Volkswagen Golf R Review & Prices

The Volkswagen Golf R is the halo version of the ubiquitous hatchback’s range, and a 2024 update brought much-needed improvements to the infotainment system, as well as a welcome dose of extra performance.

The R is in distinguished company, with all-wheel drive hot hatch alternatives including the Audi S3, BMW M135 and Mercedes-AMG A35, with less refined, more driver-focused options such as the Honda Civic Type R and Toyota GR Yaris also on the radar.

If the standard Golf is a korma then the R – with the extra power that comes as part of the latest update – is like ordering a vindaloo, then sprinkling chilli flakes on top.

The updated version of the Mk8 Volkswagen Golf R – known as the 8.5 – gets more aggressive styling than the regular Golf, but the update also brings with it new bumper designs, LED headlights and an illuminated VW badge up front. The jury’s still out on that one.

Inside there’s one key change. The infotainment system is much-improved, with a bigger display, faster processing and redesigned interface that’s more intuitive to use. It’s still some way off the best alternatives, and we still encountered frustrations with smartphone connectivity, for example, but it’s much better than before. Sadly the infuriating touch-sensitive steering wheel buttons, dropped from the rest of the Golf range, remain in the R.

Outside of the on-board tech the Golf R’s cabin is a pleasant place to sit. You get comfortable yet figure-hugging sports seats and a chunky R-specific steering wheel with larger shift paddles, while space and storage are decent.

You get some nice sporty touches, such as a suede-like material on the doors and seats, blue stitching and R-specific displays, but on the whole the cabin doesn’t feel quite up to the quality of other circa-£45k hot hatches such as the Audi S3.

The Golf R loses out a little to alternatives in the practicality stakes, with only the S3 having a smaller boot capacity. At 341 litres the Golf R’s boot will be fine for most, but a Honda Civic Type R should be top of your shopping list of boot capacity is important. There’s also the Golf R Estate if you want more space.

While there are a few pros and cons in terms of practicality and technology, there’s very little to complain about once on the road. The Golf R is one of the most engaging hot hatches to drive and its all-wheel drive system contributes to it being an incredibly capable car in corners. There’s loads of grip, and with all that power you shoot out of corners full of confidence. Importantly, it’s also more fun to drive than its predecessor.

The fun factor is helped a bit by the extra power on offer. The 2.0-litre engine makes 333hp, up from 320hp, and has an official 0-62mph time of 4.6 seconds. However, we matched this in damp conditions, demonstrating how rapid this family hatchback really is.

There are some compromises, with the suspension being a bit less comfortable than a regular Golf when driving around town, and you get more road noise at motorway speeds, too. These feel like fair concessions for a car that’s so good on a twisty stretch of Tarmac.

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With prices starting around £44,000, that sounds like a lot of money for a Volkswagen Golf, but it actually puts it right in line with powerful premium alternatives. There’s not much in it compared with the BMW M135, Audi S3 and Mercedes-AMG A35, though the latter two being a fraction more expensive. The Honda Civic Type R is the priciest of the bunch, starting at over £50,000 – it’s not as plush inside, but feels like a much more focused performance car.

A potential issue with the Golf R is that it’s easy to push that price up with a few optional extras. If you opt for the adjustable suspension system and the ‘R Performance Pack’, which increases the top speed and adds a drift mode, you’re looking at about £2,700 extra before you’ve even considered items such as a panoramic sunroof or the Lapiz Blue paint, which are another £2,000-plus combined.

An absolute riot on a country road, but it’s less refined than the standard Golf the rest of the time

In town

At lower speeds around town, the Volkswagen Golf R can’t quite hide its performance-focused credentials. In our test car, which had the optional adaptive suspension, you could feel poor roads bump and jiggle the car around even in its most comfortable setting.

Despite this, it’s not unbearable, and otherwise the R feels just as simple and uneventful to drive as any other Golf. Visibility is good and the car is a decent size for town driving, so width restrictors aren’t too stressful.

Standard assistance kit includes a rear-view camera to make parking easier, and a remote parking system if you don’t fancy trying yourself. It’s a bit of a shame you have to pay extra for a 360-degree camera, though.

On the motorway

At higher speeds, the suspension copes much better with bumps, so it’s pretty comfortable at motorway speeds. You do have to contend with a bit more road noise than a regular Golf, though. Still, with all that power on tap and an automatic gearbox that’s quick to respond when you accelerate quickly, overtakes and slip roads are fuss free.

Good news also comes in the form of standard-fit adaptive cruise control, which keeps your distance to the car in front and takes some of the strain out of motorway driving. That’s an optional extra on the BMW M135.

On a twisty road

It’s twisty roads where the Volkswagen Golf R excels. Grip has never been a Golf R problem, but arguably, fun has. Its predecessor was clearly capable on a twisty road, but never felt the most engaging, something that has been addressed with this update.

You have faith in the car to grip in the middle of the corner, and then when you accelerate out the tyres hook up and catapult you forward. The all-wheel drive system feels rear-biased, which makes it feel more sporty, and the suspension soaks up bumps well so you don’t feel like you’re bouncing around.

As a result, the Golf R is now one of the more fun all-wheel drive hot hatch options. The only way to really beat it is to spend more on the (front-wheel drive) Honda Civic Type R, but that comes with other compromises to interior quality and everyday driving sensibilities.

Interior space and storage is pretty good, but the boot is smaller than most alternatives

The driving position is spot on and it’s easy to get comfortable, with a good range of adjustability in the seat and steering wheel. As a pricey, range-topping model it does feel a bit stingy that you don’t get fully electric seat movement, though.

Storage is decent, with useful door bins and a couple of cup holders that can grip large and small drinks. There’s a smartphone charging pad under the main screen, which has a cover to hide your phone and avoid distractions.

Space in the back seats

It’s fairly spacious in the back too, with decent kneeroom and headroom, which means four six-footers can sit without compromising anyone’s legroom. Fitting three across the back is a bit tight though, and the middle seat feels rather perched.

Getting a child seat in is easy because the ISOFIX points are clearly marked, the doors open nice and wide, and you have space for a bulky child seat.

Boot space

Although the regular Golf is bang on par with its Audi and BMW equivalents, the Golf R’s boot actually loses some capacity to make way for some of the mechanical bits that make it so much fun to drive. As a result you get a 341-litre capacity, 40 litres down on the regular car, though this is essentially because of reduced underfloor storage, so the main luggage area is the same.

The Audi S3 has the same problem, but loses even more space, so it’s smaller than the Golf R at 325 litres. However, the Mercedes-AMG A35 (370 litres), BMW M135 (380 litres) and Honda Civic Type R (410 litres) all have bigger boots, which can make all the difference if you’re trying to squeeze a buggy in.

Cool sporty design touches and an improved infotainment system are welcome, but there are still technology-related frustrations abound

The Volkswagen Golf’s interior has received plenty of justified criticism since its 2020 introduction, but the 2024 update has brought with it at least one welcome change to address this.

The main talking point was the screen, which has been completely overhauled with a new 12.9-inch display. It runs much improved software, both aesthetically and operationally, with crisp graphics and lots of customisable shortcut buttons to make it much easier to use. This is coupled with the climate sliders that sit below now being backlit, so you can actually find them at night.

It’s much, much better, but still far from the best, and we encountered smartphone connectivity issues, not for the first time in a modern Volkswagen product.

Sadly, while the rest of the updated Golf range ditched the awful touch-sensitive steering wheel controls for proper physical buttons, the R keeps the old units because they have a unique drive mode button. They’re awkward to use, and you’ll constantly brush them as you drive, turning up the volume or the heated steering wheel in every bend.

Still, the digital instrument display mimics old-school dials and is generally easy to use. You get R-specific graphics and functions to add to the theatre, too. A head-up display is a paid extra, which again, feels a bit stingy at this price point.

Other upgrades for the R model make it feel suitably sporty and a cut above the rest of the range, particularly the bucket seats, which look racy but are comfortable and have a lovely suede-like upholstery. There’s also blue trim and some blue ambient lighting to remind you this is the R model.

The Volkswagen Golf R gets a 2.0-litre, four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine that makes 333hp, which is a 13hp increase over the old model. That’s not a huge amount of difference, but it does feel a touch more eager than before.

Impressively, that makes the Golf R the joint most powerful of the similarly priced hot hatches you might be considering. The Audi S3 has the same 333hp output, while the Honda Civic Type R isn’t far behind on 329hp. The Mercedes-AMG A35 gets 306hp and the BMW M135 has 300hp.

Officially you’ll get from 0-62mph in 4.6 seconds, but our timing gear measured the 0-60mph sprint at 4.4 seconds in the wet, which is very impressive. Top speed is limited to 155mph, but if you’re planning to use the car on track or regularly hit the German autobahn, you can unlock 168mph by purchasing the R Performance Pack.

We hovered around 30mpg in normal driving, which is respectably close to the official figures of 34.9mpg, but expect that to drop quickly if you’re enjoying the performance on offer. We saw just 17mpg during filming…

As a performance car, the Volkswagen Golf R’s emissions put it into one of the higher bands for first-year Vehicle Excise Duty, and the purchase price means you’ll have to pay extra in years two to six, too. It’s also not an ideal option for a company car; you’d be better off looking at hybrid or electric vehicles, such as the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N.

The Volkswagen Golf R gets the same Euro NCAP safety rating as the normal car, which means it has the full five stars overall. Adult and child occupant protection scores are pretty good at 88% and 87% respectively. It’s a bit of a shame you have to pay extra for curtain, side and centre airbags, though.

Standard assistance kit includes adaptive cruise control, which can also take control in stop/start traffic, as well as a lane-keeping assistant. You also get tech to help avoid oncoming cars and another system warns you if you’re about to reverse into vehicles passing behind the car.

The Volkswagen Golf came a miserable 50th out of 50 cars in the 2024 Driver Power owner satisfaction survey, with most complaints centred around the infotainment system and lack of physical controls. On top of this, Volkswagen overall came 29th out of 32 manufacturers, showing there’s plenty of work to be done.

Volkswagen’s warranty is in line with most manufacturers (though certainly on the low end overall) at three years, with unlimited mileage in the first two years and a limit of 60,000 miles in the third.