While diesel cars are a dying breed and have lost significant ground to petrol-powered and electrified vehicles, Volkswagen remains committed to them.
One such model is the new generation Golf GTD, which is offered alongside the Golf GTE and Golf GTI as a hot hatch that promises to go easier on the owner’s wallet with less visits to the gas station and a range of up to 965 km (600 miles) on a single tank.
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The average fuel consumption is between 5.2 and 5.5 l/100 km (45.2-42.8 mpg US / 54.3-51.4 mpg UK), and the 2.0-liter TDI emits 137-143 g/km of CO2 in the WLTP cycle. The turbodiesel engine pumps out 200 PS (197 HP / 147 kW) and 400 Nm (295 lb-ft) of torque that are sent to the front wheels via a seven-speed DSG transmission.
The Golf GTD’s performance is average for the hot hatch segment, with the 0 to 100 km/h (0 to 62 mph) acceleration taking 7.1 seconds officially. Still, to achieve that, you may want to stick to the standard 18-inch wheels wrapped in summer tires, because the 19-inch ones with winter rubber that were fitted to this car have made it significantly slower due to wheelspin – and it was even worse with the Launch Control engaged.
The video depicts some acceleration tests, as well as some first impressions, and while it is not exactly a review, it’s still worth watching, regardless if you’re interested in a sporty Golf with a diesel engine or not.