VW Golf GTI

Normally you'd expect the price to be the headline: at £30,555, the new Golf R is almost double the cost of a boggo basic entry level Golf (a snip at £16,975). But if, like me, you’re lucky enough to be driving a GTI that’s been optioned up to the eyeballs, and would set you back an astonishing £32,500, suddenly the new R isn't so intimidating, in fact, it starts to look like good value.

Unlike the more extreme R32s of the past, the latest 4x4 Uber Golf isn't some wild child that’s escaped from the VW skunkworks it’s just a grown up extension of the GTI. Power is up from 227 bhp to 296 bhp, thanks to a bigger turbo and a modified cylinder head, the 0-62 mph time is down, from the GTI’s 6.4sec to 5.1. But in its character, the way it goes about its business, the R is so similar to the GTI, I’m glad the press car arrived in blue, to help distinguish it.

In detail, I prefer the R’s front bumper, with the GTI’s ‘Testarossa’ strakes removed, and I like the quad pipes at the rear. Otherwise, you’d need to be an expert to spot the discreet badging, or the 20mm lower suspension. The biggest visual difference is probably the wheels, and I actually prefer my GTI’s optional ‘Santiago’ alloys over the R’s ‘Cadiz’ rims.

Inside’s the same story there are minor tweaks, like the R’s semi alcantara seats, and the gloss black dashboard finish, but these are just option differences rather than anything fundamental really, these are separated at birth, with the same architecture, the same steering wheels, and (in these examples) the same ‘Discovery Pro’ sat-nav options with 8in screens.

The biggest difference is just the handling, the way the all-wheel-drive R feels completely at ease with close to 300bhp. The GTI’s fancy front diff is amazing at dialling out the understeer and torque interference, but on the limit there’s no disguising all that energy feeding into your steering, whereas, if you chuck the R into a couple of corners really load it up, so the 4 Motion Haldex system starts feeding power to the back axle and you can really feel the R is more comfortable at speed. It feels like it’s lapping it up, rather than fighting you. I absolutely love our red GTI, it’s fast, and until now I’ve been happy with the handling. But the R has turned me: it’s undoubtedly a better car, and depending on how you spec it, it could be cheaper too. I’d probably lose my licence, but I want one.