Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

2015 Volkswagen Golf R

Gallery:
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2015-...photo-2173342/

Three cheers for the handbrake. For driving enthusiasts who live in climates where the winter months produce seemingly endless days of snowy, icy conditions, nothing cures the seasonal blues quite like finding yourself on an empty road, pulling the handbrake, halting the rear wheels and happily drifting around a turn. Hooligans, we are. And it's all great fun.

Upon sitting in the 2015 Volkswagen Golf R for the first time, I immediately noticed its handbrake – or, should I say, lack thereof. Like many modern cars, its parking brake is electronic and can only be applied when the brake pedal itself is depressed. While I initially thought this would be a total buzzkill during my recent Ice Capades adventure in northern Sweden, the truth is, after a few minutes behind the wheel, I couldn't have cared less. This car is a silly, little monster, perfectly tuned for wintertime fun.

The story you are about to read is a First Drive in perhaps the most literal sense. Yes, it is the first time Autoblog has driven the new Golf R. But if I called this a road test, I'd technically be lying. The term "road test" implies a car was tested on a road, and while I spent many hours behind the wheel of the hot new Golf R, at no point was any of my driving done on an actual road, paved or otherwise. My seat time was limited to courses carved out on a frozen lake, where the Golf R's electronic wizardry, combined with state-of-the-art studded winter tires, would be the only tools I needed to see what this car is all about. Spoiler alert: it's a riot.


Arvidsjaur is a small city in the Lapland province of northern Sweden, situated some 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle. The name might not ring a bell, but if you've been following the pages of Autoblog, you've likely seen photos of this place without even knowing. Because of its proximity to the arctic climate, Arvidsjaur is a major hub for the European automotive industry; many automakers use this area as a home base for cold-weather prototype testing. So if you've ever seen a frosty set of spy shots, chances are they were snapped near Arvidsjaur. The city's population actually increases during the bitterly cold winter months, since so many engineers take temporary residence in the area. In fact, many locals flock to warmer climates in the winter, and rent out their homes to automotive engineers. During the 24 hours I spent freezing my butt off up there, I spotted groups of test cars from Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen. It's sort of like Detroit in that regard, only colder... somehow.

Beyond cold-weather development, many automakers use the Arvidsjaur region to school enthusiasts in the art of winter performance driving. Volkswagen is one of those companies, and that's exactly how I found myself on an airplane destined for the regional airport northwest of Arvidsjaur. Our classroom would be a lake with just under 30 inches of solid ice on the top, and our teachers were made up of Europeans trained in the art of winter rally instruction.

First, let's start with a quick refresher course. The 2015 Golf R builds upon Volkswagen's storied hotter-than-GTI history, with models like the Golf VR6 and R32 paving the way for what is now the most powerful version of the company's stalwart hatchback. The US-spec MkVII Golf R debuted at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this year, and the car will officially hit our shores in the first quarter of 2015 with pricing expected to fall very close to the $36,090 of the MkVI four-door model. So please note, the car tested here is actually a European-spec model.


Despite its lower stance, aggressive fascia with LED running lamps and 18-inch wheels, I have to admit, the new Golf R doesn't look quite as handsome as its predecessor – my eyes feel the same about the base Golf and GTI, too. Even with its clean, taut styling, the front and rear fascias look a little droopy from some angles. And while the previous Golf R slid under the radar with a bit more subtle ferociousness, there's a healthier injection of boy-racery in this new model. That said, the enhanced styling further separates the R from its lesser kin; you certainly won't mistake this for a regular-strength GTI out on the road.

The R's cabin is exactly what you'd expect from any hot Golf: simply laid-out controls, high-grade materials, sport seats and a clean, yet modern design. There's ample room for four adults (and a fifth, if you really need it), and the hatchback shape is just as functional as ever. Heads-up: the Golf R will be offered in two- and four-door variants overseas, but we'll only get the latter in the US. Volkswagen says demand is simply too low for the two-door. Even in Europe, that model only accounted for something like 20 percent of overall sales with the previous R. No matter – the four-door hatch is really what you want out of an everyday car, anyway.

One of the best things about the Golf R – or Golf, or GTI, for that matter – is how truly premium the interior feels. I could totally live with this car every day, simply because when you're slogging through traffic or driving like a sane person, you'll find the seats comfortable, the stereo good, the tech plentiful, and the cockpit nicely insulated from wind and road noise. In terms of daily-driver ability, no hot hatch does the refinement thing quite like the Vee-Dub.


Dimensionally, the new Golf R rides on a two-inch longer wheelbase than the model it replaces. Length has also been increased by about two and a half inches, and the new R is about two-tenths of an inch wider than before. Most importantly, thanks to the car's new scalable MQB architecture, the 2015 Golf R is some 100 pounds lighter than its predecessor. And with more power under the hood, that means the car's performance numbers are better than ever, while still returning improved fuel economy.

Motivation comes courtesy of Volkswagen's new EA888 2.0-liter turbocharged inline four-cylinder engine. US-spec cars are estimated to produce 290 horsepower between 5,500 and 6,200 rpm, and 280 pound-feet of torque, with a flat curve that extends between 1,800 and 5,500 rpm. Euro-spec cars get an additional 10 hp, but the same amount of torque. For the first time, however, the US model will be available with a choice of either a six-speed manual – now with a shorter-throw shifter – or DSG dual-clutch transmission. With the stick, Volkswagen estimates the Golf R will hit 62 miles per hour in 5.1 seconds, but if DSG is your thing, you'll be rewarded with a 0.2-second quicker acceleration time. Estimated fuel economy comes in at a very respectable 22/31 miles per gallon (city/highway) with the manual transmission, and 22/28 mpg with the dual-clutch.

Aside from more power, the big item that separates the Golf R from your stock GTI is 4Motion all-wheel drive with a fifth-generation Haldex coupling system. Long story short, torque is transferred with greater quickness, and the new XDS+ cross differential system reduces understeer by braking the inside wheel during cornering. On dry pavement, this means turn-in should be a whole lot quicker, and here on the ice, it meant torque could easily be shuffled between all four wheels to provide proper power application at all times.


What's more, the Golf R can be ordered with a dynamic chassis control (DCC) system, with built-in, driver-selectable profiles. Think of it like Audi Drive Select – drivers can switch between Comfort, Normal, Race and Individual modes, the latter of which lets you individually tune things like suspension damping, steering and throttle response. It's all incredibly simple to use, and housed within the infotainment display. Race mode also amplifies the exhaust sound, and man, does this thing sound furious. There's a deep growl at all times, and even as the revs climb, the R sounds more vicious than ever.

Stock cars come fitted with attractive five-spoke, 18-inch alloy wheels wrapped in 225/40R18 summer tires. But for the sake of winter performance, those rubbers were swapped out in favor of smaller-diameter 17-inch alloys, fitted with 225/50-series studded winter tires. I hardly need to explain why winter tires are better for snowy/icy conditions – the wider, deeper tread better allows you to cut through the snow – and the studs on these shoes better allow the Golf to claw through the ice. And claw it did.

My day of winter performance testing started on a large circle course, where continuous drifting was the key to succeeding. As I mentioned, traction control is now completely defeatable. That's really a big deal, simply because this wasn't the case with the previous Golf R. With the system deactivated, getting the Golf's rump to step out is effortless, and with constant steering and throttle modulation, it's easy to hold a long slide.


Following a drifting lesson, we moved to a slalom course where racing instructors demanded I slide the car as much as possible through the cones – a change of pace from a dry slalom, where precision attack is key. This sort of exercise is where a handbrake would have been ideal, to freeze the rear wheels while turning and slide the Golf back and forth. But with the electronic stability control set to Sport and the DCC in Race, there was enough electronic interference to keep things from getting too squarely, letting me absolutely hammer through the slalom, while allowing enough slip to properly free up the rear end when needed.

Braking and cornering exercises were conducted next. Even with studded snow tires, braking on ice can be dicey, and it's wise to be far more judicious about use of the middle pedal in these conditions. Much like the slalom, the lessons learned on dry tracks need to be modified on the ice. Braking happens earlier, and there's less of it. Apexes are hit while going sideways, and regardless of whether or not the ESC is set to Sport mode or turned off completely, it's all up to steering and throttle inputs to keep the power flowing and the car pointed straight ahead. My test car was fitted with the manual transmission, and while the ice courses only really required the use of second and third gears (this isn't a high-power affair), I found the R's clutch pedal nicely weighted, and the short-throw stick was a joy for quickly rotating back and forth between gears. That said, because of the huge torque curve, it was easy enough to stay in second gear most of the time, with ample thrust always available.

The Golf R uses variable-ratio electric power steering, which increases and decreases feedback based on driving mode and speed. In short, the system works well, with plenty of driver feedback. The Golf R was easily manhandled on the ice, where quick spins of the helm are key to quick cornering.

After the basics of ice driving were checked off the list, a very Swedish lunch of reindeer (like a chewier venison) and fish was served (in a lakeside yurt, to boot). With full bellies, drivers lined up at three different ice courses ranging in length from one to three kilometers. Here, everything taught in the morning would come into play, and as the day went on, corners were executed with more precision, entrance and exit speeds were increased, and smiles were glued to faces.

Sure, this sort of amateur snow-and-ice rallying would have been fun in a host of cars, but with the Golf R's tossable dynamics, excellent steering and fantastic AWD prowess, it was easier and easier to attack the different courses, the car's systems allowing me to be as big of a hooligan as I'd like while still inspiring enough confidence to keep me pushing harder and harder into each turn. It all felt like bad behavior, and the Golf R eagerly played along.


The main takeaway isn't just that the Golf R is good on the slick stuff. The hatch demonstrated itself to be a willing performer, raising the bar over what you'd expect out of a normal GTI. The performance delta over a GTI is huge – far wider than the gap between, say, a Subaru WRX and STI (currently, anyway – the 2015 STI has not been driven yet). Having all-wheel drive is really a benefit here, and handbrake or not, the R slid with ease and poise, never feeling too powerful or acting like a complete handful.

Wintertime driving, to enthusiasts, is far more exciting than you'd think. And tossing the Golf R around the frozen lake north of Arvidsjaur proved its all-season prowess is top-notch. Considering just how good this thing was on the ice, I can only imagine it'll be a total hoot on dry pavement – and I'm eagerly awaiting the chance to experience that when the northern US finally thaws. But as long as I have snow, this hottest Volkswagen will easily earn a place as one of my favorite cold-weather rides.

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/01/27/2...w-first-drive/

geko29

I came this close || to buying the MkVI Golf R, and this one's certainly in the running for when time comes to replace the wife's car (she'd get my 335d). Being able to fully defeat the traction control is huge, and this is just an incredibly fun, practical little car.

bagwell

at $40K, I don't think its too practical....at $26K for a used 2013, I'd think about it


much better pic of the 15 R

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Decent interior appointments and good size Navi screen

bagwell

Volkswagen has released full pricing details on the hottest version of the 2015 Golf.

The base Golf R will sell for $37,415 including destination and comes packing a turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that makes 292 hp and 280 lb-ft of torque. Initially, the car will only be available with four doors and a six-speed DSG automatic transmission, though a two-door version and a manual transmission are likely to join the lineup later on. Fuel economy for the new Golf R is estimated to sit around 30 mpg highway.

A launch control feature along with VW’s full-time four-wheel drive system and fifth-generation Haldex coupling allow the car to sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds. To set the R apart, unique bumpers, side skirts, wheels and bi-xenon headlights are fitted to all models.

Inside, you’ll find sport seats and a steering wheel wrapped in leather along with special R badging and ambient lighting.

Step up to the Golf R with DCC and Nav, and the price tag climbs to $39,910 including destination. For that extra cash you get the DCC adaptive damping system, 19- inch wheels, a navigation system, a Fender audio system and front and rear park control.

Volkswagen has also thrown in something special for early adopters. The first 500 Golf Rs produced will be top-trim models available with an exclusive numbered R accessories kit.

The Golf R will hit dealerships in early 2015. http://www.autoguide.com/auto-news/2...om-37-415.html

I would never own a VW with this unless it had a warranty.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

High failure rate?

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Gallery:
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2015-...photo-3138937/

Volkswagen hired a photographer to come shoot the handful of journalists that it brought to drive the 2015 Golf R at Buttonwillow Raceway north of Los Angeles. This fact, though unremarkable in and of itself, was something I hadn't noticed until I was well into my track time – probably ten laps deep on a day that would see me run twice that number. In any event, I noticed the intrepid shooter as he was sprinting from one side of the track to the other somewhere before Turn 2, while I was barreling down the main straightaway, still looking through Turn 1.

In the roughly two-mile configuration of the track that I drove, Buttonwillow is a big, wide-open circuit, largely flat and with excellent overall visibility. On that layout, and just hours into my Golf R experience, I'd already become confident in endeavoring to push the limits of VW's latest blistering hatch. In fact, the easy nature of driving the thing quickly had me overestimating my pace. So when I saw the photog sprint across the tarmac I instinctively slowed way too much, way too early for Turn 1.

Looking back at the incident after I'd pitted for the session, I laughed at myself, knowing I'd have had to be driving almost double my actual speed to put the camera guy in any real danger of being hit. But the experience crystallized what my full test of the R bore out: this is a car that makes you feel much faster than you otherwise would, at least in a competition setting.

The 2015 Golf R is an über hatch that will flatter those hyper-enthusiasts passionate enough to splash out on its steep price tag, but without threatening sales of core models like the GTI and its ilk. That's a good thing for the VW fanboys, to be sure, and, I'd argue, a great thing for the strength of the German brand overall.


My test in California had at least two things in common with the First Drive feature that Steve Ewing brought us with the Golf R in Sweden. First, we both drove European specification cars (though mine didn't suffer from the same sticker abuse that Steve's did). Second, we were both somewhat limited in terms of driving the car in varied, real-world situations.

My street route consisted almost entirely of tracking California's I-5 north out of Los Angeles; which any Angelino will tell you is a less-than-riveting mode of travel. Still, it did help to illustrate a case in which the Golf R is not at all better than the GTI in real-world operation, though certainly no worse, either.

Very often, it is during the drudgery of commuting that high-performance variants of ordinary models start to feel out of place. In the case of the Golf R and its Golf parents, this couldn't be further from the truth. The R felt both placid and comfortable while I clicked off highway miles in search of the racetrack, seeming every bit as quiet, stable and cossetting of ride as the softer Golf TSI I drove months ago. Perhaps if I drove them back-to-back I'd be able to note a higher amount of road noise from the wider Golf R rubber, but any uptick in uproar was small enough to barely be worth a mention.


On a day-to-day basis, in fact, the Golf R's rich standard equipment list is likely to be more impactful than its lurking performance potential. Heated leather seats with powered articulation come along with the base spec, as do items like automatic climate control and LED running lights.

Suffice it to say that even the most basic R will be very well turned out, but not so fancily that it upstages any other high-trim members of the Golf line. While the R is more aggressively styled than the rest of the VW herd, too, its larger wheels and lower stance hardly merit the price premium. The Golf R looks good, but you won't be one of 5,000 expected buyers for the car based on its looks alone.

No, you want this car or you don't based on what it can do at a place like Buttonwillow, even if you're unlikely to bring yours there. Dicing with traffic on I-5 or nipping through rush hour anywhere in America, a regular Golf or a GTI will serve you just fine. Better, in fact, as neither will have cost you $36,000 or more to get your hands on.

But in a place where cornering precision, throttle response and absolute grip come into play, there's undeniably no replacement for the R badge on this Golf. Nor are there more than a handful of true competitors on sale today, at least in our country.


Volkswagen rates the 2.0-liter turbo beastie under the hood of the R at 292 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. With a curb weight of 3,283 pounds for the manual-transmission version, that gives the R a power-to-weight ratio that's extremely competitive with the Subaru WRX STI.

The thrust from the turbo four also makes the top-dog Golf feel lighter than I'd expected on the track. Real bite from the engine can be felt low down in the broad torque curve, meaning it's never difficult to dive into the throttle an find quick, powerful response.

Buttonwillow is rife with long, open sections and gentle sweeping turns where I had the six-speed manual slotted into fourth gear, and the car pulling hard up the rev ladder. Still, I was always comfortable in just changing down to third for the tight turns following those fast bits, as maximum torque could be had at just 1,800 rpm. In fact, as I got faster and gained confidence, I realized that running the engine out to redline in third gear was generally a pointless exercise, as top power arrived at 5,400 rpm, well before the cutoff.


Part of my reason for wanting those extra revs, I suppose, was that, even with the louder exhaust note that comes when the car is set to Race mode, it's relatively quiet at all but the fastest engine speeds. Hard as I might push, accelerating out of corners definitely felt quick, but the exhaust never offered a roar worthy of the sensation.

The six-speed manual transmission was a bright spot for me, both in terms of ease of use on the circuit and in regular driving. Throws aren't rifle-bolt precise, I suppose, but they're still quite accurate and easy to execute thanks to a light, positive clutch. I suspect that the DSG version of the car, which we Americans will get in the 2015 model (the 6MT will go on sale here for 2016), is probably better for track use, but less satisfying in day-to-day life.

The Golf R offers drivers a selection of drive modes, including Comfort, Sport, Race and Individual, of which I quickly found Race to be the most inviting on the track. (Shocking, I'm sure.) With Race switched on the electronic stability control switches off, allowing the car to corner with more fluidity and neutrality than with the computers watching.

Despite the front-engine layout and the Golf's front-drive origins, the R's 4Motion all-wheel-drive system helped to keep the car from plowing into fast corners. The Haldex coupling seemed to keep power flowing to the correct wheels when I dialed in lock quickly, aided, no doubt, by the XDS+ "cross differential system" that compensates for understeer by way of brake actuation.


Now, I want to be clear that we were only doing three laps at a time before pitting and cooling off the cars, but I couldn't feel the XDS system having a deleterious effect on the brakes. It stands to reason that extended driving and braking, coupled with the cross-differential use, would lead to quicker fade from those stoppers, but in this less-stressful environment they always hauled the car down crisply.

With all of these systems working cohesively, I was able and willing to push the R harder and harder, lap after lap. The VW team needed to pack us up and shuttle us back to LA, well before I felt like I'd found the fastest lap I could manage in the car. And the minders basically had to steal my helmet to get me gone from the joint.

Precise turn-in, grip from all corners, body-hugging seats and flat cornering attitude thanks to the suspension and stiff chassis; all of these made me feel like a motoring hero over the course of one afternoon. That's a tremendous thing to say about any car, and a really remarkable statement when it comes to a hot hatch.

Volkswagen didn't have any of it's excellent 2015 GTI models onhand to compare and contrast with the R, but I'd expect that the lesser Golf is also fun on a track, while being hugely less capable at the bleeding edge of performance. The question is, do you care?


As I stated earlier, in 2012 and 2013, only a few thousand North American buyers found the extra performance of the R worth the high jump in MSRP over the GTI. In 2015, the Golf R will cost $35,595 plus $895 for destination and delivery. At that price, and without the kind of dramatic styling or badge snootiness that helps to sell Audis, the R really only competes with the Subaru WRX STI that starts a few grand lower at $34,495. The calculus about which of those is a better 'deal' involves highly personal thoughts and use cases based on driving style, brand preference, taste and a thirst for outright performance potential. I'll simply weigh in by saying both are great to drive, and both are outshone overall by the sparkling value offered by their lesser-powered siblings (WRX and GTI).

Even with the current base Golf the excellent TSI and the performance value offered by the GTI taken as read, I still couldn't be any more pleased with the Golf R as an object in its own right. I look at it as a kind of gift to the fevered Volkswagen fans in this country, too often denied the best performance metal that the company offers elsewhere in the world. More over, the fact that VW can (and almost certainly will) find a happy home for enough of these R models to make it financially viable, makes it a happy bellwether for the market overall.

That's a great thing to say about a car, so flattering to its driver, that I felt like I was doing 150 mph when I was really doing 105 mph (even if the cameraman did screw up my corner).

http://www.autoblog.com/2014/11/24/2...-review-video/

cino

iTrader: (1)

There is much hype about interior, but I don't see it. Hope Mazda brings back MS3 with AWD to compete.

bagwell

hecho en México?

pbm317

Sucks that they won't give the U.S. Market the 8" Infotainment display, It get saddled with a giant black bezel and a screen that's ~5.8" at least until 2016MY

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

lame lame lame