By sticking to the Golf GTI, Volkswagen is maintaining the decades-old tradition of offering a sporty vehicle for a reasonable price. The compact has long since become a cult object. For the practical test, ntv.de used the Clubsport version – with an extra portion of punch.
Admittedly, a basic price of 44,645 euros for a compact class is really proud when viewed in isolation. Exactly this amount would have to be shelled out if you were interested in a Golf GTI Clubsport. After all, there are plenty of cars from Volkswagen. The 245 hp GTI base, on the other hand, starts at 39,310 euros, so without question at an attractive price. But what is there for this money? And especially for the extra cost of club sport?
First of all, a fairly down-to-earth lower middle class with optically only subtle changes to the base. These go a bit further in club sport: a striking roof spoiler is a must here and it not only looks good, but also brings downforce on the track. Black decorative strips on the sill are the icing on the cake of the Clubsport. And then of course it trumpets from an Akrapovi? exhaust system with subtly enlarged tailpipes.
Everything is a bit sportier about the Clubsport compared to the basic GTI, and so here you lounge in velvety sports chairs with a pretty Alcantara cover and honeycomb pattern in the upper backrest area instead of traditional checked upholstery (yes, they still exist). stay. However, they also offer a lot of lateral support, which is also necessary at high cornering speeds. Integral headrests at the front make the furniture look a bit more wiry.
And of course the GTI can also have driver assistance, assisted braking down to a standstill in flowing traffic – and that too gently enough (320 euros). A lane departure warning system comes as standard, while the Wolfsburg-based company also requires an additional 440 euros for the blind spot alarm. However, this package also includes an exit warning that helps to avoid accidents by drawing attention to approaching traffic.
Down to business baby, fire up the two-liter turbocharged direct injection engine and get going. Just warm up properly first, after all, why is there an oil temperature gauge? But then quickly switch to sport mode and let the four-cylinder rev without regret. It rotates greedily towards the limiter, responding with an acoustic repertoire of snotty snorts and angry growls, garnished with one or the other controlled misfire. No way, the Otto particle filter prevents passionate acoustics.
It’s also nice that you don’t just hear the hot GTI inside, it also sounds outside. It is clear that the sound was precisely composed and not left to chance. But that doesn’t take away from the fun, nor does the fact that actuators help.
The 1.5-tonner is passionate anyway, marching briskly forward (5.6 seconds to 100 km/h) and only lets its pressure spring significantly beyond 200 things. Nevertheless, the puff is enough to easily reach the limited 250 km/h. It also decelerates correspondingly bitingly with its powerful discs perforated at the front. And the pedal with crisp feedback ensures good dosing.
In contrast to the basic GTI, you cannot use the manual gearbox in the Clubsport. The seven-speed double clutch is mandatory here, but suits the nature of the fast track monster quite well with mostly lag-free attitude and fast shift times. So it remains exciting to see how the Golf’s lateral performance turns out, especially since 300 horsepower tug on the front tires quite impetuously.
Traction is by no means available in abundance, which is why the engineers gave the Clubsport an electromechanical differential lock instead of the less powerful, purely electronic variant with control via the brake intervention. In practice, the lock works effectively, you have to challenge the sharp GTI badly to provoke slipping in the hairpin bend. He is Volkswagen’s king of the Nordschleife, under eight minutes for the more than 20-kilometer track are issued by the factory – but as a driver you have to get it right first. There is even a driving mode specially designed for the Eifel course for support if you use the adaptive chassis (1045 euros).
What is charming is that club sport is an athlete with everyday qualities. Plenty of space in the rear too, plenty of storage space and a little bit of residual comfort make it versatile. In terms of infotainment and operation, however, Volkswagen has to improve – not that there is too little display space or technical gimmicks (even the head-up display is around 700 euros, and the ambient light offers 30 colors). But the touch-sensitive zones on the steering wheel should revert back to push buttons, which is likely to happen. A bit of simplification in the face of the most complex functionalities couldn’t hurt either.
Conclusion: Even 47 years after the appearance of the first GTI generation, the Volkswagen GTI Clubsport is still a powerful hit in a well-behaved guise. Its potent exhaust system, the extrovert-looking front apron and the two-piece rear spoiler only catch the eye at second glance. The “Kings Red Metallic” costs 810 euros extra, but it suits the simple Lower Saxony well.
