2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI: Does It Need a Manual?

Let’s test drive and review the 2025 Volkswagen Golf GTI S! And thanks to ‪@MagnaInternationalTV‬ for sponsoring this video.

The Volkswagen Golf launched in 1974, and the sportier GTI model came in 1976. (We’re in 50th anniversary territory!) The GTI was a trapezoidal little thing that made 110 horsepower and had a top speed of around 110 mph. Some sources may even tell you that top speed was 113.

The Golf model as a whole — including the sporty variants — was such a success that Volkswagen says it made the millionth Golf in October 1976. That’s two years! And a million cars! The popularity kept going. As of late 2023, Volkswagen says it’s delivered more than 37 million Golfs worldwide. You see them all over the place: stock, tuned, modified, you name it. I love some tasteful Volkswagen hot-hatch modifications, too.

The VW Golf GTI typically sits between the regular Golf and the all-out Golf R. It’s a hot-hatch lite, like the Honda Civic Si. This is the first Golf GTI since we lost the manual transmission, and it has a turbocharged, 2.0-liter, 4-cylinder engine that makes 241 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque. That power goes through a 7-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission to the front wheels, and with that, you get a limited-slip front differential.

The Volkswagen Golf GTI is currently the base Golf model in America, and it starts at $32,445 USD. That is significantly less than the price of the top-level Golf R hot hatch, which starts at $47,000 (!). It’s not Ferrari money, but it is pricey! There are currently three trims of the GTI: the $32,000 S, $37,000 SE, and $41,000 Autobahn edition. This is the base-model S, and there are no optional features on the delivery of this particular model.

In this video, we’ll talk about everything: interior; build quality; performance while driving the good roads and while driving around town; the little sounds the exhaust makes; fun vs. practicality; the Hyundai Elantra N, Honda Civic Si, and Toyota GR Corolla; and more. We put some good mileage on the Golf GTI, and we really loved it. We hope you’ll love this video, too.

Thanks for watching my YouTube channel. Enjoy the drive (and the video)!

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