We all knew the day to bid the Golf R32 farewell would come, and it has. The only place to be in September every second year if you’re a car enthusiast, is the Frankfurt Auto Show. 

This year it has seen the covers taken off the R32’s replacement. The most powerful Golf so far, the Golf R, has finally been unveiled to the public. The new hottest Golf looses the ‘32’ on the badge because it’s no longer using the 3.2 V6 engine but shares the 2.0 turbo with the potent TT-S. 

It still retains the four-wheel drive system but that has been changed as well. The new system has been enhanced to react quicker to reduce wheel spin and up to 100% torque can be sent to the rear wheels, how fun is that. 

 The Golf R is easy to distinguish from the GTI, especially from the rear. It has the same twin exhausts mounted in the centre as on the R32. It has received cosmetic upgrades over the GTI, like the new rear and front bumpers with LED lights, black grille, black mirrors, side skirts and gorgeous 18 inch alloys also used in Scirocco R. 

There are also ‘R’ badges on the boot lid and the front grille. Inside you’re also reminded that you’re in something special by ‘R’ badges allover; on the door sills, sports steering wheel and on the headrests of those sporty bucket seats.

 The instrument cluster gets special attention as well, with blue needles. Performance has obviously been improved thanks to the new motor’s 199kW, 15kW more than the R32, and 350Nm of torque. This is enough to propel the ‘R’ to 100km/h in 5.7 seconds for the manual and 5.5 for DSG. It’s almost 2 seconds slower than the lighter TT-S coupe.

The suspension has been revised and lowered for better handling while ESP has 2 stages for track use. The ‘Hot Hatch’ title is closely contested and there is no clear outright winner.

 The Golf R is ready to battle the BMW 130i, Audi S3, Impreza STI, Focus RS and the Mazda3 MPS, among others, for that coveted moniker. 

We can expect VW to bring the R to South Africa mid-next year but I’m sure the price will be announced soon and local dealers will open their order books very shortly.

bachelormag