Review

Around three months have passed since I took the keys to our Volkswagen Golf GTD and its breadth of abilities continue to impressed me.

On recent work-related trips to Heathrow and Stoke from my west Norfolk home, the Golf was happy to cruise at 70mph for long distances, with low levels of exterior noise and a comfortable ride.

Its adaptive cruise control automatically slows and accelerates the car to the speed of the vehicles in front (up to a predetermined level), taking out a lot of stress of driving in motorway traffic.

As well as a motorway cruiser, the Golf has proved to be a good family car. My older brother and his family visited from Ireland over the Easter weekend with their children, so the Golf was utilised for taxi services.

There was plenty of room for the passengers I needed to transport, while the 380-litre boot was large enough to comfortably accommodate two suitcases, a child’s buggy and an assortment of coats. The Golf’s low boot lip and flat floor made loading and unloading straightforward.

Despite its family-friendly practicality, our Golf’s sporty character is always noticeable through how it handles, its styling and the performance produced by its 184hp engine.

As mentioned in previous reports, I’m a big fan of its optional Sport & Sound pack (£255), which allows you to accentuate the exhaust note above its normal sporty rasp to give it a real growl.

However, while the novelty has not worn off yet I am moderating my use of it – I tend to switch it off on long-distance journeys as it can become intrusive.

I also decided to switch it off when I went to play golf at a local club recently. Its entrance road goes past a number of holes and, as there were golfers waiting to tee off right by the roadside, I decided it was wise to switch to the much quieter ‘eco’ mode and not be the cause of any mis-hits as I rumbled slowly past.

Andrew Ryan is the features editor at Fleet News. He has been a journalist for more than 20 years and has specialised in the fleet industry for the past 12.

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Specs

Manufacturer Volkswagen
Model Golf
Specification Volkswagen Transporter T32 LWB Diesel 2.0 TDI 150 Highline Kombi Van 4MOTION
Model Year 2020.00
Annual VED (Road tax) £1005
BIK List Price £44,280
CO2 184g/km
BIK Percentage 20%
Insurance Group N/A
CC 1,968
Fuel Type Diesel
Vehicle Type Crew van
Luggage capacity (Seats up) N/A

Running Costs

184g/km CO2
£1005 VED
P11D £44,280
Cost per mile 66.06ppm
Residual value £16,525
Insurance group N/A
Fuel Type Diesel
Cost per mile 66.06ppm
Fuel 15.56ppm
Depreciation 46.35ppm
Service maintenance and repair 4.16ppm

Info at a glance

  • P11D Price
    £44,280
  • MPG
    40.4 (NEDC Correlated)
  • CO2 Emissions
    184g/km
  • BIK %
    20%
  • Running cost
    3 Year 60k : 66.06 4 Year 80k : £12,650
  • Fuel Type
    Diesel