Stick-shift aficionados looking for a new Volkswagen Golf GTI should act fast. For model year 2025, VW will discontinue the six-speed manual, and this move also affects the pricier and more powerful Golf R. With the refreshed eighth-generation GTI still a fair way away from the U.S., we headed overseas to shake down a European model and see just how much we’ll miss the three-pedal setup.
Dwindling global demand apparently no longer justifies the extra outlay and complexity, so customers must either settle for the familiar seven-speed dual-clutch automatic or look to the competition from Japan and Korea. Even more bad news for Americans: The hardcore Clubsport edition, fitted with a torquier 296-hp engine, go-fast cosmetics, and an optional top-speed-lifting Race package that includes an Akrapovic exhaust, won’t make it to the U.S. at all.
In Europe, the base model also gets a power upgrade. The fourth-generation 1984-cc EA888 engine develops 261 horsepower, up 20 from the 2024 vintage. Sadly, the U.S. won’t get the extra grunt. For all markets, the maximum torque is an unchanged 273 pound-feet starting at 1600 rpm. According to its maker, the Euro GTI Mk8.5 can accelerate to 62 mph in an estimated 5.9 seconds, shaving a few tenths off the previous best. Although the top speed is restricted to 155 mph, our car managed an indicated 170 mph—also explaining, in part, our disappointing observed fuel economy: 23 mpg recorded over a two-day, 355-mile blast through east-German no-man’s-land.
The 2025 GTI wears some more vivid makeup than its predecessor, featuring redesigned high-intensity matrix headlamps, an illuminated Volkswagen emblem, more prominent aero aids, additional blacked-out styling elements, five-dot fog lights, a rear roof spoiler and LED taillamps with optional sweeping sequential indicators. Whereas lesser versions run on 17- and 18-inch wheels and tires, our car featured extra-cost 19-inchers. The Bridgestone Potenzas are sized 235/35 all around for top-notch traction and cornering grip; however, footwear-induced compromises include a brittle low-speed ride, a tendency to tramline along longitudinal grooves, and an occasionally brusque response to transverse undulations.
Inside, the premier eye-catcher is a larger and more intuitive tablet-like infotainment. While the center section is loaded with icons, the two programmable touch bars at the top and bottom provide instant access to preferred functions. Imprecise touch sliders control volume and temperature return, but at least they’re now illuminated. The available voice-recognition system is connected to ChatGPT and a much bigger online database. The rearranged gauge-cluster display offers three different views: In addition to two round instruments (Classic), you can summon a mixed bag of tiles (Progressive), or settle for the all-red GTI readout that features a large combined speedometer and tachometer flanked by two secondary gauges. The useful head-up display costs extra. Like all previous GTI models, this one comes with a version of the original neo-tartan cloth upholstery complemented by red stitching and embroidered logos.
The GTI Mk8.5 features an electronically controlled front differential lock dubbed XDS+, which masterminds the torque flow at each front wheel via a wet multidisc clutch. The four driving modes are Eco, Comfort, Sport, and Individual. The last invites you to fine-tune the steering, chassis, and drivetrain in multiple discrete steps from laid back to full attack. That’s the good news. The bad news is the absence of the even sharper Special calibration reserved for the Clubsport model. Also known as Nordschleife mode, Special does a better job tying the car down at speed when big bumps, high g-forces, and unilateral irregularities threaten to disturb the flight path.
No matter the drive mode, the soundtrack is disappointing. With the exception of a faint turbo hiss under load, the system produces noise rather than music. At least there are no puerile fake interludes to frown at.
It also takes consistent high revs and frequent gear shifts to deliver the goods. Even with the transmission in Sport, this Golf is more GT than GTI. Activating the manual mode frees a bit more on-demand energy, but the shift paddles are too small, and why are they made of plastic, not metal? We were further haunted by a frustratingly hesitant throttle response, which turned into a full two-second lag when we put the foot down hard in fourth or fifth gear. Then, suddenly, all hell would break loose with a bang and a jolt before the torque wave straightened again. Not what the doctor ordered.
VW brags that Sven Bohnhorst, former senior test driver for Bugatti, was reportedly instrumental in setting up the revised progressive-rate steering. The new tiller may indeed be a tad more precise and direct, but it still isn’t quite quick enough, and it requires too much effort even with the scalable assistance set to its minimum. As a result, the car feels bigger and heavier than it is, as well as less playful overall. The weight of the helm, the pronounced on-center stiffness, and the near-40-foot turning circle make this GTI feel less nimble and agile than early variations of the breed. Even on unrestricted stretches of autobahn where high-speed stability is of the essence, the driver’s palms are kept busy by an odd haptic strife that wells up between the steering and the front axle, especially on bumpy terrain.
One of the car’s strongest points are its brakes. True, the base GTI must do with smaller rotors, whereas the Clubsport variant is fitted with bigger discs, but even the standard setup is spot-on in terms of response, effort, and staying power. Linear and easy to modulate, the stopping apparatus is good at building underfoot confidence. The adaptive dampers are, in principle, a good thing too, but while the drivetrain is best left in Sport and the steering in Comfort, the chassis is a little too harsh in Sport and a little too swooshy in Comfort. We eventually settled for an in-between calibration that felt more okay than brilliant. Lift-off oversteer—an emphatic specialty of the unforgettable first-generation GTI—is now an absolute rarity even with stability control disabled and a part-time hooligan at the wheel on a damp and winding road. Don’t even think about reaching for the hand brake, which is a push-button job without fly-off capability.
Although the latest iteration is a compelling performer, it takes the pricier Golf R to challenge the leading hot hatches from Japan, Korea, and Germany. The base GTI is merely swift, not tarmac-peeling fast. Still only available in front-wheel-drive form, it cannot quite match its all-wheel-drive rivals for off-the-line performance, nor will it blow your socks off above 60 mph when drag and weight enter the equation. As a result, the new GTI drives more like a GLI, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. After all, the Mk8.5 metamorphosis of the ultimate hot hatch rides better than its Asian rivals, is at least as well made, and—unless the $33,190 sticker price balloons when deliveries commence in early 2025—is a good value.
Appreciating the numerous talents of the upgraded GTI is easy; falling head-over-heels in love with it is more difficult. But in the U.S. at least, the pool of valid alternatives is drying up fast. And, the last time we looked, the ultimately more desirable Golf R was a hefty $13,700 more expensive. But if you are in the market for a three-letter Golf, why not start by scanning the web for a discounted last-of-line six-speeder?
Although I was born the only son of an ornithologist and a postal clerk, it was clear from the beginning that birdwatching and stamp collecting were not my thing. Had I known that God wanted me to grow to 6’8″, I also would have ruled out anything to do with cars, which are to blame for a couple of slipped discs, a torn ligament, and that stupid stooped posture behind the wheel. While working as a keeper in the Aberdeen Zoo, smuggling cheap cigarettes from Yugoslavia to Germany, and an embarrassing interlude with an amateur drama group also failed to yield fulfillment, driving and writing about cars became a much better option. And it still is now, many years later, as I approach my 70th birthday. I love every aspect of my job except long-haul travel on lousy airlines, and I hope it shows.
Source: Reviews - aranddriver.com
