The iconic hot hatch took on a harder edge with its eighth generation, at the expense of its intoxicating blend of everyday performance. Can this facelift make it a better GTI?
A considerable burden of expectation has weighed heavily on the eighth-generation Volkswagen Golf GTI since it was launched in 2020.While there will always be arguments over whether it was the first hot hatch (the Renault 5 Gordini and Simca 1100Ti would have something to say about that), across seven previous generations, Wolfsburg’s finest is undoubtedly the definitive example of the breed.Seriously, which other car has better melded family-friendly practicality, affordable running costs and classless swagger with sport car-rivalling speed and high-jinks handling? It’s been a high-performance staple since the boxy first-generation version burst onto the scene in 1976 with a modest target of 5000 sales.In the four-and-a-half decades since then, Volkswagen has sold more than two million Golf GTIs. There have been some dynamic ups and downs, but from the arrival of the fifth generation in 2005, it was on an upward trajectory that culminated with the utterly brilliant seventh-generation version.The problem the Golf GTI 8 faced, then, was one of expectation: when your family tree contains seven generations of class-defining greatness, anything less is, frankly, disappointing. Consider the eighth-generation go-faster Golf in isolation and it’s a really, really good car.It’s practical yet fast, versatile but entertaining. Except… in pre-facelifted form, it just wasn’t quite there. It didn’t have that perfect, intoxicating blend of performance, practicality and everyday talent that allowed the best Golf GTIs to achieve true hot hatch greatness.The infotainment was occasionally glitchy and frustrating, both in terms of software and the user interface, and VW’s decision to firm up the suspension from the previous generation to focus on performance resulted in a slighter harder-edged, less balanced car. It was really good, but a Golf GTI is supposed to be great. Here’s the thing: if you were presented with a long road trip and the choice of an eighth-gen Golf GTI or its Mk7.5 predecessor, you’d probably plump for the older one.Still, it’s often with a mid-life facelift that a Golf GTI really comes alive. Perhaps it’s because GTI models are all about achieving a delicate balance, so they benefit from the finessing that comes with a facelift. Is that the case this time? Let’s find out.
