Australia’s best-selling European car has reasserted its class-leading credentials with the unveiling in Germany of the revised Golf Mark 7 line-up.
Volkswagen Australia General Manager of Marketing and Product Ben Wilks said the mid-life revisions ensure the Golf is the “most technically sophisticated affordable car yet seen”.
“Active Info display becomes available at what will be this technology’s most accessible price point,” Mr Wilks said. “Consider also that gesture control will be part of the infotainment system and that this will be available on screens of up to 9.2-inches.
“There’s nothing comparable in the Golf’s class, nor for some distance above it.”
While final local pricing and specification are a work in progress, Mr Wilks said Volkswagen Australia was “working hard” on the case for the Golf GTE. The highly-praised plug-in hybrid would, if introduced, appear later in the lifecycle.
Mr Wilks affirmed that the GTE’s more conventional cousin, the GTI, will come standard with the 169kW engine previously the preserve of the GTI Performance version.
As to the Golf’s seemingly unchanged appearance, Mr Wilks said: “Volkswagen pretty much invented the hatchback and we’ve perfected its shape and dimensions. Customers expect us to adhere to the classical appearance. It makes total sense when seen in the metal.
“Glass Guide’s forecast for Model Year 17 tells us that Golf’s resale after three years is in the meat of its segment. Higher end versions will retain up to 62 per cent.”
The renewed Golf hatch, along with the wagon and Alltrack variants, arrive mid-year followed early in the third quarter by the GTI and R versions.
