Review: 2015 Volkswagen Golf TSI

Well would you have a look at this little hot hatch. Currently the small car market is fierce with every manufacture competing with one another to become king of the small car. And a real runner in this race is the Volkswagen Golf, whether you buy the standard 90TSI or hit it off with the R these things are quite spectacular in a small hatch. And with a small weight come the need for less power to make it fast, and that is exactly what these little cars are. Fast. Its looks might deceive you but under the hood there is normally a 1.4L 4 Cylinder turbo that gives the little hatch its real punch. Unless you upgrade to the GTI or the R where you get a neat little 2L 4 Cylinder Turbo. However no matter how you look at these things they are damn fast for their size. And fortunately for me I managed to get myself into one of them and go for a nice drive. Now I didn't drive it for long and it was an automatic, so my review is limited, but here are my thoughts into the 2015 Volkswagen Golf 92TSI.

​​So new. Something I am not particularly familiar with as my daily is over 10 years old and my baby is almost 20 years old. So driving something only 2 years old was different, plus the lack of clutch left me in unfamiliar territory. However the car put me at ease. Everything was so smooth and was like floating on a cloud. Leave it in auto and let it roll through the gears, using the smallest amount of petrol possible. Cruise around without any problems. But chuck into manual mode and it reacts. But being a manual driver it was nice to get back into the gears, however the car had different ideas for it.

As I understand depending on the settings it will increase power or increase fuel economy. Now seeing it wasn't my car I left it how it was. So with that, whilst I had it in manual mode it still gave me prompts as to what gear it thought I should be in. Now thats no problem and it is quite interesting seeing a computers thoughts on how I drive. However it was quite extreme. Coming through a residential area and up a hill I sat in around 3rd and 4th gear. Don't forget this thing runs a 7 speed box. So as I look at the display it read 3 -> 7 now I thought to myself... Really? Does it really want me in 7th gear heading up this hill? However I ignored it and continued my way up and around sitting nicely in 3rd and 4th gear. But I can see what they were trying to do.

Now looking at its performance, it was quite impressive. Drop it down a gear and give it some and it goes. Turbo kicks in and you're off breezing through the city streets. And once you've had enough drop it up a gear and smoothly continue on. No problems. However the handling is what really gets me. Now I tested it out and it was great, it got in and out of the corners great. But I've been in it with the owner and damn. He pushes it through corners hard and its great, it sticks like glue never having to worry about loss of traction. However with that, the passengers had to be very aware otherwise they themselves might be on the outside of the car. But even with that bumps and dips a breeze. The suspension is great and makes the ride very comfortable. Overall you could easily drive around in this all day and have very little problems.

​​Along with all the hardware making it fast and keeping it comfortable there is a million and one things inside the cabin electronically to make the ride safer, more enjoyable and easier with tons of driver assists. Brake assist, lane assist, cruise control, the list goes on, these are just the ones I can remember and have seen work. Its amazing how far car manufacturing has come, now you can drive you car and not have to do anything. with all the cars sensor keeping you perfectly in your lane and just the right distance from the car in front, without you having to touch a thing. Slowing down, speeding it up, it does it all for you. So long you have it set right. Now thats where the hard bit comes in. The amount of buttons and settings is beyond me. Its like taking a University class, you need to attend for 3 years before you know everything about how to drive the thing. But the good thing also is you don't need to know everything about it to drive it normally. So it just works. For someone who's not into cars and just has one to get from point A to point B and those with a buzz for performance as this can do both.

The styling of a car is always something a manufacture has to take into consideration when creating their masterpiece and the Volkswagen Golf is no different. But its looks completely match its style, the sport little hatch is looks just as fast as it is making it a crowd favorite. It really rounds off the car as a whole nicely finishing the complex internals of the car and the electronic system. It looks sleek, stylish and something everyone would love. However one of my pet peeves with German cars is the indicator and windshield wiper stalks are on the opposite sides. The amount of times I use the wiper blades instead of indicating was ridiculous. But if you can get past that, it is an amazing car and not too bad on the hit pocket with the base model starting at $22990. So if you're looking for a nice driver or something with a bit of nip and push this is your thing, the Volkswagen Golf. A great little car.

Specifications: 2015 Volkswagen Golf TSI

Engine: 1.4L 4 Cylinder Turbo

Power: 90KW 120Hp

Transmission: 7Spd Auto or 5Spd Manual

Length: 4349mm (171.2 In)

Width: 1799mm (70.8 In)

Height: 1491mm (58.7In)

Weight: 1233Kgs