2008 Volkswagen Golf GTI

The 2008 Volkswagen Golf GTI is intended to compete in the sporty hatchback market place. This is surprisingly crowded market with competitors like the Honda Civic and the Mini Cooper to take on. In the last few years Volkswagen hasn't been doing too well compared to their competitors. That has resulted in a fairly major redesign in the Golf GTI as they hope to become more competitive. It appears that they have been successful in this as the 2008 Volkswagen Golf GTI is the best version they have produced in years. It should have no trouble holding its own in the market.

The point of a sporty hatch back is that it is supposed to be fun to drive while at the same time being a practical way of getting around. The cars are generally modestly priced and quite fuel efficient. All of this is true of the Golf GTI. The one downside however is that the car really doesn't handle as well as some of the other cars in its class. With a softer suspension the steering is somewhat sluggish and that does tend to detract from the sporty feel to the car. On the other hand it is very comfortable for day to day driving.

The real strength of the Volkswagen Golf GTI is the four cylinder, turbocharged, 2.0 liter engine. This delivers two hundred horsepower with lots of low end torque for great acceleration. It is a front wheel drive car with a six speed manual transmission standard. You can also get an automatic transmission that can be put into fully automatic mode or that can allow you to shift manually using paddles on the steering wheel. The fuel economy is quite good making for a very practical car for day to day driving while at the same time offering enough performance to satisfy almost anybody.

The Volkswagen Golf GTI comes in either a four door or a two door version. The rear seats in either version are adequate for children but are not really that useful for adults. The car has an attractive design without looking like they are trying to make the car look sporty. A lot of their competitors have to resort to things like adding spoilers so that people will know it's a sports version. Volkswagen have avoided doing this. The interior of the car is well laid out and quite attractive and uses high quality materials for a car in this class.

All of the expected safety equipment is there; anti-lock brakes, air bags and stability control are all standard. Overall the 2008 Volkswagen Golf GTI is a very good car however it is somewhat lacking in the sporty feel that it is going for. While that isn't necessarily a bad thing since the trade off is more comfort it is going to be a tough sell in the market that they are trying to target.