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Old VW Golf Fetches Almost Brand New BMW M2 Money at Auction; Wait, What?

If you’re a true petrolhead, then you already know that this is not your run-of-the-mill Volkswagen Golf Mk4. Heck, it’s not even an ordinary GTI, but something a bit more exciting: the 25th Anniversary Edition.
2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary 13 photos
Photo: Silverstone Auctions
2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary2002 VW Golf GTI 25th Anniversary
You see, while the United States and Canada got the GTI 337 Edition of the fourth-gen Volkswagen Golf to celebrate the model’s 25th anniversary, Europe welcomed the eponymous model.

It came in one of three shades, including the Reflex Silver pictured here, had 18-inch wheels signed by BBS, improved brakes with red calipers, lowered sports suspension, and a few updates inside. These were the red and black Recaro seats, handbrake and gearshift levers wrapped in perforated leather, and several other minor things.

Power, on the other hand, was supplied by a turbocharged 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine, which was capable of pumping out 177 HP. That’s barely warm hatch territory in today’s market, but don’t forget that this particular example came to life back in 2002.

Okay, so nothing so far explains why it changed hands for nearly as much as a BMW M2 Competition ($58,900 MSRP in the United States). The devil lies in the details, because as you can see in the pictures, it is in top-notch condition. And that’s no coincidence, because it has only 8 miles (13 km) on the odometer since new, and a single owner in the papers.

Sure, it may be in right-hand drive, but it did sell at a British auction last weekend, at the end of July, for the low-low sum of £38,250. This equals to well over $53,000 at the current exchange rates, and since it is basically a brand-new, 19-year old car, it is worth every cent to the right collector, who will hopefully drive it a bit before locking it away from what we reckon will be years to come.
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About the author: Cristian Gnaticov
Cristian Gnaticov profile photo

After a series of unfortunate events put an end to Cristian's dream of entering a custom built & tuned old-school Dacia into a rally competition, he moved on to drive press cars and write for a living. He's worked for several automotive online journals and now he's back at autoevolution after his first tour in the mid-2000s.
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