Its probably an unfair bias, but I've disliked Volkswagen for years. I think it was a sum of the quirky styling, rubbery long throw shifters, lackluster performance of the VR6, the over-small stock turbos on the 1.8T and 2.0T cars, open differentials, and VW owner friends who were plagued with mechanical and electronic maladies that turned me off to the brand.
There is a VW dealership near my workplace, and I've driven by and shaken my head more than once. This feeling largely remains with most models, but I have always liked the GTI best of their lineup. Things have been improving, and the 2010 GTI is the first in the past several years I can fully appreciate.
2010 marks minor changes to the exterior styling, but they completely resonate with me. The front fascia on the 2009 was not as appealing, and the headlights on the 2010 look infinitely better and blend much nicer with the car. Modern hatches are odd shaped, fat in the middle if you will, to accommodate more interior room. The downside of this is that at some angles, the GTI looks like a miniature SUV, but at most angles it looks great.
One part of the exterior I can't get my head around is the optional 18” Detroit wheels, which I hear will become standard for 2011. Hideous. They look just terrible with their black paint in the middle and bring the whole appearance of the car down a notch.
The MK V (previous body) GTI marked the return of the interlagos interior, which is a fancy way to say it is covered with plaid material. The first time I saw this, it looked like someone stole a golfer's trousers and made seat coverings out of them. When I heard it was a retro thing, I studied and learned that the original Mk I GTI from the seventies featured this. Knowledge of that fact has been swirling in my mind for a couple of years, and either I've adapted or maybe gone a little insane, because I think the interlagos interior just looks phenomenal now, especially since I understand the heritage.
The greatness of the interior does not stop with the seat material. Those seats are also very supportive, and the back seat room is just astounding in a car with a footprint this small. I am 6'1”, and had ample room in the back. The four door version is great for carrying friends or your kids around.
The plastics used for the dash are quite nice. The flat bottom steering wheel, the aluminum (fake or not) bits, everything is a huge stretch beyond other cars in this pricing category. The gauges are illuminated well and look very nice. The overall fit and finish of the interior is awesome.
Power delivery feels surprisingly strong for 200HP, at first. The low end torque comes on early due to the work of the small turbocharger. The fuel economy the GTI returns is lofty, 31-32mpg is attainable on the highway according to the ratings and some owner testimonies I've seen.
This car has all the appearances of a dancer, of a vehicle that is a jack of all trades and the master of them as well. And you'd be content to believe that until you ask it to actually dance. Herein lies the problem: The Germans and Japanese couldn't be more opposite in their engineering approaches. A GTI owning friend of mine remarked that the Germans spend their money in the cabin. The Japanese spend their money under the hood. And when you feel that low end grunt of the GTI as you accelerate onto the freeway, it begins to pull nicely. But nail that off-ramp with some gusto, and the fact that this dancer has two left feet rears its ugly head.
Enter a corner fairly hot, and you're greeted with a terrible disconnected feeling and body lean that is much more like what you'd expect from a Camry than a GTI. There is abrupt floatiness that makes it difficult to place at turn in, which is very unfortunate. Admittedly, part of this problem was this particular car had been fitted with all season tires from the factory. To add insult to injury, it has an open differential and traction control that is not fully defeatable. This is no a track star.
Continue to rev the tachometer, and the trade off for that great low end punch is immediately apparent. This engine falls over and dies after 5200rpm, which is exactly 1000rpm before the disappointingly low 6200rpm redline. The clutch is overly light, with all the pedal feel of a Civic DX. The shifter is still a little rubbery, but much better than Volkswagens of the nineties. The sixth gear for cruising is welcome.
Secrets under the hood clear up a lot of the confusion from the test drive. The GTI's "TSI" engine is an Audi borrowed mill code named "EA888", a platform share that makes its home in several non-sporty cars. It is a direct injected two liter that is undersquare, with an 82mm bore and a long 93mm stroke designed to get you moving at low RPM. Other items in the TSI's list of compromises are a rather small IHI turbocharger that is integrated with the exhaust manifold, and a “sandwiched” central front mount intercooler.
While I've said a lot of unkind words about this engine, it does have an iron block, and there is potential for more power with tuning. I had a chance to sample aforementioned friend's APR Stage 2 equipped GTI with much sportier summer tires. The transformation is quite nice, improving low end and midrange thrust dramatically, but still remains unrewarding to rev deep. The tires help grip very much, but the floatiness and difficulty to place in a corner are still a little too apparent.
I think this car has a ton of potential. I know front wheel drive cars can be made to handle brilliantly stock, anyone who has driven an Integra Type R can attest to that. I also know that Volkswagen needs to offer this engine tuned closer to 240HP to really make their competition eat dust.
In spite of feeling letdown by the performance, the best way to sum up this car is value. I can't think of anything else in this price point that checks so many boxes. For a dad whose pennies are pinched by daycare and wants a sensible and economical automobile choice with a little bit of performance and a whole lot of comfort, this is one heck of a buy!
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