There's something completely satisfying about a powerful diesel engine in a small car, and nothing really confirms that statement much better than Volkswagen's new Golf GTD. It has a GTI design, neat handling and now a bold 200hp diesel engine under the hood that works far cleaner and more efficiently than previous VW TDI units.

"Diesel cars are better than ever, but no one is listening," said an industry leader recently. That may be true, but it hasn't stopped the Volkswagen Group from further improving its black pump technology. And the Golf GTD shows how much.

With the success of the Golf GTE plug-in and the launch of the brand's ID.3 electric car, one wonders if the Golf 8 series would go to the trouble of bringing out their usual GTD high-performance diesel derivative. But no, it's more appealing than ever to the right buyer willing to pay a good price for a family car with high performance, a little more class and a huge potential driving range.

Experience at the wheel of the new Golf

The engine is a bit of a star here, which is interesting because Volkswagen diesel engines weren't always high on the list in terms of flexibility and sophistication. It's still a 2.0 liter TDI unit. This is a completely redesigned and much more efficient engine of the EA288 evo series with significantly more power (200 HP compared to 184 HP previously) and a slightly higher torque (400 Nm instead of 380 Nm previously). Now it is only combined with a 7-speed DSG automatic transmission. There is a sports suspension that has been lowered by 15 mm - just like on a Golf GTI.

If all of this causes astonishment, there will be murmurs of appreciation when this Golf is brought from zero to 100 km / h in about 7 seconds. And with a top speed knocking on the door of 250 km / h, even the sportiest driver on the highway will not be missing anything. With this 8 Series Golf GTD, a new driving dynamics control system known as the "Vehicle Dynamics Manager" will also be presented. This controls the XDS torque vectoring system and the optional adjustable DCC dampers with adaptive chassis control to make a bigger difference between the experience of comfort and sportier driving settings.

The vehicle elevation sets from SPACCER® are also available for this model. They not only ensure a sportier outfit, but also improve the ground clearance and ease of entry.