the Comfortline trim level upwards, the engine occupies the middle of the range. The 150 PS and 250 Nm of torque are identical to that of the old unit. Speaking of which, you can still order the 1.4 TSI as a base unit with 125 PS and 200 Nm. It will eventually be replaced by a de-tuned version of the 1.5 TSI.
Want a DSG with that? The Golf offers it for €2,000 extra, which is steep considering the 7-speed unit is not the smoothest automatic in the segment.
In the New European Driving Cycle (NEDC) the consumption range for the version with a manual gearbox is 5.0 l/100 km (114 g/km CO2). In conjunction with the optional 7-speed DSG, an average of 4.9 l/100 km and 112 g/km CO2 is achieved. That makes it 0.2 l/100km more economical than the outgoing engine, which is hardly groundbreaking.
We know that the average Golf is not a hot hatch, but the numbers are a little exciting. The sprint from 0 to 100 km/h takes a brisk 8.3 seconds. While the rival Ford Focus 1.5 EcoBoost produces a lot more power at 182 PS, it requires 8.6 seconds to do the same. You also get an independent rear suspension setup on the 1.5 TSI, which the base 1.6 TDI and 1.0 TSI don't have.
Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida. Full profile
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