Volkswagen Golf GTI Review & Prices

A staple in the world of the hot hatchback, the venerable Volkswagen Golf GTI was one of the first of the breed - and one of the best too. It’s been a shining example of a car that can do it all for decades, blending every day sensibility with usable performance in a sporty package.

Think of the Golf GTI as a husky in sheep’s clothing, rather than a wolf. It looks unassuming to most people, but when you engage the Golf’s sporty driving modes and point it at a nice road it’ll chase down more powerful cars without ever feeling scary.

The game has moved on though, and the Golf GTI has some serious hot hatchback competition these days. From the hardcore Honda Civic Type R and pocket rocket Toyota GR Yaris to the uber rapid - but uber expensive - Audi RS3 and Mercedes A35, the Golf GTI seems a little…mild. Even its own Golf R sibling has the GTI licked for outright pace and cornering grip.

A 2024 update came to the Golf GTI’s rescue though, bringing with it the introduction of the latest GTI Clubsport model - which sits above the regular GTI with more power, sportier driving modes and dartier steering. It feels like what the Golf GTI should have been all along, but we’ll come back to that.

The update saw the GTI gain some sportier bodywork and posher lights, though the illuminated badge is something the Golf could have done without; a bit chintzy for an otherwise classy car. It’s a handsome thing, if not exciting, but it does look purposeful in an ‘if you know you know’ kinda way.

Inside is a similar story, with the classy, high-quality Golf interior spruced up just a touch with splashes of red trim, red ambient lighting and a GTI-specific steering wheel. While the current generation of Golf was launched in 2020 with one of the worst infotainment systems we’ve seen in recent years, the updated system is a comparative joy to use. Dashboard shortcut buttons would still be appreciated, but Volkswagen ditching the infuriating touch-sensitive steering wheel controls is a huge win.

There’s good space in the cabin and the seats are supportive, though rear legroom can be a little tight for tall passengers; fixed front headrests can induce neck ache for short passengers on long drives too. The 374-litre boot is smaller than some alternatives but it’s a useful shape and plenty big enough for four hand-luggage sized suitcases.

As has been the way with Golf GTIs for decades, it’s one of the most refined hot hatchbacks you can buy. It’s comfortable around town, even in Clubsport trim, and while it’s notably stiffer than a regular Golf over bumps you’re rarely ever left wincing through potholes.

Motorways are fantastic in the GTI with little in the way of wind noise and well-behaved driver assistance systems. Road noise is a bit too loud in the Clubsport though, especially over rougher motorway sections, though it’s never unbearable.

B-roads should be where the GTI feels most at home, but sadly Volkswagen’s engineers have been a little too sensible when setting up the hot hatch. It’s never unsettled by bumpy corners and it feels fairly agile, but it’s just a little… numb.

The Clubsport, again, remedies that to a certain extent. It’s much more direct than the standard car, with the wheels eagerly following your steering input and the car rotating well when carving through corners. It just feels a bit more old-school, and fun as a result, but while it’s a big improvement on the GTI it’s still some way off the Civic Type R.

As a comfortable all rounder the GTI is a solid choice, so you should have a look at the latest Volkswagen Golf GTI deals on Carwow to get a great price on one. Check out Golf GTI lease deals for a different route to getting into one, or browse used Golf GTIs from our trusted network of dealers. There are other used Volkswagen models available, and Carwow can help when it’s time to sell your car too.

The Volkswagen Golf GTI represents decent value compared with other hot hatches – though it’s a touch more expensive than the Ford Focus ST it’s also a bit cheaper than performance-focused versions of the Cupra Leon. The Honda Civic Type R is considerably more, but it’s pretty much the best hot hatchback you can buy at the minute.

The GTI Clubsport is a couple thousand pounds more than the basic GTI, and it’s worth every penny. More power, more performance and sportier looks mean the Clubsport feels like a proper hot hatch

It’s the sweet spot of the range, but should you need more outright pace the Golf R is a couple thousand on top again. It's a different beast altogether with even more power and all-wheel drive though, so not exactly comparable.

The Volkswagen Golf GTI is comfortable and relaxing to drive most of the time, with a hint of sportiness when you want it – but alternatives are much more fun to drive

In town

The awkward truth about buying a performance car is that the vast majority of the time you won’t be driving it at the limit of grip on an epic country road, but instead cruising around town. On the standard suspension the Golf GTI is comfortable enough, but you can pay a bit extra for an adaptive system – do so, and the comfort setting makes it handle bumps just about as well as a regular Golf.

The steering is responsive and the car has a relatively small turning circle, which helps get around tight bends and mini roundabouts in town. You can’t get a Golf GTI with a manual gearbox anymore, but that’s fine in town because the auto is smooth to shift gears and takes the pain out of stop-start traffic.

On the motorway

The Volkswagen Golf GTI is just as impressive on the motorway or A roads as it is around town. Commuting isn’t an issue because it has a lot of the characteristics of a ‘normal’ car – namely the way it smooths out bumps in the road and cocoons you from too much tyre and wind noise.

Cruising along motorways is easy in the GTI, but then so is overtaking, with loads of power available throughout the rev range. The performance also means that getting up to motorway speed on a slip road, or pulling off a quick overtake, is no bother.

The GTI comes with adaptive cruise control as standard, which prevents the car from getting too close to the one in front. Lane assist can also nudge the wheel to stop you drifting out of your lane, while the cruise control also works in stop-start traffic so you don’t need to keep working the pedals in a jam.

On a twisty road

With plenty of grip and willingness from the engine, the latest Volkswagen Golf GTI is technically the best yet. However, when concentrating on high-end precision and the feel of the steering, brake pedal and gearbox, it’s not quite a match for the Honda Civic Type R.

Okay, that car is much more expensive, but the same can be said of more affordable hot hatches such as the Ford Focus ST and Hyundai i30 N (though the latter is now only available on the used market).

Step up to the Clubsport model and the GTI levels up its performance game significantly. It’s got around 30hp more than the regular car and more direct steering as well as sportier suspension settings. It’s still no hardcore hot-hatch, but it’s actually quite fun to carve through corners on a twisty road.

Many alternatives still have manual gearbox options, but the Golf GTI being auto-only isn’t the end of the world because it suits its character. While it is good fun to drive, it’s not trying to be too serious a driver’s car like the Honda.

Spacious enough for most in the cabin, but the boot is smaller than alternatives can offer

The interior of the Volkswagen Golf is more high-tech than ever, but thankfully, useful storage spaces haven’t suffered as a consequence.

There are large door bins that are felt-lined to help sound insulation as well as adding to the quality levels all round. Other elements that have been carried over from the previous GTI include the central armrest with integrated storage underneath, and cup holders that can hold bottles big and small.

Space in the back seats

There is decent headroom in the back of the Golf GTI, though legroom might be a bit of a squeeze if your passengers are particularly tall. There’s just about room for three if your passengers don’t mind getting cozy.

One slight annoyance for rear passengers, however, might be the large sports seats in front, which tend to block the view out of the front window or into the front of the car.

Fitting a child seat is easy enough, because the doors open nice and wide and the ISOFIX mounting points are clearly marked. Even bulky seats should have enough space without having to push the front seat forward.

Boot space

You get 374 litres of boot space in the Volkswagen Golf GTI, which is a few litres down on the regular Golf – though this is caused by the speaker system being fitted in the underfloor storage, so shouldn’t be a problem. You can still fit smaller items around the speaker though, handy when packing for a long trip.

It’s ample for most situations, but those who want more room from their sporty hot hatch’s boot will need to go for the Skoda Octavia vRS, which has a whopping 600 litres on offer. The Honda Civic Type R also beats the Volkswagen with 410 litres, though the GTI’s boot isn’t much smaller than the Ford Focus ST (380 litres) and BMW M135i (380 litres).

So it’s not the biggest boot going, but it’s a usefully square shape, so you can maximise what you do have. With the rear seats folded there’s no ridge, making it easy to slide heavy items through, while features such as hooks for shopping bags mean you won’t risk cracking your eggs on a spirited return from the local Tesco.

Materials and build quality are excellent, and the updated infotainment is an improvement, but there are still some ergonomic annoyances

There’s not a drastic uplift in the interior for the Volkswagen Golf GTI compared with regular models. There’s some neat red stitching, stainless steel pedals and GTI graphics on the screens, though it’s good enough not to need it.

One of the more noticeable changes in the GTI is the addition of sports seats. They feature integrated headrests and plenty of side support to keep driver and passenger in place when putting the hot hatch through its paces. The seats also get tartan upholstery, which is a GTI hallmark, and front ISOFIX mounts mean you can keep an eye on your child when travelling with them alone.

The infotainment system is also carried over largely unchanged from ‘normal’ Golfs, which means dual screens that display a vast array of information in good clarity. The software has been updated for 2024 models, which makes the 12.9-inch main display in particular much easier to use.

Another great change is the removal of the rubbish touch-sensitive steering wheel buttons that have made their way across various Volkswagen Group models over the past few years. Customer feedback has thankfully been taken on board, so they’ve been switched for physical buttons that are much easier to use.

That said, there’s still a touch-sensitive pad beneath the main screen for various shortcuts, including the drive mode selector, which isn’t quite as easy to use as it could be.

There’s just the one engine available in both the Volkswagen Golf GTI and GTI Clubsport. It’s a 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol engine that makes 265hp in the GTI (up 20hp on before) and 300hp in the GTI Clubsport (the same as the old one).

Both send power to the front wheels through a seven-speed automatic gearbox. In testing we saw 0-60mph in 5.4 seconds in the GTI, which is a few tenths quicker than the official figures.

Proving its daily driver credentials, official fuel economy figures are 39.8mpg in the GTI and 37.7 in the GTI Clubsport. Not bad for performance cars.

However, both have quite high CO2 emissions, meaning they’re fairly expensive in first-year road tax, and you’d have to get a basic car with pretty much no options to avoid the surcharge in years two to six for cars that cost over £40,000. The emissions figures mean the Golf GTI isn’t a particularly affordable option for company car drivers, either.

The Volkswagen Golf GTI hasn’t specifically been tested by safety experts Euro NCAP, but the wider Golf range received a maximum five-star score when it was evaluated in 2022. Its category scores were on a par with comparable models in the class – with adult (front) and children (rear) performance being particularly better than the Honda Civic.

Euro NCAP testing has become stricter since 2022 though, which is worth considering if you value safety above all else.

To match the performance offered by the GTI there are a wide range of safety systems fitted as standard to the hot hatch. For example, you get bigger brakes than the standard car as well as standard-fit adaptive cruise control, a system that can swerve to avoid head-on collisions, and an advanced driver drowsiness monitor.

The GTI comes with Volkswagen’s three-year warranty, which covers drivers for up to 60,000 miles in total. Volkswagen has a mixed record in some reliability surveys, sometimes finishing in the lower half of the list of manufacturers.

Volkswagen came a lowly 29th place out of 32 manufacturers in the 2024 Driver Power survey for downer satisfaction though, which is far from a confidence inspiring for prospective owners.

In March 2022, there was a recall relating to engine cover installations on the Golf GTI and Golf R models. Apart from that the wider Golf range was called in for software- and infotainment-related issues in 2021.