Let’s imagine for a moment that you want a hot hatch, but also want something that is very frugal for the daily commute. Those are kind of opposite things, right?
VOLKSWAGEN GOLF GTE PHEV: Engine 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine with 13kWh battery and single electric motor Power 180kW/400Nm Gearbox Six-speed DSG, FWD Consumption 1.2L/100km Price $59,990
Well, yes, but with the emergence of plug-in hybrids has come the increasing likelihood of those two things actually intersecting. Which is exactly what Volkswagen is trying to do with the Golf GTE.
You will notice that the first two letters of the model name are shared with possibly the most famous hot hatch of them all, the Golf GTI, and that is no coincidence. Neither is the fact that the GTE has exactly the same power output as the GTI: 180kW. It has even more torque than the GTI: 400Nm versus 370Nm, meaning that it is both sporty and powerful enough for some proper fun, and even has tartan cloth upholstery.
So it is pretty much an electrified GTI, right? Well, yes and no. But mainly no.
While the GTE does boast the same power and even more torque than the GTI, it also has more of something else: weight. You probably saw that coming.
Where the GTI weighs 1477kg, the GTE’s added electricity (mostly the 13kWh battery) bumps it up to 1602kg; not excessive, but enough to make a difference to proceedings. It is more in terms of a sense of extra heft rather than any real adverse effect on handling, but it just takes a slight edge off the usual razor sharp GTI experience.
While the GTE does boast the same power and even more torque than the GTI, it also has more of something else: weight.
Mind you, the same can be said of the GTI’s evolution through its latest few incarnations as Volkswagen has tended to cater more to its aging customer base. Yeah, the GTI has entered middle age, so you could argue that the GTE is the logical extension of that.
Now, while this has gotten things off to a bit of a negative start, it is really just about resetting expectations, because the GTE is still an absolute blast to drive, featuring the hallmarks of a fun FWD VW. The steering is quick, sharp and delightfully precise, while the chassis is superbly agile and responsive to inputs. Both are also still delightfully communicative.
Even driving it like a GTI, figures around 4.0l/100km are easy to achieve with no real effort.
In fact, the extra weight has its advantages as well, with the lower centre of gravity batteries bring making the GTE feel even more settled through corners. The GTE feels confidently welded to the road, which just means you can punch it out of a corner even harder.
Then there is the matter of that extra torque. The electric motor provides that sweet, sweet fat chunk of extra low-down punch that we expect from electrified powertrains and makes the GTE particularly satisfying to punch out of a corner, or even just run down to the dairy for snacks and bog rolls.
Frugal, fun and fast enough, the GTE is satisfying on a number of levels, without actually being a true electrified hot hatch.
The big advantage of electrification comes in terms of fuel usage. Obviously there is the electric only running that the big batteries provide (VW claims “up to” 60km, but we easily saw more than that during our time with it), but the actual consumption when driving it as a hybrid, and even driving it like a GTI, is still satisfyingly low, with figures around 4.0l/100km being easy to achieve with no real effort.
Frugal, fun and fast enough, the GTE is satisfying on a number of levels, without actually being a true electrified hot hatch. But then I would argue that it doesn’t really need to be, because if you really wanted to make a serious electrified hot hatch, then a Golf R PHEV nudging on 300kW would do the trick nicely.
As it stands, the Golf GTE combines enough GTI DNA (and tartan) to make it superbly satisfying to throw down a winding road, but also the fuel consumption (or lack of it) and fat torque to make it equally satisfying to potter around town in.
The best of both worlds then? Well, again, no, but enough of the best bits of both worlds to make it seriously worth considering, particularly because there is a refreshed Golf not very far away and Volkswagen NZ has slashed $16k off the pricetag of the GTE, dropping it to an appealing $59,990 from a rather less appealing $75,990.