Photo: Volkswagen
If somebody were to ask me if the Golf GTI Clubsport is worth €36,450, I would answer "it depends on your perspective." You can pick up a Passat BiTDI for almost twice that much and never experience any joy or you could buy a Miata and have more fun.
As we predicted, the racing version of the Golf lands between the €29,300 regular GTI and the €39,000 R model. What we could never have predicted is that you can have it as a 5-door car (€900 option) with internet, blind-spot monitoring and park assist. This is like the Porsche 911 GTS of hot hatchbacks.
The point is that 2016 marks the 40th anniversary of the Golf GTI. That means four decades of the most famous hot hatch in the world, with hundreds of thousands of crazy fans around the world.
Every five years or so, Volkswagen thanks those fans for buying €50 key chains and shirts with a special edition. In 2011, it was the Edition 35, preceded by the Mk5-based Editon 30, which was offered five years before. Both of those are considered collectors' cars, but they can't hold a candle to the GTI Clubsport.
It packs a tuned version of the 2.0 TSI that delivers 265 horsepower. That's only under normal conditions, because when you bury your foot in the carpet, the figure jumps to 290 ponies. Why lie about horsepower? Because it makes the Golf R look outdated.
With as much power as the Leon Cupra, it's not surprising that the Clubsport is faster than a regular GTI.
You don't have to push any buttons to activate the overboost or worry about losing control. A mechanical limited-slip diff takes care of things, together with stronger versions of the components found in the regular GTI. 0 to 100 km/h sprints take 5.9 seconds with the DSG or 6 seconds with the manual.
The Clubsport is inspired by the GTI Vision Gran Turismo concept car. Check out the bulging fenders, gaping grille and imposing wing at the back! However, the Civic Type R still wins this automotive game of top trumps.
Things don't look radically different inside either, which is what you'd expect from Volkswagen. Don't look for boost indicators and chrome skulls! However, there are two major highlights: the Alcantara D-shaped steering wheel with red stitching and the bucket seats with stripes on them.
The point is that 2016 marks the 40th anniversary of the Golf GTI. That means four decades of the most famous hot hatch in the world, with hundreds of thousands of crazy fans around the world.
Every five years or so, Volkswagen thanks those fans for buying €50 key chains and shirts with a special edition. In 2011, it was the Edition 35, preceded by the Mk5-based Editon 30, which was offered five years before. Both of those are considered collectors' cars, but they can't hold a candle to the GTI Clubsport.
It packs a tuned version of the 2.0 TSI that delivers 265 horsepower. That's only under normal conditions, because when you bury your foot in the carpet, the figure jumps to 290 ponies. Why lie about horsepower? Because it makes the Golf R look outdated.
With as much power as the Leon Cupra, it's not surprising that the Clubsport is faster than a regular GTI.
You don't have to push any buttons to activate the overboost or worry about losing control. A mechanical limited-slip diff takes care of things, together with stronger versions of the components found in the regular GTI. 0 to 100 km/h sprints take 5.9 seconds with the DSG or 6 seconds with the manual.
The Clubsport is inspired by the GTI Vision Gran Turismo concept car. Check out the bulging fenders, gaping grille and imposing wing at the back! However, the Civic Type R still wins this automotive game of top trumps.
Things don't look radically different inside either, which is what you'd expect from Volkswagen. Don't look for boost indicators and chrome skulls! However, there are two major highlights: the Alcantara D-shaped steering wheel with red stitching and the bucket seats with stripes on them.
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