HAPPY BIRTHDAY VOLKSWAGEN GOLF
NORMALLY IN THIS FEATURE, WE PICK OUT THE BEST OF A CERTAIN GENRE OF CARS BUT 2014 MARKS THE 40TH BIRTHDAY OF THE VOLKWAGEN GOLF AND THAT IS SOMETHING THAT REALLY NEEDS CELEBRATING. IT’S BECOME A MOTORING ICON AND AS A SIDELINE PRODUCED SOME OF THE BEST TV ADVERTS OF THE PAST, WHO DOESN’T REMEMBER A MK3 GOLF DISAPPEARING INTO THE DISTANCE WITH A ‘JUST DIVORCED’ SIGN HUNG ON ITS BACK WITH TWO OLD LADIES AT THE SIDE OF THE ROAD LOOKING GOB-SMACKED!
A few years ago, I was invited to drive an original Golf, which had been mothballed and lovingly cared for as part of VW’s press fleet. This particular car was built in 1982 and in the subsequent 25 years has only covered 38,000 miles. This gave a great insight into what the car was like to drive when it was new. And what was it like? Let’s say scary! When I was handed the keys to this mothballed classic, I was told to be wary of the brakes. “Are they a bit keen?” I enquired, “You’ll see” said the nice man from VW with a wry grin. As I left the car park, I discovered what all the joviality was all about. As I reached the junction with the main road, I applied a little pressure to the brake pedal, nothing occurred. I pushed quite hard on the brake pedal, the car if anything, seemed to be going faster. I applied my full body weight to the brake pedal, a slight decrease in velocity occurred. After what seemed to be a short eon, the car finally stopped. This is when the next problem became apparent, the steering. Now it is no coincidence whatsoever that there has been an explosion in the number of gyms and an increase in obesity in this country since power steering became the norm on most cars. This old Golf is by no means a heavy car but by 34
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the time I had turned it onto the main road, I was bathed in sweat. Out on the open roads, the fun factor kicked in, this was a raw experience, no nanny-state computer controlling the throttle or any electronic stability devices to keep things neat through the corners. All that was involved was the raw processing power of my right foot. The thought then occurred that this 25 year old car has no real safety devices either. No airbags, no crumple zones, no side impact protection, nothing! If there is a sheep around the next blind bend, we are both goners. To then step into the brand new seventh generation Golf, with traction control, stability aids and a whole host of other electronic wizardry was like walking through a portal into another world. To make a fair comparison I pounded the same roads and it was a completely different experience, the new car
felt much more agile and compliant than its ancestor. It turned in much more willingly and gripped with much more confidence. Of course, comparing it to a thirty year old car is much like comparing the Mallard to a Eurostar, but even when measured against its competitors it still behaves like the market leader and fulfils the expectations that goes with this mantle. Inside it is nice to see VW moving away from their minimalist period with a visually pleasing dashboard and intuitively laid out controls. As a nod back to its lineage, the forthcoming GTI model will even have checked seat inserts which will pay homage to the original. Of course, there are cheaper rivals these days to the Golf which look as good and perform the same tasks, but then, the same could be said of pâté and potted meat! Mark D’Apice