- Doors and Seats
5 doors, 5 seats
- Engine
2.0DT, 4 cyl.
- Engine Power
110kW, 320Nm
- Fuel
Diesel 4.9L/100KM
- Manufacturer
FWD
- Transmission
Auto (DCT)
- Warranty
3 Yr, Unltd KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2013 Volkswagen Golf 110TDI Diesel DSG Review
2013 VOLKSWAGEN GOLF REVIEW
Vehicle Style: Small hatch
Engine/Trans: 110kW/320Nm 4cyl diesel | 6spd DSG auto
Price: $34,490 (plus on-roads)
Fuel Economy claimed: 4.9l/100km | tested: 6.7l/100km
OVERVIEW
A new generation Golf is always big news.
Volkswagen’s small car is as iconic as the original Beetle it replaced and battles it out alongside the Ford Focus and Toyota Corolla as one of the world's top selling cars. (Of course, there is some disagreement on that).
That means getting the balance of comfort, features, style and price is crucial to the continued success of the nearly forty-year-old Golf name.
As expected, with the arrival of the Golf VII, there’s been no big visual departure from the model it replaces.
And, as we discovered, its on-road behaviour and handling remains a benchmark.
INTERIOR | RATING: 5/5
Quality: Once again Volkswagen’s interior presentation shows the world how things are done. Finely grained soft-touch surfaces abound across the dash and doors, and even the hard plastic sections lower down are perfectly texture matched.
To these eyes the three-coloured seat trims would be better off without the cheaper looking grey bolster fabric, but with not a ruck or pucker to be seen there’s not much else to fault.
Comfort: Don’t be fooled by first impressions - the firm and flat cushioned seats might seem a little modest at first sitting, but after a day on the road front seat passengers had little to complain about.
The driving position feels to be a bit ‘perched over the pedals’ but plenty of steering reach adjustment and lots of seat height variance see this easily overcome.
The rear seat offers good views and room in all directions too, but the high centre tunnel takes some versatility away from the middle perch.
Equipment: The 110TDI is offered solely in Highline specification which means plenty of trinkets come standard, such as dual zone climate control, cruise control with speed limiter, multi-function leather wrapped steering wheel, trip computer and tyre pressure monitoring.
There's also front and rear park sensors, electric park brake, heat insulating glass, 17-inch alloy wheels, exterior chrome package, automatic lights and wipers, rear seat ventilation outlets and LED interior lighting.
Infotainment is provided by an impressive 5.8-inch touchscreen, which operates just like a tablet computer or smartphone. The menu design is clear and intuitive and response times are snappy.
The system even senses when your hand is near and expands menus, and allows you to zoom. Navigation, Bluetooth, two SD card slots (and digital file playback), USB input and radio functions are all handled by the system, and there's a CD slot in the glove box.
Storage: Rear storage starts at 380 litres and grows to 1270 litres with the split folding rear seats stowed. Inside the cabin the glovebox, centre console and front door pockets are all generously sized.
In the centre stack there’s also a lidded compartment and a roll-top cover for the two cupholders, although the nifty divider/bottle opener of previous generations had been omitted.