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1 7 W ed n esd ay, Feb ru ary 10, 2010 O A K V ILLE B E A V E R w w w .o a k v ille b e a v e r.co m Volkswagen Golf GTI-2010-ROAD TEST By Rob Beintema Metroland Newspapers Carguide Magazine It wasnt exactly a snarl. Nor was it brash enough to be labeled a roar. It was a sound better described as a sort of baritone moan, reverberating through the floorboards, and singing out of the rear dual exhausts as I stomped the pedal flat to the floor and launched the VW Golf GTI towards the on-ramp. I was barely two klicks out of Volkswagens parking lot. Id stopped at a gas station to top off the tank for a fuel economy test, and got a coffee for the ride home. But before the monotony of the long ribbon-straight stretch of freeway, it was hard to resist the cheap thrill of a spiraling on-ramp. After the initial launch into the turn, I let up on the gas a little as the curve began to bite, trying to hold my speed as the lateral G-forces snugged me deep into the seat and side bolsters. Yup, this was a decreasing radius ramp, just as I remembered, but my faith in the four contact patches was growing as the turn tightened, even though the GTI was dressed for winter in 225/40/18 Pirelli Snowsport tires. The wheels stayed sticky, gripping the cold road and I was on the gas as soon as the ramp straightened, easily blipping up to highway speed before being spit into the collector lanes. Hmm, a red GTI. I started wonder- ing if this was the same car I had flogged around the racetrack at the AJAC Car of the Year competition. The cop two lanes over was probably won- dering the same thing. Fortunately, Id spotted the police cruiser during my approach and had managed to curtail my takeoff speed to something resembling the legal limit. I eased off the gas, slipped into the right hand lane and tried to look inno- cent, hard to do in sporty hatch as scar- let at sin. The GTIs pugnacious persona and off-the-wall wheels didnt help much either. But somehow I got away with it. The cop paced me and we pretended to ignore each other for a few kilometers until he ramped off in search of a donut or more promising prey. Whew! Its hard to stay out of that race track state of mind in a car like the 2010 VW GTI. Which is probably why Volkswagen Canada launched it at the legendary Circuit Mont-Tremblant racetrack north of Montreal last fall. The new Golf GTI is an icon of sportiness, John White, President and CEO of Volkswagen Group Canada said at the time. From styling that pays homage to its roots in the Mark I, to its advanced technologies, all the way to its solid per- formance, this 6th generation model represents the ultimate Pocket Rocket for all generations of GTI enthusiasts. The GTI is the performance comple- ment to the Golf lineup. It comes in either a three-door or five-door config- uration, and the new 2010 Golf GTI echoes styling cues that have evolved from the original 1976 European Mark I and the Mark II version that first crossed the pond to Canada in 1984. And, somehow, after setting the hot hatch benchmark, the Golf GTI has maintained the spirit and intent of that original Euro-inspired combination of performance and hatchback functional- ity. The changes for 2010 are subtle but numerous. This latest version has new bumpers, new lights, thicker windows, better NVH sealing, a more streamlined design and other tweaks in character and content, both inside and out. Two distinct red stripes across the black honeycomb grille separate the GTI from the rest of the Golf herd and they especially accented my Tornado Red tester, the only bright hue in the mainly monotone GTI palette. Inside, there are more hotrod hints of red double-stitching across the gear shifter, hand brake and unique flat-bot- tomed steering wheel. The redesigned interior is anchored around a 6.5-inch touch screen surrounded by a hand- some and ergonomic layout of instru- ments and controls with just the right mix of textures and chrome highlights. Plaid Jacky cloth Sport seats come standard or give way to optional leather buckets (as tested) courtesy of the Leather Luxury Package with Power Sunroof. In its most basic from, the three- door six-speed manual version, the sixth generation 2010 Golf GTI has a starting price of $28,675. That may sound steep for a small hatchback but as the performance icon of the lineup, theres nothing base about the GTI. It comes well equipped with six airbags, 17-inch alloy wheels, eight-way manually adjustable sport seats with lumbar support, Bi-Xenon headlamps with Adaptive Front Light System, Bluetooth connectivity, cli- mate control, cruise control, a Premium 8 AM/FM audio system with six-disc CD changer, an SD card input, eight speakers and integrated SIRIUS satellite radio. Most importantly, it comes with an award-winning 2.0-litre TSI direct fuel- injection inline four-cylinder 16-valve engine that produces 200 hp and 207 lbs-ft of continuous torque from a low 1,700 rpm all the way to 5,000 rpm. An optional Audi-inspired dual- clutch DSG six-speed automatic trans- mission is available for $1,400. It adds paddle-shifters to the spokes of the leather-wrapped steering wheel and its lightning-fast gear changes help accelerate the GTI from 0-100 km/h in 6.9 seconds. The DSG automatic on my tester was also the thriftier transmission of the two, with a fuel economy rating of 8.7/6.3L/100km (city/hwy). My more enthusiastic- real world results were 9.9l/100km (combined). Engine power is never the last word in performance and the GTI benefits from a lightweight sport suspension and a full suite of handling technologies that keep the car shiny side up. They include ABS braking, Anti-Slip Regulation (ASR), Electronic Differential Lock (EDL), Electronic Stabilization Program (ESP), and the all-new Electronic Transverse Differential Lock System (XDS). Developed from VWs racing experi- ence, XDS monitors input from the wheel sensors to transfer torque to the wheel with the most traction under heavy cornering. The sum of those technologies is the kind of thrilling performance that takes you to the edge of excitement but never quite beyond, a predictable, toss-able quality that makes the GTI such a joy to drive. Thinking back to that AJAC Car of the Year testing session I mentioned earlier, thats why, despite the scientific seriousness of the judges, the 2010 VW Golf GTI seemed to be the one car almost consistently out on the track for, ahem, re-testing. And its also why, as a result, it wound up winning its category as Best New Sport Performance Car under $50,000 and garnering one of the final- ist positions for overall Car of the Year. The 2010 VW Golf GTI Im not sure whether it will win Car of the Year. But it got my vote regardless. The 2010 Volkswagen Golf GTI, as tested here, a three-door modern evolution of the hot hatch in Tornado red with optional 18-inch wheels, combining 200 hp pock- et rocket performance with the friendly functionality of a versatile hatchback any oil change package $ 5OFF any oil change package $ 345 Speers Rd., Oakville Valid at all GTA locations. Expiry: Jan. 31, 2010 Code: 5443 See store for details.