The radiator/condenser looks very exposed to stone & other damage. Same issues as Porsche Boxster/Caymen & 911's.

@butchmeister80

Ай бұрын

Yeah huge gaps there and horrid bumper.

Glad you finally managed to get your hands on the 8.5. I still don’t like the infotainment, just looks stuck on. I would have preferred to have seen the unit enclosed as in the Golf 8.0 but with the 8.5 updates. I need to check out your earlier videos. The black Golf reminded me of the first Golf I owned which was a black W reg 1.8GL Auto with a sunroof. I remember it was built like a tank, especially the doors which were so solid! Keep up with the great content, looking forward to seeing more on the S4 and the 8.5 Clubsport when it lands.

My 2014 MK7 feels like such a premium car now. Gas strut on the bonnet, lockable glove box. nice shiny VW emblem on the engine cover, covered key holes on the door handles.. even the battery has a fabric protective cover. The amount of cost cutting in the MK8 is astonishing.

@tomjardine100

Ай бұрын

Fords are better put together nowdays

@stupot8572

Ай бұрын

Totally agree. I've has 2 MK7's (2013 & 2015) - interior so much better put together, and they 'sound like a Golf' when you open/close the doors. Same canot be said for the MK8 - I know, having had a 2021 MK8 GTi.

@mudskipper0075

Ай бұрын

VW know it doesn’t matter how shit they make them people will still queue up to buy them…mental..🙄

@tomjardine100

Ай бұрын

@@mudskipper0075 Power of the badge

@shotta287

Ай бұрын

And the Mk6 felt even better than the Mk7

FYI piano black is still on facelift on Style trim and above. The life trim never got gloss back. Wheel buttons were always on Mk8 on life and style trims, was never about age only about spec.

@dbzbuzu

28 күн бұрын

this is the life?

@oscartaylor8834

28 күн бұрын

@@dbzbuzu this is the match, which is the life trim with a few added options (new for facelift)

That tablet looks like its just glued there

@eponymous7910

Ай бұрын

I think they look far better when oriented vertically. It definitely looks like an afterthought when slapped atop the dash like that

@Corsa15DT

Ай бұрын

@@eponymous7910 but maybe it will be cheapto replace it like this

@informedcarpet

15 күн бұрын

The 8 looks so much better, I might grab an 8 before they are all gone. That tablet stuck to the dashboard is dreadful.

I count myself very lucky to have a top spec GTi mk 7.5. Build quality is top notch and nice integrated screen with no distracting tech to get in the way of your driving experience. Given prices in Ireland for a new mk GTi club sport is 60k euros, there is no way I would ever be bothered changing.

Wish i'd bought a new 7.5 fully (fully!)-loaded manual performance gti back in 2019-could kick myself.....what a bargain it would have been (and i'd still have it now as a first owner).

Golf 7/7.5 is peak Golf . 8/8.5 just doesn’t do it for me, looks far less premium than it’s predecessor.

@user-sl4lm1rw5e

Ай бұрын

AGREE..

@front2427

Ай бұрын

@@user-sl4lm1rw5e I can't see past my Toledo 1.6 tdi nav e

@front2427

Ай бұрын

138k

@r3games1985

Ай бұрын

No way mk8 is 70% Audi and it shows in the fit a finish. Materials and way more upscale.

@DarrenJMHughes

Ай бұрын

Agree too. I think I may stick with my 20 mk7.5 gti performance.

Having had 2 MK7's (a GT TDi 150 and a GTD) then later a MK8 GTi, I have to say that the latest version (like the MK8) is now little better in fit and finish than a Ford Focus, where in the past the Golf always stood out for its top notch build quality. I kept the GTi for 2 years, and actually did consider holding on to it for much longer. There was always some trim related sounds from day 1 (mainly from the door cards) - but this only got worse as the miles racked up. Even weirder at around 15K miles, the door seals started making some odd noises which I figured were related to body flexing. Whatever, she got traded in at around 22K miles for a new Audi A3. A drop in power, but a big step up in fit & finish - and that's even taking into account the fact that the current 8Y generation is obviously not at nice inside as the previous 8V gen, as Andrew rightly said when he reviewed one.

I'm not really a fan of the interior on the MK8.5, the Infotainment system is just plonked on there like a massive iPad glued on as an afterthought, the prefacelift had it nicely integrated into the dashboard and wasn't an eyesore.

@YegoYTP

Ай бұрын

@@chrislee6650 i would actually prefer a smaller screen personally they're getting too big like Tesla's now. Not everybody wanting a new car wants a Tesla, car companies should know their place.

I still prefer the Golf MK8's screen weirdly. It looked more integrated rather than just a larger screen plonked on the dash

NOPE..Il stick with my 7.5 gti 3dr.....in my opinion the golf has went downhill with mk8s....Silly expensive now also.....Good review A.

@front2427

Ай бұрын

naw better with the new yin

@orbytl2799

Ай бұрын

same here, im keeping my 3 door mk7 R, just gonna make it a little better each year more door mk8s are hideous looking things

@bestcrazyboy8487

Ай бұрын

@@front2427 what 🤔

@butchmeister80

Ай бұрын

@@orbytl2799 not at at all they look nice and more modern and interiors more modern the mk7 just lose all the water out ther thermostats very 5 minutes an expensive annoying job

@orbytl2799

Ай бұрын

@@butchmeister80 no they dont, they just look wrong, the interior looks cheap and nasty, i have friends who own them, a gti and an R

Am i the only one who prefers golf 8 screen? This tablet put on the dash is lazy. Also, it is too big, 15 inch would be mad

@TraceyAllen

Ай бұрын

I love my mk8 gti. It’s a 23 SE 6sp. On size I agree, I just wish the navigation system was better. It couldn’t find my major Airport, even when I called the info number, she couldn’t find it either. Thank god for android auto.

@charliedalton1778

Ай бұрын

Totally agree

Coming from a 7.0 and 7.5, the 8 feels better put together no rattles or annoying dash noises, also handles better, you get used to the infotainment system, proper climate controls would have been better and the ability to use voice control for some functions, not just higher trim levels I mean it would be safer for all 👍

Sorry man, when I seen the centre console ballsy touchscreen, I've switched off. Heres hoping VW cop on to themselves if there is a MK9. Please just reproduce brand new 7.5s

@ManualFlying

Ай бұрын

Sadly, this is the last legacy golf. They already said the next golf would be electric...

@maxstechnology6363

Ай бұрын

There won’t be a MK9 sadly 😭😭😭

Thanks for the video! I personally prefer the more integrated look of the mark 8 Golf’s infotainment screen. It just blends in with the cabin so much better! This new one looks like they have stuck an iPad onto the cockpit. Ergonomically uncool IMO. Did this MK 8.5 have Chat GPT?

Definitely not a fan of the giant screen, wish they kept it more integrated with the dash like the OG MK8 (similar to how BMW does it). The GUI is very nice though.

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

A bigger screen is good from a functionality perspective but integrating it into dash is beyond the realms of a facelift as I need a new dash moulding. Current A4 is just the same, as are many other brands. It’s not ideal aesthetically granted but it’s a good position and it now seems to work

@Bambotb

Ай бұрын

So why are people syaing mk8 is bad

I really like it, MK8 alone has really been growing on me lately, Mk8.5 looks sharper again and interior seems really good now. Great video.

All decent (high performance) Golfs are now over freakin' 40K (often, very, very strangely, just-over 40K with a few essential options (like...er, solid white paint on your new car)-funny that..hmmmm) and you will be hit with the UK DVLA luxury car tax theft (a VW Golf is a luxury car?-ha ha!-yeah right!). You will pay an EXTRA £400 a freakin' year! for FIVE years in road tax...(£2000). Get this, if you buy a used one-year old high-performance golf for under 40K (when it's original rrp with options was over 40K-especially if the original owner had the basic intelligence to specify DCC-when DCC should be standard anyway...), you still have four years at £400 EXTRA per year to pay! And what's with the horrible generic diamond-cut alloys...they look like s**t.

@20vTurbae

Ай бұрын

This is precisely why you get a mk1,2,3 or 4😂 peak VW

@butchmeister80

Ай бұрын

@@20vTurbae what a 20 year old 150k mile banger no thanks

@20vTurbae

Ай бұрын

@@butchmeister80 23 year auld n just hit 100k laddie😏🚀

The front end just looks weird. Infotainment looks like a step up though. Great video as always!

Nice shade of green on the Passat estate.

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

Indeed, on Tiguan too I think

Looks cheaper than ever quality wise. They’ve made no effort whatsoever to integrate the tablet screen. The Mk8 setup looked better in my opinion.

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

I don’t mind the looks either way (prob because it now looks like my S4) but the functionality of the screen is the priority and it’s good. They can fix the look with Mk9 as it’s too much to change that for facelift. Also not being in dash helps with cooling which means better processing and therefore response

@butchmeister80

Ай бұрын

Is the base model tbf!

@katiecannon8186

Ай бұрын

@@chrislee6650 Why is a tacked on big screen “futuristic”? Lol.

@katiecannon8186

Ай бұрын

@@chrislee6650 lol.

@charliedalton1778

Ай бұрын

Yeah terrible screen integration, looks like an aftermarket bolt on

Shame about the paintwork. When will the topcoat go on?

Gloss black centre trim is standard on style, R line and upwards. Only base model match it’s Matt

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

Is Match base model now?

@JohnGuidetti751

Ай бұрын

@@volkswizard So far on the uk configuration yes.

@oscartaylor8834

Ай бұрын

@@volkswizardno there is a Life trim but there is a couple hundred in it and the match is much better equipped

Big question for me is whether they have fixed the text display when using the radio. It is absolutely pathetic that it is limited to two lines of text, which means that it is almost always truncated with an ellipsis at the end of the second line, when there is a large amount of blank screen beneath it. How come no-one in development has ever noticed that and fixed it?

Hi Andrew, relieved to see overall changes are minimal because your very positive video review of the Mk 8 Black Edition 4 Motion motivated me to track down one of the last available for sale, with good discount, which I collect next week. I have to trust your assurance that the infotainment is manageable , with practice, but at least the old version looks integrated, rather than a stuck on afterthought as in the new model. The radar camera looks very exposed on the new model. I damaged one on a Golf about 10 years ago, hitting an unfortunate fox in the dark, & the repair cost £1k. A lot of changes since my original Mars Red Mk 1 GTI, circa 1979, now smaller than a current Polo.

@HunkumSpunkum

Ай бұрын

dsg.....🤢-changes-up too soon......would be okay with a 500ps engine.....(which the Golf doesn't have).

@dobrien757

Ай бұрын

@@HunkumSpunkumthe dsg in my 2.0 tdi passat is fantastic. always knows the right gear and is responsive.

Great to see mk1.5 Golf on uk heritage fleet given 50 year anniversary coming up - we had local build mk1 from 75/76 alongside Passat and Audi 80 Fox build before full import from 77 then ceased with GLD late 80/81 thx to quotas and exchange rates. All our Golfs came with 1.6 as ADR27A from July 76 mandated EGR meant we got Swedish engine spec as they had similar emission laws. Sadly this meant no GTI until later mk2 in unleaded 8v form. The mk8 supply to Australia has been low since covid thx to VW Australia focus on SUV market and supply issues. The 8.5 upgrade is good but I do hope we get a Clubsport but may need to wait until GTI 50 anniversary. I much prefer A class screen set up and A180/200 locally much more popular than base Golf 👍🤓

I like the Golf, but so far haven't bought one. Currently looking to change, but for £30k for the model featured, I can get a 73' plate A4 S Line with 5k miles for £28k. For me, the Audi is a much better proposition.

@ahmadmohamad6384

16 күн бұрын

I saw a 73 plate A4 Sline with 500 miles sell for £26k the other day.

Somehow they have made it less appealing that the Seat/Cupra/Skoda... Embarrassing really that the brand is now behind it's 'less premium' family members. I genuinely think VW has completely lost its way.

Thanks for the video. I think the new headlights are a little bit less fussy and they've done the best they could without retooling the metalwork. However, that entertainment screen looks like such an afterthought. It almost looks like you could yank it off and the old one would be stuck behind it. The back of the front seats look they've improved the map pockets so they don't sag but those saggy mobile phone pockets are designed for a child to rip them apart. The centre console is interesting because the preview photos showed the piano black surround but maybe that will be on the higher spec. I love how you have to pay more for easily scratched plastics, but Kia does this too.

Just ordered the mk 8.5 R LINE VERY IMPRESSIVE CAR LOVED THE MK 7.5 WE HAD

@Capt-Canhead

Ай бұрын

You'll like the 7.5 interior better I guarantee

@FeN1xDD

Ай бұрын

Which color did you order?

@gordonwilkinson4389

Ай бұрын

@@FeN1xDD ice chrysal blue with a black roof

@marcl9587

Ай бұрын

I ordered on 30 april in Belgium a oryx white golf 8.5 R-Line. Delivery time is august.

@gordonwilkinson4389

Ай бұрын

Very nice colour 👌

Thanks Andrew. Whilst the exterior isn't hugely different, the pastel metallic is a welcome return, and hope it's available on the GTI/R models.... 👍

The Toyota style tablet was the deal breaker for me. I ended with a MK8. Is true the 8 has its own miscues, but that tablet, no way, horrendous.

Year's ago I already came to the conclusion that cars and car reviews are dying when the most important subject matter of a new car is the giant tablet mounted on the dashboard. 😧

thank you for the clip. does this model has ambient light in the front and rear doors panel ?

I’d prefer the Skoda Octavia than the golf

Really? Big floating tablet is ugly.

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

A lot of people have big screen in their houses, I think they can add to some rooms

My Mk 7 golf gti is better with old fashioned switches and rotary dials. No stabbing looking at a Lap top / i pad. Next car will NOT be VW. Honda Civic Hybrid or Mazda 3 ! Unless VW re invent what worked years ago.

I like the facelift headlights

All these touch screen cars with no buttons need to be scrapped there not as easy to use as normal buttons like in the Mk7. I have owned both mk7 and mk8

They should have made the screen wider / bigger

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

That’s 12.9 inch, 15 will be option on some models and trust me that’s H U G E

@HunkumSpunkum

Ай бұрын

Are you kidding...

@ramqashou1002

Ай бұрын

​@volkswizard pretty sure the golf maxes out at 12.9, only the tiguan, passat get the 15

Great video. I have a black 2020 Mk7.5 GTE and looking to change it to the Mk8 facelift GTE. do you know anymore details on when you can order and deliveries? Is there an event I could see one at? You mentioned something about July? Cheers

Right I’m at the gym entertain me geezer 😊

@20vTurbae

Ай бұрын

You probs entertain yourself posing in the mirrors ya roaster

Does the .5 mean vw add five grand on for changing a bit of plastic lol

@chrislee6650

Ай бұрын

In the UK there was no price difference.

Can’t wait to get my hands on one of these! Definitely my next car.

@Natalie-ju1qn

Ай бұрын

Don't do it

@ItsMe_Sam

Ай бұрын

@@Natalie-ju1qn why? 😯

@Natalie-ju1qn

Ай бұрын

@ItsMe_Sam I have a Mk8 r line you can tell thr quality isn't what the mk7 was. The 8.5 wil be no different

@ItsMe_Sam

Ай бұрын

@@Natalie-ju1qn ok good to know

@lfcjay

Ай бұрын

Get it

The R Black series looks finally not like junk. But I would go for the new Rs3. Much more torque and power

Base price here in Germany is 27k and 58k for the R

Wow that A to B in misery ! Ugly car what are VW at ?? MK7.5 last handsome golf .

30k for essentially an almost entry level Golf. Prices are crazy, not just of Golf's/ VW but of most manufacturers compared to average family income.

Much prefer the screen of my Mk 8. Fortunately it was one of the last to be built and most of the glitches in the infotainment had been resolved by this time. Only issue remains the unlit sliders. Only wish VW had saved money by fixing the sliders and kept the much better integrated smaller screen and re introduced the gas strut for the bonnet.

Golf 8.5 or Corolla? What are your thoughts?

I like that a lot

Shame that vw dont offer leather in the golf

Didnt mention the front headlights are different

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

I’ve learned to let the video do the talking when it comes to things I’m not too sure on

@BrianMcCann421

Ай бұрын

@@volkswizard just me being picky, good video by the way 👍

I quite like it - hated the 8 but it’s a step in the right direction. I’d rather an Octavia. Is the under bonnet still just basic primer? Glad the crap seat quality of the Life is gone and at least the front end is a slight improvement.

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

Under bonnet is identical unfortunately, stark contrast to fully painted Civic

@ST-ur7oh

Ай бұрын

@@volkswizard hate that

If the 8.5gti drives as good as the 8 was but with all the issue sorted with the infotainment sorted I’d be all in

Good job on getting the scoop on the new Golf, very helpful for those of us in the states looking forward to the revised GTI.

Prefer the interior of my Golf 7.5. I hate these new infotainment systems. The exterior looks nice.

Well done Andrew a great video and review of the 8.5 havjng owned a moonstone 8 as you know I think the new screen is a good upgrade and addresses hopefully most of the failings of the 8 Its a shame they’ve downgraded the rear door trims my t roc is the same as that hope the excellent mood lighting has survived

Looks alright and I’m glad this one has proper buttons on the wheel. Still dull though

@volkswizard

29 күн бұрын

Apparently new R keeps the haptic wheel as vw didn’t have the cash to re do the traditional button one with a separate R button

Infotainment very fast he says as he has to keep pressing before it responds and also has to keep pinching nav screen before anything happens!

Nice little quick video on the new 8.5 Golf & awesome to actually see the new dash with new Steering wheel buttons WooHoo!!😃👌🏻👍🏻

That big and hideous central screen is a real downer for me. I recently took the new Tiguan for a drive and was so underwhelmed we discounted it immediately and it was the R Line too. The VW interiors are becoming and feeling cheap. Thank goodness they drive so well eh! Thanks for the review, I like your presentation style.

What happened to the climate screen option?

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

Climate wasn’t the problem as such as numerous brands have it integrated into the screen now, the sliders beneath screen not being illuminated was the main issue and this is fixed. Unlike Škoda Octavia and Cupra Leon, there is a short cut pad with a button to go straight to climate if you need it, voice control alters it too👍

@HunkumSpunkum

Ай бұрын

@@volkswizard No, the heated windscreen....the equivalent of Ford's 'Quickclear' windscreen. I have it on my 7.5 Match Edition-what happened to this option (like so many other options which could once be specified)?

Black Edition or black series. I forgot the name

Pfff my golf days are over now for ever.... Still enjoying my 3 doors mk7 Gti Clubsport for years to come i hope, because this aint it. Less quality, higher prices, i hope VW will collapse. Ive had it with that brand.

@butchmeister80

Ай бұрын

You like your clubsport but want the brand to collapse ? Makes sense.. not

@billx4266

Ай бұрын

@@butchmeister80 you not so smart you not comment

My pre-delivery inspection would comprise of checking to see if the touchscreen with haptic buttons have been binned or not

Interior looks really really cheap to me. The seats are awful and loads of scratchy plastics. The screen doesn't look particularly well integrated either.

Its a big lump of grey boredom 😂, its totally lacking any thing that says wow......id rather have an id3 👍 and it would beat it hads down away at the lights 😂. Its got nothing going for it ....sorry thats my appinion.

@keeper4299

Ай бұрын

*opinion

My only criticism is that the new centre screen looks like they just stuck a tablet on the dash rather than the one on the Golf 8 which looked like it was an extension of the dashboard resulting in a more stylish look.

the new console in the middle is far too big.... looks like a IBM terminal from 1970!

It’s just not for me. £27500 for a Hyundai I30N back in March 2018. What on earth has happened to the car market? Anyway, I’d always go 2nd hand and low mileage for my cars now. £25k for a Mercedes A45 2017 with 22k miles will do me nicely. Upgraded to a 12.3 inch screen with wireless car play and touch screen, awd, and panoramic sunroof. Just don’t see the attraction in buying new, run of the mill cars, that break the bank.

Living, as I do, in a rural area the constant risk of badgers and pheasants etc would soon take out that radar sensor, and what appears to be very exposed radiator pack. Otherwise yes an improvement, shame they didn’t get it better the first time after golf 7.

My last Golf was a Mk7.5 R, before that the last of the Mk7 GTI's. the Mk8 does nothing for me. Currently have a Tiguan. Ive owned every Mk of Golf GTI except the mk3, I'll probably go Audi next time

Had a 7.5 5 door gti. Best car I’ve ever owned.

Looks like it's made extremely cheaply. The 7.5 was much more premium looking. All the left over space on both sides of the instrument cluster looks like it's missing something. Not for me anyway

Mk1-4 is peak VW

@danielrussell446

Ай бұрын

I would also say the mk7 and 7.5 were as well

Glad I bought a 7.5 gti performance 👍

@Cripinub1

Ай бұрын

Looks much better than any mk8

I really like the new Golf 🤗

Hi volkswizard, is there a press embargo at the moment, when can we expect to see and hear drive reviews.

Looks very slightly more like an actual golf on the outside but obsolete inside.

I don't understand why anyone would want a car painted in what appears to be the undercoat grey primer. Mystifies me. I love my 7.5 GTi and am really struggling to summon up the enthusiasm to replace it with a newer model. I've never felt like this about a car before I don't think. I also hate some things like the shiny black plastic and the strip of light across the grill. Thank god physical steering wheel controls are back! Thanks for the video!

Exited for the new Golf R

They’ve changed the steering wheel to the exact one used in the new polo lmao

So VW have now gone back to putting the front radar where it was on the MK7! On the MK7.5 it was in the Badge. Still no physical heater controls 🤦🏻‍♂️ Price increased! Nah!

Retractable wing mirrors? Couldn’t believe they were not available on my 1 yo R line, really miss them. I dislike the piano black trim.

@danielrussell446

Ай бұрын

You had to buy the pack with them in my life was the same

I think the interior of the Mk 7.5 looks very dated now when compared to the much more modern more minimalist look of the Mk 8.

@tomjardine100

Ай бұрын

Mk8 will age quickly as technology advances fast. Mk7 will still feel classy in 10 years time

@eponymous7910

Ай бұрын

The mk6 is still the pinnacle of golf interiors. The red buttons illuminated at night were pretty special

Too bad they discontinued the Golf in North America except the GTI and the R.

So you have to play around with a screen. Give me an old school sports car any day. 😅

Great video Andrew. Looks like VW are playing it safe to me. Can't wait to see the GTI

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

Thanks Rasher, GTI is good with 20 more hp but looks like Clubsport could be a corker, 7 days until we find out 🤗

@rasherbasher8203

Ай бұрын

@@volkswizard can't wait for that👍

@mickydoi

Ай бұрын

Had my clubsport for about a year. Hope it's a let down so I don't need to upgrade 😂

Well done tracking the car down. For me personally I find the new entertainment screen a massive distraction to concentrating on driving like most new cars positively dangerous.😮

Thank you Andrew Great all round car can’t beat a golf Looking forward to seeing the GTI Have a great weekend VDub:)

@volkswizard

Ай бұрын

Thanks again JB, 7 days to Clubsport reveal 🤞

That looks hideous....good lord.

Most comments are split over the screen size, position and price. We can't all be wrong. VW have stuck on a new screen with pretty minimal changes elsewhere i.m.o. Shame that screen couldn't have been a retro fit for us Mk8 owners. Mk9 GTI EV for 50K to celebrate the 50th anniversary? How sad.

After having a mk8 golf gti and all the problems I had with it,that has put me right off ever getting another golf

I had a mk8 ordered and after delayed delivery I cancelled. If I had taken delivery I would have only had it a year before the 8.5 would have come ... no thanks vw

Wonder why the acc isn’t behind the badge , unless cos this is a lower spec

Definitely an improvement over the Mk8. Any ideas when we'll see this in the US market - we're usually a year or two behind which is a shame

Great review Andrew, looking forward to the future review of the new Clubsport 👏👏👏

What language options are there?